Early this morning, while I’m reading the Sunday papers in bed, my husband called out that there were seven twenty-eights on the back lawn. “Nothing unusual about that”, thought I, “we often have native birds out the back.” (BTW, twenty-eights, also known as ring-necked parrots, are bright green with a flash of blue tail feathers, a black head, and a yellow neck band—pretty birds.)
So I got up and wandered out to find that this family of twenty-eights were happily ‘bathing’ in our back lawn! Despite the recent hot summer weather, part of our back lawn grows prolifically—I think it’s over the septic tank/leach drain!
These birds were turning themselves over and over in the long dew-covered grass, obviously having a bath… In the lawn!
They emerged looking pretty scraggly as they were quite wet and had fluffed out their feathers. They must’ve had a good old wash for at least 10 minutes before they flew away. I could only get a couple of photos as they were mostly hidden in the long wet grass.
Rhonda Bracey: At Random 