Birdline NSW Weekly Update

Birdline NSW

Published sightings for the week ending 29 Jan 2012.

Sun 29 Jan	Black-shouldered Kite Waterworth Park, Wolli Creek Single bird on a tree on the bank of the creek, just before it joins Cook's River. On next tree was a pair of Spotted Doves and Sacred kingfisher - popular spot! Was very interested in me and my border collie. Stayed about five minutes then took off over cricket pitch. Eyes seemed honey coloured rather than red/brown. Therese Alting
	Plumed Whistling-ducks Bottoms Road Pitt town 14 Plumed Whistling Ducks Pitt Town Bottoms Rd Wetlands Tony & Stephanie Dawe
	Australasian Bittern, Brolga Deniliquin district Two Australasian Bitterns were recorded in rice crops east of Deniliquin and a pair of Brolga was recorded in a rice crop south-east of town. The bitterns will be breeding and the brolgas most likely attempting to breed. Philip Maher
	square-tailed kite Mcgraths Hill Flying low over house's eventually landing into tree, plenty of photo's Looks like injury to right eye Tony & Stephanie Dawe
	Double -barred Finch Leacock Park Casula lots and lots of finches adjacent to rail line, including Double-barred Finch, Red-browed and European Goldfinch all in good numbers, and a flyover by a beautiful Grey Goshawk (see pic) to complete a great day in a little gem of a place....hundreds of Bell Miners everywhere.List to follow Chris Pollard
Sat 28 Jan	Musk Duck, Buff-banded Rail, Brown Goshawk Pioneer Dairy Wetlands, Tuggerah (restricted access) Highlights of a visit to this site by 39 members of Birding NSW 1010-1330 hrs, were a pair of Buff-banded Rails plus 2 young, male Musk Duck on Dairy Swamp, 5 Chestnut-breasted Mannikin at the Pioneer Ck wetlands, a Yellow-billed Spoonbill, 7 Channel-billed Cuckoos, 2 Swamp Harriers, Black-shoulded Kite, more White-throated Needletails, another Sea-eagle, Whistling Kite, 2 Australian Pipits and a Brown Goshawk. John & Carole Carpenter et al
	Chestnut-breasted Mannikin, Grey Goshawk, White-throated Needletail McPherson Rd Swamp, Tuggerah 39 members of Birding NSW met at this Swamp 8.30-1000 hrs and the highlights were a high flying flock of 200+ White-throated Needletails, a flock of 40+ Chestnut-rumped Mannikins, Grey Goshawk, Sea-eagle, Whistling Kite, Black-shouldered Kite and Nankeen Kestrels, good views of Tawny Grassbirds and a Spotless Crake was heard calling. (Today 3 Wandering Whistling Ducks were seen there). John & Carole Carpenter et al
	Sooty Terns SOSSA pelagic off Wollongong NSW Photo by Raja Stephenson. See previous report. Nikolas Haass for SOSSA
	White Tern SOSSA pelagic off Wollongong NSW Photo by Raja Stephenson. See previous report. Nikolas Haass for SOSSA
	White-necked Petrel SOSSA pelagic off Wollongong NSW Photo by Raja Stephenson. See previous report. Nikolas Haass for SOSSA
	Black-winged Petrel SOSSA pelagic off Wollongong NSW Photo by Raja Stephenson. See previous report. Nikolas Haass for SOSSA
	Brahminy Kite Ash Island Newcastle Approx 7:00 pm noticed a bird of prey in the distance flying over the Mangroves and Mud-flats. Surprised to see a Brahminy Kite. Moderator: There was one around Stockton same time last year. Tony Dawe & Edwin Vella
	Black-winged Petrel, White Tern, White-necked Petrel SOSSA pelagic off Wollongong NSW Today's highlights of SOSSA's Wollongong pelagic were: 8 Black Swans (5 flying North, 3 South) 1 subadult Black-browed Albatross (seen both on the way out and on the way in) 1 adult Shy Albatross 1 Sooty Shearwater 1 White-necked Petrel 1 BLACK-WINGED PETREL 1 WHITE TERN 5+ Sooty Terns (ad. & juv.) all three jaegers 1+ FALSE KILLER WHALE 1 unidentified shark (plus "the usual" Wedge-tailed, Flesh-footed, Short-tailed, Hutton's and Fluttering Shearwaters, Grey-faced Petrels, Aus Gannets, Aus Pelicans, Crested Terns, Kelp & Silver Gulls; Inshore Bottlenose & Common Short-beaked Dolphins) Nikolas Haass for SOSSA
