And so we come to the business end of the Gulpa hide. The view, especially from the upper deck, is spacious and satisfying. However I must say that despite spending 5 hours there, including first and last light, I did not find all that many birds: few ducks, no egrets or herons, no waders or smaller rails/crakes. Perhaps one reason is that the wetlands are just so vast. A sea of reeds and rush stretches away to the east, and I was told there was a similar expanse on the other side of the Gulpa creek line (in distance) and again on the other side of the highway. The water level might have been a factor too. I was told by a long time resident who had been in forestry that fewer birds were there now. In past years thousands of ibis and egrets had nested along the creek. This was related to a general complaint that there was too much vegetation since cattle grazing had ceased, and – of all things, encroaching River Red Gums. A musk duck displayed in the distance, and a pair of swamp harriers patrolled fairly constantly. About 80 ibis flew up from a hidden valley in the reeds when a sea-eagle flew over although they weren’t bothered by the harriers.
All in all, much the same waterbird scene that you might find around Canberra - except for the following. Sitting on the upper deck at very last light 745-815pm I heard 8 times the deep resonant call of a bittern. Quite eerie. If you didn’t know about bitterns you might believe in bunyips. There is no excuse for not knowing about bitterns, though. You can read about them and play the call while you’re walking back on the boardwalk.
