My Burra Family: The Tapas Bar Crew - Crested Pigeons, Butcherbirds & Others.

All the birds that visit the Tapas Bar have names and characters. And as the number has grown over the last 5 months, I thought it timely to do a who’s who post.

My Kooka Family is headed up by Boss & Bashful, then Bitey (he’s 2 yrs old), Brave Baby & Bully (last year’s bubs) and this year’s addition, Button.

But this post is about the others.

Crested Pigeons:

"Jo look at me. No - really look at me"
"You know this look - I need you in the most visceral way.
"Oh John, you're dreadful"

These guys are Judge John Deed & his girl Jo Mills. Unfortunately I named them before I looked them up on Google. The characters are from the TV series “Judge John Deed”, and he is a real womaniser, even to his own detriment.

I couldn’t have picked a more polar opposite character. Crested Pigeons are monogamous. And the male shares equally in incubation & rearing.

For the sake of the Tapas Bar, I’m so happy I did name them early. What fun is there in the “Perfect Couple”.

"Don't tell me you're closely examining a case.
I know exactly what you're doing"
"I must admit Jo, from here it's a cute case"

Yes John! I did look.
I can tell you there's no sunshine here.

The problem with being a public figure is every drunk feels you need advice.
Here Cedrick has had too many grapes, stumbles & head buts the Judge in the chest.
It scared Jo a lot more than it worried the judge.

The Judge popped in for a bit, and said
"G'day Mal, great day. What did you & Mick get up to last night?"
"Nothin Judge, Honest nuthin. We were here all night"
"Oh I am, er , late for an appointment"
Bwahahaha, this is useful when they're in your spot at the Bar.

"Hey Jo, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"John you're always thinking that - you're dreadful Muriel"

The Grey Butcherbirds:
Another unfortunate happenstance. I was visited by a Butcherbird that I thought was a Pied Butcherbird. His role in the Tapas Bar is Stan the local butcher. Well, a few weeks later he introduced me to his kid, whom I named Pied. I then found out they were Grey Butcherbirds & not Pied Butcherbirds. Shit happens. Pied is going to grow up one really fcuked up kid. C'est la vie, a parent’s prerogative.

G'day, I'm Stan & that's my kid below.
His name is Pied, and yes I know I'm not a Pied Butcherbird.
Tell that to the twit that named us..

Anyway, life being what it is, goes on. Now, have you checked out the end of these guy’s beaks. It ends in a needle sharp point. Can you imagine that, landing on your nail, sliding along looking for a place to purchase, let’s say your cuticle, and then flying off with the tip of your finger in their beak? They worry me more than the Kookas.

Needlessly, as it turns out. These guys are surgeons.

He does that & I checked my fingers.

I just dare you to try.

Always under pressure from the Kookas, they are lightning fast, and come in at a million miles/hour. And always grab the meat a ml or 2 in front of my fingers with surgical precision. However, they still scare the shit out of me.

Construction site.
Father & Son.
We know what caught their attention.
Boys will be Boys

Hi, I'm Pied. I'm the fcuked up kid.
What? You think it's a little thing! What if your parents named you gorilla or monkey!
Look at me. I'm a Butcherbird & I'm eating pumpkin.
How fcuked up is that

The Others:

The Tapas Bar get the occasional visitor. Not regularly enough to warrant a character, but here's hoping.

This photo is a male Chestnut Teal, female Mallard & her mate on the other side of the fence.
Now this male Mallard isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.
Seeing both he & his missus are too big to fit thru the bars poses a problem.
She flew over the fence. He paced back & forth trying to squeeze thru.
She got a feed, he didn't.

Female Chestnut Teal

Female Mallard with her stupid mate trying yet again to squeeze thru.

The female Mallard (the one at the back) never shut up.
Could that be why her male didn't fly over?

This is a Kookaburra Blog isn't it?

Some Spotted doves I see on occasion have avoided my camera. They never venture up to the table or birdbath, preferring to feed off the grass. Even on the grass they seem to skirt the range of my camera. This day a few turned and for a change paraded in front of the lens.