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Capertee Valley

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Subject: Capertee Valley
From: "David Geering"<>
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 08:37:16 +1000
Had the great fortune to spend a week in the Capertee Valley from 1 to 8
October.  Almost starting to suffer withdrawal symptoms after living in the
valley for the past four spring/summers.  The purpose of the trip was more
or less to check out the Regent Honeyeater situation, get a few more
colour-banded and search for previously banded birds.  This was with the
assistance of the Australian Bird Study Association.  While there, we were
planning to also gather data on breeding behaviour in different habitat
types to explore whether life is "easier" in certain habitats.

Unfortunately the best laid plans do occasionally come a cropper and the
birds were far from co-operative.  Few Regents were located and those
present were showing no inclination to breed.  Why was this so?  The few
birds could be explained by the, apparently, good season with birds
dispersed widely over central NSW.  The lack of breeding is more difficult
to explain.  The primary resource used in past years, mistletoe in River
Oak, was flowering prolifically and many honeyeaters and lorikeets were
using the resource.  There were more Noisy Friarbirds than in the past two
seasons but far fewer than observed in 1995 when Regents bred very
successfully.  Nectar supply may have been a problem but we have no
benchmark to compare this with and it should not be a problem given the
amount of rain over the winter.  It all remains, at this stage, a great
mystery.

Not withstanding the problems associated with the lack of Regents in the
valley, those people who had not visited the valley all went home as
converts.  Although a substantial part of our time was spent in "Regent
country" (for those not familiar with the valley - grazing land with
mistletoe infested River Oak) a very nice bird list of 129 species was
accumulated over the week.  A new species, to my knowledge, for the valley
was seen - Bassian Thrush.  Not bad considering the lack of hard core
twitching.

Present were: Graham & Annete Cam (and the Camettes), Julie Dale, Keith
Egan, Graham Fry & and Liz Cameron, David Geering, Sue Kozianski, Alan
Leishman, Stuart Pell, Dean Portelli, John & Joy Ross and Hal Wooton.


