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Hi all
Firstly thanks to all those that provided
information for my recent trip. Due to a computer crash I have lost all my
e-mail addresses, so a general thanks will have to do.
As it was mainly a visiting family trip not much
birding was done but still managed 155 species for the week we were away. A lot
of these seen whilst driving.
A 5 minute stop at Stroud Road just east of Dungog
to look for the Southern Emu Wrens I saw recently draw a blank for them but
there was a Brush Cuckoo here, don't often see them in our area. There was a
distinct lack of Nankeen Kestrels on the way up, the first not being seen until
just east of Warwick in Queensland where we saw 12 in the space of 25kms to
Cunningham's Gap. Black shouldered Kites were seen regularly all the way up
including this stretch of road.
Whilst in Brisbane I spent 2 hours at Tinchi Tamba
Wetlands at Bracken Ridge ( northern suburb of Brisbane ). This is a great
spot to go birding , thanks to Roy Sonenberg (spelling ? ) for directing me to
this area and yes I finally ticked off the Mangrove Honeyeater.
There is a couple of small lakes on the main
road before you get to Tinchi Tamba and a quick stop here revealed an
Australian Hobby sitting on the power lines in the same spot I saw one
here in September last year. It did move so it wasn't stuffed ! Amongst the
common water birds here were some Magpie Geese and a pair of Wandering Whistling
Ducks.
On to Tinchi Tamba and cruising the South Pine
River was a White- bellied Sea-eagle , a
Whistling Kite and two Brahminy Kites. Caspian and Crested Terns plus a
Darter and Pied and Great Cormorants were also present. Chestnut Teal on the
water. Rainbow and Scaly-breasted Lorikeets were common in the flowering gums as
were Noisy Miners, Scarlet , and Yellow-faced Honeyeaters and Noisy Friarbirds.
A Spangled Drongo was dazzling in the early morning sun and several
White-breasted Woodswallows hawked over the river. A Rufous Whistler and Shining
Bronze Cuckoo were in good voice. Red-backed Fairywrens were common as were the
Variegated. A Striated Heron sat motionless at the edge of the mangroves
opposite the bird hide. I also sighted a Mangrove Gerygone. Sacred Kingfishers
were seen but no Collareds. Four Mangrove Honeyeaters were seen.
The next leg of the journey saw us off to Inverell
via Warwick and Texas. Just west of Warwick we started to see our first
Cockatiels and a Ground Cuckooshrike flew across in front of the car. A quick
petrol stop just before heading south to Texas was productive with several
flowering White Box . Little Lorikeets, White-plumed, Brown-headed and
Yellow-faced Honeyeaters were present. A Jacky Winter hawked for insects. On the
road to Texas 4 Emus, the only ones of the trip were seen close to the
roadside.
A stop at a riverside crossing just north of
Inverell added White-bellied Cuckooshrike and Zebra and Double-barred Finches to
the list. Around Inverell were lots of Musk and Little Lorikeets. The next
morning just after breakfast a Spotted Harrier cruised past the house , a couple
of metres above ground level. Always a great sight to see one of these
magnificent Raptors.
The next morning I went out with a local couple (
thanks Jill Denning ) and we birded for about 4 hours on the Eastern side
of Copeton Dam just south of Inverell. It was one of those perfect mornings,
sunny and clear and heaps of White Box flowering so the bush was alive
with birds. All up we saw around 70 species for the morning with several
highlights , not least of which was a new bird for me , Turquoise Parrot ( with
a distinct orange patch on the belly ) .
Some of the birds seen :
Black chinned Honeyeater
Fuscous
"
White
naped "
White
plumed "
White
eared "
Spiny cheeked
"
Yellow
faced "
Yellow
tufted
"
Diamond Firetail
Red-browed Finches
Double-barred Finches
Speckled Warbler
Brown and White throated Treecreepers
Grey Crowned Babblers
Golden Whistler
Crested Shriketit
Restless Flycatcher
Mistletoe Birds
Rufous Songlark
Fan tailed Cuckoo
Apostlebird
At Lake Inverell the next morning I saw an Osprey ,
as mentioned in an earlier e-mail.
On our way home we visited friends between Grafton
and Wooli on the coast south of Grafton. Three Varied Trillers was a nice
addition to the trip list but the highlight was spotlighting a Powerful Owl
.
Two Ospreys were seen at Wooli the next day as well
as around 100 Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos wheeling over the Coastal Banksia's.
A lone Eastern Curlew and a couple of Grey-tailed Tattlers along with 3
Marsh Sandpipers were the only waders seen along the mudflats
here.
Back home , awaiting the next trip in 2 weeks ,
Broome and the Canning Stock Route. More later
Cheers
Dick Jenkin
DUNGOG NSW
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