I spent a few hours down at Redland Bay [SEQ] this morning. Several
generations of my paternal line lived round there and it is painful to
see the way god's gift to rainforest/farmers is being covered by
housing.
I did a 500m area search round the area now rejoicing with the moniker
of "Orchard Beach". The old shark proof swimming area is still there
and there was a large flock of magpie geese occupying the backing
wetland. There was the odd caspian tern winging past, and a few
mangrove warblers carolling away, but very little out on the mudflats.
I didn't intend to head out into the mangroves, until I heard an unusual
call - sort of like a cross between a swamphen, swan and magpie goose.
I picked my way out towards the water and discovered a pair of large
pale raptors on the ground having a feed. They had lengthy trousers and
a fair old ruff on the back of their heads. There was an adult sea
eagle in the area and a few whistling kites. There was also a raptor
that looked pretty much like a wedgie [not something I'd expect to see
over the bay] but may have been an immature sea eagle.
When I got a chance to consult Pizzy & Knight, it was pretty obvious
that my mystery buzzard-topped raptors were a pair of juvenile sea
eagles. The bottom line is that if you hear some strange honking in the
mangroves, there's a fair chance it will be a sea eagle.
LK
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