That should have been 12 lifers on Norfolk!
On 22/09/2012, at 6:53 PM, John Tongue wrote:
> Hi All,
> Just back from a fortnight's birding holiday on the two islands - first
> Norfolk, with just Shirley and myself, and then Lord Howe, after collecting
> the 'kids' (17 and 19) to come with us.
>
> We set out with a 'target' list of around 15 to 20 for both islands. Managed
> 17, including 2 or 3 Wandering Tattlers which turned up on Norfolk on our
> last morning. We managed five lifers (California Quail, Red Junglefowl,
> Norfolk Island Gerygone, White Tern and Norfolk Parakeet) on the first
> afternoon, from the spacious grounds of our accommodation - Hideaway Retreat.
> The accommodation was spacious and comfortable, and in THE best spot for
> birding!! We heard the "hybrid" Morepork the first night, and tracked it
> down to a tree in the grounds of Hideaway as well, but couldn't see it - high
> up and hidden amongst the foliage of a large Norfolk pine. It was back a few
> nights later, and we saw it that time.
>
> We birded all around the island for the next few days, driving on every piece
> of public road in the hire car included in our accommodation costs, adding
> two lifers for each of the following three days: Slender-billed White-eye and
> Black Noddy, Masked Booby and Grey Ternlet(Grey Noddy), and Pacific Robin and
> Sooty Tern. The Terns were only distant views of a feeding flock well off
> shore from Bird Rock, but that was rectified on Lord Howe the following week!!
>
> We also had the NI race of Sacred Kingfisher (everywhere), Grey Fantail
> (everywhere), and Golden Whistler (also very common, and VERY different from
> the mainland race).
>
> We did Margaret Christian's Bird tour, and (to our pleasure) the others
> booked to do it had cancelled, so we had Margaret all to ourselves! She got
> us onto a few more Parakeets in the NP, and our one and only male Pacific
> Robin (also in the NP). We found a single female Robin on our last morning
> (also in the NP). We added a couple of more sightings of the Parakeet in
> various spots in the NP. Margaret's tour also took us onto her property,
> where eradication of predators has seen Masked Boobies and Black-winged
> Petrels returning there to breed. We saw the Boobies up close, but it was
> the wrong time of year for the Petrels. We also walked every walking trail
> (more like parks and gardens pathways!) in the National Park - at least that
> section on the main island!
>
> And therein lies another story....
>
> We had been warned to book, confirm, re-confirm,... and pester... to get out
> to Phillip Island.
>
> We booked in back in May with Dave Bigg, of Charter Marine - the only tour
> operator licensed to take groups to the Island. We made contact again in
> August, just to re-confirm we were soon coming, and very keen to get out to
> the island. The afternoon we arrived, I rang Dave, and left a message on his
> answering machine that we were there, and keen to get out as soon as we were
> able. Not having heard anything by next morning (when the weather was fine,
> calm and beautiful!!), I rang again on his mobile number, and spoke to him
> direct. He was out with a fishing tour, and not able to check weather
> charts, etc. but would do so when he could, and get back to me. Saturday
> Afternoon, a front came through, with heavy rain, and strong winds to follow!
> :(
>
> We'd booked (tentatively) with Margaret for her Monday Tour, and she rang
> about 4:00pm Sunday to confirm whether we were coming, because she would be
> cooking Morning Tea, and needed to know by 6:00pm. I rang Dave, and left
> another message telling him this, and asking him to get back to me urgently.
> When I hadn't heard by 6:00, I rang Margaret back to confirm with her. About
> 11:00pm Dave left a text to say he'd just got my message, and that we
> definitely wouldn't go Monday - wind too strong, and swells to large - but
> he'd ring back Monday night to see what Tues looked like. He rang Monday pm
> and said Tues still wasn't looking good, but would ring Tues pm to consider
> Wed. Tues evening he rang and said he HOPED he could get out Wed morning,
> even if he had to launch out of Cascade, and would ring 7:00am Wed for a
> possible 8:00am start. He rang 7:00am Wed, and said still too much swell,
> but he'd ring 7:00am Thurs (we were leaving Friday!!).
