Our most notable wild residents are the birdlife.
Near their nest outside Wimborne and Abbotsley
In the Sonningfield garden
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White-faced herons In Spring 2019, a pair of White-faced Herons built a nest high in a pine tree on roadside by Wimborne and Abbotsley. After one failure they built another nest higher up and eventually two young hatched. Like many young birds their first excursion out of the nest are just along the branches while they were still being fed by their parents. Soon they could be seen in nearby trees, though still high up, especially in the trees at Sonningfield. They soon came down to start feeding and visited several properties. One of their vantage points was the tennis court fence at The Barn. [photo] 
Watching tennis at The Barn
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They spent some time hunting frogs and insects in and around the ponds at Whistlewood before heading off to explore the wider world. |
Hunting around the Whistlewood ponds
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Tawny Frogmouths (Podargus strigoides) - we have a family of Tawny Frogmouths with in the trees of Sonning / Sonningfield last spring and have been recently heard. |
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Powerful Owl with possum prey, Devon Cottage
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Powerful Owls (Ninox strenua) - have been sighted in the trees in the Devon Cottage garden and, more recently, in the Pine Tree opposite Downderry. This one at Devon Cottage had caught an unlucky possum. Other unidentified owls play the "Guess where I am" game - hooting and clearly audible the length of the village. |
In the morning, the sulphur crested cockatoos and corellas can make quite a racket as they screach around the village.
Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Devon Cottage
Corella
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Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Abbotsley
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But the Kookaburra's are there every day - laughing away to each other morning and evening.as they keep a lookout for a juicy morsel when gardeners are turning the soil. This one was sitting in an old gum tree in Edna Walling Lane |
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King Parrots, Devon Cottage
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Red-browed Finch, Devon Cottage
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Galah, Devon Cottage
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Bird Sightings
Most of the birds seen at Bickleigh Vale are resident in the village with the most obvious seasonal visitor being the Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos which arrive for Christmas and stay over summer.
Several species breed here and in spring and early summer many juveniles can be seen, especially Crimson Rosellas and Red Wattlebirds.
Several species breed here and in spring and early summer many juveniles can be seen, especially Crimson Rosellas and Red Wattlebirds.
This list compiled by Susan Pepper of Whistlewood from 2018 to 2024, contains many birds only seen once or twice, or at specific periods in the year as they are migratory.
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1. Wedge-tailed Eagle (flying overhead)
2. Tawny Frogmouth (heard at night) 3. Southern Boobook (heard at night) 4. Powerful Owl 5 Galah 6. Little Corella 7. Sulphur-crested Cockatoo 8. Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo 9. Rainbow Lorikeet 10. Little Lorikeet 11. Musk Lorikeet 12. Australian King Parrot 13. Crimson Rosella 14. Eastern Rosella 15. Gang-gang Cockatoo 16. Common Bronzewing |
17. Crested Pigeon
18. Masked Lapwing 19. Chestnut Teal (duck) 20. Australian Maned Goose (wood duck) 21. Buff-banded Rail 22. White-faced Heron 23. White-faced Heron 24. Australian Ibis 25. Eastern Spinebill 26. Noisy Miner 27. Red Wattlebird 28. Laughing Kookaburra 29. White-browed Scrub-wren 30. Brown Thornbill 31. Spotted Pardalote 32. Grey Fantail |
33. Magpie-Lark
34. Koel 35. Rufus Fantail 36. Grey Butcherbird 37. Australian Magpie 38. Pied Currawong 39. Little Raven 40. Silvereye 41. Eastern Whipbird 42. Common Blackbird 43. Common Myna 44. Spotted Pigeon 45 Rock Dove 46. Red-browed Finch |
Gang-gang cockatoos at The Barn, January 2018
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Thirsty Rainbow Lorikeets at Sonningfield, Feb 2018
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