Hi everyone,
Thanks to those who responded to my original posting regarding 'Where
to Watch Birds in Australasia & Oceania'.
I have now had time to look more closely at this book (it was published
last year - 1998). My intention in purchasing a copy was twofold -
to help with planning some eventual personal visits to the islands and
areas to the north and east of Australia and as a possible reference to
recommend to intending international visitors when enquiring about a
good guide for this greater region.
No doubt, the best way to test the accuracy of such a book is to read
the pages that cover your own back yard - in my case Atherton Tableland,
Julatten and Mount Lewis and Cairns - a bit over 7 pages of text all
told - and see how it stacks up. This I did and all I can say is that I
was horrified! Reading it makes one doubt if the author has ever been
to these areas at all. Someone suggested that it seemed to be an
abbreviated account of Thomas and I am inclined to agree. Indeed
mistakes in Thomas have been carried over into this book. The following
is what I found - and I am not going to be as kind to it as Murray was.
For a start, five friarbirds are mentioned for these areas - Little,
Noisy, Helmeted, Silver-crowned and New Guinea. Not bad considering
only three occur in the area. Silver-crowned occurs well to the north
(Cooktown). Most people would not know that 'New Guinea Friarbird' is
an alternative name for the Helmeted Friarbird in New Guinea, but no
mention is made of this. (Using Clement's taxonomy ? can be confusing
to Australians).
Many birds are listed which just do not occur or are extremely rare in
the areas they are listed for - Bar-breasted Honeyeater at Cairns,
Torresian Imperial Pigeon at Julatten and Mt Lewis, Lovely Fairy-wren on
top of Mt Lewis, Red-browed Pardalote and Silver-crowned Friarbird at
Big Mitchell Creek, Ground Cuckoo-shrike and Buff-breasted Paradise
Kingfisher on the Atherton Tableland, Double-banded Plover presumably at
Cairns Esplanade from Feb-Aug - (it is a very rare straggler to Cairns)
. Some names are wrong and confusing to Australian birdwatchers and to
visitors who are usuing Australian Field Guides e.g. 'Green Oriole' and
'Green Figbird' at Cairns - presumably should be Yellow Oriole and
Yellow Figbird.
A number of localities are given where the target birds have not been
there for some years - ' the rice fields alongside Pickford Road west of
the Kennedy Highway' (it is actually the Peninsula Development Road -
the Kennedy Highway runs north to Mareeba and then down to Cairns) was
converted to sugar-cane growing about 4 years ago - there has been no
rice (and very few birds!) since then. The Bakers Road site is still
perpetuated for Buff-breasted Button-quail. I have not seen any there
since about late 1993 - early 1994, despite many searches. (And on top
of that, directions to the site are way out. Trying to find the fourth
grid will take you many kilometres to the west onto Font Hills Station
(where you have got a rather good chance of being kicked out by an
obnoxious manager). The site was originally past the third grid, never
the fourth. These days, the old site is 500 metres past the first
grid. Two grids were pulled up a few years ago. (It would be so much
simpler to say '6.5 km down Bakers Road'). The Great Bowerbird at Mt
Molloy Cemetry vanished about 4 years ago (and his bower fell into
disrepair). The Blue-faced Parrot-finch site about 3 km up the Mt Lewis
road in a lush gully became overgrown about 4 years ago and the finches
have not returned. It was never the site where it 'occurred most
regularly' - the site at the top of Mt Lewis at the clearing had that
reputation. Many birding people have known of a new and excellent site
at the base of the mountain for at least 2 years but this is not
mentioned.
Directions are sometimes way out e.g. Abattoir Swamp 'situated a couple
of kilometres along McDougall's Road which leads east of the Mt
Molloy-Julatten Road' - McDougall Road actually leads west and has
nothing to do with Abattoir swamp. Following those directions leads
into the cleared hills at the base of Mt Lewis! (Interestingly, Thomas
makes an identical mistake and it appears that it has been copied to
this book). And you would have to visit Abattoir Swamp many many times
before you will get a Green Pygmy-goose as promised! To find the Beach
Stone-curlews (at Yule Point) by 'heading for Pebbly Beach which is well
sign-posted and walking north' probably only guarantees that you will be
sure to miss the birds 19 times out of 20 - the birds mostly occur at
least 2 kilometres to the north beyond a band of mangroves. ( Pebbly
Beach is very poorly sign-posted, and thus difficult to find for
visitors - many locals would have never seen the small sign that has
been obscured by foliage for years).
