I have always been a keen twitcher. When bushwalking in my youth I always have a bird guide and noted locations and dates as I saw new species. Moving to the farm in North East Victoria has been great and though we don’t have the proliferation of wrens that are found down on the creek, the area around the house has many birds that either live full time or are seasonal. The previous owner had a cat which limited the number of birds that would come around. It has been interesting the change over the years of which species are now more common and which we don’t see as much. The Eastern Rosellas are now common and the Crimson Rosellas seen more often. The Red Rump Parrots that we used to see in the middle of winter have been absent for 4 years now. The Gang Gang parrots are seasonal and frequent over summer and into autumn. The magpies have a family every year and we get to know them all. When it is time for the young to leave and find their own homes the fights can be quite brutal. The mating rituals of the top knot pigeons is something to behold and the nectar eating birds love the grevilleas planted around the house. The King Parrots are frequent visitors. Whistling or knocking on windows to let us know they would like some wild bird seed mix (with extra sunflower seeds please). The young Satin Bower birds are common and love eating oranges and fortunately leave the garden alone. Red cheek wattle birds are often in the grevilleas outside our dining room but nest in the gum trees near the house. Willie wagtails can be heard at all hours and can nest 3 times in a season. The Spur winged plovers will nest anywhere. Side of the driveway or on the dam wall with no twigs for a nest. Just an indent in the ground. They are rather aggressive when the eggs hatch and the young easily blend in with the grass.