I joined Valerie for a few hours at Barton Park – Landing Lights Wetland. We were looking for birds.
It was an interesting visit.
At the Landing Lights Wetland, there were the usual Pied Stilts –
Walking around the area, we could not help notice a huge number of wasps.
There seemed to be thousands and thousands of them all over the park. They are not European Wasps – as they dangle their legs when flying. I don’t know if they are native, but they were not aggressive. They are perhaps the Asian Paper Wasp (Polistes chinensis)
I have seen these same wasps at Barton Park in the past quite a few times, but not in such huge numbers and spread over nearly all the park. Strangely – they all seemed to vanish in the afternoon.
All of a sudden, all the Pied Stilts took to the air –
A raptor was around. We looked up and soon spotted a Brown Goshawk –
Back at the wetland, a Royal Spoonbill had arrived. Here is is with a White-faced Heron and a Pied Stilt –
Here isa Superb Fairy-wren in the samphire –
And more in the reeds –
There were lots of Red-whiskered Bulbuls. Here is one grabbing an insect –
I wonder if they eat the wasps?
We saw two groups of Brown Quails. One group stayed long enough for a few photos –
Here is a Grey Butcherbird –
This White-faced Heron is hunting in the Spring St Canal –
Back at the wetlands, a Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike flew over –
And soma last photos the Pied Stilts –
