Wedge-tailed Eagle, Taronga Zoo, Sydney
The Wedge-tailed Eagle is the largest of Australia’s birds of prey. At rest it stands nearly a metre tall and has a wing span of up to 2.8 metres. It is a bird found throughout all of Australia and is a common sight soaring on high in rural areas. While it is more common in open country, it can also be found in mountainous and forested areas. It builds a large nest in a prominent, high position using sticks and twigs, adding to the nest year after year. Some can reach very large proportions, several metres deep and wide. At the beginning of each nesting attempt the nest is lined with fresh eucalyptus leaves.
The bird shown in the photos on this page were taken during the Free Flight Bird Show at Taronga Zoo, Sydney, on our visit there last year. This show is always the highlight for us whenever we visit the zoo. To have a large eagle such as this swooping low over your head is a truly awesome experience. I’m pleased that the zoo keepers have plenty of food for the birds during the show; I’d hate for one of these eagles to settle on my should and take a chunk out of my ear or nose.
Helpful Galahs at Taronga Zoo, Sydney
Over recent days I’ve been writing about the Free Flight Bird Show at Taronga Zoo in Sydney. This show is, in my opinion, a must see when visiting this wonderful zoo. The talk by the keepers about Australian birds is interesting enough, but the antics of the trained birds are not only entertaining but are highly educational as well.
One of the birds in the show is a clever Galah shown in today’s photos. It is trained to collect a coin or a note from a willing spectator in the audience and then bring it back to the keeper, who pockets the money. A few minutes later the Galah returns the money to the hapless audience member. After the show audience members can get up close to some of the birds, including the Galah. This time the bird is trained to collect coins donated by people and to deposit them in a money box. In this way, over $75,000 has been collected in recent years towards conservation projects. This also enable people like me to have excellent photo opportunities.
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