This is January 2024

Published on by bushboy

A quick summation of January, bloody hot and bloody wet

It wasn’t the weather to get out and about, I did a bit of Summer hibernation and most of the photos are from cool morning and afternoon wanders about my place. It is the season for storms and there certainly has been a few as well as lots of “storm bird” calling. Also called Common Koels, they migrate here for Summer and I seemed to have more than my fair share of Koels. I discovered why when I looked up what the eat. Figs. Guess who has a fig tree in their garden!!!! More on that later

As there has been lots of storms, it’s appropriate that I suggest listening to The Doors, Riders on the Storm, for your scrolling listening

As usual I like to start at daybreak. Some of the morning skies have been grey and at other times, the sky has been lit with colour at sunrise.

There has been a lot of foggy mornings as well.

The rain and heat have been ideal for fungi. I haven’t done a fungi hunt and the couple I have found have gone by the afternoon. Golden fungi growing below a palm

The figs. I am not 100% sure of the variety as there are over 200 types of figs and some are quite similar. I could probably key it out but laziness at the moment. They do have a lot of seed and the fruits are quite fig like. I did have a small taste for a second. Not recommended and it did leave my lip numb for a few seconds more.

Unripe figs and water drops

Guess who else likes fig. Figbirds of course. Here is a female having a munch

A male Figbird contemplating which part of the tree looks the best for snacking

It is not common to see Koels on the ground as they are usually a canopy top bird. This female Koel is on the ground chilling with some Peaceful Doves

Satin Bowerbirds also enjoy a meal of figs. A female Satin Bowerbird making her selection

A male Satin Bowerbird doing the same at the Fig Tree

The most exciting bird to come and explore the delights of the Fig Tree were a couple of White-headed Pigeons. The first time I have seen them on my place.

The Blue-faced Honeyeaters preferred to eat elsewhere. This one is seeing if any bananas are ready to eat.

The Noisy Friarbirds were having a hard time. This one was gathering nesting materials in the garden. Unfortunately, Friarbird nests seem to be a Koels favourite place to lay their eggs.

Scarlet Honeyeaters have been all around the garden as a lot of the Tea Tree and Paperbarks have been flowering as well as some Bottlebrush having a second flowering.

At first I thought the Silvereye was taking spider web for a nest as it kept pulling. Once I down loaded the photo I can see the remains of the spider it was eating.

A Kookaburra was sitting in the tree for ages in the rain hoping something would try to move to a drier spot and become its lunch.

I heard the squawk in the trees and saw a Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo in a tree in the garden. It didn’t stay long so I was glad I managed a quick photo.

Nearly everyday the Square-tailed Kite soars in the skies above the house, and the neighbours chickens.

Instead of wasting spoiled food I sometimes feed the animals and in this case, Tiny the King Parrot dropped in for some strawberries.

Oscar the Bearded Dragon who was living on the verandah and the garden nearby loved mandarine. I haven’t seen Oscar for over a week now so I hope he OK and decided to be big and brave and live in the bush.

Satty the Satin Bowerbird didn’t mind a bit of mandarine as well, often taking a piece in his beak and head off into the bush. I think he may be feeding a sitting female or chicks.

The Norfolk Island Pine has fruits way up high

I saw two of these trees in a garden in town. The bark looked familiar. They are white Crepe Myrtles

My Jacaranda tree decided to have a last hurrah with flowers. I have seen a couple of trees in town with flowers as well.

The last Frangipanni tree to flower

A walk around the garden and I found all these flowers peering out from some bushes. I had forgotten the Pandorea had been planted down there as well.

Here is a Fallen Bark Looper Moth who was sheltering from the rain on a plant label

The Lemon Migrant Butterflies are around the garden and there are more everyday. I love having these lovely butterflies around all day in the garden. This one is on a Pentas flower.

There have been a few Blue Triangle Butterflies around as well, my favourite butterfly

I disturbed the Stingless Native Bee on the Gazania but I think its pollen sacs were full anyway judging by the shadow.

I followed an insect I hadn’t seen before. It is an Orange Collared Spider Wasp trying to get away again. It never sat long enough for a photo.

Over at the dam I had a few Dragonflies checking me out This is possibly an Australian Emerald Dragonfly

There were also a few spiders hanging around on grass seed stalks

The little Joey and his Mum have been having breakfast in the garden most mornings

Our Moon is up so it must be time to finish Januarys Changing Season.

I hope you enjoyed your scroll through my world. Any photo in particular that caught your eye?

Don’t forget to join in The Changing Seasons, it doesn’t have to be a long post. Just a few words and a photo or two will do.

About The Changing Seasons

The Changing Seasons is a monthly project where bloggers around the world share their thoughts and feelings about the month just gone. We all approach this slightly differently, though generally with an emphasis on the photos we’ve taken during the month.