Brown Quail         Coturnix ypsilophora
Australian Wood Duck                     Chenonetta jubata   Breeding
Pacific Black Duck  Anas superciliosa
Grey Teal           Anas gracilis        Breeding
Australasian Grebe  Tachybaptus novaehollandiae
White-faced Heron   Egretta novaehollandiae
Square-tailed Kite  Lophoictinia isura
Whistling Kite      Haliastur sphenurus
Brown Goshawk       Accipter fasciatus   Breeding
Collared Sparrowhawk                     Accipter cirrhocephalus
Wedge-tailed Eagle  Aquila audax
Little Eagle        Hieraaetus morphnoides
Brown Falcon        Falco berigora
Australian Hobby    Falco longipennis    Breeding
Peregrine Falcon    Falco peregrinus
Nankeen Kestrel     Falco cenchroides
Purple Swamphen     Porphyrio porphyrio
Dusky Moorhen       Gallinula tenebrosa
Painted Button-quail                     Turnix varia
Black-fronted Dotterel                   Elseyornis melanops
Masked Lapwing      Vanellus miles       Breeding
Common Bronzewing   Phaps chalcoptera
Crested Pigeon      Ocyphaps lophotes
Peaceful Dove       Geopelia placida
Galah               Cacatua roseicapilla
Little Corella      Cacatua sanguinea
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo                 Cacatua galerita
Musk Lorikeet       Glossopsitta concinna
Little Lorikeet     Glossopsitta pusilla
Australian King-Parrot                   Alisterus scapularis
Crimson Rosella     Platycercus elegans
Eastern Rosella     Platycercus eximius
Red-rumped Parrot   Psephotus haematonotus    Breeding
Turquoise Parrot    Neophema pulchella   Breeding
Pallid Cuckoo       Cuculus pallidus
Fan-tailed Cuckoo   Cacomantis flabelliformis
Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo                Chrysococcyx basalis
Shining Bronze-Cuckoo                    Chrysococcyx lucidus
Channel-billed Cuckoo                    Scythrops novaehollandiae
Barking Owl         Ninox connivens
Barn Owl            Tyto alba
Australian Owlet-nightjar                Aegotheles cristatus
Azure Kingfisher    Alcedo azurea
Laughing Kookaburra Dacelo novaeguineae
Sacred Kingfisher   Todiramphus sancta
Rainbow Bee-eater   Merops ornatus
Dollarbird          Eurystomus orientalis
Superb Lyrebird     Menura novaehollandiae
White-throated Treecreeper               Cormobates leucophaea
Brown Treecreeper   Climacteris picumnus Breeding
Superb Fairy-wren   Malurus cyaneus      Breeding
Variegated Fairy-wren                    Malurus lamberti
Spotted Pardalote   Pardalotus punctatus
Striated Pardalote  Pardalotus striatus
Rockwarbler         Origma solitaria
White-browed Scrubwren                   Sericornis frontalis
Chestnut-rumped Heathwren                Hylacola pyrrhopygia
Speckled Warbler    Chthonicola sagittata
Weebill             Smicrornis brevirostris
Western Gerygone    Gerygone fusca
White-throated Gerygone                  Gerygone olivacea
Brown Thornbill     Acanthiza pusilla
Buff-rumped Thornbill                    Acanthiza reguloides     Breeding
Yellow-rumped Thornbill                  Acanthiza chrysorrhoa    Breeding
Yellow Thornbill    Acanthiza nana
Southern Whiteface  Aphelocephala leucopsis   Breeding
Red Wattlebird      Anthochaera carunculata
Striped Honeyeater  Plectorhyncha lanceolata
Noisy Friarbird     Philemon corniculatus
Regent Honeyeater   Xanthomyza phrygia
Bell Miner          Manorina melanophrys
Noisy Miner         Manorina melanocephala    Breeding
Yellow-faced Honeyeater                  Lichenostomus chrysops
Yellow-tufted Honeyeater                 Lichenostomus melanops
Fuscous Honeyeater  Lichenostomus fuscus
White-plumed Honeyeater                  Lichenostomus penicillatus
Breeding
Black-chinned Honeyeater                 Melithreptus gularis
Brown-headed Honeyeater                  Melithreptus brevirostris
White-naped Honeyeater                   Melithreptus lunatus
Painted Honeyeater  Grantiella picta
New Holland Honeyeater                   Phylidonyris novaehollandiae
Eastern Spinebill   Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris
Jacky Winter        Microeca fascinans   Breeding
Red-capped Robin    Petroica goodenovii
Hooded Robin        Melanodryas cucullata     Breeding
Eastern Yellow Robin                     Eopsaltria australis     Breeding
Grey-crowned Babbler                     Pomatostomus temporalis
White-browed Babbler                     Pomatostomus superciliosus
Eastern Whipbird    Psophodes olivaceus
Varied Sittella     Daphoenositta chrysoptera
Crested Shrike-tit  Falcunculus frontatus
Golden Whistler     Pachycephala pectoralis
Rufous Whistler     Pachycephala rufiventris
Grey Shrike-thrush  Colluricincla harmonica
Leaden Flycatcher   Myiagra rubecula
Restless Flycatcher Myiagra inquieta     Breeding
Magpie-lark         Grallina cyanoleuca  Breeding
Grey Fantail        Rhipidura fuliginosa
Willie Wagtail      Rhipidura leucophrys Breeding
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike                Coracina novaehollandiae
White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike              Coracina papuensis
White-winged Triller                     Lalage sueurii
Olive-backed Oriole Oriolus sagittatus
Dusky Woodswallow   Artamus cyanopterus  Breeding
Grey Butcherbird    Cracticus torquatus
Pied Butcherbird    Cracticus nigrogularis
Australian Magpie   Gymnorhina tibicen   Breeding
Pied Currawong      Strepera graculina
Australian Raven    Corvus coronoides    Breeding
Little Raven        Corvus mellori
White-winged Chough Corcorax melanorhamphos
Singing Bushlark    Mirafra javanica
Richard's Pipit     Anthus novaeseelandiae    Breeding
House Sparrow       Passer domesticus
Zebra Finch         Taeniopygia guttata
Double-barred Finch Taeniopygia bichenovii
Plum-headed Finch   Neochmia modesta
Red-browed Firetail Neochmia temporalis
Diamond Firetail    Stagonopleura guttata     Breeding
Mistletoebird       Dicaeum hirundinaceum
White-backed Swallow                     Cheramoeca leucosternus
Welcome Swallow     Hirundo neoxena      Breeding
Tree Martin         Hirundo nigricans
Fairy Martin        Hirundo ariel        Breeding
Clamorous Reed-Warbler                   Acrocephalus stentoreus
Rufous Songlark     Cinclorhamphus mathewsi
Silvereye           Zosterops lateralis
Bassian Thrush      Zoothera lunulata
Common Starling     Sturnus vulgaris     Breeding

Number of taxa      129



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