Spotless Crake, Geelong

[Lawrie Conole <>]

As alluded to by Russell last week, there's a Spotless Crake offering
"crippling" views at the Jerringot (Belmont Common) swamp in Geelong. 
When I went for a look yesterday about 4 or 5 pm, I saw it immediately,
and watched it foraging out in the open, about 1 metre out on to the mud
next to a club-rush clump, about 45 degrees right from the hide & 10-12
metres away.  

The swamp has dried up considerably due to silting from the floods last
year, and because there's been no runoff from rain for months.  There are
a variety of things running around on the mud (Black-fronted Dotterels,
Little Grassbirds acting like aquatic fairy-wrens, White-fronted Chats,
and of course Common Starlings). 

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Lawrie Conole
Geelong, Victoria, Australia


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