For many of us, looking back over these photos provides the structure and narrative of our post, so each month is different. Some focus on documenting the changes in a particular project — such as a garden, an art or craft project, or a photographic diary of a familiar landscape.

But in the end, it is your changing season, and you should approach it however works for you.

There are no fixed rules around post length or photo number — just a request that you respect your readers’ time and engagement.

Tags and ping-backs

Tag your photos with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them

Create a ping-back to Ju-Lyn at Touring My Backyard or this post, so that we can update it with links to all of yours.

46 thoughts on “This is January 2024”

  2. Hot and damp it may be, but your world is stunning, Brian. The blue faced honeyeater is my favourite. He could stop by my place for a banana any time. I’d even peel it! Love that Riders on the Storm vid too. Extraordinary, and a great piece of music.

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    1. Thank you Jo 🥰 The Blue-faced are quite pretty birds, luckily the bananas aren’t all that nice, a bit floury….no a lot floury, so birds are welcome to them.
      It’s the first time I have seen the Rider on the Storm video too. I have always loved The Doors music.

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  7. Spectacular gallery of images Brian! I can hear the bird calls and smell the scents of the many blooms – rich, intoxicating, a riot of colour & sound! Looks like it’s as wet where you are as it is here in Singapore!

    I love the glimpse at Oscar … I wonder if he has shown up again?

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    1. Thank you Ju-Lyn 🙂 The rain is coming from up there, across the top of Australia and sweeping down here.
      I think he may be gone unfortunately. He’s been gone before for a few days but always pops back but never this long 🥲

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      1. We just lost the tree outside our bedroom window (we are 7 stories up and the tree was even taller – it fell last weekend!) and are missing the birds and squirrels that used to sit outside our window

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  8. Brian, your end-of-month photos are always so stunning; it’s almost an embarrassment to share mine! My hubby was sitting right here next to me, so we went through all your pictures a couple of times. I can’t get over all the varieties of birds you have, and now you have Jo offering to come over and hand-feed bananas to the Honeyeaters. LOL. Did you know our eucalyptus trees are not as strong as yours because they grow differently in the northern hemisphere? We do have tons of them, especially in CA and AZ. (A little off-topic, but that way you get to listen in to where our conversation went once we got to the butterflies.) I love the Blue Triangle Butterfly. I just read a post on stingless bees. Interesting!

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    1. That is a lovely comment Marsha 🥰 I didn’t know that eucalypts didn’t grow as strong over there and are probably a weed. I know our Tea Trees are a weed in Florida wetlands. I am glad you like Blue Triangles Marsha.
      Stingless Native Bees are fascinating 😃

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      1. I just learned that about the eucalypts today. I didn’t check Vince’s facts, but it might make a good topic. We have big gorgeous trees here on our bike path. In CA our neighbor grew them in OUR yard before we moved in because they grow so fast and make great firewood. They definitely grow tall and fast. I would guess maybe 8-12 inches a year.

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  12. Love your work, so many different birds in your area, riders on the storm indeed, my apartment terrace is visited mostly by sparrows, mynahs, pigeons, seagulls, doves, crows, and the occasional parrot or rosella. I am still waiting for my miniature frangipani (Hymenosporum Flavum) to flower, moved to to a sunnier spot a year ago and have fertilized it and it looks very healthy, but still no fragrant flowers- this can be a sulky plant apparently, I will persist, regards Graeme Davy 4TR.

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    1. Thank you Graeme. Your terrace has lots of visitors. It will be good when the Frangipanni flowers. I have them all around the house and the evening is filled with their scent

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  13. So many birds, including fig-eating birds. I loved Tiny the King Parrot – so colorful and Oscar munching down on treats. And the Joey, not colorful, but CUTE! Your colorful flora and fauna leaves me breathless I have a few berries on my Holly bush. 🙂

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      1. I am envious of all your birds you see Brian. I’m waiting on our Red-winged Blackbirds to return from Winter mgration and they come to the marshes and sing their hearts out in March. We know Spring has arrived then.

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    1. Not really, the Peaceful Doves like to chill in the sun there every day. One morning there were about ten or more. I saw them and when I went back into the kitchen and looked out the window, they were still there. I was hoping there wasn’t some sort of mass deaths. When I went out they all flew off. I think they were drunk on fermented figs 😂

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  15. So much to enjoy! The photos and your storytelling. I have never seen White-headed Pigeons before, and the little Kookaburra surrounded by raindrops is cute. Hopefully Oscar is on a grand adventure. All wonderful. 🤗

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    1. Thank you ever so much Michele 🤗
      I do hope Oscar is OK as well and having the time of his life in the bush.
      You’ll just have to pop over and you’ll be able to see the White-headed Pigeons for yourself 🤞😉

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