>
> He rang Thursday morning, and said the swell was still big, but he'd TRY to
> get out, if we could be there at 8:00am. We were, as were 7 other tourists
> (many apprehensive about rough seas and sea-sickness), the Island guide and
> his girl-friend). We completed paperwork, etc., kitted up with life-jackets,
> and got into the boat and were actually lowered onto the water.... and there
> we sat, going round and round for the next 20 minutes, looking for a break in
> the swell. Finally, Dave aborted that attempt - to the relief of the other
> tourists, and our dismay!! He said he would try again that afternoon, or
> even EARLIER on Friday morning, so we could still make our plane. He rang
> back at lunch-time Thurs to say the swell was still too high but looked good
> for a 6:00am start on Friday morning. We set our alarm and went to bed
> early, full of anticipation of FINALLY getting to Phillip Island on our last
> day!
>
> When we'd been asleep for only about an hour (but seemed like the middle of
> the night), we got a call from Dave to say the swell was dying down, but now
> he couldn't get an Island guide, and so we would not be able to go after all
> - NOT HAPPY!! That night, I shot off an email to our prospective guide from
> Lord Howe Island who we'd pre-booked to take us out to Ball's Pyramid......
> Our potential targets missed by not getting out included Little Shearwater,
> Kermadec Petrel, and White-bellied Storm-petrel. :( If you're going to
> Norfolk, then you've really, really, REALLY got to keep pushing to get out to
> Phillip Island!!
>
> Anyway, with our final morning to fill, we went back to try lots of the
> coastal rocks and lookouts to try for Red-tailed Tropicbird - a target we'd
> so far missed. We didn't find any, but did add Wandering Tattler to our tick
> list, and Ruddy Turnstone and Pacific Golden Plover to our trip list. Apart
> from the Phillip Island fiasco, we'd had a very successful and enjoyable time
> on Norfolk. One of the most 'surprising' features was there being no Gulls,
> Pelicans, or Crested Terns - to see fishing boats come in and clean fish with
> NO birds flocking round them was just bizarre!!
>
> Back to Sydney for a night, meet up with the kids, and then off to Lord Howe
> Island. (Perhaps I'd better make that a separate report??).
>
> We saw 42 species on Norfolk Island, 11 of them 'lifers' (*):
> California Quail*
> Red Junglefowl*
> Greylag (Feral) Goose
> Pacific Black Duck/Mallard Hybrid (didn't find 'pure' Black Duck)
> Northern Mallard
> Muscovy Duck
> Australasian Gannet
> Masked Booby*
> Great Cormorant
> Little Black Cormorant
> White-faced Heron
> Cattle Egret
> Little Egret
> Great Egret
> Royal Spoonbill
> Nankeen Kestrel
> Purple Swamphen
> Wandering Tattler*
> Ruddy Turnstone
> Pacific Golden Plover
> Sooty Tern*
> Black Noddy*
> White Tern*
> Grey Ternlet (Noddy)*
> Feral Pigeon
> Emerald Dove
> Norfolk Island Parakeet*
> Shining Bronze Cuckoo (heard only)
> Morepork (Norfolk Island "hybrid")
> Sacred Kingfisher
> Norfolk Island Gerygone*
> Pacific Robin*
> Golden Whistler (Norfolk Is. Race)
> Grey Fantail (Norfolk Is. Race)
> Common Greenfinch
> House Sparrow
> Welcome Swallow
> Silvereye
> Slender-billed White-eye*
> Song Thrush
> Common Blackbird
> Common Starling
>
>
> I'll completer the report with the Lord Howe Island section later....
>
>
> John Tongue
> Ulverstone, Tas.
>
>
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