Australian Bird Photos, mostly taken by myself and mainly in North Queensland, N. E. Australia.
I have tried to capture something of the “jizz” of the species, the character of the individual birds, and/or interesting activity or poses. I am fortunate to live in tropical Cairns, close to lakes, gardens, rain forests, mangroves, mud flats, etc…. plenty to keep a naturalist/photographer happy.
Many of the photos have been manipulated to some degree (I have toys and I will play with them – and probably overdo it), by cropping at least. You are welcome to use any of these photos for screensavers, school projects etc., (personal or educational use) but not for commercial use without acknowledgement and permission (contact daveclode@hotmail.com ). You may also be interested to have a look at my butterfly and dragonfly photos at Reforestation.me.
Some of the bird photos, e.g. the Night Herons on this page, and some of the frog photos were taken at the seasonal wetland at Cairns cemetery, pictured below:

Cairns Cemetery seasonal wetland where some of my bird photos were taken. Photo taken standing in about .8 m of water (the deepest part about 1.2 m). A Red-bellied Black snake, about 1.5 m long, lives about 20 m to the right of where the photo was taken. Photo: David Clode.
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A lucky sighting: At 4pm on the 24 March 2015, two Spotted Whistling ducks were seen about 30 metres North of the war cemetery in Cairns cemetery, Manunda. This species has only moved into a few places in Australia in the last few years from New Guinea.
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Crested Hawk or Pacific Baza at Hartleys Crocodile Adventures near Cairns Australia. Photo: David Clode.
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Pelican photos:

“On a mission”. Australasian Pelican, Freshwater Lake, Centenary Lakes, Cairns, Australia. Photo: David Clode.
Pelican, Freshwater Lake, Cairns. The Australian pelican has the longest bill of any bird in the world – 34 -47cm (13 t0 18 1/5 inches). In the photos above and below, I like the drop of water on the tip of its beak.
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Pelicans appear to stretch and exercise their bills. The head is pointing straight up, and the fleshy, stretchy lower part of the bill is seen here. Photo: David Clode.
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Pelicans circle around a school of fish to concentrate them into a smaller area, so that they are easier to catch. Photo: Panaramio.com.
Yellow-bellied Sunbird photos (or Olive-backed Sunbirds):
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See “Photos Birds 2” for more sunbird photos.
Rainbow Bee-eater photos:
For more bee-eater photos, see “Photos Birds 3”.
A Rainbow Bee-eater perches on a headstone at Cairns Cemetery.
Normally I like photos that are sharply focused, but in this case I like the soft fluffy look.
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A Rainbow Bee-eater has caught a moth, and is smashing it against the branch – moth scales are flying everywhere. Photo: David Clode.
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Bee-eaters usually bash an insect they have caught, both to the left and to the right, onto the hard perch on which they are sitting. This either kills the insect, or at least knocks it senseless, and perhaps removes the sting, before swallowing the insect.

A Rainbow Bee-eater has caught an insect (Palmdart butterfly?). Cairns cemetery. Photo: David Clode.
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A rainbow Bee-eater tosses the insect around in the air, to change the position of the insect in its beak. Photo: David Clode.
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The following photos show Bee-eaters enjoying a dust bath:
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Bee-eaters often nest in river banks, or even in flat ground if there are no river banks. They dig and make tunnels – in this photo the bird is feverishly digging and kicking up sand. Cairns cemetery. Photo: David Clode.
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Mistletoe bird photos:
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Welcome Swallow photos:
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Finch photos:
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Some heron and egret photos:

A Mangrove Heron (or Striated Heron) waits patiently at a causeway for fish. Saltwater Creek, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
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A stalking Mangrove Heron searches high and low, looking for fishing opportunities. Freshwater Lake, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
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A Black Heron/Egret canopy fishing (the wings cast a shadow and small fish come to the shadow, thinking they are swimming to safety – also called shading). Photo: Wikipedia.
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A Rufous or Nankeen Night Heron. Small seasonal wetland, West of Cairns war cemetery, Manunda. Photo: David Clode.
The Night Heron below has an unusual bald patch.
Notice how the bird’s subtle colours and tones match its environment (in this case paperbark trees/melaleucas), and help it to blend in. Camouflage based on diifferent parts of an animal being different colours and/or tones (lighter or darker), is called optical division or dismembering colouration.
Note matching colour/tone in the background.
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I like the way the yellow and white of the waterlilies matches the bird.
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If you look carefully, you can see a small fish in the bird’s bill, in the stream of water. Photo: David Clode.
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“Success!”. Same Great Egret, different day and time of day, Saltwater Creek, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
More egret photos further down this page.
Jabiru, also known as a Black-necked Stork.
Royal Spoonbill photos:
I like the way the green grass has reflected onto the chest of the bird.
Flying Spoonbill, Saltwater Creek, Cairns. Note the muddy feet.
Spoonbill in flight.
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Bush Stone-curlew photos:
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A goofy young curlew still has a feather in its beak after preening. Saltwater Creek, Centenary lakes, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
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Click on “Photos Birds 2” for more curlew photos.
More Egret photos:
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“It takes a lot of work to look this good you know!” A preening egret. Freshwater lake, Cairns, Australia. Photo: David Clode.
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Egret buddies (two different species, Intermediate and Little). Saltwater lake, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
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A Plumed (or Intermediate Egret) and a Little Egret sit together and preen themselves. Saltwater lake, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
Jabiru or Black-necked Stork photo:
Cormorant photos:
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Little Black Cormorants and a Little Egret fishing together. Freshwater lake, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
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The team flies off to try another fishing spot. Little Black Cormorants, Saltwater Lake. Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
The following sequence of three photos show a Little Black Cormorant catching a fish:

“Got one!” A Little Black Cormorant catching a fish. Freshwater lake, Centenary Lakes, Cairns. Photo: David Clode.
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The fish looks like an introduced pest (Tilapia), so the cormorant is doing a good job.
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Darter.
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Dove photos:
Torresian Imperial Dove photos (also known as a Torres Strait Pigeon, or Pied Imperial Dove):
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Decisions…decisions…
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See also, “Photos Birds 2”, “Photos Parrots”, and “Photos Australian Wildlife”, and for a variety of wildlife photos, click here: http://reforestation.me/photos-australian-wildlife/
Frog photo taken with a Sigma 105mm macro lens. See the “Fun Frog Posters” page.
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Tracts4free.WordPress.com
Great shots!
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Congratulations David absolutely magnificent, may you rewarded for your patience and I hope you know how blessed you are to have such a ‘gift’ Judith
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Thank you Judith, you are very kind, and may God bless you too. David.
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