Today I visited a number of
interesting places in the NSW Hunter region (approx 160km north of Sydney CBD)
as follows:
WLAKA WATER WORKS at
Oakhampton
Heights (3km out of Maitland)
Have been meaning to visit this
place over the past few years and today this was my first point of call (thanks
to Dick Jenkin?s for the directions). This is a small reservoir open to the
public for a $3 fee and offers a few picnic areas as well as a nice walk through
the bush surrounding the reservoir. I spent an hour here paying particular
attention to the muddy parts of the reservoir adjacent to stands of reeds but did not see any crakes or
bitterns. I did see however 300 plus Pink-eared Ducks, one Freckled Duck, 2
Hardheads, 2 Musk Ducks, 20 Great Crested Grebes and the other 2 species of
Grebes as well as other common water birds. A Swamp Harrier and Brown Goshawk
were also seen. White-throated Gerygones were still singing beautifully in the
surrounding bush land as well as the usual Pied Butcherbirds.
STOCKTON
Here I visited the new wader
roost. It has been quite a while since my last visit here and was very impressed
with the work done. At this roost and in the surrounding areas I saw 120 plus
Eastern Curlews, about 3K Bar-tailed and at least 100 Black-tailed Godwits, 20
Red and 7 Great Knots, a Greenshank, 33 Grey-tailed Tattlers, 3 Terek Sandpipers
(I had a very close look at these and have noticed that they have some
difference in breeding dress), 17 Pied Oystercatchers and 2K plus Red-necked
Avocets. Most of the migratory waders were in various stages of acquiring
breeding plumage (many of the Godwits and at least one Great Knot looked
particularly quite smart). All the 2,000 Red-necked Avocets formed one tight
group on the edge of the lagoon in the middle of the roost. Only one Gull-billed
Tern was present at the roost and several White-fronted Chats and Brown
Honeyeaters were in the surrounding scrub.
Further down stream in the
Hunter
River, between
Stockton
Bridge and the
Ferry
Wharfs were 200 plus Common and up to
5 White-winged Black Terns (also acquiring brilliant breeding plumage) as well
as 2 Arctic Jaegers resting on the water in the middle of the river.
ASH
ISLAND
Much less water birds here than
in the previous month as some of the wetlands are drying up or becoming stale.
There appeared to be only 4 Red-necked Stints, 2 Curlew and 10 Sharp-tailed
Sandpipers, an Eastern Curlew, 7 Greenshank, 100-200 Pied Stilts and another 30
plus Red-necked Avocets. There were also a few hundred Grey and Chestnut Teal,
both a Little and Plumed Egret, several White-fronted Chats and 2 Mangrove
Gerygones.
LENEGHAN
The wetlands here are also drying
up with 13 Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, 8 Yellow-billed Spoonbills and 16 Glossy
Ibis. White-breasted Woodswallows also called overhead.
Edwin Vella
