Therese Ralston has a scene that is positively Disney happening in her yard.
The birdwatcher and photographer from Australia has captured images of a wallaby taking a sip from her mountaintop birdbath.
“Can’t believe I have wallabies and kangaroos coming to my house for a drink in the drought,” she posted on Twitter. “I still can’t quite believe it’s happening.”
A short clip of a #Wallaby drinking from my birdbath today. #TwitterNatureCommunity #WildOz #OMG #NaturePhotography More on https://t.co/qSrPGdC1o9 pic.twitter.com/mKAk0azX0H
— Therese (@ThereseRalston) October 9, 2019
But there’s more to it.
This wallaby was being harassed by a Willie Wagtail, also known as a Australian Nightingale.
“Willie is a fantail that attacks anything near its nest; predators like eagles and magpies as well as bigger old birds like me. Once, after taking photos of it bathing, it flew overhead and tried to scalp me,” Ralston wrote on her bird blog.
“I’ve been dive-bombed a lot in the 3 years since this bird became a resident of our front yard, but I didn’t think it would try to shift a Wallaby,” she added.
I have wallabies drinking from my birdbath. It is uncanny, but I love it. This one brushed off an attack by a Willie Wagtail to fill up on water. It is sad but sweet. Stacks more pics and films on blog: https://t.co/qSrPGdC1o9 pic.twitter.com/Etnq51weOn
— Therese (@ThereseRalston) October 9, 2019
Her region of the country is in the midst of a long drought.
A nearby creek hasn’t run in three years and the earth is cracked. Little wonder normally people wary — and camera shy — wallabies are looking for a place to drink.
“A wallaby leaning on a birdbath for a long, cool drink at midday?,” Ralston added. “Two completely different creatures sharing a birdbath? The chances of these things happening are a million to 1.”
Photos Therese Ralston/Twitter
