Alan Morris has sked me to pass on this message, which may or may not make it
onto the list from his first attempt.
Russell
From: "alan morris" <>
To: <>
Sent: Sunday, August 06, 2006 2:46 PM
Subject: Trip Report - Central Coast NSW to Birdsville Qld and return 6-26/7/06
CENTRAL COAST NSW TO BIRDSVILLE QLD & RETURN VIA BOULIA & WINTON 6-26 JULY 2006
Together with my wife and friend Mike Kuhl, we made the trip to Birdsville for
the purpose of birding enroute and to celebrate my son's 25th birthday with him
in Birdsville, where he is the Manager of the Warrari Information Centre. Mike
travelled from the Central Coast via Gilgandra and the Macquarie Marshes, while
we travel via Crescent Head, Burren Junction and Walgett, meeting up together
in Bourke. From Bourke we stayed at Cunnamulla on Ian & Julie Maclean's
property "Bowra", then via Charleville, Quilpie, Windorah to Birdsville.
Conditions in north-west NSw were not bad as some recent rains had fallen but
from Bourke to Birdsville Qld, conditions were very droughtified. However once
we reached 22 km south of Windorah things changed as cyclones in north
Queensland earlier in the year had done a big dump into the catchment of the
Coopers Creek, so that floodwaters had spead out over the Coopers Channel
country and everything was lush and green, either side of Windorah.
It was here that we saw Budgerigars, Brown & Rufous Songlarks, Crimsons &
Orange Chats, Singing Bushlarks, Brolgas, woodswallows, egrets, spoonbills,
herons etc. But 20 kms west of Windorah, we were back to drought and desert
conditions as we moved onto Birdsville. For three days, we spent checking out
the area around Birdsville including the Big Red Dune, south to Goyders Lagoon
and north to the Wadi Tree Reserve. The Diamentenia River at Birdsville was not
in flood as its catchment missed out on the major rains caused by the cyclones
however, Eyre Creek to the west was in flood, especially at Cuttaburra Crossing
between Birdsville and Bedouie.On the 3rd day of stay in Birdsville there were
strong SE winds and a dust storm which was heralding a big change from the
west. The night before we were due to leave Birdsville, up to 50 mm of rain
fell across the Region, closing all roads and flooding many creek crossings.
This rain was very widespread across inland Australia, Wester
n and Central Queensland, northern South Australian and north-western NSW, in
some places 50-70 mm of rain fell, and for some the most rain in in period for
the past 6 years. We therefore were stranded in Birdsville for another 3 days
as were many other travellers. However it was during our enforced stay in
Birdsville that I added another bird to my Australian List, a Yellow Chat at
the Birdsville Bore. The Yellow Chat was there feeding in the small wetland
created by the bore, with Crimson and Orange Chats and Pipits feeding in the
gibber country right along side. On the Birdsville Lagoon throughout this time,
were 4 Avocets, up to 18 Black-winged Stilts, 2 Red-kneed Dotterels, 22
Pink-ears, 18 Hardheads, 1 Australian Shelduck, and a few of the more common
waterbirds. Eyrean Grasswrens, White-backed Swallows and Banded Whiteface were
seen out at Big & Little Red Dunes by our party and others.
We returned eventually via Bedourie, Boulia, Winton, Bladensberg NP, Longreach,
Charleville, Coonabrabran and home, seeing over 173 species.
Highlights of our trip included:
* 3 Little Button-Quail near Marra Hall, Macquarie Marshes NSW 7/7/2006
(Mike Kuhl)
* Red-tailed Black Cockatoos at Nortons Rest Camp, Walgett, Bogan River
Crossing & at Bourke NSW 8/7/2006
* 80 Red-tailed Black Cockatoo Bourke STW 8/7/2006 (Mike Kuhl)
* 2 Spotted Nightjars at Bowra HSD Cunnamulla Qld 9/7/2006
* 2 White-browed Treecreepers at Bowra HSD Cunnamulla 9/7/2006
* 2 seperate parties of Slaty-backed Thornbills, Bowra HSD 9/7/2006
* 1 Black-eared Cuckoo Bowra HSD Cunnamulla 9/7/2006
* Chirruping Wedge-bill 180 km SE Windorah 10/7/2006
* 2 Brolga at Coopers Crossing, 12 km SE Windorah 10/07/06, more between
Bedourie & Boulia 15/7
* 12 Major Mitchell Cockatoos 12 km W of Windorah 11/07/06
* 2 Gibber Chats & 2 Australian Pratincoles 28 km west of Windorah 11/07/06
* Gibber Chats at 41 & 60 km W of Windorah 11/07/06
* 4 Red-necked Avocets, Birdsville Lagoon 11-14/7/06
* 2 Cinnamon Quail-thrush, the Wadi Trees, 12 km N of Birdsville 11/07/06
* 2 parties of Eyrean Grasswrens at both Big & Little Red Dunes 12-14/7/06
* 6 Banded Whiteface Big Red Dune 38 km W of Birdsville 12-14/7/06 (Mike
Kuhl and Don Howarth)
* 1 Chirruping Wedge-bill Pelican waterhole, South Australia, 96 km S of
Birdsville 13/7/06
* Owlet-Nightjar at Andrewlla Waterhole SA, 89 Km S of Birdsville13/07/06
* Yellow Chat at Birdsville Bore 14/7/06
* Musk Duck, Caspian Tern, Yellow & Royal Spoonbill in the Cuttaburra
Channel, Eyre Creek, 90 km S of Bedourie 15/7
* 2 Inland Dotterel, 29 km S of Boulia & 2 50 km E of Diamentenia Crossing,
west of Winton 17/7/06 (M.Kuhl)
* 12 Bustards 50 km E of Boulia 18/7/06
* Black Falcon, Red-backed Kingfisher and Budgerigars at Macunda Ck east of
Middleton 18/7/06
* Black-breasted Buzzard near the park entrance to Bladensberg NP 19/7/06
* 40+ Painted Firetail, Ringneck Parrot (Cloncurry Parrot) & Grey-headed
Honeyeater Baldenberg NP
* 80 Spinifex Pigeons 82 km W of Winton 11/7 & 18 at Winton STW Qld 19/7/06
* 2 Brolga at Munadoo Bridge, on Marra Creek, western Macquarie Marshes NSW
21/7/06
More information is available on request direct to me
Alan Morris
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
|
