Dear Hayden,
i am a little out of touch with new arrivals from past 6 months.

you need not get into mega pixels trap. A 4 mega pixels is just good enough. Right now what is available is a minimum 8 mega pixels cameras which is more than i need for my work.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2007_reviews/panasonic_fz50.html


http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicfz50/

ideally i would suggest a Panasonic FZ50 a 10 mega pixel camera, its not new, its been around for over 2 years. It has a terrific 12x zoom which is good for taking pictures of birds and it is not a SLR though looks like one. Price will be less than 550 dollars I think you can get it for lot less since it is 2 years old.
good for wild life and has good macro settings for close ups. If you get used to very slight, very very slight shutter lag you can take Jake's action pictures comfortably. And you can take multiple shots of action plus the video mode.

at the same 550 dollars, the answer to the slight shutter lag is Nikon D60, perhaps the lowest priced SLR. Absolutely no lag. It comes with a standard lens. You have to buy an additional zoom lens
costing another 500 dollars for wild life and birds

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2008_reviews/nikon_d60.html

This is not very heavy with standard lens, with additional zoom becomes heavy.

A 6 mega pixel Nikon D40 would be cheaper and offers same features.

Panasonic Lumix FZ50 with the standard lens you can do wonders with 12x zoom, without the hassles of changing lenses.

Panasonic Lumix FZ18 has a better zoom. But takes little time for the lens to come out of the camera.
And it is a use and throw type. Where as FZ50 is built tough, will serve you longer. Nikon D40 and D60 as usual are built tough. Cannons are not so tough. Only the very expensive ones are tough.

I would advise you to check these cameras in a shop and decide. i would not advise you to buy the camera on line.

i would be too glad to answer any questions Hayden, please take time to decide after checking the cameras physically, even if you have to visit the shop a couple of times.