One morning last September, I was sitting on our back steps putting on a pair of old shoes before going down to mow the back yard. Apart from the regular noises around, all seemed fairly quiet on that day.
Suddenly, I stopped and listened. There was no mistaking the call of the Sacred Kingfisher which had always inhabited our back yard during the spring and summer months.
An ants’ nest on a solid tree in the back corner had been their breeding place for quite a few years prior to this and I was really pleased that they were to return, no doubt to have another batch of young.
The usual procedure was that one would return and begin calling. Normally it would be a week or more before we heard his mate answering and we would know that she had arrived also.
I had kept a hide of bags and hessian strategically placed not far back from the nest and these birds had become so used to it that they would fly straight in without being concerned.
I always waited till I could see them bringing food back to the nest before setting up my camera gear in the hide. It was always a delight to see them bringing back food for their young but unfortunately for me, they would always reach right into the nest so the babies did not poke their heads out to be fed, as some other species do. By gripping onto the nest at the opening, the parents could reach in comfortably.
The illustration, which depicts the delicate brown colours of the underfeathers of the wings, shows one of the parents checking on the babies before taking off again.
