Russell Woodford and I had a very nice day out yesterday. At the outset
we'd like to thank Chris Coleborn, John Boyce and Chris Tzaros for
excellent descriptions of sites to visit in NW Victoria.
We started by reconnoitring some of our Twitchathon sites in the
vicinity of Terrick Terrick National Park on the plains north of
Bendigo. Highlights there included Black Honeyeater, Spotted Harrier,
Rainbow Bee-eater, Gilbert's Whistler, White-winged Triller and lots of
Rufous Songlarks.
Just North of the Terricks on the way to Pyramid Hill we chanced on 2
Crimson Chats amongst White-fronted Chats on the roadside. Budgerigars
made their first appearance at a gypsum quarry nearby, and nearer to
Pyramid Hill a great flock of 20+ Cockatiels. Between Pyramid Hill and
Kerang we saw our first White-winged Fairy-wrens.
We stopped at the top of Lake Tutchewop, and after a bit of searching
(punctuated by a Black Falcon, Gull-billed Tern, more White-winged
Fairy-wrens, a Rufous Fieldwren and some Splendid Fairy-wrens) we found
the Orange Chats. The chats were perched atop short samphire plants on
the flat area nearest the Murray Valley Highway on Winlaton Road. Next
stop Round Lake just west of the Lake Boga township. Quite a few
Blue-billed Ducks there amongst other things.
Further out on the Lake Boga-Sealake Road we came to the final stop -
Goschen Bushland Reserve. This small mallee reserve is full of
flowering Long-leaf Emu-bush (or Berrigan, Eremophila longifolia), and
at the moment seems full of PIED HONEYEATERS! As we pulled up the car
we were greeted by the loud, electronic-sounding "peee-peee-peee" of
male Pieds as they displayed and chased each other around the reserve.
The slightly slower & lower pitched BLACK HONEYEATER calls were in
evidence too. A small flock of CRIMSON CHATS was located soon after.
Other nice birds at Goschen included Blue Bonnet, Blue-winged Parrot,
Budgerigar, White-winged Triller, Red-backed Kingfisher .....
On the way home, we flushed what looked like a female GREY FALCON off a
power pole between Lake Tutchewop and Kangaroo Lake on the Murray Valley
Highway. Black Kites, Brown Falcons and Nankeen Kestrels were very
abundant along the MVHwy too.
Cuckoos were much less in evidence than in previous weeks, and we only
recorded Shining & Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoos.
A great day with 120 bird species (list attached below the signature
block). Atlas records will be submitted for all stops.
L.
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LAWRIE CONOLE
3 Gezireh Street, Pascoe Vale South
Victoria 3044 AUSTRALIA. 37°44'27"S 144°56'17"E
Phone (03) 9354 2484; Mobile (0419) 588 993
E-mail: <>
My home page: http://www.users.bigpond.com/ocoineoil/
Twitchathon: http://www.users.bigpond.com/ocoineoil/sections/cdph.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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LAWRIE & RUSSELL's BIG DAY OUT, 16 October 1999.
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Blue-billed Duck
Musk Duck
Black Swan
Hardhead
Hoary-headed Grebe
Darter
Little Pied Cormorant
Little Black Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Great Egret
Straw-necked Ibis
Black Kite
Whistling Kite
Spotted Harrier
Brown Falcon
Black Falcon
Eurasian Coot
Masked Lapwing
Silver Gull
Gull-billed Tern
Whiskered Tern
Common Bronzewing
Crested Pigeon
Peaceful Dove
Galah
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
Cockatiel
Eastern Rosella
Australian Ringneck
Blue Bonnet
Red-rumped Parrot
Budgerigar
Blue-winged Parrot
Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo
Shining Bronze-Cuckoo
Laughing Kookaburra
Red-backed Kingfisher
Sacred Kingfisher
Rainbow Bee-eater
Brown Treecreeper
Superb Fairy-wren
Splendid Fairy-wren
White-winged Fairy-wren
Striated Pardalote
Rufous Fieldwren
Weebill
Western Gerygone
Chestnut-rumped Thornbill
Yellow-rumped Thornbill
Yellow Thornbill
Southern Whiteface
Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater
Noisy Friarbird
Noisy Miner
Singing Honeyeater
White-plumed Honeyeater
Black-chinned Honeyeater
Brown-headed Honeyeater
Black Honeyeater
Pied Honeyeater
Crimson Chat
Orange Chat
White-fronted Chat
Jacky Winter
Red-capped Robin
Hooded Robin
White-browed Babbler
Gilbert's Whistler
Rufous Whistler
Grey Shrike-thrush
Restless Flycatcher
Magpie-lark
Willie Wagtail
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike
White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike
White-winged Triller
White-browed Woodswallow
Dusky Woodswallow
Australian Magpie
Australian Raven
White-winged Chough
Singing Bushlark
Richard's Pipit
House Sparrow
Zebra Finch
Mistletoebird
Welcome Swallow
Tree Martin
Fairy Martin
Clamorous Reed-Warbler
Rufous Songlark
Brown Songlark
Silvereye
Common Starling
94 species
Additional species (not from Atlassed sites):
Australian Wood Duck
Australian White Ibis
Australian Pelican
Black-shouldered Kite
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Brown Goshawk
Common Myna
Common Blackbird
Crimson Rosella
Emu
European Goldfinch
Grey Falcon
Little Wattlebird
Little Raven
Long-billed Corella
Nankeen Kestrel
Pacific Black Duck
Pied Currawong
Red Wattlebird
Rock Dove
Skylark
Spotted Turtle-Dove
White-breasted Woodswallow
White-faced Heron
White-necked Heron
Yellow-billed Spoonbill
26 species (120)
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