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CUMBERLAND BIRD OBSERVERS CLUB
OUTING ON 25 AUGUST 2001 TO LAKE MACQUARIE NSW
Eight members of the CBOC
gathered at Cam's Wharf, on the south-east shores of Lake Macquarie for a start
of a days birding on a crisp morning that developed into a lovely sunny day.In
the first hour 31 species were seen around the Lake foreshore and the adjoining
Swamp Mahogany forest land. Highlights included Fantailed
Cuckoo, 4 Little Corellas, Variegated
Fairy-wrens, a Great Egret, 3 pairs of Golden
Whistlers in territorial disputes, and a pair of both
Scaly-breasted & Musk
Lorikeets.
After morning tea we headed to South
Swansea where we spent the next hour & a half walking through the Galgabra
Point Reserve, another pocket of Swamp Mahogany and a place where both Regent
Honeyaters and Swift Parrots were found in the winter of the year 2000. No such
luck this time but we did see a Grey
Goshawk, Brown Goshawk, White-breasted
Sea-eagle & Whistling Kite. The latter
was harassing the Sea-eagle, two Magpies
attacked the Grey Goshawk and a Spangled Drongo (one of
two present) was chasing the Brown Goshawk.Good views were had of a
Shining Bronze-Cuckoo, Southern Emu-wrens,
Yellow Thornbills and New Holland Honeyeaters
(White-cheeked Honeyeaters are the common honeyeater here!),
while Sitellas and Mistletoebirds although
seen were being very elusive, whereas Yellow-faced &
Lewin's Honeyeaters were easily located.
We had lunch at the nearby Coon
Island Reserve, but as the tide was full, the wader flats were covered over but
we did manage to find 3 Red-necked Stints, 2 Pied
Oystercatchers, 4 Eastern Curlew , 4
Bar-tailed Godwit and 2 Black-fronted Plover
while 2 Caspian Terns were feeding in the shallows.
Mangrove Gerygones were active in the mangroves along with
Brown Honeyeaters, 40+ Long-billed Corellas
were roosting in some pine trees, and Pied Cormorants were
present amongst the Pelicans and other cormorants.
Our final stop for the day was at
Swansea Heads where we looked across with our telescopes to Moon Island. Here
about 3000 prs of Silver Gulls had commenced nesting, a
Double-banded Plover in breeding plumage easily stood out,
along with at least 3 Turnstones. Fluttering
Shearwaters passed the Island in their hundreds and a few
Australasian Gannets were located. All up 74 species for this
winters day!
Alan Morris,
leader
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