|
Hi All
Back from a fortnight in Tasmania. Wow, I loved the place. Had lots
of fun and managed to see 25 new birds in between everything else. I am
not going to bore everyone by giving a blow-by-blow account of the whole
two weeks but I did think that a couple of places might be worth mentioning
for the benefit of prospective visitors.
Firstly, I was alerted to the existence of the Peter Murrell Reserve
by a posting from Murray Lord. Thank you very much, Murray, it was a great
spot. I easily got Forty-spotted Pardalotes here and while watching
some Spotted and Striated Pardalotes in a low tree, was utterly delighted
when the tree was visited in quick succession by an Olive Whistler,
a Black-headed Honeyeater and a Yellow-throated Honeyeater. I
also saw Tasmanian Native-Hen and Yellow Wattlebird here.
Some of you may recall my wish to see a penguin. In Hobart we took
a harbour cruise (MV Cartela at the docks) which, as well as being a very
nice way to see the layout of Hobart and its hinterland, proved to be a
mini-pelagic trip! I saw stacks of Black-faced Cormorant, several
Kelp Gull, a flock of Short-tailed Shearwater and several
Little Penguins - you beauty! There are several cruises of the Derwent
estuary available and, on my experience, they are well worth it as birding
opportunities.
The Forestier State Forest (on the Forestier Peninsula, the blob of
land immediately above the Tasman Peninsula) was a very good place for
bush birds generally. I saw Strong-billed and Crescent Honeyeaters,
Pink Robin and Black Currawong here. A bonus was a flock
of White-throated Needletails travelling on a warm northerly wind.
There is a wetland designated as a Waterbird refuge a few km north
of Triabunna on the east coast. Among the hundreds of Black Swan and Coots,
there were a couple of Musk Duck and at least 20 Great Crested Grebe. The
latter were notable since Dave Watts' book indicates that this bird is
a rare visitor to Tasmania. Best of all was an obliging Australasian
Bittern which flew by and settled in the reeds nearby. This wetland
is easily viewed from the roadside, though getting your car safely off
the road is a bit awkward.
I was pleasantly surprised by the abundance of birds in most bushland
areas, even the smaller ones. I seemed to see something of interest almost
every time I looked. A good example was the Meander Forest Reserve, south
of Deloraine. This was very good for bush birds, including Dusky Robin,
and had some prime-looking Scrubtit habitat, though I only saw Tasmanian
Scrubwren and Tasmanian Thornbill here (the three seem to go together).
The small reserve at Notley Gorge, north of Launceston - thank you, Bill
Jolly - was similarly good. Bill had noted this as a spot to see Pink Robin
and sure enough I had the pleasure of viewing a male at waist level from
only 2 metres away. Though I'd seen the species several times before by
then, it was a delightful encounter. He even did his 'snapping twig' call
for me. I had good views of Ground Thrush too, but dipped on a hoped-for
Scrubtit though the Thornbills and Scrubwrens were there.
All in all, Tassie proved to be a great birding destination. I got
my 25 newies without excessive effort, found Tassie easy to get around
in, the people friendly, the scenery magnificent, the trout cooperative
and the food and drink delicious. I'll be back!
--
+----------------------------------------+
Richard Johnson
Roma District
Tel: (07) 4622 4266 Fax: (07) 46 22 4151
E-mail:
|
