Hi everyone,
We stayed only a short time after you, left, Russell (Nice to meet you, by the
way).
I agree with what you have said. The birds did seem quite comfortable, and not
worried about us. I would assume that having all that water between us added
to their sense of security.
I also agree that it's not often I stop here that someone else doesn't either
leave or arrive while I'm there, and that most birders would know that it is
somewhere OBPs might be. We went there to have lunch, not to look for OBPs,
stayed back from the sign which I remembered from last year and reported our
sighting to Chris at BirdLife as instructed on the Birdline page.
It was a thrill for the 5 of us to see them, some for the first time, so have
seen them before, but a special encounter for all.
Sonja
On 26/05/2013, at 2:41 PM, Russ wrote:
> Hi everyone
>
> I thought I'd get in early before any more people have a go at me about
> posting an Orange-bellied Parrot report.
>
> Yes, I'm aware that Birdline Vic doesn't post reports of OBP - but of
> course if you look at trip/site reports you can still see any info people
> have submitted about OBP sightings.
>
> I deliberated for a while before sending the report to Birding-Aus
> yesterday. I wouldn't automatically post directions for finding an
> endangered species. Here are some facts that I probably should have
> included in my report:
>
> I'd been at the site for about half an hour when another party of birders
> turned up to have lunch there (it's quite a popular spot for lunch).
> Another 15 minutes or so later I decided to head off, and that's when
> someone pointed out 4 Neophema parrots flying in to the lagoon. The birds
> soon landed in a bushy tree about 50m away. We watched them for about 30
> minutes - the birds were feeding and preening all this time. As far as I
> know the parrots stayed on in the tree after I left.
>
> This is at one of the standard "go-to" places for OBP at the WTP. My guess
> is that anyone looking for this species would spend some time here. There
> is another place nearby where they have apparently been seen regularly but
> the road is blocked off this year. I think access is only for the survey
> groups, but I'm not sure.
>
> The only pressure the group I was with put on the birds was that we looked
> at them through scopes almost constantly for the half hour I stayed. I'd
> have thought that if the birds were feeling bothered by our presence they
> would have flown off as soon as they were aware of us.
>
> I can't think of a visit I've made to WTP when I've been the only person at
> this spot - as I said, it's one of the places people hope to see OBP, so
> most people stop there. It's a place I like to visit winter or summer
> because of the great variety of birds that are usually there. Occasionally
> it turns up something special.
>
> What I would hope is that instead of people getting bothered about
> sightings being reported at already-known hotspots, they remind each other
> to avoid walking through or around the lagoon or anywhere else the birds
> might be.
> I'm pleased to say that in my last 3 or 4 visits to this spot I haven't
> seen any evidence of people walking in the wrong places.
>
> The other thing that I'd encourage people to do is support recovery
> programs financially if they are lucky enough to birds like these. Think of
> it as giving something back to the birds you've seen.
>
> Russell Woodford
> Geelong
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