G'day All,
For some time now I have been recording the birds I
see whilst cycling to (and from) work. This is a round
trip of about 20 km, from West Brunswick (about 5 Km
North of Melbourne CBD) to South Melbourne. The route
follows the Moonee Ponds Creek (Canal), around the
Docklands, across the Yarra River then along the Port
Melbourne bike track. In my quest for more species I
have recently started taking a few 'detours' on the
way home. These include Westgate Park (mentioned
several times last year for Baillon's Crake sightings)
and the Maribyrnong River, which flows from the
North-West towards the CBD.
I have been inspired by Sean Dooley's brilliant
reports of 'The Big Twitch' to see how many species I
can record in Inner Melbourne (approx 5 km radius), in
one calendar year. I am hoping for 80 species which
seems pathetic after Sean's monumental effort, but I
try and consol myself with the fact that I only have
0.01% of the area in which to look. My wife Jan
heartlessly suggested I call my quest 'The Puny
Twitch'.
Anyhow, one week in and the total stands at 46. The
highlight so far is a pair of Scaly-breasted
Lorikeets, seen yesterday in Royal Park, at the
proposed site for the Commonwealth Games athlete's
village. Other good birds have been Golden-headed
Cisticola (Moonee Ponds Ck near confluence with the
Yarra), Black-fronted Dotterel, Black-winged Stilt,
Pacific Gull and Nankeen Kestrel (Westgate Pk).
I seem to recall that there was a bit of a thread
running a year or two back about the number of species
recorded whilst commuting to work. I hope others will
take up the challenge and we will see a few reports,
especially from inner city areas around the country.
See you on the Streets,
Alan Flack.
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