Lorikeets show no fear

LORIKEET LOVE: Rainbow lorikeets. Picture by JIM THOMSONThe rainbow lorikeet is one of the most dramatically coloured birds on the east coast of Australia.

At the moment I have them feeding in my garden and they are common along  the east coast.

This pair were found feeding  chicks in the hole in the tree at Soldiers Point, when I was supposed to be having a day at the waterfront with my wife.

Don’t quite know how but the camera  was in the car.

The rainbow lorikeets show no fear of man and are quite easy to approach.

They are usually seen in flocks or pairs, feeding among the outermost branches of flowering trees.

Rainbow lorikeets are extremely noisy birds and attract attention by their screeching and chattering.

LORIKEET LOVE: Scaly breasted lorikeets. Picture by JIM THOMSONThey feed greedily and become so engrossed in the search for pollen and nectar that they sometimes remain oblivious of an observer.

They also eat blossoms, berries and other fruit seeds.

At sunrise flocks of rainbow lorikeets leave their roosting trees to fly to feeding areas.

Photographing them was a simple affair.

The camera was set up with a wireless control and the picnic was able to ­proceed.

The scaly breasted lorikeets were found on the way to Forster.

It was noted that they were feeding chicks.

This usually means about an hour between feeds, so the camera gear was set up and it was a simple case of waiting for there return.

This time it was about two hours.

There’s no doubt the scaly breasted lorikeet is a lovely bird, with habits and feeding similar to the rainbow.

This particular bird was photographed from the top of the four wheel drive to counter highlights.

The result was a better background, in this case a bit of fill flash was also used.

We are lucky in Australia to have such a wide variety of wildlife.