Hi Greg,
I haven't heard of such a huge concentration of Latham's Snipe in Queensland
before, but I know that there have been larger ones in Victoria. In the
1970s and early 1980s Latham's Snipe were regularly seen in big numbers at
Seaford Swamp with the maximum being around 400. The Swamp is now part of
the Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands recognised as a Ramsar wetland of
international significance but I am afraid that conditions changed in the
1980s and large numebrs are no longer seen there. In the past couple of
years as the condition of the wetlands has improved the site regularly holds
20+ snipe- still a far cry from the glory days.
Around the same period, Belmont Common in Geelong was also known to support
hundreds of Latham's Snipe in the right coniditions. It still exists but I
haven't birded there for many years and have to say it doesn't look as
appealling for snipe as in the 80s.
The current record holder for Latham's Snipe surely has to be Powling Street
Wetlands in Port Fairy in south western Victoria. In recent years up to 400
Latham's Snipe have been recorded in what at first glance seems to be a
fairly insignificant suburban wetland. Unfortunately a local developer
thought he could trade on its unremarkable looks and sneak in a pretty
crumby housing development in the middle of it.
Fortunately the locals fought back, with the South Beach Wetlands and
Landcare Group and Environmental Justice Australia running a case last year
in Victoria's planning tribunal, VCAT, that reversed much of the ruling in
favour of the development. For more information on the issue, we published a
story on it in the June 2013 Australian Birdlife (Vol.2 No.2).
Cheers, Sean
-----Original Message-----
From: Birding-Aus On Behalf Of
Greg Roberts
Sent: Saturday, 28 March 2015 3:02 PM
To: birding-aus
Subject: Pectoral Sandpiper,100+ Latham's Snipe at Yandina
Creek Wetlands
A Pectoral Sandpiper and an estimated 120-150 Latham's Snipe were present
this morning at Yandina Creek Wetlands on the Sunshine Coast.
Also seen were 2 pairs of Black-necked Stork, a pair of Australasian
Shovelers, a couple of Australian Spotted Crake calling, and a Red-necked
Avocet, among many other waterbirds. I'm not sure if such a large
concentration of Latham's Snipe has been seen in Australia before?
These sightings strengthen the case for the protection of the wetlands,
which are on private property and are threatened by drainage for cattle
pasture. The Sunshine Coast Council has been asked to acquire the wetlands
for a reserve, while the Commonwealth and Queensland governments have been
urged to ensure the enforcement of wildlife protection laws.
Pics of the birds this morning and more on the continuing efforts to protect
the wetlands can be found here:
http://sunshinecoastbirds.blogspot.com.au/2015/03/pectoral-sandpiper-100-lat
hams-snipe.html
Greg
http://sunshinecoastbirds.blogspot.com/
<HR>
<BR> Birding-Aus mailing list
<BR>
<BR> To change settings or unsubscribe visit:
<BR> http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org
</HR>
<HR>
<BR> Birding-Aus mailing list
<BR>
<BR> To change settings or unsubscribe visit:
<BR> http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org
</HR>
|
