Hi all,
I had a quick look around Kelly’s and the STW
from about 10- 11 am this morning in preparation for the Birds Australia
twitchathon in a couple of weeks. Kelly’s was quiet and not much to be
seen apart from the regular coots, swamphens etc. There was one Royal Spoonbill
and 3 Pelicans on the swamp proper and a Darter on the bank where the bridge
crosses the creek on the bicycle track towards Kingston. The STW were a far better
proposition with lots of Pink-eared Ducks, Australasian Shovelers (several
males in full plumage), Hardheads and at least two Freckled Ducks (someone
before me in the “visitor’s book” recorded three). I only
looked at the first four ponds. There was none of the more interesting crakes
and rails at either site. I would imagine that when we finally get a prolonged
period of hot, dry weather then the edge of Kelly’s could become more
attractive to them.
If anyone out there still wants to sponsor the COG
team in the twitchathon then send me an email. As I said before it can be for so
much per species (eg 10 cents per species = $20 if we get 200 species) or you
can just make a one-off donation. All money raised this year goes to the
Australian Bird Study Association’s Research fund and amounts over $2 are
tax deductible. We will send you an official receipt when we have collected
your donation!
Cheers,
Mark
