Koels etc

["Richard Yank" <>]

Del,


I have just returned from 3 days (October 5-7) in Weipa and surrounds in NW Cape York where Koels were calling quite regularly.


Richard Yank


--Original Message Text---

From: Del Richards

Date: Wed, 6 Oct 2004 13:07:28 +1000


There hasn't been much said about Koels and Channel-billed Cuckoos way up north but Lloyd Nielsen puts forward the theory that these birds may migrate along the western side of Cape York Peninsula where there aren't any mountains to impede progress.I agree as our records suggest that these actually bypass TNQ. The only local records that I have heard of thus far were 3 CBC's a  week ago at Daintree Village. I heard a passing Koel call last night (05/10) and would not normally expect to see a Dollar-bird seeking a nest hollow for a few weeks yet. 

    In early September the were at least two pairs of Dollar-birds at Clearwater Lake in Lakefield NP. Ian Clayton of Townsville related that Dollar-birds overwintered at nearby Lotus Bird Lodge in the mid-nineties.  

    During the Wet it is common to see flocks of up to 60 Channel-billed Cuckoos feeding on the large fig trees located in the upper Daintree Valley. 

 Del.Richards, Fine Feather Tours, Mossman, NQ.