Bell Miner (Bellbird)

Notes:

I saw this bird squawking and squabbling with two others by Booloumba Creek in Conondale National Park. I had never seen this species before. When I got home I was very surprised to learn that it is the sweet-voiced Bell Miner, or Bellbird! I recommend that anyone who hasn't heard a bellbird goes to http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/... and listens to the recording - they are beautiful. We heard so many of these on our walk in the National Park, but didn't see any (or so I thought)! But apparently they do have 'harsher calls', which is clearly what I witnessed by the creek! Wikipedia suggests that their common name might be because 'they feed almost exclusively on the dome-like coverings of certain psyllid bugs, referred to as "bell lerps," that feed on eucalyptus sap from the leaves'. However, I suspect the common name came about from the bell-like call, and the 'bell lerp' thing is just a happy coincidence.