Hi Birders,
Today was one of those raptor days! Belina Cooke, the Swift Parrot
Co-ordinator joined me for a mornings bird watching and while having a
welcoming cup of tea on the patio, the Noisy Miners alerted us to hawk, and
we just caught a glimse of a Peregrine flying through. Alas, no Swifties in
Murray St this morning.
We went down to Sutton Reserve and again drew a blank, and then together
with Lyall & Carl Webber, we walked to Lakin St Bateau Bay, where Swifties
had been seen the last two evenings. Not much to see at first, probably
because an immature Square-tailed Kite circled around and over the site at
tree top level for well over half an hour. For most of that time the Kite
was mobbed by a flock of Galahs, and at one stage, by two White-breasted
Sea-Eagles. The Kite was an immature, determined by its not very white
bullseyes on the wings, and black tips to primaries, not black & white
barred as in an adult, and the face was not very white. While we heard a few
Swifties and had a brief view of one, the Kite upset all the Rainbow & Musk
Lorikeets, and presumably that was what made the Swift Parrots lie low too!.
This is the only second record that I have for a Square-tailed Kite at
Bateau Bay. We walked across to the Rushby St wetlands via Bias Avenue, and
watched a Hobby make a number of swoops on the Square-tailed Kite. We
returned after about 20 minutes to Lakin St, between Patmore and Point
Street, where we were joined by C. Cordon, and were able to find atleast 20
Swift Parrots feeding in a group of about 5 flowering Swamp Mahogany trees.
Extended views were had of these birds, some juveniles were noted to be
present. While we were watching the Swifties an Osprey flew over, pursed by
an immature Sea-Eagle (5 raptores!).
Later in the afternoon Belina and I visited the Tuggerah Reserve Trust's
Pioneer Dairy Swamp, where another Hobby was seen and finally I called in at
the nearby Tuggerah STW where there were 11 Whistling Kites roosting on a
few exposed trees in the centre of the ponds, and one or two appeared to be
feeding on something in the long grass on an island in the Ponds, possibly a
waterbird carcase. Finally a Swamp Harrier flew over! All up 20 raptors of 7
species, and great views of Swift Parrots to boot!
Alan Morris
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www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
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