Shortly after sunrise, still half comatose in bed , this writer has been disturbed of late by the constant, loud , irritating cry of a bird , officially described as being "Poor devil, poor devil." Hearing this over and over does not put you in a positive frame of mind to face the day . In fact , the pillow has often been placed over the head to stop the dirge .
Sensing it was a noisy Helmeted Friarbird ,it was decided to find out why it sings such a sad song.
During recent windy weather two baby Friarbirds had fallen out of their nest and died . Gazing about the property , other cup- shaped Friarbird nests were spotted high up in palm trees which self cleanse , dropping fronds with great frequency .
One such clump in which there was a nest fell to the ground a few days ago.
Just this morning another nest was sighted hanging precariously from a palm tree which could dump foliage at any moment , clobbering the vicar should he make an unexpected call .
Friarbirds are an interesting family .The Little Friarbird, also known as the Little Leatherhead, found in a large part of Australia, has a monotonous call-note , "Ar-coo".
Needless to say , the Noisy Friarbird ,kicks up a racket ,has an extraordinary jumble of notes, according to What Bird is That?, one being ,"Four o'clock". Then there is the mysterious Melville Island Friarbird of the Northern Territory about which very little is known .
