Introduction
Having already birded around Darwin and along East coast with Tropical Birding we felt that during the “credit crunch” in 2009 we would organise a trip and do it ourselves along the South coast specifically targeting those birds that would be new to us. Our itinerary allowed for 11days in the South-West, followed by 7 days driving from Adelaide to Melbourne and finishing with 3 days on Tasmania. We did book in advance a day with Peter Waanders at Gluepot and a day with Phil Maher at Deniliquin in order that we could ensure that we saw the speciality birds of those areas that would have been far more difficult without their help.
The logistics of organising a trip such as this are fairly straightforward and therefore I won’t go into detail about this. Should anyone require any specific advice please contact me.
The report below gives a chronological account of the trip specifying many of the birds we saw and in a few cases exactly where we found them.
South-West Australia
17th October
Arrived in Perth around 2pm and was on the road by 3pm, slightly later than anticipated due to a delay on our flight from Singapore to Perth. Although we couldn’t really complain about that as the only reason the flight was delayed was because it was waiting for us and our fellow passengers on the delayed flight out of Heathrow.
No real time for birding as we had a couple of hundred kilometres to drive to our overnight stop in Dalwallinu, although we did see our first south west specialities on the way with Port Lincoln Parrots and Short-billed Black Cockatoo’s.
18th October
Nallan station where we were heading was still several hundred kilometres further north, but we had a planned for a stop on the way near Mount Magnet to break the journey. One of the advantages of long drives early in a trip is that there are plenty of new birds to keep you interested along the way and we picked up our only Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo’s of the trip shortly after leaving Dalwallinu, plus commoner species like Emu, Wedge-tailed Eagle and Cockatiel.
The directions to the recommended site for Chestnut-breasted Quail-Thrush mentioned on Frank O’Connors excellent Western Australia website seemed a little confusing. This was also supported by a number of trip reports I had reviewed. However, Larry Wheatland who had spent a few days at Nallan Station a couple of weeks earlier had found two other sites, one at Austin Downs and the other along the road through the Nallan Station homestead, so I was fairly optimistic of finding the species.
Whilst trawling the internet I had found a years old report from near to Mt Magnet and on a tarmac road so thought it worth a try. The site is along the road to Yalgoo which heads west from the Great Northern Highway just south of Mt Magnet. There is a small road sign to advise that you are 10km from Mt Magnet adjacent to a stony hill on the south side of the road and this hill is where the Chestnut-breasted Quail-Thrushes had been reported about 10 years earlier. We scoured the hill for 30 minutes or so and whilst the habitat looked good there was no sign of any Quail-Thrushes and the best we could do was a male Crimson Chat and a few Red-capped Robins. Returning to the car parked on the north side of the road, our attention was drawn to a couple of Crested Bellbirds on the ground about 100mtrs from the car and whilst watching these we noticed that they were associating with three Chestnut-breasted Quail-Thrushes, a great start to our trip.
It was already getting hot and by the time we arrived at Austin Downs, to the west of Cue, the heat was fierce, but some birds were still active. We birded mostly to the East of Austin Downs and had great views of White-winged Triller, Chiming Wedgebill, a female Black Honeyeater, White-fronted Honeyeater and Redthroat but could not find Banded Whiteface, which this is a site for and indeed I saw a report of one from here a week or so later.
Back to Cue and we headed north to Nallan Station, but not before stopping just outside the town on the north side by a rocky outcrop to the west of the road which seems reliable for White-backed Swallow as we saw one here each time we passed.
We had booked the cottage at Nallan Station with inside bathroom but outside toilet complete with frogs that live under the rim and fall into the bowl each time it is flushed. The place is owned by Michael and Sandy Clinch and as well as the cottage there is the option to camp or stay in more basic accommodation. Michael and Sandy will also provide breakfast and evening meals if required. There were plenty of birds around the homestead, the highlight being Spotted Bowerbirds that were always around the garden and there is a bower 100 metres to the South of the homestead.
Also around the garden were Yellow-plumed, Brown and Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters, Galahs, Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrikes, Fairy Martins and White-browed Babblers. We did not have time to sit and watch these though as Larry had reported Bourke’s Parrot visiting Jackson’s Well, a few kilometres East of the homestead between 3.40pm and 5.00pm and we wanted to make sure that we did not miss these. Whilst waiting at the Well we were able to watch Common Bronzewings and Zebra Finches (or Chestnut-eared Finches depending on your preferred taxonomy). At 3.39pm four Bourke’s Parrots appeared, this eventually increased to eight before we left half an hour later.
The rest of the day was spent birding the road between Jackson’s Well and the homestead, enjoying the wonderful Splendid Fairy-Wrens, and spending some time studying Thornbills, but this day we could only find Chesnut-rumped Thornbill.
19th October
We were up at first light and exploring the track across the airstrip from the homestead, but it was fairly quiet first thing and it took a couple of hours before things started to liven up. Highlights were several Diamond Doves, a pair of Pied Honeyeaters nest building, lots of White-fronted Honeyeaters and more Redthroats. Several Inland and Chestnut-rumped Thornbills were seen, but we could not turn any into Slaty-backed.
By late morning it was very hot so we headed to Lake Nallan, a decent sized body of water in an area that has been in drought for around 10 years. In fact the drought has been so bad that Nallan Station, that covers 33,000 Hectares, currently supports only 150 cattle.
On arrival at the lake we could immediately see that there were some waders in the North East corner so we walked in that direction finding a good muddy area that was initially out of sight and a drier area that in years of good rain would presumably be underwater. Fortunately for us as it was dry it proved attractive to 2 Oriental Plovers and a Little Whimbrel. Other waders to excite British birders were 4 Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, 1 Red-necked Stint and a Long-toed Stint along with Black-fronted and Red-kneed Dotterels.
Scanning across the lake produced a small group of Black-tailed Native-Hens, the only ones we were to see in Western Australia, but seen in their thousands in South Australia and Victoria later in our trip. The lake also had a small selection of common Australian wildfowl.
Back to Nallan Station we sat out the Midday heat around the cottage. Whist talking to Sandy she explained where Frank O’Connor had seen Grey Honeyeater a couple of months earlier, but the track would not be driveable in our 2WD car, so she lent us her 4WD to go to the site. Unfortunately we could not find any Grey Honeyeaters, but did get lucky with Slaty-backed Thornbill on the way back between Jackson’s Well and the homestead.
We opted to spend the hour before dusk at Nallan Lake to see if anything came in here to drink and whilst lots of Common Bronzewings appeared the only new bird was Orange Chat, with a couple of presumably immature males as they were very different to the male and female Orange Chats we saw later in the trip, in fact looking more like the field guide illustrations of Yellow Chat.
20th October
We drove 798 kilometres on this day from Nallan Station all the way to Narrogin, so birding opportunities were limited but we did manage to pick up Budgerigars at Damboring Lakes and around 80 Western Corellas between Northam and Toodyay. . The Corellas could easily have been missed as they were all in one flock feeding on the ground by Mistake Creek and in fact we did miss them driving in one direction only seeing them when we returned on the opposite side of the road from which they could be more easily seen.
It was nearly 5pm by the time we arrived at Narrogin and given the distance we had already driven we did not head up to Dryandra Woodland that evening which would have given the opportunity of an evening walk to look for mammals. Fortunately the hotel was opposite a small nature reserve called Foxes Lair and we enjoyed an hour walking around here, turning up Elegant and Red-capped Parrots, Western Spinebill, Golden Whistler, White-cheeked and Tawny-crowned Honeyeaters, Weebill and Western Gerygone
21st October
Dryandra Woodland is a great place to see several of the South West endemics and specialities and we were there not long after dawn. Our first stop was at the village where the paddock had lots of Bush Thick-knees and Short-billed Black Cockatoos, later on when we returned the Bush Thick-knees had all disappeared.
