This weekend proved again
very good for waders at Pitt Town Lagoon with myself, Graham Tuner, Simon
Blanchflower and later joined by Dion Hobcroft having a brilliant time sorting
out 600 plus Sharp-tailed Sandpipers. Amongst these were atleast 2 PECTORAL
SANDPIPERS, 2 Pacific Golden Plovers, a Marsh Sandpiper, a Red-necked Stint and
a Curlew Sandpiper. There were about 55 Whiskered Terns (many have now passed
through Pitt Town for the last 2 months), a Little Egret, 5 Yellow-billed
Spoonbill and An adult White-breasted Sea-eagle. The abundance of seeding
grasses on the north side of the lagoon is providing a feast for atleast 60
Chestnut-breasted Mannikins and a Brown Songlark was seen displaying on the
south side of the lagoon.
Along
Bathurst
Street which
runs through Pitt Town, hundreds of White-browed and lesser numbers of Masked
Woodswallows have been gathering since the past few weeks. One flock consisted
of 30-40 Masked Woodswallows alone and more were seen further along towards Pitt
Town Bottoms Rd. The Woodswallows were feeding mainly on flying insects (not too
far above the houses and presumably on the many flowering Silky Oaks (Grevillea
sp.) alog this road.
A brief stopped along the
busy Windsor
Rd at McGraths
Hill saw 3 Baillon?s Crakes and 2 Glossy Ibis in the lake on the north side of
the road (opposite the sewerage works).
At Freeman?s Reach along
Blacktown
Rd, we saw
another 40 plus White-browed and atleast 5 Masked
Woodswallows.
At Bushell?s Lagoon
produced an unusual shorebird which I could only think it to be a DUNLIN (a bird
being appearing to be the right shape and size and plain looking for a dunlin
without traces of breeding colour apart from a smudge of black in breast) and we
have ruled out other likely species unless this is some very rare and
strange hybrid!. Graham first spotted the bird only a few meters in front
of us but after having a good look at it for a couple of minutes it took off and
could not find it again. It was resting fairly close to a few Sharp-tailed
Sandpipers (which were about the same size) to the west of the causeway (south
side of the lagoon). A few birdos hope to track it down tomorrow morning for
further confirmation. Other waders here included good looks of atleast 4-5
PECTORAL SANDPIPERS (one bird had a red flag on the right leg viewed from
behind), 80 plus Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, a Red-necked Stint, 4 Marsh
Sandpipers, 2 Greenshanks and 4 Red-kneed Dotterel (including one juv.). There
was also one Baillons Crake bravely crossing a channel where 2 Sharp-tailed
Sandpipers appeared to making a few different calls and having a bit of a
dispute, an adult White-bellied Sea-eagle, a Swamp Harrier, a Whistling Kite, 3
Darters, 11 Pink-eared Ducks, 2 more Glossy Ibis, 2 Yellow-billed Spoonbill and
a Hoary-headed Grebe. A Pallid Cuckoo and a Horsfield?s Bronze-cuckoo was also
nearby.
Another great day in this
wonderful part of Sydney and strongly recommend any birdo?s who have not done
so, to get out here. This is specially an unusual year. If you don?t go, you
don?t get!
Edwin
Vella
SHOREBIRDS
RULE!
