Part thirty-eight : Making friends

I recently received a letterbox-drop leaflet informing me of the long-term dangers of feeding wild birds – the least of which could be simple dietary deficiencies. By supplying wild birds with incorrect and perhaps inadequate nutrition, and in doing so making them reliant on our largesse, it could result in large-scale loss or even demise of a species. Also, if birds of different species are in constant contact at our freely provided backyard ‘feeding stations’, the passing of bird diseases could proliferate.

While I wholeheartedly agreed with most of the information contained in this leaflet, I do wonder whether the Lorikeet Bird Sanctuary at Currumbin in Queensland would still be in existence if they had followed the directions stated in this article.

However, while I acknowledge the risks involved, I will continue to supplement the finch diet with free seed. I make sure not to make it a regular day/date/time/quantity etc, thus encouraging them not to be totally dependent on my provisions but just to accept the seed as random generosity. I do believe that my method of dispensing extra rations to some of the finch family will not be detrimental to their continued existence. Also, I can recall how bereft the resident ibis flock were when their daily bread and scraps donor, who lived just across from my back fence passed away, thus depriving them of their usual sustenance. I have no wish to replicate that forlorn circumstance.

In addition, a recent incident that occurred at a neighbour’s place convinced me not to be over-liberal or follow an exact time-line when feeding ‘my’ finches or any other wild animals, because sometimes bad things can happen. This neighbour would, on a daily basis, place a couple of bowls and plates filled with bread, seed and scraps onto his open back lawn for an assortment of birds to enjoy. However, this gratifying sight was interrupted one morning when a raptor (probably an Australian Hobby [falcon]) swooped down and clutched a Peaceful Dove in his talons, sending other birds scattering every-which-way in a fluttering panic to avoid the same fate. Even though this is normal animal behaviour, I have no wish to lure birds to ‘my table’ making them a sitting target for birds of prey such as falcons, harriers kites or hawks.

Using this easy segue to my next topic, I have recently observed a pair of Black Kites in nearby tree tops, just watching, waiting, watching...

The tall black wattle tree is a popular roosting place for our resident ibis, but who willingly gave up their 'seats' to the more determined and lethal ‘bite power’ of the kites who chose this tree as their new observation post. The Black Kite, a rich dark brown in colour with a pale beige face and neck (not to be confused with the Brown [square-tailed] Kite) is common in the urban areas of Darwin, living mainly near tree-lined water courses but also frequenting open savannah land and rubbish dumps, seeking small prey and roadkill.

This particular pair of kites stayed around for a few days then disappeared as quickly as they had arrived. The Black Kite, in flight, is sometimes mistaken for the Whistling Kite, but its whistle is not as pronounced or as prolonged, and it has a forked tail rather than square or round. It is usually the Black Kite that you see hovering around a bushfire, pouncing on any lizards or small mammals that manage to escape the inferno. It is also the main protagonist in a locust plague.

More next month

Gayle Carroll

There will be no meeting of the Group in September; however, Lorna reminds us that music is good for the soul and that we should keep listening to Classic FM on 107.3.

In August, Jack and Chris jointly presented Yemen which has a fascinating but chaotic history. Yemen has the same population as Australia, but the similarities end there. The meeting helped us to understand the complex and sad situation in the country today.
The next meeting will take place at on 4 September at Lorna’s house when Mirella will present Mongolia, another incredibly interesting country. For further details call 8948 0411.

The City of Darwin will be conducting its annual pre-cyclone season clean-up across the city. The aim is to remove rubbish and debris from residents’ property which may become a dangerous hazard in the event of a cyclone. If you have items that you would like to be collected, you are asked to place your rubbish outside your property, but in such a way that you keep the pavement clear for pedestrians.

If you live in the northern suburbs (Alawa, Anula, Brinkin, Jingili, Karama, Leanyer, Lyons, Malak, Marrara, Moil, Muirhead, Nakara, Tiwi, Wagaman, Wanguri and Wulagi), you should place items for collection on the nature strip on 29 August. 