Larry Wheatland had recently seen the Western race of Crested Shrike-Tit close to the junction of Tomingley Road and Norn Road, if treated as a separate specie, as some authorities choose to do, this becomes one of the hardest South-West endemics to see. In this are Rufous Treecreeper was plentiful, we had a very obliging Fan-tailed Cuckoo plus Collared Sparrowhawk and Restless Flycatcher but after an hour still no sign of the Crested Shrike-Tit so we began to expand our search area, eventually striking lucky about 200 metres further along Tomingley Road.
Back towards the village we stopped at the Ochre Trail to look for Painted Button-Quails, but this ultimately proved unsuccessful. Speaking with Philip Maher later, he said that they used to be common at Dryandra and you could expect to several, but he had also failed to see any when he last visited.
Our next site was Old Mill Dam close to the village where we saw Western Rosella, Purple-crowned Lorikeets, and Blue-breasted Fairy-Wren.
Another long drive was planned for the afternoon to Fitzgerald River so we had a good meal in the Duke of York pub in Narrogin, before setting off. Not too far from Narrogin and close to our route was Lake Parkeyerring from where 15,000 Banded Stilts had been reported a few weeks earlier. There were only around 1,000 at the time of our visit and they were quite distant, but as they were the only ones we saw during the whole trip they were most appreciated.
Our next accommodation was the Fitzgerald River B&B and the main reason for coming here was to see Malleefowl, as this was a recommended site to see them according to trip reports and Frank O’Connor’s website. Unfortunately for us new owners had taken over the farm a couple of years ago and when we asked about going to look for Malleefowl their response was that we would be very lucky to see one. Despite this one of the owners agreed to take us to a mound that had been active a year ago the last time he had been there.
Off we set in our hire car, following the owner, across the farm, the dirt roads were a little bumpy, but passable with care. That did not last for long as the road ended and we were then just driving through crops of Cranola, at one point beaching the car on a ridge, requiring the passengers to get out so that I could get the car over. After several kilometres of this the owner came to a halt and got out, he was not prepared to drive his own car any further, but said we could walk the rest of the way. He was pointing to a wooded area a couple of kilometres away and it would be dark within an hour. Considering how bad the drive this far had been there was no way we would try it in the dark, so we declined his offer and headed back to the farm.
The B&B itself was nicebut given the cost, this was the most expensive place we stayed the whole trip, and the lack of Malleefowl, if planning the trip again I would not go there without first confirming that they have an active Malleefowl mound.
22nd October
Stubble Quail were singing from the fields around the B&B at dawn and I got a brief view of one in flight, but it dropped out of sight before I could get my binoculars to my eyes. Vocally Stubble Quail were common in agricultural areas throughout Western Australia, but this proved to be the only sighting in the State.
Back onto Quiss Road that runs into the Fitzgerald River NP we made our first stop just a couple of hundred metres from the B&B entrance and immediately found a pair of Southern Scrub-Robins that showed really well. Shy Heathwren and Purple-gaped Honeyeater were next into the notebook, although the Heathwren took a little persuading to provide good views.
Western Whipbird, here is of the race “oberon”, which may be split off as Mallee Whipbird along with races from further East. They proved quite common vocally, but were much harder to see. We eventually struck lucky with two birds that were feeding on the ground about 50 metres along the first firebreak to the east, after the park self pay station.
With all our targets seen except Malleefowl, and the next to impossible Ground Parrot, we set off for Stirling Range Retreat.
We checked into our chalet and set out to explore the Kanga Walk. There were lots of Short-billed Black-Cockatoo’s in the area providing a constant background noise and Scarlet Robins added a dash of colour, a good selection of Honeyeaters and a photogenic Dusky Woodswallow.
Nearing the end of our walk we had still not seen Western Yellow (aka Grey-breasted) Robin, but fortunately the camping area proved to be a good spot for these with several birds posing for photographs.
23rd October
We opted for the Ongarup Creek walk this morning. Many of the same birds as the previous day were seen, with the addition of nesting Varied Sitella’s and a White-breasted Robin by the creek.
We spent some time searching for Regent Parrots, but they eluded us. A pair of Little Eagles soared overhead whilst we ate an early lunch at the Bluff Knoll Café
Cheyne Beach was our destination for the next couple of days, but as we had to drive close to a site for Long-billed Black Cockatoo’s on the way we made a slight detour. This was to the Lower Kalgan bridge area to the East of Albany, we spent a while driving the roads here without success and had decided to move on to Cheyne Beach when I spotted a group of 8 Cockatoos feeding in a field along Mead Road. Fortunately as they were feeding it was easy to see their bill shape well and confirm them as Long-billed Black Cockatoo’s. When their bills are closed the feathering on the face makes it quite difficult to see clearly.
Arriving at Cheyne Beach we were provided with all the latest information on where to see the special birds of the area, so after buying some food and dumping our luggage in the chalet we were out exploring. Red-winged Fairy-Wren was the first addition to our list just behind our chalet, the first one on the right hand side as you enter the caravan park.
Down on the beach Sooty Oystercatchers, Great Crested Terns and Pacific Gulls could be seen, but further out in the bay a number of all dark seabirds could be seen, so we headed up to the headland where we would get a better view. These seabirds turned out to be Great-winged Petrels and there were hundreds of them going past with quite a few Yellow-nosed Albatrosses mixed in.
The bushes behind the beach are the favoured haunt of Noisy Scrub-bird, but before looking for that we came across a Red-eared Firetail, which was apparently nesting in the area. The Noisy Scrub-bird is most easily seen early in the morning crossing the road adjacent to a culvert, but when we arrived it was singing from a patch of bushes further along the road and would need to cross a track to the beach to get to its favourite crossing point. After singing almost constantly for 15 minutes, during which time it had moved closer to this track it went quiet so we headed to the junction of the track and the road and this decision was rewarded shortly afterwards, at 5.30pm, it slowly crossed the track. Having nailed this skulker it left us free the following morning to search for Western Bristlebird and Western Whipbird, this time of the subspecie “nigrogularis”.
24th October
Brush Bronzewing, Brown Quail and White-breasted Robins greeted us on exiting the chalet, but the wind was fairly strong, not what we wanted for chasing skulking birds. Leaving the campsite we turned right up a sandy track that is the best area for seeing the Whipbird and Bristlebird. The strong wind meant that very little could be heard singing, a couple of Noisy Scrub-birds being the exception as their voices are so loud they could be heard above the wind.
Reports of 10 Bristlebirds singing a couple of weeks earlier was something we could only dream of, in fact we never heard one singing in 2 days. Fortunately after an hour or so a Western Whipbird began to sing quite close to us and was located sat atop a small bush posing for photos. A short time later at the same spot we got lucky with the Bristlebird as it began climbing up in a shrub only 3 or 4 metres away, no photo this time but a pretty good view before it dropped out of site and vanished.
More searching was rewarded with another brief view of a Bristlebird rapidly crossing the track and the Whipbird singing from the tops of bushes a couple more times. Other birds found in the area were Southern Emu-Wren and White-cheeked Honeyeaters amongst the commoner New Hollands.
