Prue and I did our autumn woodland survey this morning in perfect weather although it was a little soggy underfoot. Vegetation was looking lush although quite a lot of this was weeds, and there was plenty
of water in dams and creeks. 45 bird species were recorded, a reasonable total for autumn, with 34 of these noted during 10 minute counts.
Amongst the more interesting finds were a
Scarlet Robin calling at site 9, Australian Owlet-Nightjar heard at site 8, a female
Brown Goshawk at site 5, and incidental records of Stubble Quail (2 flushed) and
Common Bronzewing. Mistletoebirds and Speckled Warblers were seen in a couple of places, as were
Superb Parrots, including a flock of nine flying over site 5. Of winter visitors
Golden Whistlers and White-eared Honeyeaters were recorded in small numbers. Summer visitors were in short supply with just a handful of
Rufous Whistlers and a Noisy Friarbird, along with a flock of 5
Dusky Woodswallows passing west over site 1. Small bird activity was largely confined to our more heavily wooded sites in the south of the reserve. There was no sign of honeyeater migration.
3 species of frogs were calling from the dams, and 5 common species of butterfly were noted. We also saw our first
Pasture Day Moths (Apina callisto) for the season.
Steve
