The Birds at No 26

We have the privilege of living on a large block of land right on the edge of a suburb. Behind our place are grasslands and bush which go all the way down to the Murrumbidgee River. We have a lovely outlook from our house as well as it is quite high. Before our trees grew we could see Black Mountain Tower from the family room. Now you have to climb up our steep block to see that view. In our backyard we have a swimming pool, a fish pond and a variety of fruit trees, so you can understand why we love living here.

Being at the edge of the suburb so close to bushland we are visited by a large variety of birds. I have kept a little book in which I have written the various varieties of feathered visitors. So far I have counted 47 species. The most unusual I thought was a cormorant who did a bit of fishing in our pond and the wood ducks who chose to swim in our pool for a while. They weren't encouraged to stay.

When we first moved here we had Siamese cats and so the birds were fairly cautious even though our cats were much more interested in mice.

One day, a few years after we had been living here, we heard some distress calls from magpies and after investigation discovered that a fledgling had fallen out of the nest and had broken the top half of its beak. The parents were frantic. Unfortunately the nest was about 30 meters up our big gum tree so it was impossible to return the baby to its home. We had a wire basket in which we put a coir lining and hung it as high as we could in one of our birch trees before placing the baby in the basket. The parents watched us patiently and as soon as the baby was housed, proceeded to feed it. The baby happily stayed in its new home until it could fly.

The baby, who turned out to be female, we named Beaky and she became about as tame as a wild bird could ever be. She would fly over and sit on my lap and allow herself to be scratched under the chin and wings. She pretty much ignored our cats and if they annoyed her at all she would clack her broken beak and they would walk away.

Beaky found herself a mate and introduced him to our family and then brought successive generations of babies to visit. We would get to know the babies and name them.

Eventually after quite a few years Beaky came no more and one of her daughters became the dominant magpie who would visit regularly and bring her babies.

We spoil the magpies by feeding them shredded cheese, which they love. After our cats passed away we got two standard Schnauzers who enjoyed having the magpies visit because it meant they could share cheese with the birds. Our dog Bella used to stand at the back glass sliding door looking out anxiously and then would bark with relief and to let us know when the birds turned up knowing that treats would be in the offing.

The magpies stay in the area around our house and do us the great favour of eating scarab grubs from our lawn as well as catching grasshoppers and other annoying pests. Much to my surprise I noticed a magpie catch and efficiently dispatch a mouse in our compost bin once.

Crested pigeons visit regularly and also enjoy sharing shredded cheese as do bower birds.

Crimson rosellas used to nervously watch the goings on of the other birds in our backyard and after our dogs had moved on to 'the happy hunting grounds' would come and sit in the silk tree opposite our back door. We wondered if we could train them to eat from our hands and knowing that they had decimated our almond crop we thought we would try with almonds. To cut a long story short, with a lot of time and patience we coaxed them to take the nuts from our hands. I can remember the thrill of it happening for the first time. My husband was at work. I rushed in and rang him up I was so excited.

In the middle of winter, when food is harder to find, a large group of rosellas follows my husband around the yard if they know he has almonds in his pockets and will sit all over him quite fearlessly. During times of plenty there are only a few regulars who turn up for their treats. Quite often they hang on the screen door and announce their presence by calling us.

Rosellas are messy eaters and leave bits of almond meal lying around so the blue wrens come and tidy up. It is a joy to see the tiny birds right by the back door. They are so used to us now that they hop around my feet while I hang clothes on the line. I always have to take care when I take a step back.

Other small birds groom the area around our house, getting rid of spiders and other creepy crawlies. If you watch the bird behaviour you can also be warned of other intruders such as snakes. Bower birds are particularly good as they sit in a tree above the snake and shriek.

At present we have a favourite magpie who we have named Chookie because she comes running just like a chook when we go outside. She is very tame and sits on the window ledge watching me work in the kitchen. When she sees my husband come into the room she rushes to sit on the laundry trolley outside the back door because she knows he will give her a treat. She is another bird who accompanies me around the yard and 'helps' if I ever manage to do some gardening, by eating any grubs I unearth.

Today Chookie did an amazingly clever thing. My husband and I came out the front door and Chookie had been harvesting scarab grubs in the lawn but when she saw us she made a funny little noise and ran in front of us with her wings up, right into the carport, so we followed, somewhat bemused. There, in the carport, was a big blue tongue lizard, a creature that birds consider a threat. Chookie was deliberately letting us know. She flew away when she knew we had seen. I am exceptionally impressed at her communication skills. This afternoon she got a piece of pie as thanks.