Searching for Rock Parrots, we walked east along the beach and explored the dunes below the village. Possibly because of the strong wind we could not find any but another Bristlebird was seen crossing the beach access track. A Southern Right-Whale only 100m offshore in water barely deep enough to cover it proved an interesting distraction. On the walk back towards the caravan park we encountered a Red-eared Firetail singing from a telephone wire in the village, showing much better than the brief view the previous day.
As we had seen Albatrosses close in shore earlier in the day we decided to spend the afternoon seawatching from the headland. There was a constant stream of Great-winged Petrels some very close in-shore, Yellow-nosed Albatrosses were a constant sight and eventually we picked out a few Shy Albatrosses. The potential for something better kept us watching and eventually was rewarded with a distant Pterodroma petrel and then another. In total we made about 10 sightings of these over three hours with at most two birds in sight at once, whether it was 10 individuals or 2 circling the bay I cannot be sure, but all birds appeared to be the same specie. The most likely specie I believe would have been Soft-plumaged Petrel, however our birds had pale heads and tails and no collar and whilst distance prevented us from seeing a dark mark around the eye we were confident that they were White-headed Petrels.
25th October
The wind this morning was even stronger than the previous day, so our first port of call was the headland, but it was blowing so strongly that it was impossible to hold either binoculars or telescope steady and we soon gave up. Returning to the site of our previous days success with both Whipbird and Bristlebird, the wind was slightly less fierce, but still very strong and after a couple of hours we had seen nothing so decided to call it a day and head for Albany.
A walk around Lake Sepping was pleasant enough, at least the wind was bearable and we added a few species to the list, the best being Buff-banded Rail.
Two Peoples Bay was completely windswept and in the short time we spent there we didn’t see anything of note. Expecting the worse we headed to Tondirup NP and The Gap, one of the areas best seawatching sites, but the wind was unbearable. We headed to the other side of the peninsular and were sheltered slightly from the wind enabling us to at least stand upright. A short time seawatching here produced one of the trip highlights, a close inshore white-phase Southern Giant-Petrel.
26th October
With the forecast today, more of the same wind, we decided to head for Cape Leeuwin rather than spend more time around Albany. By this stage we had seen all our South-West land bird targets except Rock Parrot and we still had three days to go. It really felt as though we were just killing time until our flight to Adelaide, but better this way than still missing difficult species with only a short time to find them.
Our chosen route took us past Lake Muir and the potential for the “pastinator” subspecie of Western Corella, a potential split. As soon as we hit Rocky Gully, a town a short distance to the East of Lake Muir we started seeing them and in total must have seen over 100 birds in 7 or 8 flocks.
Cape Leeuwin has a lighthouse, which means you have to pay to get to the best seawatching point, but it also has the potential for Rock Parrots and one of the staff in the shop was happy to tell us that there had been several on the lawn that morning including a leucistic individual. Much searching ensued, but failed to turn up any in the strong wind.
The seawatching was much better with both Flesh-footed and Little Shearwaters new to the list, but perhaps more spectacular were the Humpback and Southern Right-Whales of which there were many.
Also tried Hamelin Bay for Rock Parrots, but failed again although our first Fairy Terns were reward for our efforts.
27th October
Back to Cape Leeuwin first thing, the lighthouse did not open until 9.00am so we were left to scan the lawns from beyond the fence, but still no Rock Parrots. Seawatching turned up the same species as the previous day, with the addition of the only positively identified Black-browed Albatross of the trip.
Our next destination was Cape Naturaliste, which I was very disappointed with, the lighthouse there must be a kilometre from the sea and with the path to the best looking spot for seawatching closed we gave up and headed to Sugarloaf Rock.
Sugarloaf Rock, is only 50 metres offshore and is famous for its Red-tailed Tropicbirds, however numbers have been diminishing and in 2007 and 2008 there was only one pair and in both years they failed to raise any young. Within 10 minutes of arriving I got onto a bird sat on the sea which I felt sure was a Tropicbird, but it drifted behind the rock within a couple of seconds. Four further hours watching revealed no further sightings and made me question what I had seen originally. Do Tropicbirds sit on the sea? Was I seeing what I wanted to see and was it just a Silver Gull of which there were many on the rock? In the end I couldn’t bring myself to tick it.
28th October
Heading back to Perth we broke the journey with a stop at the Peel Inlet, where there was a good selection of waders including, Grey-tailed Tatler and our first Curlew Sandpipers.
Back in Perth we spent a few hours at Herdsman Lake finding, Glossy Ibis, Australian Reed Warbler and greatest selection of ducks seen so far. In essence it was an easy paced day, we had run out of target species and were ready to move on.
South-East Australia
29th October
At last we were leaving the South-West and flying to Adelaide, even though we were on the earliest flight with a 2 hours 30 minutes time difference it was midday when we arrived. Fortunately it took no time to collect the hire car and we were soon heading South to Lake Alexandrina, passing though Strathalbyn we saw our first Adelaide Rosella’s.
We had grabbed some lunch on the way down and headed to the picnic area in Milang to eat it. Overlooking the lake we immediately saw 30+ Cape Barren Geese, these being the main reason for coming here, though they were a little distant.
Our next stop was Tolderol Reserve, but on arrival it was immediately obvious that birding was going to be poor here as it was totally dry, but we did find our only Blue-winged Parrots.
On the north side of the road between Strathalbyn and Wellington just to the East of the road to Murray Bridge there was a small pool adjacent to farm buildings and on this pool were 8 Cape Barren Geese, which provided much better views than those seen earlier. Scanning the fields beyond there were 50 or 60 more and whilst we stood there more kept flying in from the direction of the lake, by the time we left, about 4pm, there were over 100 Geese in the field.
Whilst we had been watching the Geese a flock of feral pigeons had taken flight from the farm buildings, a Black Falcon in pursuit. Less than 20 metres from us it hit one of the pigeons but did not hold onto it. However, a second Falcon swooped in, catching it and then dropped into the field behind us with it prey. The first bird, its foot full of feathers, stood guard on a nearby telegraph pole, posing for photos.
Our hotel for the night was in Elizabeth just to the North of Adelaide and in the evening the trees around the hotel were full of the only Musk Lorikeets seen on the trip. Well others were probably seen flying over, but these were perched.
30th October
Port Gawler was our first scheduled stop, but we called in at St Kilda on the way seeing very little of interest except for Black-tailed Native-Hens that had irrupted in this area. We saw over a thousand in the next couple of hours.
There was one specific bird that we were targeting at Port Gawler, the Slender-billed Thornbill. The best site according to the information gleaned from the web was 100 metres past the track to the off-road centre. Basically once you reach the mangroves turn around and explore back along the road from there. Although there was no sign at first, after a short time, several were seen in a bush right next to the road..
Brown Songlarks were very obvious in the area as they displayed overhead and White-winged Fairy-Wrens frequented the coastal scrub.
Our next stop was to be Brookfield Conservation Park and it was mid-morning and very hot by the time we arrived. There was very little calling and it took quite some time to find anything of note and everything we did see we would see again over the next few days. The highlights were a male Hooded Robin and parties of Chestnut-crowned Babblers and White-winged Choughs.
With the temperature around 40 celsius, we pushed on to our hotel in Waikerie and waited until mid-afternoon before venturing back out to explore wetland areas around the town. Hart Lagoon was the best with plenty of ducks and our first Red-necked Avocets. We also had two Australian Crakes that fed out in the open to the right of the track to the hide.
