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G'day all,
My best wishes to you all for the New Year .. epecially to
those who have thanked me for my contributions to his list.
Follows are some birding notes for the area between Julia
Creek to Charters Towers
I travelled across to Townsville to join the local branch
of Boca do a News Years day species count at the Toonpan area of the Ross River
dam water storage.
Going across on 31/12/2002 I was counting 36
Flock Bronzewings at the Julia Ck cattle yards at 7.00am when
another 3 dozen flew in to drink. Returning on the 4/1/2003 (also at 7.00am) I
saw 3 FB feeding away from the water when another 35 flew in to settle in
the grassed area.
Midway between Julia Creek and Richmond I stopped on the
bridge at Chatfield Creek to see with the waterfowl a single
Freckled Duck. I parked the vehicle and checked out the 2 water
courses which are fed by artesian fed bore drains. I quickly recorded over 40
species including -
- White-winged Fairy-wren (outside its territory
?)
- 60 Australian Bustard
- Black-tailed Native-hen
- White-browed Woodswallow
- Masked Woodswallow
At Pentland I stopped for a quick look at the town dam.
A Spotted Harrier was taking a slow afternoon
stroll adjacent to the houses near the dam
It was just light enough when I got to the Burdekin
River bridge to identify 8 Cotton Pygmy-goose
Returning on 3/1/2003 at a Windmill 33km East of Richmond I
observed
- Plum-headed Finch +40 (outside its territory ?)
- White-winged Fairy-wren (outside its territory
?)
- Black-tailed Native-hen
I saw 100s of Australian Pratincoles on the road from
100km East of Julia Creek to the Gilliat Channels, but the most common bird was
the 1000s of Singing Bushlarks taking off and fluttering back
into the grasses. Australian Bustards were seen
frequently and the occasional Emu was observed stopped at a
fence.
But at Townsville the Boca folk took me under their wing for a pleasant
morning's birding. We noted + 40 Golden Plover (presumably
Pacific) at the limit of our scopes and a couple of dozen Oriental
Plover grazing several 100m from the water. At the Palmetum Botanical
Garden they also found for me Oriental Cuckoos (a lifer for
me)
I then spent 2 full days getting a number of lifers in the Paluma Rain
Forest. I stayed 20km west of Paluma at Hidden Valley Cabins where the
owners both know the local birds.
I now think many rain forest birds are harder than Waders ? I could
hear them but not see them ! And the overcast skies often only provided an
outline of the body shape.
Regards,
Bob Forsyth, Mount Isa, NW Queensland.
(Seek and ye shall find)
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