190501_Welshpool and Big Dog Island

(John)

An even dozen of us gathered at Welshpool to conduct a Birds on Farms
<http://www.birdlife.org.au/projects/woodland-birds-for-biodiversity/birds-on-farms-wl>  survey at Gary Wallis' Hedley Farm and Big Dog Island<https://goo.gl/maps/bdNy5XYv2jzjA4NKA> ; some others of you may recall our visit there last May. Gary signed up for this program earlier this year and asked us to conduct the surveys, so we did.

A cool-ish day that threatened rain, but it stayed dry - and we became warm later in our thermal underlayers (worn in preparation for it being wet and windy) as the temperature climbed into the 20s.

We had four survey areas of two hectares each to spend 20 minutes in each observing. The first area was medium density Banksia forest (BOF survey list<http://birdata.birdlife.org.au/survey?id=2924107&h=fc43c2bf> ) where the highlight was 15 Nankeen Night-herons that flew out of the area into a big dead tree nearby. Despite the cloud cover, the lighting was great. Alas, I'd left my camera in the car to concentrate on ensuring the survey ranaccording to the rules. In a show of colour solidarity, a Nankeen Kestrel flew low over the top of them.

The second area was a low grass and small bush area with a couple of drainage channels, fenced off for regeneration. The highlight here was a pair of Striated Fieldwrens (BOF list<http://birdata.birdlife.org.au/survey?id=2924117&h=5124f4ae> ).

A late morning tea at the third; more fenced off regeneration area (BOF list<http://birdata.birdlife.org.au/survey?id=2924133&h=a819ec8f> ). Not a lot of birds in the area but plenty outside of them. The BOF rules limit in-site counting to birds interacting with the area, not just flying or moving about outside of it. Nearby, we had quite a good sighting of a dozen or so Blue-winged Parrots and several Brush Bronzewings.

The last area was a hike down to the point of land for a stand of ti-tree and other medium-sized scrub. Not a lot of birds there (BOF list<http://birdata.birdlife.org.au/survey?id=2924146&h=f044632b> ) but we did surprise a mob of kangaroos. One got spooked and waded across a 100m, waist-deep stretch of water to a mud-bank, straight across that and another 200m swim to the other side.

Lots of water birds and waders though; of course, at 2-300m away, hard to see in detail. Never mind, we had a beautiful view of the northern hills of Wilsons Promontory. A Swamp Harrier was the last sighting as we ate a very late lunch. 

(Jack)

Val, Jack and Ross headed further west to the Toora Bird Hide. It had started to rain as we arrived but quickly stopped and the sun came out and the mangroves and mud flats were bathed in the light that delights a photographer. Although we saw only 13 species here, another three were added to the day list.

A big day with 52 species.

Next month's outing may well be a 500m boat trip from Sperm Whale Head for a day (or even overnight if interested) to Rotomah Island <https://goo.gl/maps/XE2hubJgnNzTkPHE6>.

Birds in BoF Areas (20)

Nankeen Night-Heron, Nankeen Kestrel, Crimson Rosella, Grey Fantail, Eastern Yellow Robin, Grey Shrike-thrush, Superb Fairy-wren, White-eared Honeyeater, Grey Butcherbird, Australian Magpie, Little Raven, Grey Teal, Grey Shrike-thrush, Striated Fieldwren, Australian Magpie, Eurasian Skylark, Brush Bronzewing, Eastern Rosella, Blue-winged Parrot, White-browed Scrubwren, Superb Fairy-wren.

Additional birds outside BoF Areas (32)

Australian White Ibis, Straw-necked Ibis, Royal Spoonbill, Australian Shelduck, Pacific Black Duck, Chestnut Teal, Swamp Harrier, Brown Falcon, Eastern Rosella, Blue-winged Parrot, Welcome Swallow, Willie Wagtail, Grey Shrike-thrush, Magpie-lark, Australasian Pipit, Cattle Egret, Silver Gull, Pacific Gull, Australian Pelican, Black Swan, Australian Pied Oystercatcher, Sooty Oystercatcher, Red-necked Stint, Crested Tern, Great Egret, White-faced Heron, Little Corella, Golden Whistler, Australian Raven, Common Blackbird, Common Starling, Common Myna.

Blue-winged Parrot

Eurasian Skylark

Red-necked Stint

Sooty Oystercatcher

171030 - 171102_Wilsons Promontory

Tuesday [55 species]

John and Marg organized a fabulous three day outing to Wilson’s Prom and surrounding locales including the Yanakie Isthmus. Rod and Michele, Jos, Sue, Deirdre, Bev, Peter and Jack joined to start the excursion from Foster where we had lunch in the refurbishing main Street.

First stop was the Cody Gully Walk (site 01) at the end of Simpson Street in urban Foster where we quickly had our target bird – Scarlet Honeyeater which is currently irrupting all over southern Victoria. Find mistletoe, find Scarlet Honeyeater … and Mistletoebirds too.

