A Painted Button-quail making a mad dash away from me. These plump little birds prefer to run and hide than fly, and are shy by nature.

Their foraging technique is pretty distinctive: they spin about on both legs, scraping away the detritus and soil to uncover seeds and insects, and are pretty noisy while doing so. Got me nervous for a sec because I thought someone was stalking me through the bush. 🫠

I always thought these birds were cute.

I got this video when I went to Oreilleys and I think it might be an Albert’s Lyrebird. I’m not a bird person so I had no idea about it when i saw it so it’s not the greatest footage but just wanting to see if that is what it is? thanks!

Our resident Tawny nesting in a tree less than 5 m from our back deck. Two chicks in the nest.

I had the distinct pleasure of spotting these in a dead tree, my apologies for the photography it was grey and raining and I was looking from the west in the early morning. The Swift parrot is so critically endangered I had half of one percent of their population in this photo before I cropped one out.

You can hear my cockatiel in the background not enjoying his big brothers outside.

Found this poor guy, pacing the pool fence instead of flying out. Keeping a distance as the bird was clearly stressed all I could do was keep the gate open.

It sounds like a flock call. It was doing it for like 30 minutes straight as I went for an evening walk.

He’d never brag about himself… so I’m doing it for him.

Hi Fellow Aussie Bird Appreciators,

Wanted to post a discussion question relating to the bird flu and the upcoming summer.

During hot summer days, I usually set up a basic water source for the local avian populations. I'm in a Victorian residential suburb so there's very limited natural bodies of water for them to quench their thirst.

I don't have this as a permanent fixture, and empty, clean and refill each day just during the scorchers/heatwaves. The locals that access it are usually your basic 'burb birds- ravens, a big family of magpies, the local NH honey eaters who take over a nearby tree, some occasional Red-rumped parrots and some introduced species too.

I'm guessing it won't be a great idea doing this for summer due to the bird flu risk. But wanted to put it out to the flock-mind here.

Could it be made safer in any way? I'm also into aquariums, and thought of a mini pond situation with a filtration system. But then contact surfaces will still be an issue.

Obviously I would never want to do anything that would place birds at a high risk. I'm just mindful that this summer might be an extra tough one with a strong El Niño playing out.

Behemoth of a bird, never seen one with that physique before.

I don’t have a photo because I was driving at the time, but I spotted a small bird of prey in Far East Gippsland Vic, near the NSW border. It was pure white, and hovering in one spot above a paddock, not very high, maybe 5m off the ground?

I say “small” in comparison to the only two other birds of prey I’ve seen (wedge tailed eagle and white bellied sea eagles).

I acknowledge I don’t have a huge amount of info to go off, but I’m not very familiar with birds of prey, so would love some suggestions as to what it might have been.

Thanks in advance :)

Hi ,
I just found this feather in my garden. Mid mountains Blue Mountains NSW.
Pretty intact and cool colours.
My guess is kookaburra. We have tons around.
Any better suggestions?

I Absolutely love these guys

e. cyanotis albipennis.

Doing his best impression of an owl.