Thursday, February 02, 2006

Bluewing

Revisited the Meehan Range this morning, to show Peter Willshire the Satin Flycatchers at the dam. Saw at least 4, possibly as many as 6 while we sat and watched several other species come and go. One visitor I didn't expect was this Bluewinged Parrot--a distant photo I'm afraid. I've often heard the Bluewings pass high overhead, but it's the first I've seen in the valley. I have found several pairs of Bluewings nesting in the "Meehan" over the years, but all of them high up along the ridge of the hills. Although Bluewings are surprisingly common, I suspect most of us rarely get more than a fleeting view of them.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

My In-laws live on the ridge between Lindisfarne and Flagstaff Gully Rd (not far from your Meehan Range spot). In the spring of 2004, while doing some birding in their 40 acres or so of bush, we saw our first ever Blue Wings. We were alerted by an unknown call, and tracked it down to a single bird, high up in a tree. It kept calling, and eventually called its mate out from the hollow it had been checking out. The two then proceeded to mate in the tree they had been investigating. We assume they nested in that hollow, but didn't get the chance to go back later to check it out. From the field guides, we were surprised to find them in that area, but the Meehan Range region is obviously quite acceptable breeding range for them.