Fancy flight and flight of fancy

Fancy flights and a failed flight of fancy stock the pre-Xmas blog stocking. First up, Green Pygmy Geese (Nettapus pulchellus) take off - trailing a few drops of water - across a scleria backdrop at the main lagoon yesterday.

Near perfect group of Magpie Geese (Anseranas semipalmata) flukily fills the frame. Lucky, uncropped shot offers range of wing variation and positioning. Not something to plan for. Unlike shot below of MG cruising over the lagoon.

Hard to plan for in-flight shot of immature Nankeen Night-Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus). Just the one bird, probably, and no set routine or favourite roost. But something spooked this bird the other morning and in its flap it scarcely noticed me watching an Oriental Cuckoo nearby (yes, the one that I missed in flight).

And here's a Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) passing beneath me at the Tyto lookout. Plenty of to-and-fro always with the species, but usually too far off.

Finally, today's picture that's just plain off. You can possibly see the plan, but nothing quite panned out. Didn't persist because parent Bush Thick-knee (Burhinus grallarius) was getting a bit toey. Season's grittings ...