Walking home from site

As the weather has cooled and the birds crowd in around the camp in search of water, the walks home from site have become more and more enjoyable. It's about 5km along a graded dirt track that winds through scrubland and reed-filled swamp. I constantly hear rustlings in the bushes but have yet to see a wallaby or kangaroo hiding in there. The pest bush Calatrope is in full flower and even if it is classed as a weed, it is still a very pretty plant.

The birdlife is abundant and I see the following every day: crows, magpie larks, willy wagtails, whistling kites, black kites, corellas, masked and black-faced wood swallows, bar-shouldered doves, bower birds, rainbow bee eaters, zebra, masked and long-tailed finches, black-faced cuckoo shrikes and yellow-throated miners. On a less common basis, I also see yellow-tinted and brown honeyeaters, double-barred finches, diamond doves and the stunningly beautiful crimson finch. I'm still waiting to spot some Gouldians this year and I'd love to see a red-backed fairy wren or, if amazingly lucky, a purple-crowned fairy wren.