Melbourne Places » Birds

St Kilda Botanical Gardens – the Magpie-larks make it time to stop and stare.

Melbourne — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 07:05:45 +0000

A pair of magpie-larks or mud-larks, as they are sometimes called, have honoured the Rainman statue in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens by making a nest on his arm.

They look very much at home and secure as they fly to the statue and settle on their nest to keep their eggs warm.

I haven’t seen many of these little magpie–larks in the gardens. You can hear the shrill, piping voice of one or two of them occasionally. So I think these must the ones I heard piping and shrilling away during the winter and I like to think they see the gardens as their home.

The Rainman is rather a forlorn figure these days. His pond is almost empty and his base is exposed so he no longer looks as if he is standing on water.

The Magpie-larks have chosen a secure and friendly place to bring their family into the world. No four legged-predators can get across the muddy pond and disturb them. When it rains the Rainman is there to shelter them.

The magpie-larks build round nests that are quite small. They make them of grass, plant material then plaster all this together with mud and then line the nest with feathers, soft grass and fur.

I like the thought of the three of them; the Rainman and prospective Mum and Dad settling down together every evening.

These two small black and white birds don’t appear nervous of being watched and photographed and they are happy to potter around in the muddy edge.

Magpie-lark or as it is sometimes called mud-lark at the St Kilda Botanical Garden

Getting there:-
96 Tram to the terminus at the end of Acland Street. Walk up Blessington Street – on your left.
Trams 67, 3 or 16 to the corner of Brighton Road and Carlisle Street and walk along Blessington Street – Blessington Street is on your right when you get off the tram.
Opening Hours:-
Between sunrise and sunset seven days a week and the conservatory is open between 10.30am and 3.30pm week days and 1.00pm and 4.30pm Saturday to Sunday and public holidays.

Albert Park Lake and a new generation of swans – it has to be spring!

Melbourne — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 06:47:33 +0000

Albert Park and Albert Park Lake have moved into spring with the cutest and most beautiful baby swans (cygnets) sifting through the grass and gliding around on the lake. Some are very young – just balls of pale grey fluff and it is amazing to see them staggering about on their little legs.

One family of five looked much more graceful floating on the calm waters of Albert Park Lake. They appear older and more sophisticated that their cousins who are still on land. When they see you they swim over and then float near the edge – to be admired or hoping for some food? It is hard to know. I didn’t have any food with me and they are very beautiful.

Both the swan parents hover over them. It is lovely to see Dad doing such a good job of parenting. It is said that swans mate for life and that they are very faithful and loyal. I’m curious to know where the families with very young babies sleep. The up-grade to the park has fenced off great chunks of grass. Some of the older ones seem very happy to get some sleep-time during the day while they float about.

It is always busy around the Albert Park Lake with walkers and joggers but this year it is a construction zone. The area near the Carousel is being up graded. The new swan parents are taking this in their stride. They seem in no hurry to move their young out of the way.

Now is the time to see these young cygnets – they have the magic that all the very young have. They are cute balls of the softest feathers. But they grow quickly.

I found the best place to get close to them was near the Carousel. I photographed these ones there. The cafe at the Carousel is a pleasant stopping off point. See my previous positing about the Carousel’s food – nothing has changed.

Getting There:-
The Carousel, (where I took these photos) is at 22 Aughtie Drive, Albert Park Lake.

The easiest way is by car and as a bonus it is $2.00 for all day parking in the weekend. This is not the same during the week. Be prepared to pay more.

Tram 96, the light rail, takes you along the back of the Park. Get off at the Wright Street station and walk across Albert Park towards the lake.

You can also take any tram that goes down St Kilda Road as far as the St Kilda Junction. Get off at High Street and walk to the park from there. As High Street crosses St Kilda Road, it becomes Lorne Street. You walk down Lorne Street to the Park and the lake. The Carousel is on the other side of the lake.

The Good Life, and Good Food at Albert Park Lake

Melbourne — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:01:08 +0000

The Carousel, is an events center with a café attached. It is on the edge of The Lake in Albert Park – such a great position. It’s a stunning experience to sit on the deck outside the cafe, sip coffee, while swans and ducks float by, joggers pant past and walkers chat as they amble along.

The main venue is used for wedding receptions and other catered-for events. The entrance to the building is imposing. That’s the reception entrance. I am writing here about the café with the entrance tucked around the side.

The café is popular in the weekend. Everyone pitches up here; bikes, joggers, walkers, families out for a stroll and breakfast groups. There are no bookings for breakfast so you front up and get your name written on the window in texter with the number in your party.

Last Saturday our party arrived and we were written on the window with a number 5. We hung around outside with the dogs and visualized empty tables. It was cold enough for us to visualize the empty table being inside which was a pity because when it arrived the table didn’t have a view. There is an open deck in front of the café and on a warm day the windows are opened up, so if you are inside, you get the feeling of being outside

The coffee is very good and it made up for the cold wait outside and by then we were ready for breakfast. The food is fine. Not great but good enough to go back. A nice touch is having a water jug with mint and lemon left on the table.

The jug of water adds style to a Carousel Breakfast.

This is ‘The Carousel Breakfast’. The mushrooms have flavour!

The muffins are worth trying especially if you arrive when they still warm from the oven. This one is Blueberry and white chocolate.

The Carousel is quieter during the week. This makes it more relaxing and there is no need for the texter and the window. It is a place full of light with some of the best views in Melbourne. It’s worth going for the views and of course a walk in the park.

Swans wander around chewing the grass. As you can see in the photo they are numbered with a wide band around their neck. Can any one tell me why? It looks very uncomfortable for them.

Getting There:-

The Carousel, 22 Aughtie Drive, Albert Park Lake, is open from 8am every day and shuts around 3.30 to 4.00pm

The easiest way is by car and as a bonus it is $2.00 for all day parking in the weekend. This is not the same during the week. Be prepared to pay more.

Tram 96, the light rail, takes you along the back of the Park. Get off at the Wright Street station and walk across Albert Park towards the lake.

You can also take any tram that goes down St Kilda Road as far as the St Kilda Junction. Get off at High Street and walk to the park from there. As it crosses St Kilda Road, High Street becomes Lorne Street. You walk done Lorne Street to the Park . Remember you have to walk around the lake to get to the Carousel.

Rosellas add to the charm of Mary Street, St Kilda

Melbourne — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 04:51:45 +0000

St Kilda is a great place to see some of Melbourne’s population of Rosellas. They sleep in the palm streets around the tram stop at Luna Park. In the morning you can see them flying off and at dusk they head for home in great flocks swooping into the palms and yelling to each other. The noise can be deafening but worth experiencing with the orange-glow of sunset on the palms.

There are some Rosellas who stay around St Kilda. I saw these one mid-morning in one of Melbourne’s most beautiful street. Mary Street runs from Beaconsfield Parade to Canterbury Road and is just off Fitzroy Street. It’s a quiet oasis after the frenetic activity and excitement of Fitzroy Street.

I love the way you can find statues in streets all over Melbourne. This one is on the roundabout where Mary Street is intersected by Lock Street.

Read about the statue.

The number 12 tram goes down Fitzroy Street and you need to get off at Lock Street. Also you could get a No3 tram that goes to Kew. Many of these divert from their original route and travel along Fitzroy Street.

Mary Street, looking toward St Kilda beach