July 1956 School Magazine

July, 1956

Brisbane Girls' Grammar School Magazine

Brisbane Girls' Grammar School Magazine

July, 1956

sweet clear song in the middle of the day, when other birds are resting. More familiar to most people, is the Kingfisher fa mily. The Kookaburra is the Giant Kingfisher. Actually there are four Kingfishers in the Brisbane area. The purple, blue and white Forest Kingfisher is common in suburban gardens. Similar to the Forest Kingfisher in shape and size, but of a light satiny green on head a nd back, light buff on breast and neck and with two d istinct dark bands on the back of the neck is the Sacred Kingfisher. More rare ly seen is the Azure Kingfisher which never moves far from water. This b eautiful bird has a gorgeous purple a nd orange plumage. The rarest of the Brisbane species is the Mangrove Kingfisher which is slightly larger in head and body than the other Kingfisher. Its colouring merges with the green of the mangroves. The Red-backed Sea Eagle keeps our shores free of sea snake s. It also enjoys fi sh and crabs which it scoops up from the sea with its claws. This bird is familiar alw to India, Burma a nd the Pacific Islands . Indian Sea-hawk is the meaning of its generic name-Haliaster Indu s. M::Jst of the birds that are com- mon in the Moreton District fly at the end of summer to China or Siberia and fly back to Australia when the summer ends in the Northern Hemisphere. We wonder how these birds find their way; how these small birds such as Dotterels achieve this physical feat. The White-necked Heron is the largest b ird in the Brisbane district. Its height is well over two feet. This bird is seen around the Brisbane River or creeks where it finds its favourite food-frogs, fish, small reptiles and water insects. It is a timid and cautious bird and is therefore not as well known as the White-faced Heron or "Blue Crane" which is often seen around waterholes or slowly stepping around one's home. Altogether, there are six varieties of Heron but only two are usually seen . The white egret a nd the two common ibises are the other big birds that frequent the waterholes and creeks of our city. It is vital tha t we know our bird life. If we do not, we can- not appreciate the part each p lays in nature. Wilful killing or inj uring of birds must be stopped. Children must be taught to recognise and know these inte lligent creatures more so than they do in the present day. I have only named and described a few of the birds around Brisbane because I am still learning and as yet can not recognise a ll the birds but I hope that more people will begin to look for these birds and come to appreciate them. In physical strength, in eyesight , in instinct and na tura l skill , birds make man appear a weakling indeed. M. WILLIAMS (Prox. Ace.). 19

KENDALL BROADBENT NATURAL HISTORY ESSAY, 1955. SOME BIRDS FAMILIAR TO BRISBANE. There are few countries in the World that are endowed with bird-life as rich as that of Australia. In our continent, more than seven hundred natural species are -to be found. Around the suburbs of Brisbane alone, there are well over one hundred d ifferent species. Most people are astounded when told this fact. How many people, as they walk down Corona tion Drive glance up a t a gum sapling and see the friendly little yellow robin perched sideways on the trunk ? How many people have paused in their da ily life to watch the g rey fantail executing his acrobatics? Few people have noticed the thrilling, rich, clear song of the rufous whistler- one of our loveliest songsters. The early morning song of the black-backed magpie or the p ied butcher-bird has no equal in all the world. Any patient person who lives in the Brisbane area will soon come to notice the regular call of at least twenty varieties around his own home. Bluejays, silver eyes, rufous whistlers, scarlet honeyeaters, red kestrels and black-shouldered kites are some of the less common types. Mournful but beautiful Mankeen night herons, pelicans and cormorants can be seen at the Fish Board Wharf at the southern end of the Victoria Bridge at almost anytime. Wheeling high jn the sky above the Fish Board are the graceful red-backed sea-eagles. Now and then the sun catches their bodies and turns the russet brown to almos t a blood-red and heightens the whiteness of their heads and necks. Sometimes an observant watcher glimpses the white breaster sea-eagles swooping for fish. The long drawn "Peee-aahh" of the red-back is often heard in the a fternoon s. Honeyeaters are probably the most brightly coloured of the Australian Birds . Th is group of birds which include nectar in the ir diet, are easily recognised by the longish curved beak. The Scarlet Honeyeater of Eastern Australia is the most colour- ful of the Honeyeaters. It is under four inches in length from the tip of its beak to the tip of its tail. This bird is a ttracted to the flowers of the Banksia. If one waches a Banksia carefully, one will see a Scarlet Honeyeater come and hang upside down in the bloom to eat the honey. The bird comes constantly to the same p lace and if the watcher is always in the same place, it becomes quite friendly. The Scarlet Honeyeater is always h opping a round looking for nectar or insects and singing its 18