I was back in the Capertee Valley yesterday afternoon and this morning to
help with the Regent Honeyeater project and while I was there had another
look for the Painted Snipe that was seen on Saturday. Unfortunately there
was no sign of the snipe - not surprising since the habitat where it had
been is rather open and devoid of vegetation, and it seems likely it was
just passing through when we were lucky enough to see it on Saturday.
However, this magical valley was still turning on many other good birds!
These included a Black Falcon along the Capertee-Glen Davis road and a
Spotted Harrier near Glen Davis. We again saw the Budgerigars that have
been previously reported by David Geering on a private property - we
counted about 50 in a flock which contained many juveniles, which adds
weight to David's theory that they might have been breeding in the valley.
But there was another surprise yet to come. This morning, while Tiffany
Mason and I searched a stretch of the Capertee River on a property near
Glen Davis, suddenly out of some very sparse reeds jumped a male LITTLE
BITTERN! We were able to watch it for an extended period of time as it
alternately froze and stealthily negotiated the steep riverbank just above
the reeds. What a beautiful bird - none of the field guides do it justice
with its neck a stunning golden-chestnut in the sunlight. Yet another new
species for the Capertee Valley in this very interesting year.
Nearby we had good views of a Painted Honeyeater, but the few Regent
Honeyeaters which have been present in the valley this spring seem to have
all disappeared within the past week.
This drought is really taking its toll. Every time I visit the Capertee
Valley lately I notice the country looking more and more dry - even with
visits as frequent as once or twice a week. There are whole swathes of
woodland where the trees are looking quite dead, their leaves turning brown
and falling to the ground like deciduous trees! Yet some of the low-lying
paddocks already have a slight green tinge after last Saturday's storm.
By the way, the reason I didn't post the exact location for the Painted
Snipe is that the bird was on private property and the owners specifically
don't want people going onto their land. Although we saw the bird from a
public road, I know that some birders would be tempted to jump the fence
for a better look and this would ultimately damage relations between
birdwatchers and landowners in the valley. The Regent Honeyeater Operations
Group has spent years building up a good relationship with landholders and
I wouldn't want this to be jeopardised. I'm sure most of you will
understand this. It's for the same reason that I cannot give exact details
of the Little Bittern location. However, I hope some of you are inspired to
go out and search your local rivers, lakes and dams as who knows what might
turn up in these extraordinary conditions!
Cheers
Carol
Carol Probets
Blue Mountains NSW
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
www.shc.melb.catholic.edu.au/home/birding/index.html
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message
"unsubscribe birding-aus" (no quotes, no Subject line)
to
|
