Richard, I Can't match the Orange Bellied Parrot, Freckled
Duck, Crake and Rail - sounds like a fantastic days bird
watching! However I do have a robin story. Recently on a
trip to 'Fern Glade' (near Burnie - Tasmania) I viewed a
Pink, Dusky and Scarlet Robin in a single binocular focus
- simple delightful! There were also a number of large
Platypus at Fern Glade - apparently they are bigger in the
Apple Isle!
Tim
> Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 22:50:26 +1000
> To:
> From: Dr Richard Nowotny <>
> Subject: birding-aus Another Sunday at Werribee (Western Treatment
> Plant)
> On Sunday Diana and I took Paul Berrigan, a visitor from the US (Detroit,
> Michigan) and very keen birder (North American list of 745 in only 15 years
> of birding!), down to the You Yangs and the southern end of the Western
> Treatment Plant for the day (his only real opportunity to do any birding on
> a brief business trip).
> Along the approach road to the You Yangs entrance gate we had the unusual
> experience of seeing 4 separate robin species within 200 metres of each
> other - Flame (dozens, in fact), Scarlet, Hooded and Eastern Yellow. The
> You Yangs park was itself rather quiet, but the tempo picked up a little
> once we hit the "Farm".
> Early afternoon mobile phone contact with Chris Lester and Susan Myers who
> were on the west side of Lake Borrie peering through their respective
> scopes at some 15 distant Freckled Duck sent us heading their way for a
> look. However, a parrot flushed from the roadside at the Paradise Rd ponds
> brought us to a sharp, doors thrown open halt and produced excellent views
> of a juvenile (presumably first year, ie first trip across Bass Strait)
> Orange-Bellied Parrot feeding in a small bush alongside a grassy ditch.
> Finally moving on we were halted again by the new gate across the access
> road to the west side of Lake Borrie, only to see a close, perched Freckled
> Duck as we scanned the nearby posts in the lake.
> Paul's day list for the previous half hour now read: OBP, Freckled Duck!!
> Such special treats are of course somewhat "wasted" on a visitor who is
> seeing numerous life-birds and to whom a life Pacific Gull or Black-fronted
> Dotterel are in many ways no less exciting than a life Freckled Duck or
> OBP. However, I think our sense of excitement and special pleasure
> conveyed itself to our guest!
> Later in the day we spent two sessions along the north side of the Little
> River scanning the well-known reeds for crakes and rails (a la John Barkla
> and THAT recent BOCA outing), ultimately adding Australian (Spotted) Crake,
> Spotless Crake and Lewin's Rail to the day list.
> The Farm continues to produce the goods for locals and visitors alike.
> Richard
>
> _____________________
> From: Dr Richard Nowotny,
> Melbourne, Australia.
> Tel. (w) 61-3-9214.1420
> <>
> _____________________
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_______________________
Tim Dolby
Product Manager
RMIT Publishing - Informit
RMIT University (03) 9341 3271
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