Hi birders,
Earlier this week I was one of many people who joined the search for
a missing bushwalker near Mt Solitary in the Blue Mountains NSW
(which has now ended sadly as you would have heard on the news). The
Kedumba Valley is an area I particularly love and for me it was
strange to be driven down into the area in an RFS vehicle, instead of
the usual 2-hour slog down the hill, and back up again. I was part of
a team of 6 and later 10, searching on foot. I decided not to carry
my binoculars as there wasn't much time for birding and I wanted to
minimise the weight I had to carry which included 4 litres of water,
my food and other necessities. Nevertheless I did of course keep a
mental note of birds seen and heard during the day.
Part of the huge area that needed to be covered included the old
sewage works site below Leura Falls. The treatment works closed down
a few years ago and the site is now being regenerated. Here there
were Crescent Honeyeaters calling and Little Lorikeets zipping around
- I'm not sure what was in flower but I've seen Little Lorikeets in a
few places around the mountains recently, including a couple 2 weeks
ago near my house in Katoomba.
In the rainforest sections were numerous Rufous Fantails, Black-faced
Monarch, Rose Robin, Bassian Thrush and three species of scrubwren,
while in the tall Blue Gum forests further down the valley were
Red-browed Treecreepers, Yellow-faced and White-naped Honeyeaters,
Leaden/Satin Flycatcher, Mistletoebird and many Bell Miner colonies.
On a very steep site near the Kedumba River was an amazing density of
Superb Lyrebird display mounds.
Up on Kings Tableland in the city of police trailers and press
vehicles that was the search headquarters, I became aware of about 20
White-throated Needletails flying around low overhead on Monday
afternoon. They were barely clearing the treetops while I sat sipping
a delicious cup of vegie soup that had been provided for us, between
searches. Earlier in the morning at this site I'd seen Gang-gang
Cockatoos and as I was driving home that evening, a pair of Glossy
Black-Cockatoos nearby.
Carol
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Carol Probets
Guided birding in the Blue Mountains & Capertee Valley
PO Box 330
Katoomba NSW 2780
Web: http://www.bmbirding.com.au
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