Whilst not technically birding from my armchair, I usually notice birds in the nearby trees in late in the afternoon just after I sit down for a glass of wine. So, I’ve developed a stalking protocol …

I very slowly put down my glass of wine, slide to the floor without moving to the left or right, then crawl on my hands and knees behind the sofa until I reach the veranda door. Where I slowly stand up, again without moving to the left or right and pick up my strategically placed camera.

Using this protocol, I captured these photos of a Kookaburra with his/her prey in the Mango tree. To be fair, I think that he was probably a bit stunned and wondering how the hell he was going to deal with such a large rodent. He eventually flew off, rat in beak, close to the ground like an overloaded cargo plane.

When I planted a Bangalow Palm and a native Tulipwood Tree close to my veranda (probably a bit too close in retrospect) I hadn’t foreseen what an attraction their berries would be to the local birds. A serendipitous, but potentially ill-advised decision, which results in a daily queue of birds chasing a late-afternoon snack.