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Hi Birders
BINYA STATE FOREST 14
SEPTEMBER 2003
On Sunday 14 September 2003 I spent
the morning at Binya SF, 18 km ENE of Griffith and just a few kilometres east of
Yenda in the Riverina Region of New South Wales. My companions were locals Keith
Hutton and Mick Todd, and despite the cold, windy and eventually wet morning, we
saw over 52 species for the four hours. Initally while the sun was still out,
and there was little wind, birding was very good and on arrival we were
greeted by the calls of the Speckled Warblers and
Yellow-tailed Thornbills, and then by the mournful trill of the
Black-eared Cuckoo. The smaller birds were right to be alarmed
as the Black-eared Cuckoo is hosted by both species. We had good views of the
Cuckoo, possibly a first year male as its plumage on the back was not an
even grey, as it fed on the ground and perched in low Cypress Pines. Nearby were
a number of full coloured male Mulga Parrots, presumably the
females were off nesting nearby and Southern Whitefaces were
also busy hopping over the green herbs and grass. While watching the Cuckoo, we
also heard the call of a Painted Honeyeater. Compartment No 5
of Binya SFwhere we were birdingis a farourite site for the species and Keith
Hutton recorded a maximum of 22 here at this site last summer. Keith soon had
whistled up this bird and it put on a great display for us inbetween feeding on
the nectar of the flowers of the Grey Mistletoe that grows in the Yarran
Acacia omalophylla. The mistletoe is also favoured by
Spiny-cheeked and Singing Honeyeaters so there
was a bit of competition for the nectar flow!. Altogether we saw 3 and heard
another 2 Painted Honeyeaters, more are expected later in the month as October
is when the population seems to peak here in Binya SF.
In the Bimble Box and Western Grey
Box areas, we also saw Brown-headed,
White-plumed, Striped and
Yellow-plumed Honeyeaters, as well as Noisy
and Little Friarbirds and an occasional Blue-faced
Honeyeater at the edge of the forest near Yenda. Crested
Bellbirds were present in the area where there is abit of mallee
intrustion into this otherwise Cypress pine/ Box woodland and in the areas more
dominated by Bimble Box Eucalyptus populnea, we saw a
number of Turquoise Parrots, Dusky
Woodswallows, Brown Treecreepers and a pair of
Hooded Robins. Eastern Yellow Robins
are a common bird of the forest along with summer migrants such as
Rufous Whistlers and Western Gerygones. Within
the woodland and forest White-browed Babblers were commonly
seen while there were a few Grey-crowned Babblers along
the forest boundary with the farming and grazing areas. The undergrowth was
enlivened with both Inland Thornbills (common) and
Chestnut-rumped Thornbills (less common), while Spendid
Fairy-wrens were more readily seen than Variegated
Fairy-wrens. A Restless Flycatcher was also in the
Bimble Box woodland along with many calling and active Rufous
Songlarks, Pallid Cuckoos were calling in the
distance. Some of us saw Diamond Firetails but not me, but
there were plenty of White-winged Trillers for all to see.
Another Black-eared Cuckoo was found later in the morning in the Bimble Box area
again where the Speckled Warblers were very agitated and Rainbow
Bee-eaters were heard and seen. Altogether a great birding spot and
very easy to access from the Yenda-Ardlethan road.
Alan
Morris
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