Wilko?s birding ends up in SA.
19/12/04 We pulled up at the wonderful visitor centre in Gluepot and found
volunteer and local ornithological expert Doug Holly on his pushbike. He was
very welcoming and helpful, after mentioning a few birds of interest he
pointed us to the Babbler Campsite. At camp I recorded a few of the locals
including Yellow-plumed H/e, White-fronted H/e, and Brown Treecreeper, which
were seriously investigating a tree hollow next to the van.
Doug had recommended doing the Malleefowl Walk, so that?s where I went for
an early morning stroll. At the carpark were three Black-eared Miner good
start! All together I saw 23 species Jacky Winter, Chestnut-crowned Babbler
and White-browed Babbler, a pair of Malleefowl, Purple-crowned Lori, Mallee
Ringneck, Striated Grasswren, White-eared H/e and Chestnut Quailthrush to
name a few.
Back at camp Doug dropped by looking for volunteers to help out with his
ATLAS sites. We spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon doing
sites and finding some good Black-eared Miners, Shy Heathwren, a lot of
juvenile Yellow-plummed H/e, Southern Scrub Robin, Spiny-cheeked H/e and
Brown-headed H/e.
At one site Doug picked up the call of Red-lored Whistler, we followed the
call and found a rather scruffy looking Red-lored Whistler singing its heart
out on a twig close to the ground. We got great views of it before it
decided to move on.
We spent another day in Gluepot helping Doug with his sites and taking a
drive around the reserve with the family stopping at the various bird hides.
We saw some goats as well as Gilberts Whistler and more miners.
Leaving Gluepot signified the end of my birdwatching trip, now it was time
to tally up my trip list so that hopefully I can start practicing my
bragging as next stop was at my mates place in Clare.
I recorded around 330 species of which 43 were birds I?d never seen before;
this brings my list to 568.
Sitting down in Clare drinking my mates beer and eating his cheese I didn?t
hold back, it turns out his list is in the 540?s. He hasn?t done a lot of
birding in WA so I expect Virgin Airlines will be taking a few sales in the
future.
Of interest, I spent most of January at home in Tumby Bay on Eyre Peninsula,
where I experienced the fires. Apart from the tragic loss of human life and
property the local and already threatened populations of Southern Emu-wren,
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo and Brush-tail Possum were also seriously
affected. There were observations of birds falling from the sky being
asphyxiated in flight by the dense smoke. After the fire I was told about
numbers of bush birds washing up on the beaches I guess also being
suffocated in flight and falling into the sea. Species mentioned included
Pt. Lincoln Ringneck and a species of raptor.
The End,
Cant wait for my next trip.
Regards, Wilko.
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