Bird Photography Weekly ~ 22 New Holland Honeyeater + 1

New Holland Honeyeater, Phylidonyris novaehollandiae,



As luck would have it, when I looked at this on my
screen, I realised I got two for one!



While the Honeyeater was concerned with a Wattlebird
muscling in on the same Grevillea bush, the little Yellow
Rumped Thornbill was foraging in the safety of his loud
presence.



After a while the Honeyeater obviously realised he
was not alone but chose to ignore the little fellow,



while loudly protesting the presence of the larger bird.

To finish off, a blur in flight....



Check out the Logo for a wealth of beautiful birds!

TODAY'S FLOWERS ~ 27 A Spring Serenade

"Flowers bloom in the Spring of the year......."

Shedding the last drought stricken leaves, what was
left of the bush is bursting into glorious bloom.



This self -seeded Primula in a hanging basket has
been giving me hope throughout the winter and now,
having burst into full bloom with the warmer weather,
greets me with its gentle scent and vibrant beauty.




The bloom on the Almond trees is fading as the
gentle green leaves come forth.



A little icing on the cake from last year, just because
I'm rather fond of this Poppy, Papaver somnifera.



Forget about the calender, Spring is here and nectar
is on the menu, just a quick flying visit to this
ornamental Prunus which was thick with buzzing bees.



For this or any other season's floral click on the Logo and enjoy!

To Luiz Santilli Jr. and his trusty helpers, a big thank you!

SkyWatch ~ 46 ~ Winter Skies

The world is changing yet again, these wondrous
naked trees showing the essence of their being are
thinking now of Spring.
Please enlarge them to enjoy their beauty!



These are the last of the winter skies, soon, too soon
clouds will be in short supply, the sun already burns
and the warm north wind dries out the soil.



Another month and this will be the scene, hope in
the sky but always passing by.



One more sunrise to add some colour to our lives.



The Logo opens an Alladin's cave of skies!

A big thank you to Klaus and our SkyWatch Team

for continuing this informative meme.

Watery Wednesday ~ 13 Spring on the Murray River

Please enlarge for more fun viewing!

Spring time on the Murray River from the bridge
near Jingellic



here the river is the boundary between Victoria
and New South Wales. The Willows on the bank are
just greening up




side pools with reflections and an old tree casting shadows.



Plum blossom on the bank to show that Spring has arrived.



A Gum tree (Eucalyptus) keeping his toes cool and his
head above the water.



Go paddle in other waters by clicking on the Logo.

Thanks 2seetnsaxy for this very wet meme.

MY WORLD ~ 38 A Country Idyll

Although it is still winter and not spring, flowers
bloom and lambs are arriving



sheep gaze out from behind the boles of the trees



and gracefully graze on the grass that is green



deigning to glance at me as I pass.



Across the road a change of scene, what goes up

soon comes down as well

the race for the meals on wheels gathers pace

a perfect time to check on the herd and newborn calf

while the dogs are marching homeward bound after

checking the boundaries all around.

All pictures like being enlarged, so do the animals!

For a broader view of the world, click on the Logo.

Thanks to the MY WORLD team for keeping up this

wonderful meme

Bird Photography Weekly ~ 21 The Wattlebird

Red Wattlebird, Anthochaera lanulata, a fun bird
to have around, although he makes a mess of the blossoms
on my Redhot Poker and is not very nice to the smaller

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birds, the entertainment value of his terrorising the

cat by loudly clicking his beak loudly just above her

head, is worth every bit of the down side.

More shots will follow another time, I could not find

them among the thousands of photos on my lap-top.

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Click on the Logo and join in!

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Thank you Birdfreak for this informative meme.

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TODAY'S FLOWERS ~ 26 Winter Wonders

All images are better when enlarged!

A double flowering Prunus, one of a pair that survived
the drought.



In the winter cold, a welcome snack to hungry bees.



This is the normal time of year for Almond trees and
ormanental Plums to begin blossoming . Not so for
the usually much later flowering Malus floribunda, which
has been confused by the winter rains into thinking that
it is growing time again, as have all the Roses.
Normally this particular Crabapple is the showiest tree in
the garden. After the prolonged drought, there are just a few
out of season florets on it. It at least, unlike so many other
trees, has survived..



Daphne odora, that I grew from a cutting and gave my
eldest g-daughter for her 21st birthday last year.
Amazing what the granddaughters managed to do with
a bit of sink water, it is beautifully healthy and blooming
all over.



There is frost on the ground in the mornings and yet
the roses, having been dormant during summer and autumn ,
are asserting what life they had left in them, by bringing
forth flowers of unimaginably rich colours due to the cold.
Colours that are totally unexpected, below is 'Charles Austin'
normally a gentle apricot, blushing with embarrasment at being
caught out of bed so early in the season.



A mutant flower on 'Abraham Darby', again a much
deeper colour than in Spring.



Luckily not all the blooms look like they have been hit
by Chernobil and have turned into London double
decker buses. The flower below is normal except for the
colour, normally pink with a light blush of apricot.



Oxalis, a proclaimed noxious weed, is doing magnificently.
It has such happy yellow flowers and looks so pretty but
is almost impossible to keep in check after a long dry spell.

The ever hardy Lachenalia, commonly called Soldier

Boys because of their red jackets. Come hell or high
water, they will survive!

This winter there is so much flowering in the garden
that I have not even touched the half of it in this post.
There are no mass displays as yet, but there are
countless single blooms here and there so that it is a
discovery trip every time I go outside.

For more Flora of different seasons, click on the Logo.

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Congratulations to Luiz Santilly Jr. for creating this most

popular and delightful meme and for keeping it going with

the help of his idustrious elves week after week for its first

successful year. With the list of participants growing daily,

I hope this meme continues for many years to come.