G'day all
I spent a few hours last week in various sections of the Chiltern forest.
Areas visited include Lancashire Gap road / Cyanide dam / tower track on
the eastern side of the Hume Highway, Donkey Hill track in the western
section, No's 1 and 2 dams along Chitern Valley road and the Magenta Mine
area.
Still some Eucalypts flowering (mainly grey box ?) in some areas
attracting Little Lorikeets and friarbirds. No Regent Honeyeaters seen.
Scarcity of small 'bush' birds eg robins, thornbills, whistlers, wrens.
Too many Fuscous and Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters. Lots of wild flowers.
Peaceful doves calling everywhere. White-bellied Cuckoo-shrikes quite
common. At least 15 whistling kites at No 1 dam. Also here was a snipe
having a bath a few feet from me - it either didn't know or didn't care
that I was so close.
Close to the highest point of Donkey Hill track I scared a large hawk from
a tree. it was just a quick blur then gone. About the size of a
Whistling Kite but looked quite reddish. My guess is Little Eagle or
Square-tailed Kite. The habitat was quite dense box forest.
Three Apostlebirds and one Little Corella seen on the roadside along the
highway between Rutherglen and Yarrawonga (closer to R'glen).
74 species as follows:
Black Swan
Australian Shelduck
Australian Wood Duck
Pacific Black Duck
Grey Teal
Hardhead
Painted Button-quail
Laughing Kookaburra
Sacred Kingfisher
Fan-tailed Cuckoo
Little Lorikeet
Galah
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
Little Corella
Crimson Rosella
Eastern Rosella
Red-rumped Parrot
Turquoise Parrot
Powerful Owl
Common Bronzewing
Crested Pigeon
Peaceful Dove
Purple Swamphen
Dusky Moorhen
Eurasian Coot
Latham's Snipe
Black-fronted Dotterel
Masked Lapwing
Whistling Kite
Australasian Grebe
Darter
Little Pied Cormorant
Australian White Ibis
Straw-necked Ibis
Yellow-billed Spoonbill
Australian Pelican
White-throated Treecreeper
Brown Treecreeper
Superb Fairy-wren
Yellow-tufted Honeyeater
Fuscous Honeyeater
White-plumed Honeyeater
White-naped Honeyeater
Black-chinned Honeyeater
Brown-headed Honeyeater
Little Friarbird
Noisy Friarbird
Noisy Miner
Red Wattlebird
Spotted Pardalote
Jacky Winter
Eastern Yellow Robin
White-winged Chough
Apostlebird
Crested Shrike-tit
Grey Shrike-thrush
Australian Raven
Grey Butcherbird
Australian Magpie
Dusky Woodswallow
Olive-backed Oriole
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike
White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike
Willie Wagtail
Grey Fantail
Restless Flycatcher
Magpie-lark
Welcome Swallow
Silvereye
Brown Songlark
Rufous Songlark
Mistletoebird
Richard's Pipit
Diamond Firetail
Thanks to those who provided recent information.
Cheers
Steve
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Stephen Clark
Agriculture Victoria
Private Bag 105 HAMILTON 3300 Australia
Phone 0355 730 977 Fax 0355 711 523
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