Myself and Graham Turner sighted a number of interesting birds today in
the Hawkesbury region (approx 55 km north-west of Sydney CBD).
At a stock dam along Pitt Town Bottoms Rd at Pitt
Town, many thanks to the cows
crossing through the dam, we got great views of an Australasian Bittern. At
first the cows made it move a bit when it then adopted its usual frozen posture
with bill held skywards. This or another Bittern than was disturbed by the cows
again and took flight fairly low. At first it flew northwards than came back
towards and over us and circled a number of times as if wanting to land in the
same spot where it was originally flushed only a few metres from where we were
standing. Maybe (and probably not surprising) this Bittern was disturbed from it
nest. We also saw a White-faced Heron flying with this Bittern, with the later
being a much chunkier and heavier bird. Also here were 2 Baillons Crakes, 1 or 2
Buff-banded Rails (one was calling out in the open on top of some rubbish beside
the dam), a Brown Goshawk (Imm. circling above), a dark-phase Brown Falcon, very
showy Little Grassbirds and Australian Reed Warblers and a (not too high)
Channel-billed Cuckoo flying over and calling (heading south). Also some very
interesting behavior was observed here with a Yellow-billed and Royal Spoonbill
having an argument with each other and fighting with their bills. After settling
their dispute both the Spoonbills were feeding side by side cooperatively for
some time (I remember a query on ?birding-aus? sometime ago if anyone had seen
them feeding side by side ? well here?s an answer). Rainbow Bee-eaters and
Horsfield?s Bronze-cuckoos were also heard here.
At nearby Pitt Town Lagoon a number of shorebirds were present including
around 40 Red-kneed Dotterel (higher than usual for Sydney), a few Black-fronted
Dotterel, 30 plus Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (just about all have already moulted
out of their breeding plumage), 6 Marsh Sandpipers, 2-3 Latham?s Snipe, 2 (and
possibly another) Baillons Crakes, a Whiskered Tern (in non-breeding plumage),
25-30 Australasian Shoveler (much fewer ducks than in the winter, and mainly
Grey Teal) and finally a nice adult White-bellied Sea-eagle.
I also visited the turf farms just outside Richmond-Windsor where I saw
in a paddock 2 (an adult and juv. male) Brown and 3 Rufous Songlarks, 6 Brown
Quail (sheltering in their regular spot under some roadside trees along
Cornwallis Rd), another adult White-bellied Sea-eagle, Rainbow Bee-eaters and at
Bushes Lagoon (within the turf farms), another 6 Red-kneed Dotterels
(nesting/looking after chicks), a lone Pink-eared Duck with more Hardheads and
Grey Teals and finally here, another 2 Yellow-billed Spoonbils.
On my way back home and having the need to drive past Scheyville National
Park, I could hear from inside this national park (by having the car windows
down) loads of Rufous Whistlers and White-throated Gerygones making their
presence felt.
Edwin Vella
