Unexpected seabird finds its way to Haddon | Nature Notes

Prions are seabirds, seldom seen even on the coast.

They are true seabirds, normally found out in the open sea, beyond the usual range of gulls and terns. With albatrosses, shearwaters, petrels and others, they are regarded as pelagic birds - birds that come to land only to breed.

The recent local sighting of the fairy prion occurred at Haddon, where it was found sheltering under trees in a paddock the morning after the strong winds a fortnight ago.

There are only one or two other known sightings of prions in the Ballarat district.

How this bird arrived here is a puzzle. Admittedly, there were gale-force winds from the west the night before the pigeon-sized bird was found sheltering alongside a row of trees - but prions and other seabirds are accustomed to wild weather at sea, and would be quite capable of alighting on the shore, or in the shelter of dunes, if they chose. The fact that this one continued inland as far as Haddon - travelling over or through such unfamiliar objects as trees, overhead wires, towns and streetlights - is indeed a surprise. In its ocean habitat, a prion is not a high flier, seldom rising more than 10 metres above the waves.

The bird was alive when found and was photographed and left untouched. Perhaps it later headed back to the sea, although it was probably exhausted and may not have completed the long journey home.

Large numbers of prions and other seabirds are often found washed up on beaches after storms, revealing that many of them die in such situations.

In Victoria, the fairy prion nests on Lady Julia Percy Island near Port Fairy. This is 160 or more kilometres from Haddon. Prions are nesting there now.

The fairy prion is very rarely seen from the shore during the day because - like albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters - it feeds further out in the sea. It feeds on plankton at the surface.

Like shearwaters (mutton-birds), it returns to its nest after dark.

Bicoloured mauve and white flowers are the feature of the native ivy-leaf violet, a common and well-known forest wildflower.

A favourite with many people, the ivy-leaf violet is a rhizomatous plant, usually growing in small patches.

Larger patches sometimes reach a metre or more across.

The flowers vary in size and colour in different places, with damper sites mostly having the larger and brighter-coloured flowers.

What is the proper name of this plant? We call it wild garlic, but that is possibly not the right name. It is very different from garden garlic. Y.G., Sebastopol.

The proper name for this plant is angled onion. Its main features are its triangular stems, its short size - mostly less than 30 cm - and its small clusters of drooping bell-shaped flowers. Each petal has a fine green line on the inside. The plant has a strong onion or garlic smell when broken.

Its botanical name is Allium triquetrum. Another common name is three-cornered garlic, but angled onion is the commonly-used official name in Victoria.

Angled onion is an increasing weed in the Ballarat district. It likes disturbed damper sites, such as creeksides and roadside drains, as well as gardens.

It is native to the Mediterranean region. Its small bulb is said to be edible.