A close search was made through the many Grey Teals in hope of a Freckled Duck, but no luck. The heat haze and distance to some of the birds prevented us from satisfactorily identifying them all. We did however turn up a few Pink-eared Ducks and a Little Grassbird showed well in a bush within the reeds.
Having failed to see Malleefowl earlier in the trip we headed for Eremophila Park supposedly one of the easiest places to see them. The directions we had obtained were to head 17km east of Waikerie on the Stuart Highway, turn south by the small Eremophila Park signpost and ask for directions at the house 3km on the right. We found ourselves in the right place, but unfortunately could not raise anyone at the house that looked almost deserted, hence still no Malleefowl. Subsequent to our trip we have heard that the lady who lived at the house has died.
31st October
The main reason for coming to Waikerie is to visit Gluepot reserve and in order to maximise our chance of seeing the special birds we had hired Peter Waanders for the day. Peter picked us up in his 4x4 at 5.15am and we were soon crossing the Murray River on the 24 hour ferry.
As we headed towards Gluepot we had a Spotted Nightjar fly across the road a couple of times, but once we had stopped the car we could not persuade it to return.
Peter explained to us that adjacent to the Gluepot reserve are two other “reserves” although these lack the facilities of Gluepot and as such are not designed for visitors. That said the road to Gluepot passes through one of these and it was here that we made our first stop.
I had given Peter a list of 10 species that we would like to target, well 11 if you count the highly improbable Scarlet-chested Parrot, and the first stop was for one of these, Chestnut Quail-Thrush, but as we walked across to the site for these Peter picked out the call of another of our target birds, Red-backed Kingfisher so we made a beeline for this and were soon enjoying great views. The Kingfisher in the bag we returned to look for the Quail-Thrush and soon found a pair showing better than any previous Quail-Thrush I had seen, unfortunately as it was still early the light wasn’t good enough for photography. There was also a Gilbert’s Whistler calling here, which was on my target list but Peter said they would be easy in Gluepot and we had more important birds to chase.
Entering Gluepot proper, no longer do you need a key to access the reserve as mentioned in previous reports I had read, we turned East and headed along the track running along the southern boundary. Peter told us he had been having success along here with Black-eared Miner of late and the best way is to drive along listening for a flock.
We must have driven 10km or more before we heard any miners and playing the tape brought a flock of about 8 birds in. The future for Black-eared Miners appears bleak as fires destroy their habitat and they hybridise with Yellow-throated Miners. One of the first birds in the party we saw was a fairly dark bird and had the correct head pattern, but according to the sheet we had that summarises the features to separate Black-eared Miners from hybrids we still needed to study the rump, fortunately it then flew past us showing a rump of the correct shade. Hence the bird met the criteria to be considered as a Black-eared Miner. Most of the rest of the party were obvious hybrids leaving us feeling somewhat less than satisfied.
Returning to the vehicle Peter heard a distant Red-lored Whistler, one of the hardest species on my list with only three known territories in the Gluepot area at the time. The bird was calling from a territory that had been occupied in previous years and that Peter had checked several times this year without success. The chase was now on fortunately Peter had GPS as you would not want to chase off into the mallee without being able to find the road and your vehicle.
Peter was keen to find this bird as the next territory was nearly an hour’s drive away and this could save us a lot of time. As it was, 45 minutes or so chasing the singing bird gained us nothing more than fleeting glimpses as each time we got close it would then start singing 100 metres further on. In the end we decided to make the drive to the other site where Peter said it would be easier to see and we could not waste more time as Red-lored Whistlers tend to stop singing mid-morning.
Once we arrived at the new site, which was not in Gluepot, but the other “reserve” to the east of Gluepot, it took about 10 minutes before we heard the Whistler, for a while it looked as though we were in for a repeat performance as it kept moving without us seeing it, but then Peter spotted it and we were all able to get great views. Whilst it was a little too active for me to get any photos I was able to get sound recordings. Shortly afterwards we stopped for a Gilberts Whistler allowing us to compare this similar species to the Red-lored we had just seen.
Back into Gluepot proper, we drove west along the Northern boundary another couple of Chestnut Quail-Thrushes were seen, before we heard our next target, a Striated Grasswren. Quickly stopping the car there were two of them running across the track with wings held down looking more like a mouse than a bird. A bit of squeaking and pishing and they were soon running around very close to us, providing super views and some photos.
For our lunch stop Peter headed to the “Grasswren” hide overlooking a water trough, but before we went for lunch we checked out the trees opposite the parking area, where we successfully added White-browed Treecreeper to the list of target birds seen. Lunch certainly tasted good with 7 out of 10 targets already ticked off and we were able to enjoy watching the Mulga Parrots, Brown Treecreeper, Yellow-plumed, Brown-headed and Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters that visited the trough whilst we ate it.
After lunch we headed to the visitor’s centre and obtained some souvenirs, before heading to a Malleefowl mound. Unfortunately the mound, that had been active in August, was just a bowl full of leaf litter, instead of being a high mound of earth. It appears that lack of rain had caused the mound to be abandoned. Rain is required to begin the decomposition of the leaf litter which will generate the heat to incubate the eggs. Peter knew of several other mounds, but as they were even earlier in development than this it was unlikely that there would be any Mallefowls at these.
Two of our other target birds were easier to find nearer to Waikerie and hence we headed back to a wetland area on Penfold’s wine estate. Almost as soon as we arrived at the water Peter picked out a lone Freckled Duck amongst the Grey Teals and thus completed my set of Australian wildfowl. I was surprised by how easy they would be to overlook amongst Grey Teals until the very different beak shape is seen in profile.
The second target bird was calling from the tree above us and it didn’t take long for us to pick out a Regent Parrot amongst the many Yellow Rosella’s in the same tree. It was still only early afternoon and we had only one target left the Mallefowl, so the logical option was to head for Eremophila Park, but Peter told us there was no point in getting there before 5.30pm. He provided us with detailed directions and took us back to our hotel. It had been a brilliant day and I suspect we would have struggled to have found more than a couple of our targets without his local knowledge and would certainly not have fancied taking our hire car down many of the sandy tracks.
We had been very close to the site for the Malleefowl at Eremophila the previous day. The directions from Waikerie are, head 17km east on the Stuart Highway then turn right where Eremophila Park is signposted and continue for 5.2km. There is a track on your right that leads down to a green building after 100m. This building used to be occasionally rented out to people looking for a weekend getaway, but is normally empty as it was when we visited, you then just wait for the Mallefowl to come to you.
At 6.10pm we sighted the Malleefowl about 50 metres to our left as we looked back towards the road. It seemed nervous at our presence and would not approach any closer preferring to remain partially hidden behind scrub and tree trunks. After about 20 minutes we decided to try to get a little closer but this caused it to gradually walk away, but we had enjoyed our fill and we headed back to Waikerie for a meal and a drink to celebrate an excellent day.
1 November
We had a fairly long drive today across to Deniliquin in New South Wales, but on the way we would spend a few hours at Hattah-Kulkyne NP. Our main target here was Mallee Emu-Wren, which has a very small range, although we were not overly optimistic as Peter had been there a few days earlier and had only two brief views in six hours of searching.
The area to search is the mallee on both sides of the Nowingi track for the first half kilometres or so at the old Calder Highway end. We set out exploring the west side walking parallel to the track some 50 – 100 metres in. Without GPS or the sun to keep a bearing, it is very easy to get lost, although the west side block of mallee is boarded on all sides by tracks or roads.
