Wild Life
This post is actually about wildlife, but I thought I’d break the word into two as my life is pretty wild at times.
My English niece arrived on the weekend for a visit so I thought I’d introduce her to some of my animal friends. I tried to take a selfie with a couple of naughty Rainbow Lorikeets but they kept photo-bombing my phone.
Mr Crocodile was happy to see us – but you should never get this close unless this bad-ass is behind a fence.
We stumbled across this beautiful albino Kookaburra – who knew only too well how absolutely beautiful it was next to its normal cousin!
Then this Pademelon who was quietly grazing near two King Parrots
The Bee-eaters (Merops ornatus) were out in force when I got home so I got a couple of shots of these gorgeous birds. The photos don’t do their colours justice.
The sugar cane cutting season has started so it’s been busy around my neck of the woods. I’ve been doing a bit of writing – enough to keep me out of trouble anyway 🙂
*** Have a great week! ***
Dianne Gray author 
Your selfies need practice Dianne – c’mon, get down with the kids. Is the croc yours or a visitor? Good to see that you’re well (most importantly) and that you’re writing. Take care.
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My selfies are appalling, Roy particularly when there are naughty birds about who are keen to nip at my ears! 😀
The croc was at the wildlife dome. I think I’d be running scared if something that big came knocking at my front door 😉
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It’s hard to believe it’s sugar cane cutting time again, Dianne. I so loved this post! I always enjoy your critter shots. I hope you’re doing well.
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Again, Jill. I think you and I have been down this road about five times now 😀 It’s amazing how fast the years go (and how long we’ve been blogging buddies) xxxx
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It really is, Dianne. Have a great day! xo
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Love the photo-bombs. Lorikeets seem to love sitting on shoulders. I remember one alighting on hubby when we were in Cairns. Such a gorgeous albino Kookaburra! I didn’t know there were such things. Sugarcane cutting season already? Be sure to get some photos, won’t you? Enjoy showing your niece around. 🙂 xx
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I’ve never seen an albino kookaburra before either, Sylvia – it was absolutely beautiful 😀
I’ll get the camera out so I cane take some shots of the cane-cutting – it’s always such a busy time of year 😀
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Your croc looks more dangerous than my ‘gator. 😉 Nice photos!
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It’s a monster at 14 feet long. A true-blue killer. I used to work in a crocodile farm and know to stay away from these beauties because they look like they’re sleeping and they’re not 😉
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Fourteen feet! If they grow at the same rate our ‘gators do, that means he’s seven years old.
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Did someone in your area get taken by a gator recently? I read something about a report of a gator with a body recently and I thought of those silly people who feed the gators in your area…
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How totally cool Dianne! Awesome photo bombs for sure and always love the peek into your wild and different life across the globe 🙂
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Great to see you here, Bonnie xxxx
I’m really glad you like the pics – and the photo bombs! lol 😀
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Gotta love the zoom feature, especially when photographing crocodiles. What a fun time for your niece. I’m jealous!
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She had a load of fun, Jacqui. Her mother told her to stay away from the crocodiles because they’ve been particularly bad this year, but I couldn’t resist taking her to a ‘safe spot’ to see one – she was blown away! It’s a great place to live 😀
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Is that your croc?! Beautiful birds!!! Have fun with the niece and the writing!
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LOL, I’d love to say – yes that’s my croc, he’s in the backyard and I feed him – but he’s not my croc, Luanne. He’s a monster at 14 feet long and one to keep very clear of. He is in a wildlife park. I think if I walked out and saw him in my yard I would break the land-speed record trying to get away from him 😀
The birds are truly beautiful xxx
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Hahahaha. Well, it’s probably for the best . . . .
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Absolutely! I had a giggle when you asked me that. What a cool pet! 😀
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Wild life and wildlife… I get that. Yesterday in the kitchen I watched a Daddy Long Legs devouring a noisy & unhappy bug, last night the roof geckos in the wall vents almost drowned out the TV with their whirring & chirping thrilled that the woodfire was lit, and the birds… we’re resident in their neighbourhood, not the other way ’round. I found a finch in the living room on the curtain rail the other morning… he’d followed his buddy the G.O. into the house. I haven’t attempted a selfie with any of them yet, and never with a croc ☺
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Ahhh – life in the country is never boring, Dale 😀 Finches in the house tend to make a bit of a mess, but they’re very cute. I didn’t think you had geckos that far south of us, I’ve learned something new! 😀
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Ooh, I hope they’re geckos… they make a lot of noise in the roof and little poos so I know they’ve been around.
