New car twitch

The new car is here! Well actually it's been here for a couple of months now but I only just got hold of my cargo tray for the boot and so the whole hellish process is now finally over and I can start to enjoy it at last. It's been very stressful!

New car

I wasn't planning to buy a new car but, as it turns out, my needs are apparently pretty niche and so having to go through a dealership was unavoidable at the end of the day. The car I was after just doesn't turn up second-hand. My Suzuki Grand Vitara is one of, if not the only, family sized true 4x4 that's still small enough to drive easily round the inner city and is half the price of these other ridiculously large off-roaders. This year's model is also the last one that can properly handle the rough stuff before sadly being re-designed as a useless city soft-roader next year. And so I was forced into getting rid of the old Focus slightly before it's time which was actually a little sad.

 

Anyway, with migrations now well underway and things on the move, the twitching is back on and the other weekend saw two pairs of Orange Chats turn up in a field in Kiama Downs which is a pleasant little drive south of Sydney. Usually found in the arid interior they are already on my list at #392 from my trip to the gibber plains on the edge of the Sturt Stony Desert. However, over there I only saw the rather plain looking female bird and so, despite not being a tick for the list, I was keen to get a good view of the male.

Random new cycle path across a field

The birds were frequenting a random cycle path that runs a short distance across a random field and sure enough, after a couple of false alarms with Richard's Pipits, a lovely male Orange Chat hopped into view. The second male soon showed up as well before we were rudely driven from the area by a super aggressive Magpie. I've never been attacked by one before although it's well known that that's what they can do at this time of year. It's actually quite alarming as they certainly don't hold back!

Orange Chat

There's a Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove in the Royal National Park at the moment too so that's maybe on for this weekend...