Some people planning to visit Cape York this dry season have asked the
question since I posted the note on BBBQ - if there are no birds
around Mt Molloy, are there other places worth trying.
Firstly I would look for sutiable habitat anywhere north of Laura and
then do alot of walking through it in the hope of flushing a bird.
(Buff-breasted often flush a second and third time). The area north and
south of Coen especially, and on the road into Iron Range from the
Coen-Bamaga road would be worth special attention. I will try to
explain the type of habitat where I have found them.
Habitat seems to be very short grass often under Melaleucas -
(viridiflora) - the short paper-bark melaleuca - about 5 metres high -
which is fairly common through the tropical woodland of Cape York. The
grass is so short one would think it is too short for button-quail. I
wouldn't bother too much in dense grass in these areas. A slight slope
seems to be very important and often pebbly (small) soil seems to be
important but not necessary. I have rarely found them on the melaleuca
flats with heavy soils and I have never found them in the tall eucalypt-
tropical woodlands which dominate the landscape of Cape York. When you
put all these together, total area of suitable habitat in Cape York
amongst the tropical woodland is not great. If anyone intends visiting
Rokeby NP, keep an eye out for habitat along that road too.
Some people have apparently got them around the grassy fringes of the
Iron Range airstrip. Others claim to have got them along the edge of
roads in the Iron Range area beside denser grassy areas just before dusk
and just after daylight but I don't know how accurate this is. Again,
others have seen them in grassy clearings in rainforest at Iron Range.
These sightings are from very different habitat (much denser grass) than
those from other areas and if they are in fact BBBQs, then Iron Range is
worth special attention.
I will be up there several times during the rest of the year.
Again, I would be grateful to hear of ANY quail or button-quail
sightings from Cape York, together with locality.
Lloyd Nielsen
Mt Molloy Nth Qld
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