	Wonga Pigeon Wattle Forest Just 1 bird seen by the mire at the end of Wattle Flat. Melissa Mason
	Red-kneed Dotterel ( 1 juv), Topknot Pigeon (8 in flight) Mason Park, North Strathfield First Red-kneed Dotterel at MP for a couple of years-fresh juvenile. My first sighting of Topknot Pigeons on the patch. Other good birds included one Latham's Snipe, one Pacific Golden Plover, three Sharp-tail Sands, one juvenile Horsfield's Bronze-cuckoo. Dion Hobcroft
	Little Terns Burrill Lake Entrance 14 Little Terns roosting and feeding alongside the LT nesting site with the 2 still dependent chicks. Among the small flock, which has slowly built up from 5 has been hanging around for 3 -4 days,were 2 or 3 juvs. Can these be from the very successful Tuross site heading northwards? bob rusk
	Brown Quail CentennialPark Randwick 48 species in three hours, day tainted by a man with a spaniel trying to hunt the Quail (Is it legal? Moderator's Note: It is illegal to shoot Brown Quail which are a Protected Species, but you could probably get away with using your dog to hunt out the bird, thats what Spaniels were bred for!!). Long-billed Corellas abundant as are Little Corella, two Buff-Banded Rail also in Lachlan swamp.Day list to follow Chris Pollard
	Diamond Dove Burrill Lake, south coast NSW A pair have come into our garden over the last 2 weeks , one's leg is banded. We have never seen them here before. They are seen sometimes hanging around with our chooks in their run & are not shy. (Moderator's Note: These are most likely avairy escapees, they are a common avairy birds and wild populations rarely if ever, reach the coast.AKM). Elizabeth Craig
Fri 27 Jan	Comb-crested Jacana Cattai Wetlands (private property) 3 jacanas at Cattai Wetlands, also 100+ Hardheads and 100+ Coots. and six Wandering Whistling-Ducks. Alan Stuart
	Pterodroma sp. Mistral Point, Maroubra This afternoon we saw a small Pterodroma close in. Could not see the head well enough and underwings appeared to have a broad black bar - most likely bird would be Black-winged Petrel, but we could not be sure - frustrating,but a very interesting record. Qld. weather may result in many birds being 'pushed' down here (NSW) - watch this space..... David Mitford and Fiona Brooke
	Great Shearwater Mistral Point, Maroubra Great Shearwater seen off Mistral Point in the late afternoon. (Moderator's note: A good sighting however Great Shearwaters are on the Review list of BARC so that the observation would be subject to their Review.AKM) Ray Gobbe and Fiona Brook
	Noisy Pitta Harrington 2 adult Noisy Pitta in the rainforest at Harrington this morning. Unusual to be on the coast in summer? Also a few Spectacled Monarchs were present. Alan Stuart
Thu 26 Jan	California Quail Towradgi Beach Park One male seen in the dune scrub between the life savers club house and the beach. Edwin Vella, Tony and Stephanie Dawe
	Square-tailed Kite Fairy Meadow (near Wollongong) One adult seen fyling beaside the Princess HWY and over the railway line near Towradgi Rd in the early afternoon on Australia Day. Edwin Vella, Tony and Stephanie Dawe
	Ground Parrot, Eastern Bristlebirds Barren Grounds NR Here is another pic of one of at least 2 Grounds Parrots seen well on Australia Day at Barren Grounds. Quite a few Bristlebirds and Emu-wrens also seen. Edwin Vella, Tony and Stephanie Dawe
	Beach Stone-curlew Mudbishops Point, Old Bar There were 2 Beach Stone-curlew on the island opposite Mudbishops Point. Alan Stuart
	Common Sandpiper Harrington Saw a Common Sandpiper standing on an oyster bed near the boat ramp at Harrington - first time I have seen this species at Harrington Alan Stuart
