Dear all
Yesterday 31st March paid a visit to Old Bar, a beachside lagoon on the
coast just south of the Manning River estuary, east of Taree. The tide
was on the turn, just starting to go out when we arrived at 10am, with a
s to sw fairly strong wind. Walked along the beach between sea and
Little Tern fence. At least half way along, found a small group of
Little Sand Plovers in the 4WD tracks and, great excitement, ONE
Sanderling. Further on, found another small group of LSPs, and another
Sanderling! At the end of the tern fence, a group of 40 Golden Plovers
roosting on the sand, many starting to gain breeding plumage, plus
Sanderlings and Red necked Stints. Walked down to the retreating waters
of the lagoon, along with many Stints and Sanderlings flying in to feed
on the newly exposed sandy mud - well over 200 Stints and I'm afraid we
gave up trying to count the Sanderlings as they moved around so much but
must have been 20 or more.
Also present, 8* Pied Oystercatchers (one with a yellow leg flag),
Silver Gulls, Crested, Common and Little Terns, lots of Red-capped
Plovers plus a few immatures, more LSPs, 1 Caspian Tern, 1 Whimbrel, 3
E.Curlews, Pelicans, a Little Pied Cormorant, 75 Black Swan, a
White-breasted Sea-eagle, Masked Lapwings and 25* Bar-tailed Godwit.
Another 25 or so Golden Plovers out on a sand bar with the godwits and
terns, and White-cheeked Honeyeaters and Little Wattlebirds making a
racket in the trees at the back of the lagoon. Walking back behind the
tern fence and disturbed more Stints and LSPs. A surprisingly large
number of species and numbers of some species, certainly more than I've
seen there before but I guess many were the migrators on their way back
north.
We then went on to Wallabi Point, south of Old Bar. Much quieter here
with an Osprey and another Sea-Eagle, Whistling Kite, Regent & Satin
Bowerbirds in the fig trees.
Driving around the Manning Point area later that afternoon, we surprised
a female Peregrine on a fence post clutching an Eastern Rosella, just
killed.
Good sightings at Gloucester Friday 30th, a Black-necked Stork (Jabaru)
just north of the Golf Club - no sight again despite two searches, and
today 1 April at least 2 Jacana on a farm dam at Craven, about 28k
south of Gloucester. Also there Black-winged Stilts with juveniles, and
Musk Lorikeets enjoying blossom in a Red Gum - a few trees just coming
into flower.
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