Place and business names are often wrong - as Chris pointed out the
wrong name is given for his tour (the only serious birdwatching tour on
the Daintree River and the only one where you will see the species
mentioned most times. It is only by circumstance and good luck people
following the direction in this book would get to book the right tour.
Kingfisher Caravan Park has been Kingfisher Birdwatchers Lodge for at
least 4 years. Yarrabah (?) Turf Farm (not the right name but a local
name) becomes 'Yarrabunda Turf Farm (no such business?) a little way
along the road to Yarrabunda' (no such place) - and if it is the turf
farm I think the reference is to, it is not really on the road to
Yarrabah. (Again, the same mistakes were made in the Thomas book but
appear to be accentuated through abbreviation in this book).
There are some rather odd statements e.g. ' Chowchillas which are often
found in groups accompanied by musky-rat kangaroos' - is so fanciful it
does not deserve comment. As Susan pointed out, early in the book we
are told that 'some people have almost been killed by leeches'. Surely
he means 'scrub ticks'.
In 'Other Wildlife' for Julatten and Mt Lewis, Coppery Brushtail
(possum), Herbert River Ringtail (possum) and Red-necked Pademelon are
listed, none of which occur there.
All phone numbers are the old obsolete numbers which changed in this
area about 12 months ago and are very confusing to people coming into
the country for the first time, let alone a nuisance to Australian
travellers. There is no excuse for this and a check with Telstra would
have fixed that. My book was published in late 1996 and a check with
Telstra in mid 1996 indicated numbers would be changed in 'about 18
months' from that date - it turned out to be 2 years - so I was able to
include the relevant information.
In the Cape York section, it is stated that at Iron Range 'there is
usually some freshwater fit for drinking in the creeks'. Suggesting
this is unbelievably irresponsible especially with such animals as feral
pigs (and their myriad of diseases), wallowing and defecating in the
creeks and waterways - and in a remote area where medical help can be
sometimes very difficult to come by in an emergency. Thomas states
that 'we always sterilised this water before drinking it' - a wise move.
I also read the section on Lamington NP in S Queensland, an area I know
very well having guided and lived there for quite a few years. Again,
there are similar mistakes with bird names and directions. Directions
to Rufous Scrub-bird are confusing and basically wrong (track names
have been confused) while that to the Eastern Bristlebird spot is
completely wrong. Again the text appears to have been abbreviated from
the Thomas book. Thomas gives directions to a lesser known site for
the scrub-bird - I think he may have been first to describe this, the Mt
Merino spot. This book also mentions this spot but in the process
errors have crept in e.g.- the Mt Merino circuit is not at the end of
the Pensioner Track but about another 4 km further on - see the map and
text in Thomas (Thomas's directions are 100% spot on). In all, I found
about 8 rather serious mistakes on roughly 2 pages of text including
the 'clanger' where Superb Lyrebird is mentioned as an inhabitant of
the Park along with Albert's!
I think I have said enough even though that is only a proportion of the
errors. In fairness, the section on the Townsville area seems to be
reasonably accurate.
If this sounds like sour grapes, it certainly is not even though it is
probably not nice to slam an author for his work, but afterall, he is
obliged to his readers - those people who put good money out for his
book - to get it right!. All serious birdwatchers will agree I am sure,
that when one pays for supposedly good and accurate information, then
one expects just that. To get to a destination , often in another
country and to find that the information is innaccurate (grossly
innacurate in this case) costs precious time, something one cannot
afford when on an expedition/vacation - and to say nothing of cost,
anxiety, frustration and disappointment.
I paid $60 all up for my copy. Now that I am landed with it, I am
wondering what I should do with it! I most certainly will not be using
it to plan any visits to near-by countries - and I certainly will not
be recommending it to visiting birdwatchers. At least it has an
attractive cover!
Lloyd Nielsen
Mt Molloy Qld
I might add that Thomas and Thomas may have a few shortcomings and a few
mistakes here and there but it is still way ahead for overall Australian
birding.
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