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Hi Birders,
News from Bob Way (birding-aus 23/2/02) that the
Yellow Wagtails were present on Wagtail Way, between the Duck Pond and North
Swan Pond, Ash Island is great news and would be the 4th such visit in 6 years
(or thereabouts).
However the Ponds are worth a visit because of the
large number of waders and other waterbirds present at the moment. I have done
10 surveys for Birds Australia since 1/1/02 at the Ponds and can say that the
wader numbers have been the highest there for 3 summers. On my most recent count
on 22/2/02 (where were the Yellow Wagtails that day?) there were 1021
Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, 173 Marsh Sandpipers, 454 Avocets, 11 Red-kneed
Dotterels, 28 Greenshank, 35 Curlew Sandpipers, 35 Red-necked Stints, 491
Black-winged Stilts, 12 Pacific Golden Plovers, 29 Royal Spoonbill, 870 Grey
Teal, 682 Grey teal, 2 Spotted Crakes, 1 Buff-banded Rail, 9 Eastern Curlew, 2
Swamp Harriers etc. Earlier in the month there were 80 Great Egrets & 25
Intermediate Egrets one morning feeding on schooling fish in the salt marsh
during a very high high tide. Late last year a pair of Black-necked Storks and
an Australasian Bittern were regularly being sighted.
The return of the Yellow Wagtails is great because
that means that in the last 7 summers, they have occurred at Ash Island on at
least 5 occasions in numbers up to 9 birds.
Call in at the Kooragang Wetland Rehabiliation
Project office in the school house on the Island (900-1600 hrs Mon-Fri) to pick
up a map of the Island and other literature.
Alan K. Morris
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