TRIP REPORT TO GUNDERBOOKA NATIONAL PARK, WESTERN NSW 18 -27
MARCH 2000
Gunderbooka National Park is a recently established park
centred around the Gunderbooka Ranges in north-west NSW. The size was increased
in 1999 by the addition of the property Mulgowan, on which much of the range is
located. The park is located between Cobar and Bourke, being about 60 km SW of
Bourke and now incorporates the three former grazing properties of Ben Lomond,
Belar and Mulgowan. At this point of time limited visitor facilities are only
available on the Ben Lomond section. The NSW Field Ornithologists Club
negotiated with the NPWS to undertake a bird survey of 50, 2 ha sites of the
Park during March-April 2000 to provide information to the NPWS Wildlife Atlas
Data Base and Birds Australia Bird Atlas. John McLennan & I were part of the
survey team and the first to arrive on site. A report on the actual NSWFOC Bird
Survey will be published elsewhere.
Our trip was also planned so as to re-visit a number of Birds
Australia 2 ha Atlas sites, so travel to Gunderbooka was via Munghorn Gap Nature
Reserve, Mudgee; Coonabarabran & Baradine areas, Willie Retreat in the
Macquarie Marshes and returning via Goulburn River NP. We also spent time
atlassing in and around Louth & Tilpa. All up 81 Atlas sheets were completed
and 31 NPWS Wildlife Atlas sheets for Gunderbooka NP were prepared.
Seasonal conditions were great. Most areas in north-west NSW
had received between 125-300 mm of rain in the three weeks prior to our visit
and a further 25 mm of rain midway through the trip. Everything was green and
wet, and most areas were covered in 20-30 cm of grass just coming into seed.
This means that within a few weeks, wonderful conditions will exist for
Budgerigars, quail, button-quail, Songlarks etc in that part of NSW as the seeds
all ripen and fall to the ground.
We travelled via the Hunter Valley with our first stop near the
junction of the Widden Valley Rd and the Sandy Hollow-Bylong Rd, where
Brown-headed Honeyeaters were of interest. Between Bylong & Wollar
near Mt Misery was a flock of Plum-headed Finches. On the eastern side of
Munhorn Gap NR we looked for the reported Regent Honeyeaters without success but
Musk & Little Lorikeets were feeding in flowering Grey Gums, and
Satin Bowerbirds were present which is about their western limit.
Fuscous Honeyeaters were located at Honeyeater Flat and Bee-eaters
were migrating northwards overhead. Superb Lyrebirds and Yellow-tufted
Honeyeaters were present at Moolarben Picnic area and White-browed
Babblers were on the western side of the reserve. Our first
Apostlebirds were located at Beni Crossing, Mendooran as was our only
sighting of Diamond Firetails. At Margaret & Andy Humphrey’s place
Rosedale, Coonabarabran we saw our first Blue-faced Honeyaters and
Peaceful Doves.
Next day (19/3), we stopped in Wittenbra SF near Bugaldie and
found a male Scarlet Honeyeater feeding in mistletoe, I know of no
previous records for this species in Coonabarabran Shire. Speckled
Warblers, Red-winged Parrot, Double-banded Finches and late
Dollasrbird and White-throated Gerygone were seen. Just outside
the forest were 20+ Plum-headed Finches. European Blackbirds and
Spotted Bowerbirds were seen in Baradine’ streets, Little Friarbirds
at Terridgeee Lagoon and our first Wedge-tailed Eagles on the
Coonamble road. West of Coonamble there were often paddocks full of floodwaters
and Shovellers were regularly seen. Our only 2 Banded Lapwings for
the trip were located east of Quambone. We atlassed at both the Little Terrigal
& Terrigal Ck crossings on Sandy Camp Station, Macquarie Marshes and found
Plum-headed Finches at both locations, with a Spotted Bowerbird
and a Black Falcon at the latter. A White-breasted
Cuckoo-shrike was seen at the Bulgera Ck crossing and our first Zebra
Finches and Singing Bushlarks near the Macquarie River Crossing along
with a juvenile Pallid Cuckoo. At Willie Retreat HSD in the Marshes there
were Hooded Robins, a flock of 11 Ground Cuckoo-shrikes,
Horsfield Bronze-Cuckoo, an Owlet Nightjar and many Red-winged
Parrots.
