Big Potato with Daffodils

Spring continues here in Robertson, but with blustery winds today.
The daffodils planted around the Big Potato, courtesy of Jill Keft of the Robertson Village Nursery, and the Robertson Chamber of Commerce, have all burst into flower over the last few warm days.At the back of the field where the Big Potato is located, there is a female Mudlark sitting on her clutch of eggs. Last week I saw 3 Currawongs perched around this bird, but obviously they have not yet gone in for a feed, as she is sitting on something - presumably eggs.

Female Mudlark, with white face and white beak just visible
Her white tail is visible on the right.
sitting on eggs in her mud nest.
They collect mud to build the nest -
that's what gives them their name.

It will be much more difficult when the eggs have hatched, and the adults need to feed the (juicy) young. These birds have selected their nest site very carefully, as there is a branch immediately over the top of the nest (protecting them from an overhead attack), and there is also a stiff branch about 6 inches (approx 125 mm) behind the nest (to the right), giving the nest protection from a rear attack. Lets hope their strategy works. But they will not be able to leave the nest defenceless, as this female did when I arrived under the tree. Currawongs work very quickly when attacking nestlings.
As the sky was clear in Robertson I went out to Ocean View to catch the view over Shell Harbour and Lake Illawarra. Unfortunately the sky out over the Ocean was a little hazy.This is looking out over Macquarie Pass - with Mt Macquarie the cliffline visible to the left. Knights Hill is to the right.The field in the foreground is on basalt soil. Beyond that - in the middle distance, is the natural forest on the escarpment top edge (on sandstone - which is why it was never cleared for farming). Macquarie Pass runs from just to the left of screen, down underneath the visible clifflines, and then out to the centre ground, at Albion Park and then Shell Harbour. The Pacific Ocean is on the horizon.