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Sandy Creek, Cobourg Peninsula NT

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Subject: Sandy Creek, Cobourg Peninsula NT
From: "Marc Gardner" <>
Date: Sun, 5 Aug 2007 12:39:56 +0930
Hi all



Spent Friday night at Sandy Creek (S 11o43.59, E 133o15.02) at Aurari Bay on 
the way to Gurig NP (Cobourg Peninsula).  The creek is totally lined with 
Mangroves and then opens up to beautiful beaches and coastline. On the way 
there we almost ran over a Crocodile at Cahill's Crossing on the East Alligator 
River - it was about 75cm deep when we went through on Friday afternoon and 
flowing out.



Birds seen were:

Black Butcherbird, Yellow White-eye, low numbers of Red-headed Honeyeaters, 
Grey Whistler, Brahminy, Whistling and Black Kites, Osprey and White-bellied 
Sea-eagle, Large-tailed Nightjars, White-faced Heron, Striated Heron, Little 
Egret, Black-naped Tern, Crested Tern, Common Noddy, Lesser Frigatebird, Common 
Sandpipers, Whimberel, Black-necked Stork, Brolga (Flying overhead), Radjah 
Shelduck, Peaceful and Bar-shouldered Doves, White-breasted Woodswallows, 
Pheasant Coucal, Blue-winged Kookaburra, Azure Kingsfisher, Black-tailed 
Treecreeper, Grey-crowned Babbler, White-thoated Honeyeater, White-bellied and 
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike, Little Friarbird, Silver-crowned Friarbird, Northern 
Fantail, Yellow Oriole, Magpie Lark, Great Bowerbird, Very large flock of 
Rainbow Bee-eaters (estimated to be about 150 all together - I've seen large 
flocks of up to about 20 birds before but not this many), lots of Varied 
Lorikeets and smaller flocks of Rainbow Lorikeets, Red-winged Parrot.



We also noticed Red-Tailed Black Cockatoos flying well out over the ocean 
heading towards Goulburn Island (Warruwi) - they must have had some idea where 
they were going because over about 20 minutes small flocks of 2 to 5 birds kept 
on coming and heading in the same direction.



Surprisingly no flycatchers or gerygones.  Certainly with a bit more time a few 
more mangrove birds might present themselves (Mangrove, Large-billed, 
Green-backed Gerygones, Whistlers, Fantails and flycatchers).  There was also a 
nice bit of littoral vine thicket adjacent to the mangroves and the beach that 
might be good for Rainbow Pitta too.



Quite a few crocs live in the creek and we also spotted a small group (about 5) 
Australian Snubfin Dolphins, including a smaller young one with its mother, 
about 100m from the creek mouth.



To top it off we had a Chestnut-quilled Rock-Pigeon fly in front of the car 
near the Jabuluka Mine track (about 2ks North of the Jarr Jarr turnoff between 
Ubirr and Jabiru) on the way home yesterday morning.



Cheers

Marc

Jabiru NT.
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