Hello to everyone and a belated happy new year. I have dropped into work to
touch base and see how many of you were able to enjoy seeing the Lesser
Yellowlegs at Werribee. I wrote an e-mail at home the day before seeing the
bird which discusses the amazing capacity of birders to see unusual birds at
sewage ponds, cemeteries and golf courses. This has been my experience at
least, around the world. The sighting also followed a conversation I had
discussing that for the number of times I have birded at Werribee, the number
of unusual shorebird species that I have observed is low. And then, voila !
I was glad to hear that so many people were able to see the Yellowlegs,
especially after myself and a four others were not able to relocate it on the
Friday evening. If anyone took any photos that they would like included in my
report please contact me. Here's hoping that the bird reappears for those
still after it.
My second purpose for writing is regarding an upcoming trip to Mallacoota.
I am staying at Gipsy Point for five nights and would appreciate any info. on
sightings or locations to look for the species I have listed below. Please
skip the next three paragraphs if you are not interested in my Painted
Honeyeater sighting in Dec. or local escape sightings or ramblings about my
golf course, sewage pond and cemetery theory.
While I'm on line, I'll mention just out of interest (or not) two escapes noted
in the last few weeks in the Williamstown/Newport area. A female Rose-ringed
Parakeet has been associating with Galahs at a local park in Newport along
Railside Drive - I have seen it on several occasions on my walk to the train
station in the mornings. Incidentally, my train list (that is a list
consisting of species observed while actually on the train) is up to 42 species
with the latest addition of Darter flying along the Yarra.
My train route to work takes me firstly from Newport to Flinders Street, then
on to Syndal via the Glen Waverley line. I generally see 17-20 species per
trip, having never achieved a list greater than 20 on one given trip (I'll keep
trying). Anyway, not bad for inner city travel. The other escapee is a
Ringed Turtle-Dove that I have seen several times sitting on the wire at the
junction of Kororoit Creek Road and Maddox Rd.
I have also returned recently from a week trip to Bright with my family. One
particular sighting of mention was a small group of five Painted Honeyeaters
(2 male, 3 female type/juv ?) sighted at the Porepunkah Public Golf Course in
the early morning of December 19th. The two males were singing and showing off
from numerous patches of mistletoe that seemed to be in almost every tree on
the course. It proved to be an excellent place to go birding and supports my
long held opinion that golf courses are generally wonderful places to find a
good diversity of bird species, as well as holding some surprises. If birders
spent a good portion of their time at golf courses, cemeteries and sewage works
they would do well I reckon ! I recall many spectacular sightings in Ontario,
Canada, from Western Grebes and Mountain Bluebirds at Woodland Cemtery, to
Townsend's Solitaires and Bramblings at other local cemeteries.
Yellow-throated Warblers, Varied Thrush and Summer Tanagers at various golf
courses. Rarities and vagrants too numerous to mention at sewage ponds about
the province.
And now, the pattern continues with a Hudsonian Godwit at Werribee last year,
my first Painted Honeyeaters at Porepunkah Golf Course of all places and the
latest addition of Lesser Yellowlegs at Werribee. Odd what we birders get up
to.
Re : RFI Mallacoota
That aside, my next upcoming venture is to Mallacoota from Jan 20-26. I have
never been to this hotspot before and after reading Bransbury's account in
"Where to Find Birds in Australia", I am somewhat optimistic at seeing some new
species for Victoria and Australia. The guide mentions Shady Gully, the
Mallacoota Aerodrome and Genoa Peak for select species. The species I have
listed below comprise a general list of birds that I am interested in seeing.
I realise that some are at the extreme southern limit of their range, some are
in what I would call the special locality category and others are more
generalist, put the time in and you'll bump in to them sorts. Still others I
realise are generally tough asks and there is a group in there that I have for
one reason or another just not bumped into yet. Any guidance and/or comments
would be greatly appreciated as always. In taxonomic order , here goes:
King Quail - status ? / localities ?
Plumed Whistling Duck - any SE sightings/ localities ?
Freckled Duck - any traditional haunts
Black-faced Cormorant - colonies in the SE ?
Reef Egret - status in Victoria ? / traditional haunts
Intermediate Egret - status in SE
Little Bittern - localities ?
Striated Heron - status in Victoria ? / localities ?
Grey Goshawk
Lewin's Rail - status in Victoria ? / localities ?
Spotless Crake (sighted only in NZ)
Painted Button-Quail
Topknot Pigeon - status in SE / localities ?
Wonga Pigeon
Glossy Black-Cockatoo - Genoa Peak ?? / any specific directions ?/
other localities ?
Turquoise Parrot - status ?
Ground Parrot - Aerodrome or other localities ???
Powerful Owl - stake outs ?
Barking Owl - status ?
Sooty Owl - stake outs ?? / status ?
White-throated Nightjar - localities ?
Azure Kingfisher - localities ?
Southern Emu-Wren - Aerodrome or other localities ???
Eastern Bristlebird - status ????? / possible localities ????
Chestnut-rumped Heathwren Aerodrome or other localities ??
White-throated Gerygone - habitat in SE ??? / localities ??
Southern Whiteface - habitat in SE ??? / localities ??
Tawny-crowned Honeyeater Aerodrome or other localities ??
Scarlet Honeyeater - localities in SE / Shady Gully best ??
Spotted Quail-Thrush - localities in SE
Black-faced Monarch - localities in SE / Shady Gully best ??
Leaden Flycatcher - Shady Gully best ?
Cicadabird - status in SE ??
Quite a varied list I know and I would appreciate any information people can
give me on at least some of the species listed. Thank you all once again for
your help in the past and I hope that I can keep rewarding you with shorebirds
from my native land.
Cheers,
Paul
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
www.shc.melb.catholic.edu.au/home/birding/index.html
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