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Hi Birders,
During the period 8-12 October 2000 Australian
Special Interest Tours took a group of 18 birdwatchers to Coonabarabran for a 5
day visit to the Warrumbungle Mountains and to the Pilliga Scrub. On the
Saturday enroute to Coonabarabran, we stopped at Broke Common for morning tea
where we had a pair of White-throated Gerygones building a nest
and close by, and about 100m apart where two seperate nests of
Olive-backed Orioles. Bee-eaters were hawking
above us and the air was loud with the calls of Dollarbirds,
Sacred Kingfishers, Shining Bronze-cuckoos,
Orioles & Gerygones! Our lunch stop was Battery Rocks near Merriwa where
Reedwarblers were abundant and Dusky
Woodswallows hawked overhead. At Ulinda Creek, Binnaway Rufous
Songlarks were in full cry and a Brown Goshawk circled
overhead. At Coonabarabran Weir there were Common Blackbirds,
Coots and 2 Little Friarbirds and at nearby
Rotary Park Fantailed Cuckoos and Eastern
Spinebills were added to our list.
Birdwatching around our motel on Sunday morning
found Brown-headed, White-eared &
Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters and a Koala! Then off to the
Warrumbungles NP and while some of the party walked to the Breadknife, the rest
of us birdwatched around the area. Highlights were Black-chinned
Honeyeaters, White-browed Babblers, Turquoise
Parrots & a Restless Flycatcher on the nest at at
Camp Pincham; Striped Honeyeaters at Wambelong,
Horsfiedd Bronze-Cuckoo, Speckled Warbler
& Red-capped Robin at the Woolshed; and Brush
Cuckoo & Immature Nankeen Night-heron at Canyon
Camp.
After we collected the walkers we left the park and
drove westward to Gummin Gumin & Warrumbungle Village, where we good views
of Red-winged Parrots, Yellow-throated Miners
and Bluebonnet Parrots.
On Monday, following visits to the Mineral Museum
(where there was a Blue-faced Honeyeaters nest with 2 young),
and Siding Spring Observatory, we stopped first at Timor Rock where a
Rufous Whistler was found nesting in a sapling and Sacred
Kingfishers and Shining Bronze-cuckoos were calling loudly; then we went onto
White Gum Lookout and adjacent areas and found Brush Cuckoos, Speckled Warblers,
Black-chinned Honeyayers and the first Cicadabird for the
season was heard calling! We lunched at Canyon Camp in the rain and on leaving
near Elongery, we saw another two Turquoise Parrots!. We then left the western
side of the Park and circumnavigated the Park, returning to Coonabarabran via
Goorianawaa &. Bugaldie. Passing through the woodlands on the plains were
saw White-winged Trillers,
Chestnut-rumped & Inland Thornbills,
Double-banded Finches, Little Ravens and
Weebills.
On Tuesday we went to the Pilliga Scrub,
birdwatching first at Wittenbra SF here we saw nesting Jacky Winters,
Grey-crowned Babblers, Sittella,
Leaden Flycatcher, & Buff-rumped
Thornbills. At Terridgerie Lagoon we saw 2 Plum-headed
Finches, nesting Whistling Kites, Little
Eagle, Cockatiel, Peregrine,
White-browed Woodswallows and another Koala! In Carmel Lane en
route to the dry Carmel Lagoon we had fleeting views of a Spotted
Bowerbird, and at Trapyard Dam & Sandy Creek Road in Pilliga West
SF we finally caught up with a Western Gerygone and had
great views of Bee-eaters and many Double-barred Finches. Our last stop for the
day was on the Gulargumbone Road where we visited an extraordinary bower of the
Spotted Bowerbird, decorated with many bolts & nuts, sheep bones,
ring-pulls, red & silver items etc, but alas the owner rarely showed
himself!
On Wednesday on the way home we spent some time at
Beni Crossing of the Castlereagh River near Mendooran where we had great views
of Diamond Firetails, a Sparrowhawk and a dark
phase Little Eagle. We stopped at the lagoon outside of Dunedoo
and had good views of Shoveller, nesting Coots and
Australasian Grebes, 3 Wedgetail Eagles being
buzzed by 2 Brown Falcons, Royal &
Yellow-billed Spoonbills, In Dunedoo we saw some Musk
Lorikeets and just east of the town we turned up a Spotted
Harrier. It was a good trip and 154 species of birds were
seen.
Alan Morris
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