	Spotted Harrier, Wedge-tailed Eagle, Little Egret Penrith Quarries Spotted Harrier (immature) near corner of Boundary Street and Castlereagh Rd, heading west over lake and fields. Little Egret over one of the ponds I have been regularly seeing them over the past two weeks and both adult (resident) Wedge-tailed Eagles were soaring low over my friend's paddocks inside the quarries in the afternoon. Other noteworthy sightings were a Yellow-billed Spoonbill, Great Crested Grebe, Rainbow Bee-eaters, nesting Zebra Finches and Chestnut-breasted Mannikin with many young birds. Ákos Lumnitzer
	Glossy Black-cockatoo Pearl Beach 6 birds seen flying over head (in two different groups) at 7pm. Charles Hunter
	Little Terns Bonville Creek, Sawtell Huge flock of around 1000 Little Terns and an equal number of Crested Terns with a few Common Terns, all resting from the weather at the mouth of Bonville Creek. Similar number of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters feeding off shore where the fresh floodwaters meet the clearer salt water.One lost Jaeger (not sure what kind) making very upset noises, flying north then south, just off shore. Michael Cheers
	Darter Rockdale Bicentennial Park and wetlands to the south Female Darter feeding two hatchlings in a nest in casaurinas on the small island north side of President Ave. A small party of (8+) Yellow-Rumped Thornbills in the playing fields near wetlands south of President Ave. My first sighting of this spp here. Regular spp active. Harry Roberts
	Ground Parrot Barren Ground-NSW Went to Barren Grounds with Edwin Vella for up-grade photo of Ground Parrot. Tony & Stephanie Dawe & Edwin Vella
	Long-billed Corella CentennialPark Randwick At least nine LBC giving brilliant close up views, adjacent to Snack van. Chris Pollard
Wed 25 Jan	Australian Spotted Crake, Ballion's Crake and Buff banded Rail Lake Williams, Nimmitabel Two Australian Spotted Crakes, two Ballion's Crakes and one Buff Banded Rail in the reeds at the rest area. Kathy Walter and John Goldie
	Azure Kingfisher Elinya Lane Davistown Observed siting on electrical wires. Unusal for this area. Steve Hill
	Immature Rufous Night Heron Pugh's Lagoon, Richmond This is the second time in as many visits I've seen an immature bird fly over the northern pond (single, largest body of water) in the daytime. Normally they roost in the willows near Kurrajong Road. Ákos Lumnitzer
	Plumed Whistling-Duck Centennial Parklands Plumed Whistling-Duck (17) sighted on the south-west edge of Busby's pond. Entire flock then took off to the east. Sang Tran
Tue 24 Jan	Nankeen Night-Heron Morpeth Common About 15 Nankeen Night-Herons were roosting at Morpeth Common - some in trees and some on the ground. Several young birds were present. Alan Stuart
	Australian Painted Snipe Ash Island Flushed an Australian Painted Snipe from mangroves near the metal gate at the northern end of Wagtail Way while searching (unsuccessfully) for Yellow Wagtail. Similar scenario to another report earlier this month. Carl Corden and Katrina Wolf
	Immature Wedge-tailed Eagle Castlereagh At first I thought it was one of the adults sitting in the regular roost tree at 19:15 as I drove past. Once I had a good look with binoculars I noted the golden shoulders and nape on the bird. Also, it flew off over the lakes within 50m of me so I could clearly see the white patches and overall juvenile plumage ventrally too, confirming it as an immature eagle. My best suspicion is that our resident Penrith pair have successfully reared at least the one eaglet this season. Ákos Lumnitzer
	Jacky Winter Old Byron Bay Rd Newrybar Just sitting down on the lounge watching the cricket and spotted something in the corner of my eye 2 Jacky Winters flying around in a eucalyptus. Was quite surprised to see them because haven't seen them here for a while. Jackson Hagley
	Major Mitchell Cockatoo Homebush West, NSW 4 Majors seen flying through industrial area near Flemington Markets. Vocalisations and flight pattern didn't suggest excaped captive birds. (Moderator's Note: However their known distribution in western NSW suggests that they are escapees! AKM) Dan Child