After 15 to 20 minutes we headed back towards the Nowingi track and found ourselves about 400 metres from its start, next to a yellow ribbon tied to a tree, whilst we stood here deciding where to search next I heard a high pitched call. Heading quickly in its direction we obtained great views of a male Emu-Wren before it moved away. Well satisfied with out views we started back to the car but within 50 metres saw what was probably the same bird again and this time we were even able to get some photos.
At the visitors centre Apostlebirds and White-winged Choughs were easy to see as they strutted around in small groups. There were lots of parrots in the vicinity of Hattah Lake, with Yellow Rosella and Regent Parrot particularly obvious, but no sign of the bird we really wanted to see Major Mitchell’s (or Pink) Cockatoo, but we did not have long to search and the middle of the day is not the best time to be looking.
We were optimistic that we stood a further chance of Major Mitchell’s on the drive across to Deniliquin, but failed to see any and Philip Maher later told us that their numbers have declined significantly.
We only made one other stop on the way to Denliquin and that was when we saw our first Long-billed Corellas close to the town of Wakool, we were to see plenty more over the next few days. Our accommodation for the next two nights was a chalet at the Riverside Caravan Park in Deniliquin and the person on the desk kindly allowed us to call Philip Maher on the office phone to confirm the arrangements for the next day. She also informed us that another person would be going out with us the following day and she had put him in the chalet next to ours, so we got to meet Dave Batzler from San Diego that afternoon.
2 November
A rushed start this morning as we had forgotten to put our watches forward 30 minutes since leaving South Australia, fortunately we had got up in time, but had to miss breakfast.
Having done so well on our trip to date we had only six target birds for Phil all of which we would look for in the afternoon and evening so it was a relaxed mornings birding in front of us. We headed to Gulpa Island State Forest and began by watching a large flock of Superb Parrots in the fields opposite the entrance.
The forest was incredibly dry following several years of below average rainfall and we saw several fire-fighting aircraft flying to a bush fire that had begun to the south of us the previous day. Phil told us that the number of birds had reduced significantly over the last few years, but we still managed to find some good species. We added a few species to our trip list, such as Eastern Rosella, Noisy Friarbird, White-throated Treecreeper, Diamond Firetail, Yellow and Buff-rumped Thornbills and Blue-faced Honeyeaters as well as getting good views of Gilbert’s Whistler and Hooded Robin which had been lifers for us only a few days earlier.
Late morning we headed back to Deniliquin and visited a small reedy pond opposite the Sportsman pub to look for Little Bittern, but Phil suspected that they may not have arrived back yet. We then headed to some wetlands and rice fields hoping for Australian Bittern, but the rice was only just poking through the surface and apparently Bittern’s like at least 6 inches of growth before they venture into the paddies.
At another wetland we added Baillon’s Crake to the list, but could not find an Australian Painted-Snipe that Phil had seen there a couple of weeks earlier.
Our route back to Deniliquin took us down a tree-lined road, where Black Honeyeaters were plentiful including several males, a nice addition after our one female in Western Australia. Phil also called in a Striped Honeyeater at the same spot. We got back into Deniliquin just after 1pm and had a couple of hours to get a meal before setting out again.
Heading North out of Deniliquin towards Hay, our first stop was at the nest site of a Major Mitchell’s Cockatoo. As we approached a bird was sat in the entrance to the hole in the tree in which it was nesting. A little manoeuvring enabled us to get unobstructed views of it from a safe distance.
In the same patch of woodland we next went looking for Australian Owlet-Nightjar. Approaching a tree, Phil had us line up and told us which hole to watch, he then proceeded to scratch the tree with a branch and, nothing! Moving to the next tree the same procedure was employed and again, nothing. Phil proceeded to scratch a further 50 or more trees before finally success, an Owlet-Nightjar flew out perching nearby for us to enjoy and photograph.
Heading south again we spent some time driving around paddocks belonging to friends of Phil’s. Banded Lapwings and Blue Bonnets were added to the list and a splash of colour was provided by several male Orange Chats and a White-winged Fairy-Wren although we could not find the Inland Dotterels that had been here a few days earlier.
A small group of trees held a Tawny Frogmouth on a nest with three chicks but we did not have long to enjoy this as it was getting late and we still had another bird to target. Fortunately it was in the same small area of trees that a pair of Ground Cuckoo-Shrikes were nesting and we were able to savour watching a bird as it stood on it nest wings slightly out to shade its chicks from the late afternoon sun.
For most birders the main reason for visiting Deniliquin is to look for Plains-wanderers and as dusk approached we ate our sandwiches in the middle of a large paddock full of anticipation. As it began to get dark I could hear a low hooting sound somewhere in the distance, unfortunately no one else in the party could hear it. Grabbing the spotlight we all walked in that direction and the bird continued to call intermittently, eventually Phil could hear it and confirm it was a Plains-wanderer but when we got closer to where it was calling from it went quiet so we returned to get Phil’s 4x4.
Driving in the direction that the bird had been calling from Phil scanned with a spotlight and we found the bird very quickly, in fact Phil reckoned one of his fastest times ever for finding one. He also told us that this had been one of the worst years in the last 15 for seeing Plains-wanderers and he had missed them on 3 trips so far this year, so we were very lucky.
This female Plains-wanderer did not want show off her superb front of, a black and white cheque pattern above an orange breast band. Every time we stopped the vehicle she would walk away a short distance and stand with her back to us. Phil however, told us to get out and stand together whilst he drove around the other side of her and she walked right up to us. When I say right up to us I mean within 6 inches, which was a little too close for photography.
Having had our fill, although you can never really have too much time watching Plains-wanderers, we let her go on her way and we targeted several other birds more easily found at night in the beam of a spotlight. First up was a Little Buttonquail, a bird that I had hoped for but not really expected, which flushed in front of us and by keeping it in the spotlight whilst driving we were able to enjoy it on the ground.
Soon after we flushed a flock of around 10 Stubble Quail and watched a couple of these on the ground, a view I was happy to tick after my brief flight view a week or so earlier. That just left Inland Dotterel and Australian Pratincole to find, but after much driving around the paddock all we had managed was one Inland Dotterel that flushed in front of us and just kept going. Returning to the paddock where we had looked for them during daylight hours we found several Dotterel, including a young bird, exactly where we had looked for them earlier.
Having seen Australian Pratincoles several times previously in daylight, our last target was less important to me, but would be a lifer for Dave so we continued searching and struck lucky 15 minutes later. Well satisfied we headed back to Deniliquin arriving there at 11pm, earlier than expected, which was good as we had a long drive the next day and I had heard of people not getting back until after 2am if they struggled to find the Plains-wanderer.
3 November
A bit of a lie-in after the late finish the previous day still saw us on the road by 7.00am, heading to Mt Ida. Our target here was the difficult to see Chestnut-rumped Heathwren. The site that I had confirmed with Phil the previous day was on the road to the Mt Ida lookout where it just starts to go more steeply up hill. Finding the right spot was the easy bit seeing the bird was a whole lot more difficult and after a couple of hours whilst having heard the bird singing a few times the only view was of a bird dropping out of sight before I could even register the thought to raise my binoculars.
Admitting defeat we set off for the coast, the only stop we made on the way apart from for lunch was as we hit the Great Ocean Road somewhere in the Otways at a lookout point. Not expecting to see anything other than a view it was quite a surprise to add a lifer in the shape of a Striated Fieldwren, or to be precise several Striated Fieldwrens.