For the rest of the city (Bayview, Coconut Grove, Darwin CBD, Fannie Bay, Larrakeyah, Ludmilla, Millner, Nightcliff, Parap, Rapid Creek, Stuart Park, The Gardens, The Narrows and Woolner), rubbish should be put out on 19 September. Items which can be left out for collection include furniture, carpets, timber, white goods (fridges, freezers, washing machines…..), waste building products (such as wood, bricks and steel), television sets and computers. As recyclable items will be separated at the time of collection for recycling or reuse, residents are asked to separate recyclables from other rubbish.

The clean-up teams will not collect garden refuse, flammable liquids, paint, asbestos or car parts. For information on how to dispose of such items call 8930 0300.

If you require assistance to move large items to the nature strip for collection, call 8930 0300 no later than the Friday preceding the dates given above.

Thank you to Mirella who presented Japan at last month’s meeting. She said that it was a surprising country as it was so different from most people’s perceptions. The people are very welcoming, gentle and polite, and the country is very clean, modern and well-ordered; it is difficult to reconcile our experiences of wartime Japan with the country as it is today. Mirella was impressed by the beautiful well-kept gardens and temples, and the punctuality of the bullet trains. The Group discussed Japan’s social and demographic problems: its mono-ethnicity and its ageing population, low birth rate and declining economy.

April’s meeting will take place on the second Friday of the month, the 10th, when Lorna will be presenting Estonia at her home. For further details, call Lorna on 8948 0411.

Part twenty-eight : The Winter Freeze

The cooler months, June to August, are called Wurrgeng in the Aboriginal calendar. The chilly nights and humidity-free days cool us down – just enough to prepare us to cope with the slowly rising temperatures (albeit still very dry) of the season of Gurrung – August to October.

The sometimes frenetic wet season plant growth has slowed to practically zero; annuals perceptibly fade to yellow; grass, no longer green unless regularly watered, turns a sandy beige colour giving the appearance of being crispy thin and fragile, crackling and snapping underfoot. Overcast skies with ripple-like clouds and windy days are not uncommon.

The scarlet gum, endemic to the sandstone country around Kakadu but occasionally seen in the Darwin area, flowers profusely at this time of the year providing plenty of food for the nectar-loving friarbirds – all three vociferous varieties ! One of the species is called the noisy Friarbird for a very good reason ! These birds are very possessive of precious food sources and will attempt to keep all other birds from cashing in on 'their bounty' with loud vocal protestations and frenzied wing-flapping. Quite often, after I set the morning sprinkler going, they will start a loud, cheerful exchange of views about ownership rights to my banana flowers and/or any other flowering shrubs or trees that take their fancy.

Also flowering at this time is the Darwin woollybutt. Often mistaken for the scarlet gum, they both have golden to deep orange powder puff-like flowers that produce bird-edible fruit and nectar, and also those intriguing urn-shaped, pipe-like seed pods. Other dry season colours seen at this time in the woodlands around Darwin (but less and less in the town precinct) are the yellow kapok bush, the mauve (and white) turkey bush (calytrix) and the orange northern grevilleas – all very necessary for our native birds. And the fluffy white flowers of the Darwin stringybark tree offer an interesting contrast to the woollybutt as they usually grow in close proximity to one another. My favourite is the Darwin City floral emblem, the northern kurrajong. With its beautiful soft red bell-shaped flowers seemingly growing on dead sticks, it is now seldom seen anywhere north of the Berrimah Line thanks to developers whose motto seems to be "...is that a tree ?...then knock it down !".

On the home front, we have recently had our marauding once-a-year visitors return to the park area. A small bevy of orange-tailed cockatoos appears at this time of the year flopping heavily (and screeching loudly to advertise their over-the-top presence) onto the tip end of branches of the eucalypt near my back fence. They would arrive at that really still, quiet time just before dusk, shrieking fortissimo, and proceed to strip the tree of its seed pods. These are the edible bits left over from the nectar-raiding Fat Francis the flying fox, after his nightly forays earlier in the year. As I stood and watched this birdfest I could distinctly hear the crack as the cockies split these woody capsules open with their powerful beaks to retrieve the soft kernels within. After three of these evening visitations, they were seen no more, presumably having stripped the tree bare of edible nuts and moving on to another restaurant.

