Messing about along the river's banks

Ratty, Mole and Co loved messing about in boats. Without boat, next best is messing about on riverbanks. One river running through Townsville City, so been messing about along Ross River. Above, female Magpie Goose preening in paperbark growing alongside a footbridge.

Waiting hungrily below, Short-necked River Turtle (a natural Greeny), one of scores on view (and thousands along the Ross). Stand for a while looking down on the river and the turtles hurtle (speed is relative) closer in hope of easy feed.

Downriver the other day, Pacific Black Duck adult looks caring but all is not as it seems. Duckling should have been elsewhere with seven siblings and parents but had become separated, maybe ducknapped. It paddled off upstream alone soon after in search of family.

Also alone one day in the same area, where Aplins Weir holds the freshwater Ross back from the tidal Ross, Australian Pelican looks ever bit as content to be on the river as ever were Ratty, Mole and Co. Musn't be too boyhoodish though: paperbarks good, willows bad generally for Australian rivers.

Flights and flight of fancy

Flighty things, birds. Great Crested Tern (Thalasseus bergii) at Dungeness today.

Silver Gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae) at Dungeness.

Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) taking off at Tyto.

Little Black Cormorant (Phalacrocorax sulcirostris) at Tyto.

And one for fun, Pied Oystercatchers (Haematopus longirostris) at Lucinda, with flighty fellow out of line.
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Eyes out for Little Black Cormorant

Fluked capture of Little Black Cormorant's (Phalacrocorax sulcirostris) brilliant eye colour yesterday.

Today, got much closer to one bird for long time. Wouldn't you know it, colour nothing to write home about. Sometimes it's breeding stage, sometimes angle of light and lens. 

So, I've written it up here anyway. And I'm not writing off hopes of better to come.

Also wishing a few more Australian Pelicans (Pelecanus conspicillatus) might cruise by Tyto. Closer to the camera.

And that the Australasian Darters (Anhinga novehollandiae) would get down from the heights of Leichhardt trees. 
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Big stork stalks closer

Immature Black-necked Stork (Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus) surprised me by stalking slightly towards me rather than away as I watched from the other side of a shallow pool in Tyto yesterday, but drew the line at about 30 metres. The birds usually respond to intruders by quietly altering course and easing off into the distance. If followed they fly off (below, from earlier in week - perhaps the same bird, though 2-3 immatures drop in at times).

Another big bird Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) circles above main lagoon. It's one of a pair temporarily in the wetlands after recent rains lifted the main lagoon by about 15cm. (Which has also brought in more Whiskered Terns).

And a Magpie Goose (Anseranas semipalmata), one of many coming daily to the wetlands and returning to surrounding areas before sunset. (A popular night roost during the now-finished cane crush was atop the loaded bins of the cane trains).