Hi Folks
I had a rare opportunity to visit Lady Elliott Island over last weekend on
a special standby (large discount). Diving was great (manta Rays, still
good reef (best on the SE side), leopard Sharks, a lot of gren turtles,
huge Giant Eel. 3 turtles made an attempt to lay eggs, but returned to the
sea. Has tourism on the Island something to do with that? 25 people went on
turtle watching in a group, but a few went out at night by themselves.
but I saw the following birds:
Wedge-tailed Shearwater (too noisy for a good night sleep)
Reef Egret
Great Frigate Bird +10
Red-tailed Tropic Bird 1
Greater Crested Tern +250
Bridled Tern
Caspian Tern
Brown Noddy a lot nesting on the grassy scrub flats
Sooty Noddy nesting in Casaurina Trees
Black-naped Tern (on the ground or near the ground)
Silver Gull (Disturb the terns)
Seaeagle 1 juv (make a mess of the colony)
Buff-breasted Rail (a few around the inhabitation)
Grey-tailed Tattler +12
Lesser Sand Plover +100
Pacific Golden Plover +50
Bar-tailed Godwit: one only
Whimbrel +10
Grey-tailed Tattler +25
Turnstone +100
Pied Oystercatcher 1
Black Oystercatcher 1
Tawny Grassbird 2
Silver-eye: a few
House Sparrow a lot
BUT NO ROSENATE TERNS (RT), where are they?, RT should nest there, but I
looked everywhere early morning and late afternoon (of couse without
disturbing any nesting sites), also looked during midday but did not see
any sign of them. But a lot of Black-naped Terns!!!
What is the breeding cycle and populations of RT on lady Eliott?
Regards from Niels
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