Seagulls and a great egret were looking for food at the Swan River.

Australia is famous for exotic animals. So when I was in Perth for less than a week, I was fascinated with the different birds I saw flying freely around the city. It was nice to see birds other than crows.

Date: August 27, 2013

I am not a professional birdwatcher. So at that time, I just took pictures whenever I see birds and I compared them with the images online so I will know their name. Here are the birds I saw in Perth more than 2 years ago.

Eastern Great Egret

Along the Swan River, I saw the eastern great egret taking a rest. The eastern great egret (Ardea alba modesta) is a subspecies of the great egret that can be distinguishrd by its very long neck as compared to other herons and great egrets in Asia and Australia. Its neck is about one and a half times as long as its own body. The subspecies is protected in Australia under their law.

Male australasian darter drying its wings.

The Australasian darter or Australian darter (Anhinga novaehollandiae) is found in Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea. Darters are water birds whose feathers are not waterproof. So they are usually seen spreading their wings to dry themselves (as I saw one doing this). They were also called snake-birds as they resembled snakes when they go hunting for their prey, with their bodies submerged and only their necks and heads above the surface of water. Their very long and sharp beaks are very useful in catching their prey.

Galah or rose-breasted cockatoo

The galah or rose-breasted cockatoo (Eolophus roseicapilla) are pretty birds in pink found in almost all parts of Australia. I noticed their distinctive pink plumages as they hang around the branches of the trees in Perth. The term galah is derived from gilaa, a word in the Aboriginal languages.

A female magpie-lark

At first, I thought it was a pied crow or the Australian magpie. But my friend bird expert told me it was a magpie-lark. The magpie-lark (Grallina cyanoleuca) is a common and very widespread bird occupying almost all parts of Australia. My friend also told me that what I saw is a female as it has a white throat. The male magpie-lark, in contrast, has a black throat and a white eyebrow.

Australian White Ibis

The strangest bird I saw in Perth was the Australian white ibis. I saw the ibis during my visit at the Perth Zoo.The Australian white ibis (Threskiornis moluccus) is a wading bird having a predominantly white plumage with a bare, black head, long downcurved bill and black legs. Its long, slender bill is used for digging its most favoured foods, crayfish and mussels. Due to its unpleasant foul stench, it was being culled in some parts of Sydney. It is still debatable whether the bird should be considered as a vulnerable species or a pest.

Ducks at the Swan River