Cuckoo?

[flossybeth]

I was just tidying the living room and was sure I heard a cuckoo outside, went to the door to listen properly and although the bin lorry decided to rumble past I still think the sound was cuckoo rather than wood pigeon - are there cuckoos here or am I just more homesick then I realised?

[Guest Claire-n-tel]

Nope sounds like you weren't imagining it!

 

http://www.ozanimals.com/wildlife/Bird/Cuckoos.html

[cliffy]

http://www.ozanimals.com/wildlife/Bird/Cuckoos.html

Well, you learn something new every day!!!

[Diane]

If you hear the noise at night it's usually a Boobok Owl http://derek5491.tripod.com/id17.html

[Guest Sarah1986]

Awe I knew there were owls in Australia my partner said I was mad! Ha ha I have heard them too

[sueoc]

I was pleasantly surprised when arriving here to see Blackbirds,as these birds are my favourite.Their song still amazes me,as it is so beautiful.A nice reminder of childhood summer days.It is great to see them surviving here,despite the many predators.All i need now is a Song Thrush in my garden to make my life complete!!!

[Diane]

Don't let a local hear you say that Sue - our neighbour is always moaning about the non-native blackbirds killing all the native birds!

[sueoc]

Don't let a local hear you say that Sue - our neighbour is always moaning about the non-native blackbirds killing all the native birds!

Are you sure they are talking about the same bird Diane?The Blackbird feeds on worms,seeds and insects!Maybe they mean those nasty Indian Mynah Birds.I've seen them attacking and killing birds,often weak or defenceless ones.The ozzies should be delighted to have the lovely Blackbirds singing their refrains in the mornings!

[Diane]

Well she pointed at what I know as a UK-style blackbird and told me it was non-native and attacked the local birds... she may have been blaming it wrongly though... some of the more traditional Aussies think anything non-native is the devil incarnate (not that they're not wrong in many cases!)

[wizzywozza]

We occassionally get a boobook in the gum tree at the bottom of our garden, usually at night, and it 'cuckoos' for what ssems like hours sometimes. Drives me nuts in the middle of the night ...... I'm just waiting for our pet lorikeet to mimic it

[DougM]

Aha, maybe my question has been answered. We have a Blackbird nesting in our entertainment area.

 

 

On checking whilst the parents were away, I found 3 eggs. Left to their job of hatching said eggs, I was later very surprised to see on one chick came to pass, and it was huge.

 

 

I assumed it was a Cuckoo and was even more sure when, after it had flown, I heard what sounded like a Cuckoo late at night a few days later. The Blackbirds came back a raised another set of 3 and the chicks were the size I'd expect.

 

 

 

The last one to go, nearly didn't make it. Being the 'runt' of the set, he didn't have to strength to fly to the back hedge were mum was calling him and he came to earth in front of my Cavalier dog.

 

 

Now Jack is so soft, he wouldn't hurt a fly. Well that's a lie, he loves to catch and eat them but anyway, he cornered to chick, Mum went wild and got me on my feet. Never heard such a din. I rescued said chick and put it back in the nest. Next day same thing happened but this time I opened the garage door and let the chick take cover in the front yard bushes where mother found him, etc, etc. Presumably, he/she survived.

 

Mum is now back on her nest with another set of 3 eggs, and life goes on.

FWIW, Jack cornered a Sparrow the other day and licked it to death, poor thing. Other than being very wet, there wasn't a mark on it.

[flossybeth]

That's a fantastic set of photos Doug.

 

And thanks everyone for letting me know there are cuckoos here, although I haven't heard it since.

[DougM]

That's a fantastic set of photos Doug.

 

And thanks everyone for letting me know there are cuckoos here, although I haven't heard it since.

 

I'm still not sure if it was a cuckoo, but it sure wasn't a blackbird.