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Hi all
Spent a very hot 43 degree day on Monday visiting
some of the drying wetlands around Newcastle.
First stop Ash Island where I recorded around 60
species in 2 hours. Highlights were :
A pair of Black-necked Storks
One male Brown Songlark
Two Australian Spotted Crakes feeding along the mud
at the waters edge, totally unconcerned by my presence about 4 metres away. Same
spot I saw them in January last year together with Baillon's Crake.
A male Koel flew over.
Sharp-tailed Sandpipers were in abundance here, at
THE WETLANDS CENTRE , and at Pambalong Nature Reserve beside the Freeway to
Sydney.
I lunched at The Wetland Centre and watched a
Latham's Snipe probing along the muddy edges of the pond outside the Cafe.
Several Red-kneed Dotterel's also present. After lunch I went for a short stroll
to look for Crakes etc. The "usual" Spotless Crake site was only attended
by a pair of Purple Swamphens today. A pair of White-breasted Woodswallows
were on a nest. I was also dive bombed repeatedly by a Brown Goshawk. Quite
scary watching it eyeball to eyeball as it pulled out of the attack at the last
possible second. I assured it I wasn't going to harm it or it's babies and
decided to take another path! A female Koel was feeding in a small Fig
Tree. Saw another two Snipe here, 3 more at Lenaghans Drive and two at Seaham
Swamp on the way home. Also at Lenaghans Drive was a lone Red-necked
Avocet.
Cheers
Dick Jenkin
DUNGOG
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