We stayed at Matilda?s End motel for three nights in
Karumba and found Little Bronze Cuckoos* feeding in the fiddlewood
tree next to the road. I walked down to the ferryman?s house to book a boat trip
for the next day, and found Blue-faced HE, Olive-backed Oriole and
Yellow White-eyes enjoying his pawpaw fruit.
The morning boat trip with Russel Holt yielded
Osprey, White-breasted Sea-eagle, Mangrove Fantail, Pelican, Brahminy Kite,
Great and Intermediate Egret, Red-headed HE, White-faced Heron, White Ibis,
Eastern Curlews, Whimbrel and White-breasted Whistler*. We saw
several female Whistlers, before a male finally showed up with his brilliant
colours. Missed out on Great-billed Heron.
We stopped at Russel Holt?s (The Ferryman) site, a tiny
dam at the corner of Karumba Road and Karumba Point Road. I was looking for Star
Finches, but only Double-barred Finches showed up along with Peaceful
and Diamond Doves. About 100 metres back along the Karumba Road,
there was a coral tree in full flower. The nectar was being enjoyed by Yellow
White-eyes, Yellow-throated Miners, Little Friarbird and Yellow
HEs*. The brilliant plumage of
the Yellow HEs looked fantastic against the red
flowers.
There was a good range of waterbirds in the shallow
pools at the end of Karumba Point road on the right including a flock of
Marsh Sandpipers. The track between the airstrip and the beach was
lovely, with lots of good little stopping places all along. The tide was high,
pushing the birds onto rocks and the edge of the sand or mud. We saw
Straw-necked Ibis, 6 Grey-tailed Tattlers, about 20 Eastern
Curlews, 20 Marsh Sandpipers, 1 Whimbrel, 8 Black-winged
Stilts, 10 Red-capped Plovers. 8 White-faced Heron, 1 Great
Egret, and 4 Golden Plovers. There are low bushes, fences and a few
pandanus along there, where we saw Black-faced Wood-swallow, Willy Wagtail,
Mistletoe Bird, Blue-winged Kookaburra, Yellow White-eyes, and
White-bellied Cuckoo-shrikes as well as several raptors, Whistling and
Black Kites, Brown Falcon(they have very dark plumage up here compared with
the Central Australian ones) and a Brown
Goshawk.
At the South end of Yappa Street, we found Australian
Bustards, Red-tailed Black Cockatoos and a solitary Rainbow Lorikeet
flew over.
We stopped to check out the Fitzgerald River
camping area between Normanton and Cloncurry on the Matilda Highway ? some nice
secluded camping spots there and the area seemed pretty clean. A Red-browed
Pardalote was calling, We also saw Weebills, Apostle Birds, Rufous
Whistler, Willie Wagtail, Red-backed Fairy-wren, Double-barred Finch, Magpie
Larks, Peaceful Dove and Crimson
Chats.