Mon 23 Jan	Regent Honeyeater Castlereagh One adult seen feeding in Callistemon bushes in the yard of a friend's property yesterday. Will return to look again tomorrow morning as there are many eucalypts also in flower across this area, which could mean more sightings. Ákos Lumnitzer
	Brown Songlark, Australian Painted Snipe, Latham's Snipe, Black eared Cuckoo, Whiskered Tern 'The Dams' 4 Private Properties, North of Moree A really good overcast day with a total of 83 species! Interesting Species: Sacred Kingfishers with juveniles, Pale-headed Rosella (red headed race?), Australasian Grebes with lots of juveniles (each grebe had juveniles with it), Numerous Great-crested Grebes (Just about every dam had a single Great crested), Hoary- headed Grebes, Chestnut- breasted Mannikins with immatures, White-faced Heron nest with 4 juveniles, Gull-billed Tern, Great Cormorant with 2 immatures, 150x Hardheads, Zebra Finches, White- winged Fairy-wren, 30+ Nankeen Night Herons + immatures, Brown Songlark, Magpie Lark - juvenile fell out of nest. Flushed 2x PAINTED SNIPES!!, 50+ Whiskered Terns, Brown Quail, Black-eared Cuckoo, Little Grassbird, Hobby, Pink-eared Ducks, Red-kneed Dotterels and we flushed a Latham's Snipe! Curtis Hayne
Sun 22 Jan	Wandering Tattler Lord Howe Island Further to Nikolas Haass' report of a single Wandering Tattler on the rock shelf at Ned's Beach on Lord Howe, I had at least 5 Wandering Tattlers feeding together on the 16th. This seems an unusually high number... Despite extensive searching, there was no sign of the Oriental Pratincole. Other birds of interest were a single Cattle Egret (21/1), Double-banded Plover (17-18/1), 2 Wandering Albatross and 2 Grey-faced Petrels (both 15/1) and a single White-necked Petrel (21/1) Ashwin Rudder
	Striated Heron Hen & Chicken Bay, Wareemba (Sydney's inner west) I did some time ago report a SH foraging along this open stretch of beach, and give this report to show my previous sighting was not singular. I associate SHs with foraging near or under cover. Two Pelicans were also swimming and fishing along near the water's edge, so there would appear to have been a good supply of fish there! Barrie Ayres
	Black-browed Albatross and Long-tailed Jaeger Mistral Point, Maroubra 5 Black-browed Albatross and 3 Long-tailed Jaeger seen today - also 14 Pomarine Jaegers, 2 Flesh-footed Shearwaters, 45 Fluttering Shearwaters and 10 Short-tailed Shearwaters were logged. David Mitford
	Plumed Whistling-Duck Joe's Place, 27 km W of Forbes on Bogan Gate Rd Plumed Whistling-Duck (5) a female with 4 ducklings on farm dam,photos taken Geoff Brown
Sat 21 Jan	Musk Duck Lake Inverell Reserve Lake Inverell covered in waterfowl. Over 50 Hardheads, Over 25 Black Swans, 1 Musk Duck and lots of Australasian Grebes with juveniles. Curtis Hayne
	Golden Whistler, White throated Treecreeper Cranky Rock Nature Reserve, Warialda Heard a Whistler call and looked at the branch it was coming from and there was a Golden Whistler. Also, saw a White-throated Treecreeper for my first time, they move alot more than the Brown Treecreepers. Other interesting birds: Common Bronzewings, Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, Olive-backed Oriole, King Parrots, Eastern Koel and Jacky Winters. Curtis Hayne
Tue 17 Jan	Musk Duck Edward River, downstream of Tocumwal Road Single male duck observed on Edward River downstream of Tocumwal Road. Also about in vicinity were Rainbow Bee-eater, White-browed Babbler, Sacred and Azure Kingfisher's and Little Eagle. David Parker

Birdline NSW is sponsored by Birding NSW, Birds Australia - Southern NSW & ACT and Cumberland Bird Observers Club and co-ordinated and hosted by Eremaea Birds.

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