DAY 6
As has become our routine,
each morning after breakfast, we head off walking in the direction of that days
travel as George, Debbi and Mark pack up camp. This morning was one of our
quietest walks, bird wise with only 6 species seen. The fact that one of those
species happened to be Grey Falcon made up for all the rest! Perched on rocks
and every now and then flying above and beside the Breaden Hills were two Grey
Falcons. This same behaviour was witnessed last time I saw Grey Falcons in the
East McDonnell Ranges near Alice Springs.
As a matter of interest the
other species seen for our walk were, Brown Falcon, Nankeen Kestrel, Singing
Honeyeater, Pied Butcherbird and Australian Magpie. Only about 5 Magpies were
seen for the whole trip.
After being collected by the
vehicles we head on to Breaden Pool and Godfrey Tank. There is enough water in
Breaden Pool for a small flock of Painted Finches to come in to drink.
We continue south and take
the route direct from Well 48 to 45, bypassing Well?s 47 & 46. Well 46
apparently has plenty of surface water.
A lunch stop at Mt Ford and a
magnificent Rice Pie keeps us going until tea.
Mark struggles to mount (in
his car) the first major sand dune. Letting some air out of the tyres and the
passenger walking over we successfully negotiate our first hurdle. We pass
through some magnificent country and there are not enough adjectives in the
dictionary to describe the serene beauty of this country. The hardest part is
passing many ideal birding spots without stopping or with only a quick look. For
those of you who haven?t realized yet the main purpose of this trip is to look
for the elusive Princess Parrot so we need to press on to the sites where they
are most frequently seen. George has decided that the next trip down here that
he does he will allow an extra day or two to do it more justice.
We start to see Crimson
Chats, which are to be seen every day for the rest of the trip.
Earlier reports from a
passing traveller had us excited about fresh water and Black Swans at Gravity
Lakes but when we arrive they are bone dry. We later worked out that it must
have been Well 46 or somewhere further south. Disappointed we pressed on towards
dark when a puncture on the middle vehicle forces us to stop for the night.
Today we have successfully
negotiated 57 sand dunes and seen 29 species of birds but added a few new ones
to our trip list.
Spotted Harrier
Little Eagle
Brown Falcon
Grey Falcon
Nankeen Kestrel
Crested Pigeon
Budgerigar
Pallid Cuckoo
Red-backed Kingfisher
Rainbow Bee-eater
Variegated Fairy-Wren
White-winged Fairy-Wren
Red-browed Pardalote
Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater
Singing Honeyeater
Grey-headed Honeyeater
White-plumed Honeyeater
Black-chinned Honeyeater
Brown Honeyeater
Crimson Chat
Willie Wagtail
Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrike
White-winged Triller
Black-faced Woodswallow
Little Woodswallow
Pied Butcherbird
Zebra Finch
Painted Finch
Tree Martin
Dick
Jenkin
DUNGOG NSW