Eastern Spinebill

Scarlet Honeyeater

Next we dropped our gear off at Tobolo Lodge in the back street of Yanakie (site 02) which was to be our home for the next two days. Tom and his Red Jungle Fowl descendants – his chooks – were great hosts with a superb house with many bedrooms, bathrooms, lounge rooms, kitchens …

From there we went down Millars Road to Shallow Inlet (site 03) – White-fronted Chats feeding young -- then on to the other side of the isthmus to Duck Point in Corner Inlet (site 04) where we walked through the bush to the beach and back to the caravan park via the point. Highlights there were Red-capped Plovers, Red-necked Stints, a White-bellied Sea-eagle and a pair of Sooty Oystercatchers, one with a flag E8.

Sooty Oystercatcher E8

White-bellied Sea-eagle

Caspian Tern

Tuesday evening’s meal was Spaghetti Bolognaise and Lasagne with the smoothest cheesecake ever made. Lots of conversation, of course, and a relatively early night. 

Wednesday [25 species, total 80]

A small cohort of birders rose early and had a quick look at the Shallow Inlet site again (site 05) as the tide and light were favourable compared to the previous evening.Striated Fieldwren and Golden Whistler were the standout visible bird but there were hundreds of Eastern Whipbirds with their usual fleeting glimpses.

After breakfast we headed off south into the Wilsons Promontory National Park wioth our first stop at Darby River. Here we walked the track to the beach (site 06) with an informative and interesting commentary from Rod and Michele about all things floral and geological. A wedgetailed Eagle and a White-bellied Sea-eagle were seen riding the stiff onshore breeze and another pair of Sooty Oystercatchers (1F, 1Z).

Darby River beach surf

Darby River explorers

A flower

Sooty Oystercatcher 1K

Sooty Oystercatcher 1Z enjoying a worm

Onwards to Tidal River (site 07) and a stop at the visitor centre and a park bench for lunch under the watchful, ever-vigilant eye of a mature Pacific Gull pretending to be a scavenging Silver Gull.

Australian Wood Duck, female. Lounging at Tidal River

After lunch it was on to Lilly Pilly Gully (site 08) where we spent more than two hours quietly walking (and talking) the two or so kilometres in and out to a short loop in the temperate rainforest of myrtle beech and tree ferns. Gang-gang Cockatoo, Australian King-Parrot, Crescent Honeyeater, Brown Gerygone. 

Grey Fantail most common bird after the cuckoos

It was a lovely walk after which we went back to the digs as we had not left enough time for a further site without compromising dinner which was a BBQ (under the direction of Master Chef Rod), salad and cheesecake #2 plus lots more good conversation including “How good a sleeper are you?”

Thursday [18 species, total 98]

This was our final day. After a clean up and final look at Yanakie (site 09) our first stop was to revisit Cody Gully Walk (site 10) to show Deirdre and Peter the Scarlet Honeyeater which they had missed on Tuesday. Easily found in the same mistletoe! From there we went to Agnes Falls (site 11) where we spotted Dusky Moorhen, White-eared Honeyeater for the first time. On to Toora Bird Hide (site 12) where 36 minutes yielded only 16 species but …Little Egret, Eastern Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit, Great Knot, Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and Crested Tern. The scope was put to good use.

Eastern Curlew

A short drive to Welshpool, the loos and lunch where we met Gary who hosted us to his dairy farm (site 13) on the northern shore of Corner Inlet where we finished our outing with two hours of birding in reclaimed bush (samphire and tussocks) and the beach. Shelduck, Teal, Great Egrets, cormorants, 10 Australian Pied Oystercatchers (two with flags – NN, 6C) 400 Black Swans80 Red-necked Stints, Caspian and Whiskered Tern and Jack’s highlight, 3 Australian Gull-billed Terns; two in breeding plumage and 1 in non-breeding plumage. On the way out John and Marg flushed a Brown Quail and the last bird to be seen was Noisy Miner!!

Wilsons Prom viewed from Corner Inlet

Pig-face

Australian Pied Oystercatcher 6C

Australian Pied Oystercatcher NN

Australian Gull-billed Tern
adult breeding plumage

Australian Gull-billed Tern
adult non-breeding plumage

Red-necked Stints

Red-necked Stint

Over the entire time we heard (and occasionally saw) many Pallid and Fan-tailed Cuckoos, Shining and Horsfields Bronze-cuckoos. By the end EVERYBODY could identify them by ear both quickly and correctly. Stepped up, stepped down, slide up (whistling the dog), slide down.

We had a very enjoyable time. Many thanks go to John and Marg for organizing it and Gary for hosting us.

Ninety-eight species in all. Not bad for 48 hours of socializing.