Aha, my home territory. Last time I was at Serendip a
couple of years ago they were down to a couple of bustards, the remnant of a
breeding program using birds brought from the Northern Territory, that at one
time saw a few dozen stretched across the paddocks, with the You Yangs incongruously
in the background. They were shy and ‘only stragglers’ in
that area when Horatio Wheelwright shot them for tucker for hungry
gold-diggers, although he reported once counting ‘as many as twenty-seven
feeding together on the wide open country towards Gelong’. Despite
some success with Cape Barren Geese and Brolga, Serendip’s plans to
restock the rolling plains of southern Victoria with bustards met with one difficulty
after another. A more suitable venue for such a project might be the wide
open country around Canberra, where John Gale saw hundreds of ‘em as he rode
his horse across the shoulder of Capitol Hill, as it now is, on his errand to
collect funds for persons widowed as a result of the Crimean War.
From: Margaret Leggoe
[
Sent: Monday, 4 October 2010 9:37 AM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Birdwatching near Geelong
Dear Cogs,
Been enjoying glorious weather in Geelong. Had a look
at Melbourne Water's sewage ponds. Not much bird life there at present.
Also, found parking at likely spots difficult because of the narrowness
of the necks of land between the ponds.
Had a look at Serendip Sanctuary just north of Lara, and was
delighted. There is a small man-made lake in the middle of a 250 hectare
block of native revegetation. It is shallow and surrounded by generous
swathes of dense native shrubs. There are half a dozen well constructed
hides in addition to many other vantage points from which one can observe
free-living water birds, waders and raptors.
In addition there are a number of enclosures for the display
and captive breeding of more vulnerable species. All but two of these
were generous in size and vegetation. I guess it might have been my only
opportunity to photograph a male bustard in full breeding regalia snorting his
best. I made the most of it, and sat myself on the ground with my back to
a tree and shot off a whole CF card full of shots.
In all, I was able to photograph more than a dozen species
that I had not previously photographed. And the little black-fronted
dotterel came so close I could scarcely believe my luck!
I'll definitely revisit Serendip Sanctuary.