From Willie Retreat on 20/3 we travelled via Marra Hall to
Monkey Ck on the Bogan River and then onto Coolabah. As we crossed Marra Creek
there was a lone(?) Red-tailed Black Cockatoo displaying over trees, the
location being south of the known range in that area (elsewhere it is only south
of this site along the Darling River) & a Brown Goshawk. Rufous
Songlarks were calling at Monkey Bridge and when lunching 27 km NE of
Coolabah a lone Fork-tailed Swift flew over and the first
Bar-shouldered Dove for the trip was seen. Bourke had its usual Black
Kites & Little Crows circling over the town, and Brown
Songlarks were a feature of the grass plains just to the south-west of
Bourke enroute to Gunderbooka.
At Gunderbooka NP (21/3) the mulga/box woodland was alive with
White-fronted, Singing & Striped Honeyeaters, Rufous Whistler &
Crested Bellbird calling incessantly and Bee-eaters regularly passed
to the north, and there were plenty of Emus with half grown young.
Unfortunately it had started to rain the previous evening and continued all that
day. We were reduced to walking to our sites but had good views of
Chestnut-crowned Babblers, Mulga Parrots and Red-capped
Robins enroute. Hooded Robins were located at 5 sites, Black-eared
Cuckoos at 3 and Double-banded Finches & Sparrowhawks at 2
sites in the park. On Tuesday moring small numbers of White-throated
Needletails and 6 Fork-tailed Swifts flew over in the drizzle and
rain. A group of 4 Halls Babblers were seen 3 km from Belah HSD on 22/3,
2 Little Woodswallows and 2 Brown Quail seen on Mulgowan HSD
section on 23/3. In the Park Apostlebirds and Magpielarks were
nesting, while Splendid Fairy-wrens, Southern Whiteface and
Chestnut-rumped Thornbills were all seen building nests, and Owlet
Nightjars were seen and heard.. A pair of Budgerigars were seen at
the Belah Tank on our last morning and a lone Olive-backed Oriole at Ben
Lomond House tank.
We left Gunderbooka on 24/3 and headed for the very green and
wet pastures of Louth where we stayed with Don & Kerry Beasley, Kerry being
the principal of the Louth Primary School. This delightful little school has its
own Spotted Bowerbird’s bower in the playground! Red-tailed Black
Cockatoos are a feature of the village and the redgum woodlands along the
Darling River from Louth to Tilpa. Black Kites, Whistling Kite, Hobby
& Kestrel were all seen at Louth. On the western side of the Darling
along the wet grassy plains between Louth & Tilpa we saw 6 Spotted
Harriers on 25/3, Stubble Quail at 4 locations and numbers of
Songlarks and Singing Bushlarks. At one location, on the Wanaaring
Rd, a Spotted Harrier missed a Pipit which was chased again only
to have two Black Falcons attempt to catch it, the Pipit was only saved
from destruction because the immature Harrier then attacked the Falcons! Even
the Emus that moved off the road ahead of our vehicle were seen to flush
Stubble Quail from the grass.
We headed east on 26/3 , stopping at Beni SF near Dubbo for
lunch and were able to keep company with Inland Thornbills,
White-throated Gerygone and Yellow Robins. At Saxa was another
Spotted Harrier, and at Dapper NR near Goolma, we saw our last
Apostlebirds & Grey-crowned Babblers for the trip (they had
been very common!) and we headed for Big River Camp, Goulburn River NP where we
were to spend the night. Here next morning 27/3 we had a lone Glossy Black
Cockatoo, Rockwarblers at 2 sites, & our first Fantailed
Cuckoo, Chestnut-rumped Heathwren & Dusky Woodswallows for the
trip. Heading back to Wollar on the Mogo Rd we stopped for 2 Turquoise
Parrots, 2 Spotted Quail-thrush and 2 Regent Honeyeaters all
at the one site 4 km NW of Wollar. Three Wedge-tailed Eagles together
just west of Merriwa was our last most interesting sighting. 182 species for the
trip. Some woodland birds for which concerns have been expressed for their
apparent decline, ie Grey-crowned Babbler, Restless Flycatcher
& Brown Treecreeper appeared to be in good numbers, but others like
Jacky Winters and Diamond Firetails were hard to find as were
Banded Lapwings. This is the our second long trip in western NSWW in recent
times during which Banded Lapwings were virtually impossible to find.
Alan Morris & John McLennan
