Greetings ozbirders
We (Stuart Dashper, Susan Myers & I) looked unsuccessfully for the
reported Letter-winged Kite near Werribee (Victoria) on Saturday. Most
interesting bird in that locale was Pallid Cuckoo. Anyone else more
lucky than us?
Afterwards we went to the nearby You Yangs forest, and were fortunate
enough to have excellent views of Painted Button-quail and Fan-tailed
Cuckoo plus a range of other stuff. The real treat was a Black-eared
Cuckoo calling loudly from the top of a tree near the intersection of
Branding Yards Road, Great Circle Drive & Toynes Road. Reasonable views
for 66% of the party before it took off. BECs are normally quite rare
(accidental?) so far south. We also saw a Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo, so
there are lots of spring cuckoos out there now.
Lawrie Conole
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
" ... night still fills the steep ravines where southbound migrants
descend at day to feed and rest. The golden birds fall from the morning
sun like blowing sparks that drop away and are extinguished in the dark
..."
Peter Matthiessen (1978, "The Snow Leopard")
|
