Today's walk

[Martin Butterfield <>]

I have added the following to the COG website and the editors of Gang-gang may wish to use it as the trip report.  Note that the hyperlinks below take you to the eBird checklists.

17 members gathered at the Visitors’ Centre just South of Tharwa on a beautiful morning.
We headed off to do the Woodland Loop trail, beginning by crossing the wall of the small dam. Several Australian Reed-warblers were calling in the dense reeds and a single Australasian Grebe in breeding plumage was in the water.
A good collection of returned migrants were breeding: Noisy Friarbird; White throated Gerygone (occupied nest); Dusky Woodswallow (recently fledged young, and agitated behaviour in chasing off a Grey Butcherbird). Other breeding records were Australian Magpie (Recently fledged young); Magpie Lark (recently fledged young) and Common Starling (visiting probable nest site).
Moving down to the Gudgenby river we added a few standard species plus the first Rainbow Bee-eater for the day. We totalled 36 species for the site.
Moving to Tharwa Sandwash, we started with an unsuccessful search for the Tawny Frogmouths, concluding by looking across the Murrumbigdgee. 2 Black-fronted Dotterels were doing their thing on the waterline while a Nankeen Kestrel perched on a large dead tree opposite. A Dollarbird appeared and disappeared into a hollow. After some discussion of the time it spent in the hollow, this was rated as an occupied nest rather inspecting the hollow.
Another dead tree caused us to log (sorry) Tree Martins inspecting a hollow. A Laughing Kookaburra excited us as it was carrying a snake – estimated as 50cm in length -as it flew to a tree and subsequently across the river. We totalled 30 species at this site, despite the lack of Red-rumped Parrots, Red-browed finches and several other expected species.
Across the 2 sites we recorded a pretty good total of 47 species.

I have done a blogpost with a few photos and some ancillary comments. 

For the December walk we shall meet at Urriara East at 8:30 on 21 December and canvass the picnic area and perhaps Stoney Creek NR if it isn't too hot.

Martin Butterfield
http://franmart.blogspot.com.au/