Cobbler Creek…Love is in the Air
Dear Reader:
The two noisy miner birds have been flying backwards and forwards through the box gums for the last ten minutes. Eventually the male sees his chance and lands on the branch next to the female. She chirps a half hearted protest or perhaps encouragement and he seizes the moment. Mating takes just a few seconds and they go back to their previous pattern of fly and follow.
Miner 1
Miner birds 2
I am watching the birds and their courtship antics in the Cobbler Creek Recreation Park; an area of open-woodland, near the end of Bridge Road in Salisbury East. Cobbler Creek stretches up into Tea Tree Gully where it can be easily accessed from Atlantis Avenue which joins the two branches of the Golden Way. Dropping in at the Tea Tree Gully shopping mall to collect some food then exploring the creek after picnicking on the grassed area, where Atlantis joins ‘The Way’ near Spring Hill, is a nice option.
Salisbury East entrance
After spending a little more time watching the bird life at the western end of the creek I take a short drive up to Spring Hill in TTG. This part of the creek lies in a more urban setting where the waterway is dominated by huge red gums. There are numerous parrots in the trees and they too seem to be in a rather affectionate mood. For a while I focus on a pair of Rose Breasted Cockatoos (Galahs) which are quite intrigued by a tree hollow that has the makings of a future family home. Between real estate outings they preen themselves and each other as well as squawking and hopping between branches. Occasionally they hang upside down with wings flapping madly and crests erect.
In Tea Tree Gully
Galahs
But the Galah couple do not have the neighbourhood to themselves. An equally amorous pair of corellas is occupying an adjacent tree and they too seem to have spied the potential nest site. Not to be outdone by their Galah cousins they engage in some serious necking and cooing.
Corellas
Yes, it seems that along Cobbler Creek; love is definitely in the air.
Cheers
Baz
Naturally South Australia 