A fantastic morning of migrant birding in the hills around Mill and Douglas
Farm Rds. Starting at 645 with a pair of Swift Parrots resting briefly in Grey
Gums in the garden. This is my 2nd local record of this species.
Shortly after on Mill Rd migrants were everywhere. First local Rufous
Whistlers, Pallid Cuckoos, Koels, Sacred Kingfishers of the season all heard
here. Also singles of both Horsfields and Shining-bronze Cuckoos heard and seen
- both species difficult to see locally but very active today. (Pallid Cuckoos
later in numbers along Comleroy Rd ridge, pairs and singles seen, very vocal
and visible in usual haunts here). Channel-billeds not yet recorded/calling.
Other interesting species included Yellow-throated Scrubwren, a Peregrine
Falcon around most of the morning, Grey Goshawk, Little and Long-billed
Corella, lots of vocal Golden Whistlers, good numbers of White-naped
Honeyeaters still around, a blue straw-carrying male Satin Bowerbird, plenty of
Bar-shouldered Doves. Highlight of the morning was still to come with arrival
of 4 aerial performing Dollarbirds (also first arrivals) alongside a Dusky and
2 White-breasted Woodswallows, watched for a few
minutes between Mill Road and Bells Line of Road.. The latter was a first
local record and an unusual one for the lower Blue Mtns.
A Boobook Owl was calling and seen in the garden the previous night. Another
bird calling later in the evening may have been an Owlet Nightjar but I am not
familiar enough with the call of this species to be certain - not quite a match
to the BOCA calls. No sound or sight of Feather-tailed Gliders.
Where Mill Road meets Bells Line of Road some sort of development has begun on
land owned by Merroo, a religious organisation which holds much of the land
along Mill Rd. In preparation for building on this very beautiful and bird-rich
area, they have left mature eucalypts in tact but scraped a huge area of
hillside clear of all low-level cover - undergrowth, grasses, acacias – and
topsoil. Mill Rd is a very valuable local bird habitat with notable abundance
of several species generally scarce or local around Sydney. This land is also
part of the Little Wheeny Creek catchment area. I am seeking more information
from Hawkesbury Council.
Eric Finley
==============================www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
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