Our reason for visiting the coast near Port Campbell was look for Rufous Bristlebirds, but this is a very much a tourist area and driving towards the Twelve Apostles car park saw that it was packed with coaches and cars, so we pushed on to Loch Ard Gorge. Yet again there were lots of tourists and this was our primary site to look for the Bristlebird. Thinking we might as well check out the area and return the following morning we drove down towards the car park and were stunned when a Rufous Bristlebird ran across the road in front of us.
We spent an hour visiting the various lookouts, but had no further sightings in the strong wind that seemed to be following us every time we hit the coast.
4 November
Next day the wind was still very strong and there was a little drizzle in the air as we returned to Loch Ard Gorge. This time the car park was empty of vehicles and it was much better for Bristlebirds of which we saw five or six, seeing them really well as they sang from the top of bushes and walked around the edge of the car park.
Having missed Koalas on previous visits to Australia we were keen to rectify that and headed for Cape Otway where, I had read in previous trip reports, they are easily seen on the road down to the lighthouse. As soon as we were off the Great Ocean Road and could find somewhere to park we started looking and it did not take long to find a Koala, right in the top of a very large tree, further scanning revealed a couple more. A motorcyclist then stopped and told us that they were much easier to see further down the road where the trees were smaller, he was certainly right. We found a suitable place to park and within five minutes had spotted 8 Koalas’, including two with young. In total driving up and down this road we saw 25 to 30 Koalas.
The one dip I had on the road to the lighthouse was Gang-gang Cockatoo, I heard one flying over, but only saw a shape through the trees overhead. However, we still had a further chance of these back in the Otways and that was where we were heading next. We drove a loop through the Otways starting at Kennet River and finishing at Lorne, unfortunately the coastal drizzle became steady rain in the hills and there was not a Gang-gang to be seen but we did manage to see a female Satin Bowerbird and hear a Rose Robin.
Back on the coast we stopped at Apollo Bay to look at our first Black-faced Cormorants on rocks at the west end of town. At the wast end of the beach, a section was cordoned off for nesting Hooded Plovers according to a sign, so a quick stop and another lifer was added.
Our final stop of the day was at Point Addis, where a walk though the woods added Yellow Robin to the list, but nothing much else. We decided to head down to the actual point for a quick look on the sea, but whilst there was nothing new on the seabird front a pair of Rufous Bristlebirds were bathing in a puddle in the car park, providing photo opportunities in much better light than earlier that morning.
Back to Melbourne we checked in at an airport hotel and returned our hire car as the next day we would be flying to Tasmania.
Tasmania
5th November
Our flight was on time so we were touching down in Hobart at 8.30am, seeing our first Forest Ravens as we taxied to our stand. The airport is fairly small so we were out and on our way in no time at all but we would be tight for the 9.30 ferry to Bruny Island so we opted for an hour at Peter Murrell Reserve, which we would pass on the way.
Tasmania has 12 endemics, assuming no further splits are made, and our first was walking around in the car park, Tasmanian Nativehen. A short walk past the ponds and we had seen another four, Black-headed and Yellow-throated Honeyeater, Dusky Robin and Yellow Wattlebird. One of the key species for this site though, Forty-spotted Pardalote could not be found before we made a dash for the next ferry.
From the ferry to Bruny Island a Little Penguin was seen swimming and diving to our starboard side, a good bird to see in the daytime. Over on Bruny Island we headed off around North Bruny to look for the Pardalote picking up Green Rosella, our sixth endemic, on the way. We stopped to eat our lunch by a small quarry alongside the road to the southeast of Dennes Point. I had seen a trip report mention seeing the Forty-spotted Pardalote near here and within 10 minutes we had also seen one, although trying to get a photo proved much harder as it moved about high in the trees.
Driving to South Bruny Island we made a quick stop at the neck where Little Penguins and Short-tailed Shearwaters nest, but we would need to be here at dusk to see them. We checked in at the Explorers Cottages, before heading out to search for the remaining five endemics. We headed from Lunawanna towards Adventure Bay along Coolangatta Road that goes over Mt Mangana. I soon heard our first Crescent Honeyeaters, which necessitated a quick stop that turned into a 30 minute stop as two more endemics, Tasmanian Scrubwren and Tasmanian Thornbill also showed up. Dropping down towards Adventure Bay we stopped by some pine trees just past the Resolution Road turnoff and added our 10th endemic, Strong-billed Honeyeater.
Turning around we headed along Resolution Road towards the Ma Vista trail, but before we could reach there a Pink Robin was spotted sat low in a tree alongside the road and we had to stop again. Although not an endemic, Pink Robin was one of the highlights of Tasmania for us.
The Ma Vista trail is supposed to be one of the best sites for birds on South Bruny although we probably did not do it justice in the five minutes it took to find our next endemic target Scrubtit. In less than a day we had seen 11 out of the 12 endemics only the Black Currawong remained and I am not sure whether they would still be around on Bruny Island in early summer or whether they would have headed for higher ground. The only Curraongs we saw on Bruny were very mobile and did not stick around for a positive ID. I suspect that they were all Grey Currawongs.
In Adventure Bay we spent some time watching Hooded Plovers on the beach before heading back to our accommodation.
The owner of the Explorer’s Cottages had told us that there was no point in arriving to see the Little Penguin’s at the Neck before 8.30pm but we were there along with several other people at 7.30pm. By 8.30pm there were about 20 people, but still no Penguins. Shortly after this the first Short-tailed Shearwaters started to arrive and these put on a great show as they flew low over our heads. By 9.00pm it was almost pitch black, still no Penguins and also considerably less people but Penguin’s could be heard calling from behind us where their burrows were. Walking back up the boardwalk there were Penguins standing right alongside it and Shearwaters occasionally crashing into bushes around me. It was about 9.15pm before the first Penguins came out of the sea and I think most of the general tourists still there were rather disappointed with the spectacle.
When we set off to return to our cottage, for the first kilometre we repeatedly had to stop for Penguins on the road. This provided much better views in the car headlights than we had had on the beach.
6th November
With only a few target birds left, we headed along Lighthouse Road and it did not take long to find the first, an Olive Whistler. One of the more difficult species we hoped to see here was Beautiful Firetail. We had previously heard one at Loch Ard Gorge but this day, despite much searching, we never even heard a sound from one.
Typically the Lighthouse did not open until 9.00am so a short period of seawatching was done from the car park. Nothing new was seen but the numbers of Short-tailed Shearwaters was truly impressive with tens of thousands of birds congregating well offshore.
Heading back along Lighthouse Road we stopped when I spotted a female-type Robin and which I suspected to be a Flame Robin. This was then confirmed when it began to sing. It was a tick but not the nice bright male I had hoped for, but that was soon put right when we stopped by the self-pay station and connected with an adult male. This bird was obviously encroaching onto the territory of a Scarlet Robin as a chase through the trees commenced as we watched.
A quick return to Adventure Bay saw us pick up Swift Parrots in the trees between the beach and the road, but with Black Currawong still to see we headed back to the Tasmanian mainland and drove to Mt Wellington. It did not take us too long walking along the Radford’s track to get good views of a Black Currawong, but this did prove to be the only definite one we saw. With all the endemics now seen we headed for the top of Mt Wellington to do the tourist bit. As there was not a cloud in the sky there was a spectacular view across Hobart and the surrounding area.
With time to spare we headed down to Truganani Reserve for an hour or so. The only new trip bird, a Satin Flycatcher, was only heard and we had no luck in finding any day roosting Masked Owls.
