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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Azzy" data-source="post: 2097171" data-attributes="member: 83206">Most of the birds I found when I just started birding were luck. Mostly because I didn't really know what was going to be at the places I was visiting. So everything was special and lucky whenever I saw a bird that I hadn't seen before. Still, I've had a few special moments.Driving along in my car at around 60km/h with the drivers side window open about an inch when I see something fly by real close out the corner of my eye. And I think 'crap, did something just fly into the car?' so I close the window and pull over. I turn around in my seat, only to see a beautiful male spotted (yellow rumped) pardalote at the back of my car. It was a lifer. I -wish- I'd had my camera with me that day, because I'd never seen so much detail and colour packed into such a tiny little bird. He seemed a bit stunned, but I managed to extricate his claws from the fabric of the seats he was holding on to and let him go near some bushes, he flew off straight away. Amazing moment.Another bird that I've been lucky to see is the Plains wanderer. On a Uni camp at Danggali we were in the mini-bus early morning, driving to the study site for bird surveys when a bird ran out onto the track and in front of the bus for a few metres before darting off to the side again. I was fortunate enough to be sitting in the front row and so saw every moment of it. I vividly remembered the distinctive collar of the bird and it was that which enabled me to ID it as the plains wanderer, never haven seen one or even noticed them in my bird book before.Another one is probably the southern boobook. I was walking in a local conservation park and had just passed under a low-hanging tree when I heard a slight rustle in it. Turning around to look, I realised that I had just passed under a pair of very obvious southern boobooks. They were very close and absolutely beautiful and haunting with their dark eye goggles. Unfortunately I lost the photos with a comp crash, but it's still a nice memory.The chestnut quail-thrush is one I also have a fond memory of. On the same Danggali trip, doing the bird survey, I would sit in one spot for periods of time, before moving further along the transect to sit in another spot. I had the wonderful company of a male chestnut quail thrush for some time as I sat there, and watched it forage around me in the leaf litter, seemingly ignorant of my presence. A red-capped robin had done the same thing earlier in the transect too.I've also had the pleasure of being hassled by apostlebirds at a campsite, expecting a free feed <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite7" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":p" /></blockquote>

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