Now for the disappearing ibis. Whereas in previous years they seemed to have taken up permanent residence in this enclave, they now only appear on a very spasmodic basis. The odd three or five are sometimes perched, hunched and sentinel-like, high in the branches of the old black wattle. Occasionally they descend to stroll the roads, paths and grassy areas searching for edible titbits. But, perhaps because of "austerity" measures imposed by the present government on various Departments, the cessation of the watering system in the public areas of this complex has rendered the ground rock hard and depleted the numbers of worms, crickets and grasshoppers to almost non-existence (in fact these insect nasties have migrated to our individual private gardens !). The ibis find it very difficult to get their long, sensitive beaks through the hard surface, much preferring soft, muddy patches to probe for their luckless, invisible prey. Ibis generally live in colonies, sharing with spoonbills and herons, and will sometimes travel thirty to forty kilometres searching for food. I'm afraid it is very 'bare pickings' here at the moment so 'elsewhere' seems to be a better alternative for the hungry ibis !

At this time of the year, all the frogs have 'gone to ground' so to speak, hiding away in cool, dank places that only frogs are able to find ! There they stay, snugged away until they sense climate changes heralding Gunumeleng – the pre-monsoon season of October and November. I have placed hollow logs and plumbers' pipes, as well as the odd cement pagoda in suitable spots throughout the garden where frogs can sleep dreamlessly, safe from predators during these hot, dry days and cold nights until the rising humidity brings them out of hiding. Food, of course, is then a priority and woe betide any unwary bug, beetle, fly or caterpillar. But hopefully, some of those big wolf and huntsman spiders will fall prey to the humble frog diet !

Hope you all have a good Seniors' Month

Gayle Carroll

With the aim of recognising the important contribution of Indigenous artists and promoting appreciation and understanding of the quality and diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, the Award has, over the last 31 years, become an important showcase for both established and emerging artists. The entries selected for this year's competition are on display from 8 August to 26 October at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Conacher Stret.

Quite a few of our members attended the talks organised in March and April by the Genealogical Society of the NT, and the Society has another series of lectures, entitled Talking Territorians, coming up as part of Seniors' Month:

• 7 August - Trevor Horman: The Overland Telegraph: reducing the gap from 100 days to just 7 hours.
• 14 August - Bloo Campbell: Antarctica – A Territorian's five trips as an Aircraft Ground Support Officer
• 21 August - Jacqueline O'Brian: Early nursing in Territory hospitals and some of the nursing personalities of the past
• 28 August - June Tomlinson: Meet some of the NT Suffragettes, a walk through the early electoral system

The meetings take place at 9.45 for a 10.00 start in the Conference Room, National Archives of Australia and Northern Territory Archives, Kelsey Street, Millner. Bookings are essential; call 0412 018 015 or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Vitamin D in our bodies comes from exposure to sunlight and from our diets. Having a sufficient amount of vitamin D in our blood stream is important for maintaining healthy bones, and there is some evidence that it might also reduce the risks of diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, multiple sclerosis and some cancers, but this is uncertain. To understand fully the effects of increasing blood levels of vitamin D through supplements, the QIMR Berghofer Institute has instigated the D-Health Trial which aims to recruit 25,000 Australians aged between 60 and 84; so far 5,000 people have joined the project.

The Queensland Institute of Medical Research was established in 1945 by the Queensland government. In 2013 it was renamed QIMR Berghofer to acknowledge a donation of more than $50 million by Clive Berghofer, a Toowoomba-based philanthropist. To find out more about the research being undertaken by the Institute go to www.dhealth.qimrberghofer.edu.au. If you would like to take part in the trial call 1300 735 920 or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .