This afternoon (9/2/08), David Mitford, Graham Buchan and I, enjoyed a good
afternoon's sea watching from Magic Pt in Maroubra (approx. 10km south of
the Sydney CBD). Winds were mainly light southerly breezes with fairly calm
in shore waters during that afternoon after the rain had cleared.
Further offshore from Magic Pt, winds appeared to be much stronger, driving
in 2 species of Albatross including a nice adult Wandering and one or two
Black-browed Albatrosses (both species seen on 2 to 3 occasions during the
afternoon), a WHITE-NECKED PETREL, 2 Sooty Shearwaters and many other
interesting sea birds.
Long-tailed Jaegers were numerous and were the most common of the three
species that afternoon hanging about in small groups with the largest group
comprising at least 20 birds together.
Later in the afternoon, a passer by took interest in what were doing. As we
were engaged in a discussion, David alerted me to a quite close in BULLERS
SHEARWATER heading slowly south. Such a stunning bird could have been missed
if we had then left our eyes off the sea. We advised the non-birding visitor
that this was one of the rarities that we see from time to time from Magic
Pt and we showed him not long after, 2 Fairy Penguins feeding with Crested
Terns just below the cliff. He was quite pleased with that sighting.
Species recorded that afternoon (time 1530 to 1900 approx) from Magic Pt
Maroubra and approximate numbers were as follows:
Fairy Penguin (2)
Wandering Albatross (1)
Black-browed Albatross (1-2)
WHITE-NECKED PETREL (1)
Wedge-tailed Shearwater (500)
BULLER'S SHEARWATER (1)
Sooty Shearwater (2)
Short-tailed Shearwater (50)
Fluttering Shearwater (20)
Australasian Gannet (60)
Little Pied Cormorant (1)
Little Black Cormorant (1)
Pied Cormorant (1)
Great Cormorant (2)
Arctic Jaeger (2)
Pomarine Jaeger (15)
Long-tailed Jaeger (60)
Silver Gull (200)
Crested Tern (30)
Mammals recorded:
None
David and I also saw some Southern Emu-wrens (there was a group of at least
4 hopping about the banksias) and 2 Horsfield's Bronze-cuckoos along the
walk to Magic Pt.
A very rewarding afternoon indeed.
Edwin
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