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This final report covers the period Aug 21 to our return home
on Sept 11, and geographically covers the northern Atherton Tableland, the
Daintree, Cairns, Bowen areas.We arrived at Kingfisher Park with 195 species on
our trip list including 16 lifers.Were made very welcome by Ron Stannard, a
truely generous gent, and the dynamic Isles team, Carol and Andrew.Kingfisher
Park was a bit of R & R for us (the rain helped) but it wasn't long before
we were back into the birding.Take trips to Mt.Carbine, up Mt.Lewis, in and
around Mt.Molloy and Julatten.Got Australian Hobby at
Mt.Carbine, Bustard and Lemon-bellied
Flycatcher on the way back.The night walk produced Lesser Sooty
Owl and some great mammals, and the morning walk the long anticipated
Papuan Frogmouth, both lifers, and was Mountain
Thornbill on Mt.Lewis.White-eared Monarch, Barred
Cuckoo-shrike and Northern Fantail were other
highlights at Kingfisher Park.
Leaving Julatten we picked-up our first Lovely Fairywren on a
back road before heading down to Mossman.Stayed a few days at the Pinacles where
we saw the first of many Pied Imperial Pigeon.In the company of
Frans, a Dutch birder we found at the Pinacles Caravan Park, spent a full-on
birding day north of the Daintree River, mainly on the rainforest/mangrove
boardwalks.On the last of these, the Dubuji Boardwalk at Cape Tribulation, at
the end of a long day, Frans spied a Red-necked Crake a lifer
which we'd heard but not seen at Kingfisher Park.Other highlights in the
Daintree were Victoria's Riflebird,Shining Flycatcher (m and f)
on the mangrove floor,Wandering Tattler and Pacific
Golden Plover on a rocky ledge some 50m offshore.Frans got 8 lifers for
the day.
Onto Cairns with
our trip tally up to 223.Highlight of Cairns was a trip to Michaelmas Cay where
we were able to spend over 3 hours on the cay with the thousands of
Sooty Tern (another lifer),Eastern reef Egret, Brown
Booby,Common Noddy, Great Frigatebird, and Ruddy
Turnstone.An amazing experience to be so close to these birds, and to
hear their calls and screeches even as you snorkelled with ears under the
water.Went to the Esplanade (of course!) where finally got Mangrove
Robin on our last day (what a tidy little bird!), and the Botanic
Gardens.Cultural highlight was a night concert in the Botanic Gardens featuring
that icon of Aussie jazz, Bob Barnard, still blowing strong at 70+.A trip to the
Croc Farm at Edmonton rewarded us with White-browed Crake, more
Lovely fairywren, and Brown-backed
Honeyeater.All-up a total of 49 species (one lifer, the crake) in under
3 hours. A Little Kingfisher at Thomson's Rd finished the
day.
Onto Bowen
for more relaxing by the water at Horseshoe Bay before the trip home .There we
got the easiest tick of the trip, observing 4 Lesser
Frigatebirds hanging in the air over the swimming pool we were floating
in.Stayed overnight in Gladstone where we heard Common Koel on
our last morning, and so arrived back on the Sunshine Coast with a trip list of
247, and 25 new ticks, and still missing the big one--Great-billed Heron (but
even the great Sean Dooley hasn't got that yet---or has he?)
Russ Lamb, Maleny, SEQ
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