Mists Over Black Creek

Another long spell between drinks in the Bloggersphere.

Not that Fay and I have been idle in the interim. Far from it. Staffordshire in September draws ever nearer and we still have preparations in hand for that. The post-graduate studies continue apace, as does my self-initiated course in basic statistics [for ornithologists]. Above all, our project at the Tarong Power Station has stepped up a few notches.

Recently we were granted permission to access the Meandu Creek Dam, the largest water storage reservoir on site, from its "shallow end", that is the end from which the creek flows into the dam. Further, Tarong Energy have asked us to begin a monitoring program of their revegetation project adjoining the Ash Dam. It abuts Black Creek Dam which we have rather neglected over the past few weeks.

The day we chose to survey Black Creek Dam turned out to be a misty morning which rather restricted viewing. Nevertheless we persevered trusting that as the morning progressed the heat would disperse the mists. It did! We had magic views of several of the passeriforms and delighted in the feeding frenzy of the Welcome Swallow.

A pair of ravenous juveniles begging

Mum oblieges

Joys and Sorrows od Birding

As perhaps Australia's most [in]famous bushranger [for which read highwayman], Ned Kelly, reputedly uttered as the hangman fitted the noose around his neck, "Such is life". Birding has its own ups and downs; its highs and lows.


Last week Fay and I had some hopes of having sighted a pair of juvenile Star Finch Neochmia ruficauda. Having seen the little creatures in the morning, we returned later that afternoon.

En route we had the good fortune of seeing a Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus fly low over the adjoining Hoop Pine Araucaria cunninghamii before alighting atop a telegraph pole.


Sadly, we found no further signs of the supposed Star Finch that day. We return the following day and while we had crippling views of Fan-tailed Cuckoo Cacomantis flabelliformis the alleged Star Finch again failed o put in an appearance BUT we did see a reasonable flock of Red-browed Finch Neochmia temporalis which leads us to suspect that the two youngsters we first observed are in fact juveniles of this species; we didn't see the tell-tale red rump and tail region.


As we drove away we also had good views of a Willie Wagtail Rhipidura leucophrys and a male Variegated Fairy-wren Malurus lamberti.


But, isn't that birding! One day you're up, the next you're wallowing in the depths of despair.

Random Thoughts on Returning

Started my last Blog with the words “Been away from the Blog too long” and that was only after an absence of about nine days. That was all but two months ago! Who would have thought taking on board a post graduate certificate course would have consumed so much of my non-working time. Still, matters have been partly resolved and here I am, back on tap so to speak, with time to venture forth into my more normal birding activities.

The 2010 Year List, which I guessed would be effected, has crawled up to 158 with this morning’s Rose Robin Petroica rosea and Brown Gerygone Gerygone mouki being particularly pleasing additions. We found both while walking along a track running between a remnant vine scrub and the invidious Ash Dam at Tarong Power Station [where Fay and I have security clearance to monitor the birds].

The Weebill Smicronis brevirostris and Varied Sittella Daphoenositta chrysoptera have returned to the taller trees at the northern end of our property and while we continue to enjoy these, the unexpected visit of a Brown Falcon Falco berigora, actually on our neighbour’s property but clearly visible from our veranda, was a real thrill.

While at the Power Station this morning we came across a finch-type that we have been unable to immediately identify other than to say that the two birds were finches [bill] and both were juveniles of the species. Unfortunately they didn’t hang around long enough for us to take in a number of salient features but if we’re very lucky [lottery ticket time] they’ll turn out to be the rare eastern form of the Star Finch Neochmia ruficauda ruficauda. If the gods are less pleased with us it’ll be the Nutmeg Mannikin Lonchura punctulata which nevertheless would be preferably to the third possibility, the Plum-headed Finch Neochmia modesta. Whichever, any would be an addition to the Year List. We return to the area this afternoon for, hopefully, a better look.

The picture above may appear to have nothing to do with birds, birding or the West Midlands but there is a link. The dam, at the southern end of our property, has been a happy birding spot for us over the past ten years with White-necked Heron Ardea pacifica clearly the pick of the sightings here. The Labrador standing at water’s edge is ZAK, named after Izaak Walton of “The Compleat Angler” fame.

September looms ever closer; Cannock Chase beckons.

And so it rained, and rained, and ra...

South Burnett Region

Been away from the Blog too long. Hardly surprising. The skies opened up last week and we've had in excess of 200mm of rain in the past week or so. My dam [photo of it in its former glory somewhere below for those who scroll down] has peaked beyond and above former levels. Another few inches and it'll be overflowing.

And while that might suggest time for blogging, not when you have 7½ acres to look after, with ducks, chickens and assorted wildlife that also needs attention - birds find it difficult to feed themselves when there's a blanket of rain tipping out of the blue yonder. The toll of verandah visitors seeking food handouts is increasing daily: Rainbow Lorikeets, Australian King-Parrots, Apostlebirds, Grey Butcherbirds, Magpie-larks and this morning even a bedraggled Grey-crowned Babbler.

And there's the matter of clearing gutters, drains; digging "whoa-boys" to divert sheets of water away from the house and generally cleaning up as the mess mounts.

The rain has of course also severely retarded birding plans. Fay and I had an appointment with Tarong staff on Saturday to investigate a new monitoring site at the local Power Station. Washed out.

