By JONATHON HOWARD
TWO fledgling tawny frogmouths near Cooroy Mountain were lucky to be alive after they were blown out of a tree by strong winds last week. The pair survived the almost twenty-metre fall to the ground, landing apart on the grass below. Local resident Vic Jakes came to the aid of the frogmouths and took this stunning photo for Noosa Today’s Lenscape. “Daybreak saw one of the parent birds protecting one chick, while the other was totally exposed to the very real dangers that life presents to such young and vulnerable creatures,” he said. “I know that a fox regularly patrols the area and therefore decided to attach the part of the nest that had remained intact to the top of a fencepost near to the nesting tree and then reintroduce the two chicks to their new home location.” Mr Jakes said he had no certainty that the parent birds would accept the new nesting position. “But within a few minutes one of the adults was sitting on the nest, again protecting both chicks, which I estimate to be around 10 days old,” he said. “Provided there are no mishaps in the meantime, the youngsters should leave the nest after around four weeks.” Mr Jakes said he has been photographying wildlife for the past 28 years and he took the photo using a Canon EOS D60 with a Canon Ultrasonic EF 70-200 lens.
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