Have just returned from 14 day trip to Victoria, last visited in Sept. 2008
during the drought.Spent half of time in Fitzroy not birding, rest of time
around Bendigo, with a day at Werribee and a trip to near Barham, NSW as well.
Birding could not have been more different to 2008, with healthy looking
habitat and beautiful understoreys of wattle blossom and other wildflowers.
Birding started with a day-trip to Werribee STW with Bob & Sadhna Cook on
Sunday 4 /9, overcast with a cold wind and some showers, but great birding, as
always. Highlights included Musk & Blue-billed Duck, many White-necked Heron,
Baillon's Crake (6), Spotted Crake (3), Buff-banded Rail, Spotless Crake
(missed by me), Red-necked Avocet, Striated Fieldwren (seen at 3 separate
sites),Brown & Rufous Songlarks. We managed 79 species, with our only
honeyeater being Noisy Miner.
Monday 5/9 saw us headed to Cambells Rd. in the Kamarooka Section of the
Greater bendigo NP. We stayed put on a crest near a small waterhole for most of
the middle of the day and were rewarded with 10 honeyeaters (Red
Wattlebird,Yellow-faced,White-eared,Yellow-tufted,Brown-headed,Purple-gaped,Striped,
Tawny-crowned, Yellow-plumed & White-fronted). Other good birds included Brown
Goshawk, a flock of 50 Pelican overhead, Dusky Woodswallow. But the real
highlight was excellent views of Shy Heathwren by the roadside in 2 places.
Later in the afternoon, we added Fuscous Honeyeater and a solitary Black-tailed
Native-hen at a dam further down the road, and heard Crested Bellbird.
Tuesday 6/9 and we were off to Lashbrook Rd ,SE of Barham, to locate the feral
population of Ostrich.After a shaky start (we were too far down the road), we
spied one 500m away on a ridgeline, and then another walking through the canola
field. We ended-up with 70m views of another 4 back on the main road. We also
found 5 Grey-crowned Babblers along Lashbrook Rd. (but not the Chestnut-crowned
we'd been told about), White-winged Triller, female Flame Robin, White-fronted
Chat and Blue-faced Honeyeater.
The next day, Wednesday 7/9, was my first visit to Terrick Terrick NP. The
birding around the campground at the base of the mount was so good we didn't
get time to check-out other areas of the Park. Best bird there was Gilbert's
Whistler, a male and a female at separate sites , my second-only sighting 21
years after first seeing it at Brookfield CP in SA. Horsfield's Bronze and
Shining Bronze Cuckoos were both present, as were Red-capped and Hooded Robin,
Chestnut-rumped and Yellow Thornbill, Mallee Ringneck, Rufous
Songlark,Grey-crowned Babbler, Western Gerygone and Black-chinned Honeyeater.
We had great views of a perched Hobby on the drive home.
Thursday 8/9 was a quieter day spent around Heathcote where we managed a male
Flame Robin atop Mt Ida, along with Pallid, Fan-tailed, and Shining Bronze
Cuckoos further down the slope. Later, along Forest Drive on the other side of
town, we spied Brown Quail, nesting Yellow Thornbill,Crested Shrike-tit,
White-plumed, Fuscous & Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, Olive-backed Oriole and
Weebill.
Our last birding day (Friday) was spent at the Bendigo STW and the nearby
Whipstick section of the Greater Bendigo NP. Unfortunately a biting cold wind
restricted both birds and birders but we did manage to see Musk Duck, a flock
of 30+ Black-tailed Native-hen, Swamp Harrier, a lone Silver Gull, and both
Australasian and Hoary-headed Grebe before we called it a day.
During our stay we had a few walks around Bob & Sardhna's Axedale property
and managed to add Rufous Night Heron (2 juveniles) and Buff-banded Rail to
their property list, whilst Black-chinned Honeyeater, Musk Lorikeet, Brown
Treecreeper, Brown-headed Honeyeater, and a covey of 5 Painted Button-Quail
kept me more than interested.
Our trip netted me 156 species including a lifer (Ostrich), as well as
advancing my Victorian list by 7, my NSW list by 2, and my 2011 year list by a
whopping 65. Many thanks to the Axedale mob of Bob, Sardhna and Marlene.
Russ Lamb, Maleny,SEQ
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