Victoria Visits: Ethan 01

My grandson Ethan is visiting this week and it is 100% birding. Yesterday, Friday, we spent the first three hours at the Heart Morass where Ethan scored 3 ticks - Brown-headed Honeyeater, Yellow Thornbill and White-winged Black Tern. We saw a respectable 51 species. Ethan is a pretty keen photographer so all the images are his.

The Heart Morass is drying fast with many hectares of mudflat happily growing grass and other assorted vegetation. We saw a few Red-necked Stints, some Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and a small flock of Common Greenshank. There were quite a few hundred terns mostly Whiskered but the occasional White-winged Black (Ethan lifer) in non-breeding plumage with the "ear muffs". I ALWAYS find terns hard to photograph so full marks to Ethan.

Australian Hobby

Brown-headed Honeyeater

White-winged Black Tern

White-winged Black Tern

 We chanced upon a flock of mixed species giving some flowering bushes and trees a bit of stick. As well as Yellow (Ethan lifer) and Brown Thornbills there were Brown-headed (Ethan lifer) and White-naped Honeyeaters.

Yellow Thornbill

Yellow Thornbill

Next stop was the Macalister Wetlands Reserve at Maffra. Star of a relatively sparse showing was a Spotless Crake (Ethan lifer). The wetlands has just one pool with a reasonable amount of water in it. The growth of vegetation is prolific.

Spotless Crake

Stop 3 was Bullock Island at Lakes Entrance where Black-faced Cormorants did not fail us (Ethan lifer).

Black-faced Cormorants

Last stop for the day was Lake Tyers Beach where we expected to see Hooded Plovers. It did not let us down. The lake is very low. At the moment you can walk across to the first island behind the bar between the lake and the sea. We were ambling along and a Hoodie was spotted (Ethan lifer). Great. We approached a lit bit then sat down as it was walking towards us doing its own thing on the water's edge darting here and there but getting closer. Eventually it was about 10 metres away, Ethan taking photos, when we heard a bunch of Australian Pied Oystercatchers making a noise. We looked up and right in front of us was an Osprey that was loaded down with a fish in its talons being chased by the APOs!

Magic. f8 and be there!!

Ethan is a Queenslander where every power pole has an osprey nest on it so not a life tick but you don't often see them with a takeaway meal!

PS We also saw some breeding plumage Fairy Terns.

Hooded Plover

Hooded Plover

Eastern Osprey

Fairy Tern

Broome Roadtrip 01

Whilst most of the Ashmore Reef Pelagic Cruise participants flew to Broome, I decided to drive. This enabled me to deliver a camper-trailer to Alice Springs then continue north along the Tanami Road to Halls Creek then along the Savannah Highway to Broome. It was all about getting there so no time for birding but I did manage to get some nice images.

First night stop was Terrick Terrick NP just north of Mitiamo. Galahs Eolophus roseicapillus were plentiful as were the mozzies.

Next night was at Sherlock to the east of Tailem Bend. A walk around the new lake there brought me a pair of Blue Bonnets Northiella haematogaster which alighted accommodatingly on a fence post.

The next camp was near Glendambo on the Stuart Highway. I thought I saw a magpie drop to the ground and chased it for a few hundred yards. It turned out to be a Ground Cuckoo-shrike Coracina maxima and gave me some good views.

A natural break at Marla had an Australian Hobby Falco longipennis staked out in a tree in the car park.

The Tanami Road is sealed for the first three hundred kilometres, virtually to Yuendumu. In the early morning sun, this Gwardar Pseudonaja nuchalis was sunning itself on the road. One of Australia's most venomous snakes.

The Tanami Road is 1,040 kilometres from Alice Springs to Hall's Creek. Up to the Granites Mine [600km] there is plenty of traffic but further north, in late spring to early autumn, there isn't much traffic at all. There is certainly no border force at the border. Just a 44 gallon drum.

I stopped for the night just short of the border. My short morning walk showed a Little Woodswallow Artamus minor and an Australian Bustard Ardeotis australis.

Next night was at  _____ Dam.  I saw a Pallid Cuckoo Cacomantis pallidus the next morning followed by a Collared Sparrowhawk Accipiter cirrocephalus had two goes at getting a honeyeater but too slow. These pics were taken while he rested up between efforts to get breakfast.

This last image of a Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola [rear left] and, left to right in the foreground, a Black-fronted Dotterel Elseyornis melanops, a Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea and a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper Calidris acuminata were at the Derby WTP. Discussion at Broome Bird Observatory of the middle bird brought up the possibility of a Cox's Sandpiper [a cross between a Curlew and a Pectoral Sandpiper] but the verdict was a Curlew Sandpiper with a very dirty bill on a bedraggled bird.

Go South 14 -- Bowra, Cunnamulla

There were plenty of raptors to see each day. Brown Goshawk, Wedge-tailed Eagle and Peregrine Falcon were ones I failed to get a photo of.

Whistling Kite Haliastur sphenurus 

Little Eagle Hieraactus morphnoides

Collared Sparrowhawk
Acipiter cirrocephalus

Australian Hobby Falco longipennis

 Some of their potential prey could include ...

Peaceful Dove  Geopelia striata

Crested Pigeon Ocyphaps lophotes

Waite-Browed Woodswallow
Artamus superciliosus

female White-browed Woodswallows ??

Black-faced Woodswallow in a pickle
Artamus cinereus

Little Woodswallow
Artamus minor

Wandering Dutchman eats Regent Honey

Or does he?

After our Culburra Beach experience we went searching for Rockwarbler in nearby Bomaderry Creek Reserve with a three kilometre walk through a gorge of beautiful environment but no Rockwarbler. A big dip. But did manage to spot a Brown Cuckoo-Dove on the way out.

Brown Cuckoo-Dove

An overnight stop with my cousin Edwina meant we were refreshed for the next couple of days in Capertee Valley looking for ... Regents Honeyeater. There were some Birdline NSW reports with an exact location where they had been seen in the last two days. We camped for two nights at Glen Davis; in the "village" itself with showers and shelters. Nice spot. Capertee Valley is very well set up for birding with info sheets available from the internet [click here] and locally. They have established 18 birding sites within the valley with advice on what birds are likely to be seen and visible roadside markers at these points. An excellent job indeed. Here are some of the birds we saw on our way in to the valley.

Brown Thornbill

Sacred Kingfisher with a BIG meal

Fan-tailed Cuckoo

The Regents had been seen 1.1 km beyond a locked gate going into the Capertee National Park. So we parked and walked. Lots of bird activity. Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters everywhere, Brown-headed, Yellow-faced, Striped, White-naped, White-plumed, Spinebills, Noisy Miner, Bell Miner but no Regent's. However, in the big tree at the nominated spot we saw Little Lorikeets. Boy, do they move fast. We were able to observe them for many minutes but it was a hard job. Taking photos was even harder.

Little Lorikeet

The next day we went back for another look. No luck again finding Regent's but here is what else was about.

Australian Hobby

Collared Sparrowhawk

Diamond Firetail

Grey-crowned Babbler

Red-rumped Parrot, male