Green Parrots (2005-05-07)
We used to live in a suburb called Menai in Australia which is about forty minutes from downtown Sydney. It was a newly developed area amid bushland and mountains. Our beautiful landscaped garden was full of delightful things that attracted lots of birds and butterflies. Besides a freeform lawn bordered with pavers, there was a large mulched area in which a towering Canadian maple tree and a willowy Japanese one thrived. A number of fragrant orange jasmine shrubs lined the entire border of the backyard scenting our garden several times of the year with their flowers. There was also a vegie garden, a small strip of area with miniature fruit trees, a birdbath that stood amongst gardenias and french lavenders, and a wooden deck with garden furniture and a Weber. Two healthy orange trumpet creepers occupied a good area of the fence which added a splash of orange color every summer when thousands of their trumpet-like flowers bloomed. There were also other lovely flowers and ground cover such as lilies and California poppies. Our dining room wall-to-wall windows directly faced the garden and it was absolutely wonderful to eat our meals while enjoying the garden scenery.
With a flourishing garden came a number of exotic-looking birds that became our regular visitors. Among them was a pair of rainbow lorikeets which was such a joy to watch. There was also a very tall eucalyptus tree in front of our house which was home to a large flock of native cockatoos. These big birds would fly off at dawn and return to roost high up on the branches in the evening everyday. If you ask me what I miss most about Sydney, I'd say my garden and all the wildlife and animals that shared it.
Imagine my delight when KL and I was riding home one afternoon and
saw a couple of large green parrots perching on a power line.
When we stopped to look at them, we saw two more eating a slice of
apple from a branch just below the first two! It turns out we had
stopped right in front of a house whose occupants have set up a feeding
area for these lovely birds. There were apple rings and orange
segments screwed onto the branches of a tree for the parrots and the
birds were having a ball sinking their beaks into the fruits.
After watching them for a little while, I couldn't help but tiptoe
towards them to take their pictures. As quiet as I tried to be,
my action startled them and the two parrots which were eating flew off
and landed on a branch nearby. I didn't want to disrupt their
meal anymore so we left as soon as I finished taking a few shots.
Now that I know where those green parrots go to feed, I can sorta
relive our lorikeet-watching days just by taking a stroll to that house
and look at the beautiful birds.
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