King Parrot, Alisterus scapularis

What an amazing birdlife Australia has! The King Parrot is named appropriately for both its size and colour. It is the king of all its kind.

 

Male King Parrot, Lane Cove, 17 September 2019, within tree that it was feeding
 from, and of a group of approximately ten birds.

Some King Parrots have visited a Lane Cove street. They have taken a liking to an Australian native tree that is seeding.

 

The male is unique amongst Australian parrots in that it is the only parrot to have red head colouring. It is distinguished from the female in this way in that she has green colouring for her head. In common, both male and female have a red belly and green back.

 

King Parrots habitat is principally in rainforests; they feed within tree canopies. They eat both seeds and fruit. They will travel from rainforest environs when food is in short supply. King Parrots are found on the East Coast of Australia from the tropics through to Victoria. This makes them a common sight within Sydney. They largely live their entire lives in a tight geographic area.  King Parrots will eat from feeding trays and may often be seen drinking from backyard ponds.

 

The King Parrot prefers to nest in hollow trees. They will often have a nest that is within fifty centimetres of ground level where the entry point to the hollowed tree is ten metres or more high!

 

A surprising feature of the King Parrot is that some colouring patterns are visible only the ultra-violet wave-lengths. While King Parrots look very much alike to human observers, they look quite unique to King Parrots whose vision includes the ultra-violet spectrum. That is a helpful way for a King Parrot in the darkness of a nest to know whether the King Parrot entering the nest is your mate!

 

The location of the King Parrots; corner of Finlayson Street and Centennial Avenue; image: Google Maps.

Photographing the King Parrots proved difficult with a camera that had no credible zoom ability. The birds would scatter if I came too close. With some patience, a single photograph of a male was taken.

 

Reference: http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/Alisterus-scapularis

 

Shalom,

Ozhamada

 

[324 words] #parrot #sydney #sydneylocal #lanecove #lovewhereyoulive #inthecove #sydneyflorist #birding #twitching

Review of Scrublands, an Australian novel

2018 seems to mark the role of the priest in Australian literature. For both Tim Winton in The Shepherd's Hut and Chris Hammer in Scrublands include clergy.

Winton's book assigns a member of clergy to a forgotten parish. Hammer’s book finds a member of clergy (deceased yet central to the story) who shielded his previous life. In both instances, the clergy are in hot, dusty and remote locations.

And, Scrublands has a publican (deceased) who was once an Army chaplain.

Where the former Army chaplain and deceased priest sought atonement through passage of monies to an overseas orphanage, Winton’s priest is beyond atonement but to serve his time in isolation.

Scrublands is a great read. The characters are richly developed, the town of Riversend is colourfully displayed and the story moves quickly. The reader follows the steps of a journalist. The journalist pieces together why the priest committed murders, then was killed. Official Police accounts and the facts diverge; the journalist works carefully to re-imagine the story.

The story has much intrigue. Many parties are involved including Australia’s spy agency, Police, media and a bikie gang. Destruction arises from car accidents, bushfires, abduction and fire. The story depicts how a small country town can be subject to many pressures. The drought, the waterless river and the limited business hours of the town all seem synonymous with the slow death of the community.

I borrowed Scrublands from City of Sydney Library. This post links from Goodreads.

Shalom,

Ozhamada

[175 words] #agreatread #books #cityofsydney #library #goodreads #amazon #readAustralian