Birding

Chiming Wedgebills

March 4, 2018 by Clare M No Comments

Chiming Wedgebills–Psophodes occidentalis are a species that we have never actually gone looking for, but also a species that we have never encountered. We have undoubtedly been in the right environment in Western Australia over the years, but they just have not been where we were on any given day! However, we have recently had an excellent encounter with several of these delightful birds south of Carnarvon in Western Australia. As we pulled into a rest area one afternoon we noticed a Chiming Wedgebill actively feeding on the ground. We positioned ourselves in the shade to observe the antics and soon realised there were several Chiming Wedgebills in the area and they were not in the least bit bothered by our presence.

Chiming Wedgebill

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening observing them around the bush and they kept us amused as they turned items to find food and hopped in and out of the low lying bushes. The vegetation was very sparse in that arid part of Western Australia, but the Chiming Wedgebills appeared to be thriving.

Chiming Wedgebill feeding

Of course it made sense to put our tent up among the Chiming Wedgebills especially considering we had never observed them before. We were woken to their delightful call, which we had not heard in the previous afternoon and evening and that really capped off a special encounter with a beautiful bird. Of course there are many other birds with a lot more colour, but they had personality and that also makes for a great bird encounter!

Written by Clare M
Clare and her husband, Grant, have lived permanently in Broome, Western Australia since 1999 after living in various outback locations around Western Australia and Darwin. She has lived in the Middle East and the United States and traveled extensively in Europe. She monitors Pied Oystercatchers breeding along a 23km stretch of Broome's coastline by bicycle and on foot. She chooses not to participate in social media, but rather wander off into the bush for peace and tranquility. Thankfully she can write posts in advance and get away from technology!