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Hi Birders,
Many thanks to Bob Way who alerted
Birding-aus to the presence of the Buff-breasted Sandpiper at the Ash Island
Ponds on 13/2/04 and to Edwin Vella for providing more details on 14/2/04 of its
exact location
.
Anne and I visited the ponds this
morning between 9.20 & 10.30 am and with the help of Dick Jenkyn who pointed
out where it had been seen earlier in the morning, had no trouble finding the
bird. It was feeding near the edge of Wagtail Way, in what I know as Crake
Corner, about 2m in from the edge of the road, on the right hand side facing
north. It was feeding with a group of about 12 Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and all
the salient features including the bright yellow legs were easily seen. I
suppose that as we walked along Wagtail Way, we were within 8m of the bird and
neither it nor the Sharpies flew away. However there was a falcon/hobby around
putting up the swallows and small waders, and after 20 minutes the waders flew
off when the falcon/bhobby made another swoop.
When the waders departed we went
looking for the Yellow Wagtail reported by Edwin Vella in a mangrove lined creek
about 150 m to the north. We did not find this bird but did see Cisticolas,
Tawny Grassbird, Pipit, more Sharpies and Black-fronted Plover and White-fronted
Chats. On our return to the BBSP site a Hobby flew onto the cross bar of Pole 24
and the waders departed once again. Other raptores seen around and near the site
included Whistling Kite and Swamp Harrier while further south on Wagtail Way
there were plenty of Marsh Sandpipers and Greenshanks. There is a Red-capped
Plover's nest with 2 eggs close to, but on the other side of the road, to where
the BBSP was seen. A Double-banded Plover was also present in the vicinity. A
pleasant morning at Ash Island!
This record would be the seventh
record for NSW viz Botany Bay 4-18/4/1965, Kooragang Island 10/3/1979, Bakers
Lagoon 19/12/1982-9/1/1983 and then Bushells Lagoon 21/2-6/3/1983, Lake Bathurst
twice in the 1990s and Bushells Lagoon 14-15/12/2003. Interesting that the seven
records only relate to 4 sites (Ash Island is in fact part of Kooragang Island),
there would appear to be some site loyalty by this species.
Alan Morris
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