In recent years I have been involved with a radio programme "Bird
Talk", monthly with ABC Far North in Cairns. Responses come from a wide
range of people and locations and are often very interesting.
In the days prior to the October programme I was contacted by
locals Kerry Coleman and Graham Bell about a large bird which they
believed to be a Chestnut Rail. After giving the report due caution,
they said that they would quite happily send me an image of the bird
which they did, taken in ideal habitat north of Cairns. With Martin
Cachard I later visted the location and the narrow creek where the bird
had been photographed at neap tide in heavy red mangrove habitat.
I then enlisted the help of Lloyd Nielsen with regard to the
eastern records of the species known to be north of Karumba in the Gulf.
This led me to speak to Russell Holt who for many years ran the
"Ferryman Cruises" there who in turn had seen the species on the Staaten
and Mitchell River deltas to the north.
Should the record have been infuenced by a major weather event,
"Cyclone Yasi" came in from the Coral Sea and passed over sothern Cape
York Peninsula in early February remaining a category "3" even as it
passed Georgetown. Around Mossman we had severe NNW winds for thirty
hours and storm rain of around 500mm in the ensuing days. It's real
impact on birdlife can only be guessed at.
(At the time there were two reports of Elegant Imperial-Pigeon in
the Wet Tropics, one at Mt. Molloy, (very competent observer) and
another in the Kennedy Valley near Cardwell before and after the cyclone
respectively. This bird previously had not been encountered in the
region. Which other species were here, who know?)
I have established that chestnut rails have not been kept at Cairns
Zoo and Hartley's Creek Crocodile Farm. To the north Sean Dooley (pers.
comm.) saw one in a Port Douglas resort a year ago which had escaped
from "The Wildlife Habitat". however within two hundred metres the are
two thousand hectares of ideal mangrove habitat. To make the journey to
the environs of Cairns this bird would need to proceed over forty
kilometres on rocky mountainous terrain.
John Seale (pers. comm.) received an unconfirmed report about two
years ago from Lake Tinaroo on the Atherton Tableland. Local Jack
Leighton followed this up without result.
Since the photograph was taken there has been no further sighting
of the bird in question. Those birders involved are loathe to give out
the location, having learned some serious lessons from the preceeding
fiasco which happened at Wonga Beach with regards to the Spotted
Whistle-ducks. Those wishing to tick those birds showed scant regard for
the birds and the residents to whom we are still apologising. Keith
Fisher (pers. comm.)
I would sincerely like to thanks all of the above local observers
for their help along with Denise Goodfellow for her experience with the
species.
In the meantime all observers should be aware of possible sightings
of Chestnut Rails in north Queensland.
Del. Richards, Fine Feather Tours, Mossman, NQ>
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