7th November
We decided to spend our last morning to the east of Hobart, our first stop was Ralph’s Bay, where on some mudflats there were quite a few Red-necked Stints, and our only Bar-tailed Godwits of the trip. Whilst we were watching these a local birdwatcher stopped for a chat, telling us that it would be a couple of hours before high tide brought in more waders and that this was the best site for them. We tried to get information from him on where we might see our last realistic lifer Beautiful Firetail, but he told us that it was at least four months since he last saw one and it was a bird you really just chance across.
Rather than waiting for high tide we decided to head further east to the Tasman National Park and visit a few touristy sites. There were several blowholes and sea-arches to be seen and with far fewer tourists than along the Great Ocean Road, an Eastern Spinebill was a trip first at one of these stops.
At the Witches Kitchen stop, the road ends and to continue you have to go on foot. We had time to kill so we decided to walk along the track. Within a couple of hundred metres of the car park the vegetation opened up and it was here that we struck lucky as a Beautiful Firetail flew into a tree right in front of us showing the bright red flash in its tail as it flew in.
Continuing along the track we saw another male Flame Robin, but nothing much else, until on the way back we got a view of a couple of Currawongs, which we were able to confirm as Grey Currawongs.
Our final stop, on the way back to the airport, was just on a side road in a nicely wooded area, where we saw several Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo’s, Olive Whistlers and some very loud Yellow Wattlebirds.
The trip had far exceeded our expectations with over 300 birds seen and just over 100 lifers. We missed very little that one could reasonably expect to see in the time available and special thanks must go to Peter Waanderer and Phil Maher for the day we spent with each of them.
Emu Dromaius novaehollandiae
Mute Swan Cygnus olor
Black Swan Cygnus atratus
Cape Barren Goose Cereopsis novaehollandiae
Freckled Duck Stictonetta naevosa
Australian Shelduck Tadorna tadornoides
Maned Duck Chenonetta jubata
Grey Teal Anas gracilis
Chestnut Teal Anas castanea
Pacific Black Duck Anas superciliosa
Australian Shoveler Anas rhynchotis
Pink-eared Duck Malacorhynchus membranaceus
White-eyed Duck Aythya australis
Blue-billed Duck Oxyura australis
Musk Duck Biziura lobata
Malleefowl Leipoa ocellata
Stubble Quail Coturnix pectoralis
Brown Quail Coturnix ypsilophora
Little Penguin Eudyptula minor
Australasian Grebe Tachybaptus novaehollandiae
Hoary-headed Grebe Poliocephalus poliocephalus
Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus
Black-browed Albatross Thalassarche melanophris
Shy Albatross Thalassarche cauta
Yellow-nosed Albatross Thalassarche chlororhynchos
Southern Giant-Petrel Macronectes giganteus
Great-winged Petrel Pterodroma macroptera
White-headed Petrel Pterodroma lessonii
Flesh-footed Shearwater Puffinus carneipes
Short-tailed Shearwater Puffinus tenuirostris
Little Shearwater Puffinus assimilis
Australian Pelican Pelecanus conspicillatus
Australian Gannet Morus serrator
Little Black Cormorant Phalacrocorax sulcirostris
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
Pied Cormorant Phalacrocorax varius
Black-faced Cormorant Phalacrocorax fuscescens
Little Pied Cormorant Phalacrocorax melanoleucos
Darter Anhinga melanogaster
Pacific Heron Ardea pacifica
Great Egret Ardea alba
White-faced Heron Egretta novaehollandiae
Little Egret Egretta garzetta
Australian Ibis Threskiornis molucca
Straw-necked Ibis Threskiornis spinicollis
Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus
Royal Spoonbill Platalea regia
Yellow-billed Spoonbill Platalea flavipes
Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Australian Kite Elanus axillaris
Black Kite Milvus migrans
Whistling Kite Haliastur sphenurus
White-bellied Sea-Eagle Haliaeetus leucogaster
Swamp Harrier Circus approximans
Spotted Harrier Circus assimilis
Gray Goshawk Accipiter novaehollandiae
Brown Goshawk Accipiter fasciatus
Collared Sparrowhawk Accipiter cirrocephalus
Wedge-tailed Eagle Aquila audax
Little Eagle Aquila morphnoides
Australian Kestrel Falco cenchroides
Australian Hobby Falco longipennis
Brown Falcon Falco berigora
Black Falcon Falco subniger
Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus
Little Buttonquail Turnix velox
Brolga Grus rubicunda
Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis
Baillon's Crake Porzana pusilla
Australian Crake Porzana fluminea
Purple Swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio
Dusky Moorhen Gallinula tenebrosa
Black-tailed Native-hen Gallinula ventralis
Tasmanian Native-hen Gallinula mortierii
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra
Pied Oystercatcher Haematopus longirostris
Sooty Oystercatcher Haematopus fuliginosus
Pied Stilt Himantopus leucocephalus
Banded Stilt Cladorhynchus leucocephalus
Red-necked Avocet Recurvirostra novaehollandiae
Bush Thick-knee Burhinus grallarius
Australian Pratincole Stiltia isabella
Banded Lapwing Vanellus tricolor
Masked Lapwing Vanellus miles
Red-kneed Dotterel Erythrogonys cinctus
Red-capped Plover Charadrius ruficapillus
Oriental Plover Charadrius veredus
Hooded Plover Thinornis cucullatus
Black-fronted Dotterel Elseyornis melanops
Inland Dotterel Peltohyas australis
Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica
Little Curlew Numenius minutus
Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus
Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
Grey-tailed Tattler Tringa brevipes
Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres
Red-necked Stint Calidris ruficollis
Long-toed Stint Calidris subminuta
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper Calidris acuminata
Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea
Plains-wanderer Pedionomus torquatus
Silver Gull Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae
Pacific Gull Larus pacificus
Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus
Bridled Tern Onychoprion anaethetus
Fairy Tern Sternula nereis
Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia
Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida
Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea
Great Crested Tern Thalasseus bergii
Parasitic Jaeger Stercorarius parasiticus
Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis
Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis
Common Bronzewing Phaps chalcoptera
Brush Bronzewing Phaps elegans
Crested Pigeon Geophaps lophotes
Diamond Dove Geopelia cuneata
Peaceful Dove Geopelia placida
Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksii
Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus funereus
Short-billed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus latirostris
Long-tailed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus baudinii
Galah Eolophus roseicapilla
Long-billed Corella Cacatua tenuirostris
Western Corella Cacatua pastinator
Little Corella Cacatua sanguinea
Pink Cockatoo Cacatua leadbeateri
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua galerita
