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G'day all,
Last Saturday 24/07/2004 Bill & Evelyne
Williams from Merbein, Victoria, Helen Morgan, NZ and I, were checking
out a couple of the bays on the western side of Lake Moondarra, Mount
Isa.
We first visited "South Bay" to find that many of
the trees now surrounded by water were chock a block with nests.
We were able to ID Little Black Cormorants, Little
Pied Cormorants and Australian Darters. Two pair of fluffy darters were
standing up in their nests waiting for their next meal.
We then drove to Bob's Creek.
( This was previously
an unnamed creek until I rectified that omission several years ago
!)
This Creek is passed on the way to the better
known Stone Axe Creek area)
After a time viewing Pictorella Mannikins,
Painted Finches etc coming into drink we drove down nearer to where the creek
enters the bay. A couple of Raptors were roosting on dead trees. One looked very
distinctively "different" to our local birds !
.. It had prominent striations
(stripes) down its front.
.. Its face was different.
.. The thick yellow legs stood
out.
.. The pattern on its wings were different to the
nearby Whistling Kite
What a magic moment ? We were too scared to move to
grab a field Guide
But it did fly off when I moved to get my
Camera.
We spent some time writing down what each of us
remembered of the bird and then looked at Slater.
No doubt about it. A Red Goshawk
!
But this is not the first RG for the area. A couple
of years ago visiting Bird Journalist Jim Davis, (publisher of Interpretive
Birding http://www.ibirding.com/)
recorded a Red Goshawk on the Island adjacent the causeway near the
Moondarra Caravan Park
Before we left we saw an Adult Black-necked Stork
shepherding 2 immatures away from us. But, I have yet to find a nest
around Lake Moondarra.
Regards
Bob Forsyth, Mount Isa, NW
Qld.
For Downloads, Sighting reports,
Gazetteer & ID Tables see
..
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