Yep, I’m hearing you about the finches. They have no boundaries.
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I’ve got ceramic ducks on my wall and one day a finch got in and knocked them off and smashed one – is that irony? lol 😉
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Looks like you and your niece had a fun time together! Love the bee eaters. Have another WILD week!
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Thanks, Nancy – there’s only so much wildness that I can take (but I do love it!) 😀 I need to get a pic of the bee eaters flying – the colors are awesome 😉
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That ‘ordinary’ Kookaburra looks like his feathers are well ruffled in the presence of beauty. 🙂 🙂 But my money is on the Bee eaters. Such elegance! Have a happy week, Dianne.
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Those bee eaters are amazing, Jo – they’re so colorful. One day I hope to catch a shot of one in flight 😀
Yes – that ‘ordinary’ Kookaburra knew he had no chance of capturing our attention 😉
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LOL – photo bombing parrots, I love it! I adore the way you engage with ‘wildlife’ in such a direct way, like every bird and beast you meet has a name, a personality, a history, a family…which of course they do! Those bee-eaters are just stunning 🙂 Thanks for sharing these beautiful pics. Love, Harula xxx
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I’m so glad you like the pics, Harula. My hubby calls me ‘Snow White’ because animals seem to be attracted to me LOL 😉
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LOL – what a wonderful name to give you! I had the most amazing experience with some young calves yesterday. I stood really still, inwardly inviting them to come closer, and one did and let me rub it’s for head and scratch it behind the ears. It was incredible! H xx
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YAY! You’re a ‘Snow White’ as well, Harula 😀
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I love the bee eaters. We saw them in many places on our road trip. They’re not easy to photograph so you’ve done a great job. As for Mr Croc…I’d be steering clear of that toothy smile. Crocs give me the creeps.
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Crocs aren’t something I take lightly either. There is a place near the farm where I won’t fish anymore because I saw a croc there. Avoid at all costs I say – unless they are in a wildlife exhibit behind a good sturdy fence 😉
The bee eaters are also my favourites xxxx
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We lived in Darwin for over two years. The day we arrived the big news was all about two fishermen who were camping on the beach and woke up to find a huge croc dragging their dinghy down the sand to the water. That was enough for me!
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Yes – that would be very scary. The closest I get to camping is a nice hotel with room service by the beach. My hubby thinks I’m a big chicken 😉
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That hotel sounds great.
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I will be over your way again very soon. My sister’s garden has become a favourite haunt for pythons. I suppose pythons are a better deal than crocs! I would love to see a pademelon. You will know the story of the NZ woman who was taken by a crocodile recently……no wonder your niece’s mother was feeling anxious.
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Yes – I heard that story and it was awful – I think one of our greatest fears is being eaten by one of these monsters 😦
If you’re coming to Cairns, go to the Casino Wildlife Dome (this is where I took the pics of the croc and pandemelon) 😀
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I will keep that in mind.
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Ooooh. I’m a little jealous. Our wildlife is not so in-your-face or colorful. Enjoy the visit. Sometimes, when visitors come, we see our own backyard with fresh eyes.
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You’re so right about visitors – there are some things I see and places I go only when we have visitors. It’s almost like I become the tourist as well! 😀
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I want that wildlife near me! How fun! Even the croc is neat to look at, although I’m sure some of the commenters would disagree! Thanks for sharing those awesome photos!
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The croc is very neat. I remember the first time I saw one and thought it was dead because it was so still – but don’t be fooled, they can move very fast indeed 😉 I’m so glad you like the photos, Kate 😀
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When we were in Australia some years we were forever blown away by the animals, and terrified by the crocs. Thanks for the great photos. Enjoy your time with your niece!
