Arabic version: طيور داروين تتألق في صور من الطرف العلوي

According to ABC News, Darwin’s self-described status as a “city of birds” is reflected in photographs of colourful and distinctive species across the Northern Territory’s Top End. The images include rainbow bee-eaters, crimson finches, kingfishers, fairy-wrens and waterbirds photographed around Darwin and nearby areas.

Charles Darwin University ornithology researcher John Woinarski said the region has about 200 species of bush birds, alongside another 50 to 100 waterfowl, seabirds and shorebirds. He said the seasonal climate and sparse local population help make the area a safe haven for species that have disappeared elsewhere.

“Compared to most other cities in Australia, they’re all native birds — there’s not the high densities of birds from Europe that characterise much of the rest of Australia,” Professor Woinarski said. He said the conspicuous colours and calls of some species have helped shape Darwin’s reputation among birdwatchers and people interested in the environment.

Professor Woinarski described the Top End as a “fascinating patchwork” of habitats, ranging from dry red-dirt country to tropical wetlands and stone country in World Heritage-protected Kakadu National Park. He said a listener could identify the time of year and season from Darwin’s bird soundscape.

Among the unusual sightings is an all-black blue-winged kookaburra that has become a regular visitor to a rural Darwin backyard. Professor Woinarski said the bird’s appearance was likely caused by a mutation in its melanin levels and was more rare than an albino kookaburra. The photographs were highlighted as the citizen science project The Aussie Bird Count began this month.