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I love my daily encounters with the Australian, White Ibis, here at Mooroopna, near Shepparton, near a lake I visit daily between Spring through into Autumn each year.  Today, Christmas day was a mild temperature day and the Ibis were out in the open. On hot days the cluster in the shade near the water's edge and in the evening they roost in the trees around the edge of the lake. I know not everyone loves them.

Ecologists say.we need to stop viewing the Australian white ibis as a pest and start to become better neighbours with them, as it’s the only way to ensure the species’ long-term survival.

That’s right: the Aussie white ibis is in trouble. Traditionally a bird of the bush, ongoing and worsening drought in the birds’ traditional inland wetland habitats is causing those habitats to disappear. Dam construction and agricultural water extraction are only compounding the problem, forcing these guys to retreat into residential cities and towns across the Australian coastline.

With Ibis as my neighbours, I need to keep my food scrap rubbish covered or they help themselves and they sometimes help me turn my compost heap. I don't find this a huge problem, I just need to keep my rubbish well covered until collection time and I have good looking neighbours always ready to post for me, as artist's models.  
 
 
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I have had fun with my new camera, taking photos of the local bird life.  I created four small art works of the birds in the Lake Dorothy, Vara-Ville Village, Mooroopna, Victoria and I put the image of each of these art works on to a post card, together with the location printed on the front and I am having 100 of these made up as gloss finish, postcards.  I will have this for sale, early in the New Year.