Cockatiel Nymphicus hollandicus
Rainbow Lorikeet Trichoglossus haematodus
Musk Lorikeet Glossopsitta concinna
Purple-crowned Lorikeet Glossopsitta porphyrocephala
Red-capped Parrot Purpureicephalus spurius
Port Lincoln Parrot Barnardius zonarius
Mallee Ringneck Barnardius barnardi
Green Rosella Platycercus caledonicus
Crimson Rosella Platycercus elegans
Yellow Rosella Platycercus flaveolus
Adelaide Rosella Platycercus adelaidae
Eastern Rosella Platycercus eximius
Western Rosella Platycercus icterotis
Mulga Parrot Psephotus varius
Red-rumped Parrot Psephotus haematonotus
Bluebonnet Northiella haematogaster
Bourke's Parrot Neophema bourkii
Blue-winged Parrot Neophema chrysostoma
Elegant Parrot Neophema elegans
Swift Parrot Lathamus discolor
Budgerigar Melopsittacus undulatus
Superb Parrot Polytelis swainsonii
Regent Parrot Polytelis anthopeplus
Pallid Cuckoo Cuculus pallidus
Fan-tailed Cuckoo Cacomantis flabelliformis
Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo Chrysococcyx basalis
Australian Owlet-Nightjar Aegotheles cristatus
Tawny Frogmouth Podargus strigoides
Spotted Nightjar Eurostopodus argus
Laughing Kookaburra Dacelo novaeguineae
Red-backed Kingfisher Todiramphus pyrrhopygius
Sacred Kingfisher Todiramphus sanctus
Rainbow Bee-eater Merops ornatus
Noisy Scrub-bird Atrichornis clamosus
Welcome Swallow Hirundo neoxena
Fairy Martin Petrochelidon ariel
Tree Martin Petrochelidon nigricans
White-backed Swallow Cheramoeca leucosterna
Australasian Pipit Anthus novaeseelandiae
Ground Cuckoo-shrike Coracina maxima
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike Coracina novaehollandiae
White-winged Triller Lalage tricolor
Eurasian Blackbird Turdus merula
Australian Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus australis
Little Grassbird Megalurus gramineus
Brown Songlark Cincloramphus cruralis
Willie-wagtail Rhipidura leucophrys
Grey Fantail Rhipidura albiscapa
Restless Flycatcher Myiagra inquieta
Jacky-winter Microeca fascinans
Scarlet Robin Petroica multicolor
Red-capped Robin Petroica goodenovii
Flame Robin Petroica phoenicea
Pink Robin Petroica rodinogaster
Hooded Robin Melanodryas cucullata
Dusky Robin Melanodryas vittata
Yellow Robin Eopsaltria australis
Grey-breasted Robin Eopsaltria griseogularis
White-breasted Robin Eopsaltria georgiana
Southern Scrub-Robin Drymodes brunneopygia
Crested Shrike-tit Falcunculus frontatus
Crested Bellbird Oreoica gutturalis
Olive Whistler Pachycephala olivacea
Red-lored Whistler Pachycephala rufogularis
Gilbert's Whistler Pachycephala inornata
Golden Whistler Pachycephala pectoralis
Rufous Whistler Pachycephala rufiventris
Grey Shrike-Thrush Colluricincla harmonica
Grey-crowned Babbler Pomatostomus temporalis
White-browed Babbler Pomatostomus superciliosus
Chestnut-crowned Babbler Pomatostomus ruficeps
Western Whipbird Psophodes nigrogularis
Chiming Wedgebill Psophodes occidentalis
Chestnut Quail-thrush Cinclosoma castanotum
Chestnut-breasted Quail-thrush Cinclosoma castaneothorax
White-winged Fairywren Malurus leucopterus
Superb Fairywren Malurus cyaneus
Splendid Fairywren Malurus splendens
Variegated Fairywren Malurus lamberti
Red-winged Fairywren Malurus elegans
Blue-breasted Fairywren Malurus pulcherrimus
Southern Emuwren Stipiturus malachurus
Mallee Emuwren Stipiturus mallee
Striated Grasswren Amytornis striatus
Western Bristlebird Dasyornis longirostris
Rufous Bristlebird Dasyornis broadbenti
White-browed Scrubwren Sericornis frontalis
Tasmanian Scrubwren Sericornis humilis
Scrubtit Acanthornis magna
Redthroat Pyrrholaemus brunneus
Striated Fieldwren Calamanthus fuliginosus
Shy Heathwren Hylacola cauta
Buff-rumped Thornbill Acanthiza reguloides
Western Thornbill Acanthiza inornata
Slender-billed Thornbill Acanthiza iredalei
Brown Thornbill Acanthiza pusilla
Tasmanian Thornbill Acanthiza ewingii
Inland Thornbill Acanthiza apicalis
Yellow-rumped Thornbill Acanthiza chrysorrhoa
Chestnut-rumped Thornbill Acanthiza uropygialis
Slaty-backed Thornbill Acanthiza robustirostris
Yellow Thornbill Acanthiza nana
Weebill Smicrornis brevirostris
Western Gerygone Gerygone fusca
Southern Whiteface Aphelocephala leucopsis
Crimson Chat Epthianura tricolor
Orange Chat Epthianura aurifrons
White-fronted Chat Epthianura albifrons
Varied Sittella Neositta chrysoptera
White-throated Treecreeper Cormobates leucophaea
White-browed Treecreeper Climacteris affinis
Brown Treecreeper Climacteris picumnus
Rufous Treecreeper Climacteris rufus
Mistletoebird Dicaeum hirundinaceum
Spotted Pardalote Pardalotus punctatus
Forty-spotted Pardalote Pardalotus quadragintus
Striated Pardalote Pardalotus striatus
Silver-eye Zosterops lateralis
Brown Honeyeater Lichmera indistincta
Black Honeyeater Certhionyx niger
Pied Honeyeater Certhionyx variegatus
Singing Honeyeater Lichenostomus virescens
White-eared Honeyeater Lichenostomus leucotis
Yellow-throated Honeyeater Lichenostomus flavicollis
Purple-gaped Honeyeater Lichenostomus cratitius
Yellow-plumed Honeyeater Lichenostomus ornatus
White-plumed Honeyeater Lichenostomus penicillatus
White-naped Honeyeater Melithreptus lunatus
Black-headed Honeyeater Melithreptus affinis
Strong-billed Honeyeater Melithreptus validirostris
Brown-headed Honeyeater Melithreptus brevirostris
Noisy Friarbird Philemon corniculatus
Crescent Honeyeater Phylidonyris pyrrhopterus
New Holland Honeyeater Phylidonyris novaehollandiae
White-cheeked Honeyeater Phylidonyris niger
White-fronted Honeyeater Phylidonyris albifrons
Tawny-crowned Honeyeater Phylidonyris melanops
Striped Honeyeater Plectorhyncha lanceolata
Eastern Spinebill Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris
Western Spinebill Acanthorhynchus superciliosus
Blue-faced Honeyeater Entomyzon cyanotis
Noisy Miner Manorina melanocephala
Yellow-throated Miner Manorina flavigula
Black-eared Miner Manorina melanotis
Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater Acanthagenys rufogularis
Red Wattlebird Anthochaera carunculata
Brush Wattlebird Anthochaera chrysoptera
Little Wattlebird Anthochaera lunulata
Yellow Wattlebird Anthochaera paradoxa
Magpie-lark Grallina cyanoleuca
White-winged Chough Corcorax melanorhamphos
Apostlebird Struthidea cinerea
Masked Woodswallow Artamus personatus
White-browed Woodswallow Artamus superciliosus
Black-faced Woodswallow Artamus cinereus
Dusky Woodswallow Artamus cyanopterus
Grey Butcherbird Cracticus torquatus
Pied Butcherbird Cracticus nigrogularis
Australasian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen
Pied Currawong Strepera graculina
Black Currawong Strepera fuliginosa
Grey Currawong Strepera versicolor
Satin Bowerbird Ptilonorhynchus violaceus
Western Bowerbird Chlamydera guttata
Little Crow Corvus bennetti
Australian Raven Corvus coronoides
Little Raven Corvus mellori
Forest Raven Corvus tasmanicus
Common Myna Acridotheres tristis
European Starling Sturnus vulgaris
House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Beautiful Firetail Stagonopleura bella
Red-eared Firetail Stagonopleura oculata
Diamond Firetail Stagonopleura guttata
Zebra Finch Taeniopygia castanotis
European Greenfinch Carduelis chloris
European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis