Day 50: Second Full Day in Sydney
Tuesday 4 March 2014
75 °F
Today was, as you can see from the title, my second of three full days in Sydney, Australia. Today was quite a milestone because it was my 50th full day of travel and now I have less than two more weeks of this trip. I am full of mixed emotions: sadness because I have seen so many amazing birds and this trip is nearly over, excitement to see new birds and get to know new culture in Indonesia and Singapore, and happiness because I am looking forward to seeing my friends back in Chicago again.
My family and I took a walking tour of Sydney today.
I saw a few nice birds, including the following:
This SULPHUR-CRESTED COCKATOO landed on the porch on our apartment while I was homeschooling with my mom. It was a nice break from algebra!
AUSTRALIAN WHITE IBIS, a surprising find in the city:
RAINBOW LORIKEET:
YELLOW-THROATED MINER:
AUSTRALIAN MAGPIE. Notice that this bird has a black back, so it is a "black-backed morph" magpie. You can study the differences of a "black-backed" magpie (first photo), and the more common "white-backed" magpie (second photo):
The highlight of the day was touring the Sydney Sea Life aquarium, arguably the best aquarium in Australia.
At one point we walked through a glass tube that went through a huge tank. Sea life surrounded us, overhead and on all sides. It was awesome!
Here is a photo of my sister Pearl with a shark in the background:
Speaking of sharks, did you know that getting attacked by a shark is much less likely than winning the lottery? I certainly didn't.
It was a nice day.
Stay tuned, because tomorrow is my last full day in Australia, and it will be spent in the greater Sydney area.
Good birding,
Henry
World Life List: 608 Species (no new life birds today)
