birding-aus

Re White-throated Nightjar

To: Lorraine Phelan <>, <>
Subject: Re White-throated Nightjar
From: Syd Curtis <>
Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2005 00:26:57 +1000
If particularly desirous of seeing, as well as hearing, it might be worth
trying what I did to see a Large-tailed Nightjar.  This was on Cape York
Peninsula in the 1960s.

By chance I was camped in the territory of a pair.  Was intrigued by the
calls and had no idea what they were.  After a couple of nights of failing
to see them, I got up a bit before daylight and followed the sound.
Eventually they went to ground some 20 m apart and then said "Good-night" to
each other with some delightful soft calls totally different from the
'chopping' calls they had used through the night.

I noted the apparent location of the sound from one of them, waited until
there was good light and then approached.  One glimpse was enough to tell it
was a nightjar, and of course when back home, the call simply identified
which one in a bird book.

Always intended, if opportunity occurred, to see if the White-throated
Nightjar also has a special "Goodnight" call.  (Or should that be
"Good-morning"?).  But never have.

Cheers

Syd

> From: "Lorraine Phelan" <>
> Reply-To: "Lorraine Phelan" <>
> Date: Wed, 14 Dec 2005 10:02:00 +1100
> To: <>
> Subject: [BIRDING-AUS] Re White-throated Nightjar
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Marilyn Hewish 
> Sent: Monday, 12 December 2005 4:12 PM
> To: Lorraine Phelan
> Subject: Re: [BIRDING-AUS] RFI: White-throated Nightjar
> 
> Hi Lorraine,
> 
> If you want to reply to this person, the best area in the Brisbane
> Ranges is in the north along Aeroplane Road, between the junction with
> Reids Rd (the Rowsley - Mount Wallace Road that passes through the
> northern ranges) and Mistletoe Track. In the southern ranges, the
> junction of McLeans Highway and Griffen Hill Track is also good.
> 
> It's much much easier to hear the birds than see them, as they can be
> heard from great distances and the country is rugged. We heard the
> birds at many locations in 2004, but at the two areas mentioned above
> we saw them, either flying through the headlights or perched on the
> ground at the roadside (they have bright white eye shine in the
> headlights).
> 
> Best conditions are full to three-quarter moon, mainly clear, calm
> ,warm.
> 
> Aeroplane Road can be very rough in places.
> 
> For details, see Geelong Bird Report 2004.
> 
> Cheers,
> Marilyn
>> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: 
>>  On Behalf Of Frank
>> Rheindt
>> Sent: Monday, 12 December 2005 11:38 AM
>> To: 
>> Subject: [BIRDING-AUS] RFI: White-throated Nightjar
>> 
>> Dear all,
>> 
>> does anyone know any good and reliable sites for White-throated
>> Nightjar
>> around Melbourne?
>> 
>> We tried the area around Lower Stony Creek Reservoir in the Brisbane
>> Ranges
>> last night under good conditions, but there was no unequivocal
>> sighting of a
>> 
>> White-throated Nightjar, though we may have briefly heard one.
>> 
>> Are there any particular spots in the Brisbane Ranges where they
>> occur? How
>> about other sites around Melbourne? I vaguely remember people posting
>> sightings from the Yarra Ranges a couple of years ago...
>> 
>> Cheers
>> Frank
> 
> 
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