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I’m still terrified by the crocs, Allen – and I used to work in a crocodile farm where I would hold the baby crocs for tourists to get pictures 😉 I have great respect for them (translated to – I keep a big distance or a strong fence between myself and the adults) 😉 The animals here are beautiful and colourful. Although those two Rainbow Lorikeets were keen to nip me and I’m not sure why! Naughty birds 😀
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Love the friendly and cheeky lorikeets Dianne. and that albino kookaburra is very unique. Where did you see him? Hope the storms have not damaged the sugarcane crop. It was devastated in NSW. We missed the worst of the storm in my corner of GC but was pleased to have the rain and so was the garden.
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We had absolutely no storms, wind or rain here at all, Pauline. It started just below us and looked amazing on the global wind map as it headed south.
The albino kookaburra was at the Cairns Wildlife Dome. He (or she) must be relatively new because I didn’t see it last year when I was there. It’s amazing 😀
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Your area was lucky for a change. I guess we will soon be wishing for rain
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Lucky for once – I love that because it’s so true. I don’t like cyclone season at all and am constantly keeping an eye on the weather in Summer 😉
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Drove through the Tweed a couple of days ago and the cane has taken a beaten and it looked as though it was a top crop this year. Harvest has just started.
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I seriously thought that crocodile was in your backyard until I read your reply to Roy up there. I was like, Dianne…I will never—I repeat—never come visit you! 😉
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Haaaaa – I would win an Olympic sprint record if that monster was in my yard (LOL). 😀
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The photobombing birds cracked me up. And that crocodile? I wouldn’t get anywhere near that thing. Lovely photos!
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Thanks so much for coming over and having a look at my blog, Lori! It’s so lovely to see you here 😀
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I enjoy e-meeting new people. I just wish I had more time to do it.
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Exactly right, Lori 😉
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Thanks for all the wildlife introductions Dianne! Looks like you’re never alone or lonely! Great post! 🙂
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Thank so much, Cathie, my pleasure! 😀
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Love that albino kookabura (sp?). It’s so fun to see all your wildlife there. I bet your niece loves it.
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She absolutely loves it, Char! What a great time we had 😀
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All the birds Down Under are so colourful (with the exception of your albino kookaburra, of course)! I also recall them being quite a bit louder than North American birds (but then, so are a lot of the Aussie people, so perhaps the birds need to compensate for that in order to be heard, lol).
I always wonder if animals have hierarchies based on colour the way humans do.
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You’re right, Janna – the birds here are very loud and it can become too much when there are a lot of them (just like Aussies too, I guess!) LOL 😀
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What fun! I’ve never even heard of a pade…whatever! 🙂 And that last bird is to die for!!
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I’m so glad you liked it. A pademelon looks like a small kangaroo – I didn’t know they existed either until I saw one (and thought it was a kangaroo) LOL 😉 The last bird is awesome – one day I’ll take a photo of it flying so you can see the wing colour 😀
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Sounds great! Hope to make it to AU some day and see some of these creatures in the flesh, or the feathers, as the case may be.
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The Lorikeet is such a beautiful and colorful bird. It looks ‘fake’ to me because we do not have such where I come from (Zambia).
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Thanks for coming by and commenting 😀 I’m really glad you like the birds xxx
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Those selfies were fun!
Hope your niece had/has a great visit !
😎
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She had a fabulous time! 😀 Those birds were very naughty, but a lot of fun 😉
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😉
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You have some very exotic wildlife, plenty of inspiration for writing I think 🙂
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There is so much here and all the animals are truly inspiring, Andrea 😀
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That’s a lovely and exotic collection you have there, Dianne…xx
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It’s hard t know which way to turn the camera sometimes 😀
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Dianne that croc is amazing do you have to teach the pets not to go near it? I am in love with the albino Kookaburra what a stunning find. Your back yard is rich in the diversity that the Australian bush has to offer, I am blown away by the amount of different animals and birds live near you and a little bit envious too.
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Thank you so much for the tweet, Kath! 😀
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cute! Following!
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Thank you! xxx
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Love it!
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Thank you 🙂
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I love to see wild life ! Thanks for sharing this !
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I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
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