Sunday 7th September
An early morning walk around the campground produced 20 species, including 3
Partridge Pigeons, 25+ Varied Lorikeets, 5 Grey-crowned Babblers, both
Orioles and Double-barred, Masked & Crimson Finches.
We were now heading west towards Darwin. We stopped off at Mamukala
Wetlands. The distinct, humming or buzzing sound we could hear was not bees
but hundreds and hundreds of Magpie Geese! There was a good selection of the
commoner water birds - we saw our first Pied Heron here. An interesting
sighting was a huge Gould's Goanna.
A brief stop at the South Alligator yielded just Black-breasted Buzzard,
Whistling Kite & several Little Corellas. 2 'Salties' basked along the
river.
Late morning we arrived at Mary River Park, where we decided to stay for 2
nights. On an afternoon walk in the area I flushed a Great-billed Heron*
from the river bank - I hadn't been expecting to see it till we got on a
river cruise. Torresian Imperial-Pigeons were calling around the campground.
We
went on an evening dinner cruise on the Mary River with our host Jim Ostwald
and a handful of other people. We managed to see Great-billed Heron,
Large-tailed Nightjar (after dark) and Azure Kingfisher. The dinner, on a
sandbar in the river, protected by a fence was a great experience. The stew
and beer, along with Jim's harmonica-accompanied songs created a wonderful
atmosphere. Highly recommended!
Monday 8th September
I went for a walk along one of the trails at first light and again in the
afternoon. We also went on a morning cruise on Mary River (which failed
again to produce Black Bittern). In all the day produced some 52 species.
Highlights were another (or the same) Great-billed Heron along the river,
Pied Heron, 30+ Varied Lorikeets, Brush Cuckoo, 9 species of Honeyeater,
including Little Friarbird, Bar-breasted Honeyeater*, White-browed
Robin, Little Shrike-Thrush, Rufous & Northern Fantails, White-winged &
Varied Trillers, Crimson Finch & Chestnut-breasted Mannikin.
Tuesday 9th September
Just before we left Mary River we heard Brush Cuckoo & White-throated
Gerygone calling near our site. It's a beautiful spot that we were sorry
to be leaving. Our thanks to Jim Ostwald for his wit and knowledge.
On our next port of call was the South Adelaide River, reputed to be one of
the best spots in the Top End for Mangrove Golden Whistler. Here we checked
the accessible riverside vegetation on both sides of the road, without luck.
On our way back we tried the fenced compound north of the road - and
found a very obliging male Mangrove Golden Whistler*. Another new bird under
the belt!
We had a look at the Fogg Dam area but there didn't seem to be anything we
hadn't seen elsewhere. The best spot was by the observation blind at the end
of the dam wall. Here there were Broad-billed, Lemon-bellied & Shining
Flycatchers &, sitting nicely on a low branch, our first Little
Bronze-Cuckoo. The Gilbert's Dragons were a treat to see as they scuttled
around before us.
Early afternoon we checked in at the Howard Springs Big4 Caravan Park. After
lunch we drove the short distance to Howard Springs Nature Reserve, in the
hope we would find Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove. This proved to be a nice spot
(the mosquitoes also liked it!). Orange-footed Scrubfowls were easy to see
and we saw another Rainbow Pitta here. Frustratingly we could hear, but not
see, Rose-crowned Fruit-Doves. Reptiles seen were Merten's Water Monitor &
Northern Long-necked Turtle.
Wednesday 10th September
Before leaving the area we decided to check out Howard Springs Nature
Reserve again. For a few minutes we could hear Rose-crowned Fruit-Doves*
calling. Just as we thought we were going to be thwarted again, a male bird
flew onto an open branch; a little later, we saw a male and female sitting
together. A cracking bird!
We then had a look around Knuckey Lagoons, on the eastern fringes of Darwin.
At Fiddler's Lane, there was a selection of water birds and shorebirds,
including Marsh & Sharp-tailed Sandpipers. At Snipe Swamp I managed to come
upon a few Singing Bushlarks*.
We checked in at Lee Point Resort, to the north of Darwin. We then walked
down to the point. Here we saw our first Collared Kingfisher, sitting on the
beach. A Forest Kingfisher was in the car park. Later in the afternoon we
drove down to Buffalo Creek. here we found 13 species of shorebird,
including an Oriental Plover*. Another Collared Kingfisher was on the
beach. Around the car park there were a few Honeyeaters, including our first
Red-headed - a truly handsome bird.
That night we had an unexpected experience - we were parked under a tree and
had Flying-Foxes dropping fruits on the van and urinating & excreting on it.
Picture us in the small hours, rolling the van down the slope to get away
from the trees and next morning going to work with a hose to clean up the
vehicle!
Thursday 11th September
We spent the first half of the morning around Lee Point and Buffalo Creek.
At the latter, we could hear a Chestnut Rail* calling but it stayed in
cover -
not surprisingly since two fishermen were making enough noise to be heard in
Darwin! While on our Rail vigil, however, we managed to catch a glimpse of a
Beach Stone-Curlew* emerging briefly from the mangroves. Rufous-banded
Honeyeaters were common, flying all around us. Late morning we had a look at
East Point but saw nothing out of the ordinary there.
For the second night running we heard Bush Stone-curlews and Large-tailed
Nightjars calling after dark at Lee Point Resort.
Friday 12th September
This day we were going to try to find Rufous Owls in the Darwin Botanic
Gardens. Orange-footed Scrubfowls were plentiful here, even seen high up in
trees. No owls though despite asking for help from one of the staff. We made
the short journey to Tiger Brennan Drive but failed to see any Chestnut
Rails (though we heard them calling again). There was a pair of nesting
Collared Kingfishers here and a female Red-headed Honeyeater.
Late afternoon we arrived at Hidden Valley Tourist Park, Berrimah, where we
were to spend our last two nights in the Top End. Crimson Finches were
regular around the sprinklers here.
Saturday 13th September
Further visits to the Botanic Gardens and Tiger Brennan Drive (twice each!)
but still no joy with owls (near the toilet block or in the rainforest area)
or rails (again Chestnut Rail heard at the latter). In between we drove down
to the Elizabeth River. Here we heard Chestnut Rail calling very close to us
but again no sighting.
Sunday 14th September
Our last morning in the Top End. We decided to give the Botanic Gardens
another go since our flight didn't leave till the afternoon. The bad news
was that there had been a concert there the night before so, if the birds
had been roosting near there, they would probably have moved. We tried the
toilet block again, without luck and headed up the avenue towards the
rainforest area. While searching there we saw two Rufous Owls* flying into
the trees. Shortly afterwards, one of them flew again and landed in a tree,
out of sight, but then proceeded to call briefly! Talk about taking it to
the wire! As we were making our way back to our van we came across Gina and
Jim Ostwald, our hosts from Mary River Park. It was good to see them again.
Jim pointed out the regular roosting site by the toilet block.
Late morning we returned our van to Britz and headed for the airport.
Unfortunately our flight was delayed for technical reasons so we didn't get
to Alice Springs till after dark.
To be continued.
Rob
Robert Grimmond
Kent, UK
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