Three birds by the back door

[TonyW]

1. Crows are generally not thought to be attractive birds because of their raucous call and aggressive behaviour. However, I think they are quite handsome and when a pair of them in love purr at each other they are rather sweet. The original picture was a little dark to my eyes and I have lightened it a little. It brought out the blue colour more than is usually seen.

056A2437 by tonyw36, on Flickr

2. Magpies are often quite tame. This one would eat out of my hand, albeit a little tentatively.

056A2438 by tonyw36, on Flickr

3. This fan tailed cuckoo is not so common. We found it sitting on the verandah after it had apparently stunned itself on the window. While I was photographing it, it flew up to the wall and clung there for a while and then flew off. I should have been a bit more careful with how the picture is cropped.

ed056A1399 by tonyw36, on Flickr

These pictures were taken with a Canon 5dIII and 100mm macro lens. They were all within about two metres of the back door.

[kdoc856]

That crow is really an impressive shot, Tony. Beautiful detail. A shame they are such nasty blighters. We are about overrun with them in the area near my cabin, and they take their toll on plants and other birds alike.