No go!

We did sneak in a quick visit to the Cooling Water Dam and the Meandu Creek Dam, the two largest dams used by the Power Station, this [Sunday] morning. The latter produced Chestnut Teal, 151 on the 2010 Year List but even more stunning were the magic views of a trio of juvenile Great Crested Grebe - a species I well recall watching at Blithfield Reservoir, among other Staffordshire sites.

150 and Counting

Such is life! The first 140+ during January but what with work and study commitments the tally had to slow down and will continue at a lesser pace until the Easter vacation period when no doubt Fay and I will manage a visit somewhere that should include different species. I'm scheduled to attend a residential weekend workshop [Charles Sturt University] in the Albury/Wodonga region [border New South Wales & Victoria border] mid-April and that may provide a few more for the Year List.

On the other hand, each passing month brings the Staffordshire trip a little closer and we still have a few preperations afoot.

Not that any of the above prevented us reaching 150 for the 2010 Year List. And what a corker to reach that milestone with, the elusive Australian Owlet-nightjar! The reward for diligence in being up at my Graduate Certificate in Ornithology books at 0400 hours. Even Fay didn't object to being awoken this early so she too could hear it. Or rather, them; one called from the east, a second responded from the west.




Not having my own photo, I've "borrowed" this one from dbpedia.org via google images.

Breakfast at Maidenwell

Our backyard dam as it was before the drought set in.

St Valentine's Day but Fay and I have long since ceased to succumb to the commercial pressures of chocolate/flower/card vendors. Instead, we took each other out for an early [Sunday] morning jaunt around Tarong National Park, ending the session at the old Maidenwell Trading Post which now also doubles up as a cafe with quite stunning views from their al fresco verandah dinning room.

The road [dirt with the exception of one 50m section of tarmac -erosion prevention] more or less circumnavigates the entire National Park. Our usual strategy is to make several stops along the first section of dirt road [from the main junction], recording birds seen and/or heard. We then stop at the first "corner" for a little longer. The process is repeated to the next "corner" - several stops to check out birds spotted flitting across the road or roosting atop roadside trees; a longer stop at the "corner" itself. And again, from this point to JANEVILLE, an isolated farmhouse only a couple kilometers from where the dirt road rejoins the tarmac [the main road]. In effect we stop birding here as thereon in it becomes steadily more "domesticated."

This morning we made only one stop along the initial section [some 50m off the main road] and then raced on to the first "corner". We were forced to make two stops en route to the second "corner" [one producing a new addition to the Year List]. The second "corner", which had proved so fruitful only a month ago, came as something of a disappointment- but then the fig tree on the edge of the vine scrub had ceased fruiting.

To dampen our birding spirits even more, the again usually productive JANEVILLE [good flycatcher country in the past] failed to produce anything more sensational than one Little Lorikeet flying by overhead.

For all that, we added Rainbow Bee-eater and Spangled Drongo to the Year List.

Breakfast at Maidenwell, on the other hand, was up to its expected high standards.

Year List: 146

Early One Morning

Well, it certainly has been a long spell between drinks. Only to be expected. Fay returned to work in early January; Queensland schools went back at the end of January. A new school year [unlike the September/July UK timetable], a new class, a new year level, a new [and heavier] teaching load and to boot, I'm the Senior Teacher [for which read unpaid Deputy Principal -Headmaster].

Not that we haven't put in some birding, or at least added to the 2010 Year List. We had good views of one of my favourite little birds, the Rufous Fantail and while up in the early hours of the morning [studying for that Graduate Certificate in Ornithology] my diligence was rewarded with the unmistakeable call of the White-throated Nightjar. Somewhere along the line we also managed to add the White-throated Honeyeater.

That put the year's tally at 142 [with no changes to the top five].

We've managed one survey of the nearby Tarong Power Station and no doubt I'll get around to spelling out exactly what that entails anon. We took out a pair of novice birders around the also nearby Tarong National Park- their first birding experience other than listing their own backyard species [one of which is admittedly the very rare lutinistic Brown Honeyeater].

This morning however, Fay and I managed an early morning trip to Mt Wooroolin, accompanied by members of the loosely formed "South Burnett Birders", minus Robert but with new addition, Heather.

Fay and I had visited Mt Wooroolin once before, during one of Fay's lunch breaks when I was on holiday but only birded the "top". On this occasion we walked around the "bottom", a mixture of vine scrub edge and open woodland.



The list [in order of seeing them] and with new additions to the Year List in block capitals includes:

Bar-shouldered Dove
Australian Magpie
White-throated Treecreeper
Torresian Crow
Grey Butcherbird
Eastern Whipbird
Lewin's Honeyeater
Sulphur-crested cockatoo
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike
Golden Whistler
White-throated Honeyeater
Double-barred Finch
Pied Currawong
Rainbow Lorikeet
Eastern Yellow Robin
Silvereye
Pied Butcherbird
Sacred Kingfisher
Brown Honeyeater
Weebill [Australia's smallest bird]
Mistletoebird
Laughing Kookaburra
Restless Flycatcher
Brown Quail
BLACK-FACED MONARCH
Noisy Friarbird
Peaceful Dove
Australasian Figbird
Scarlet Honeyeater
Pheasant Coucal
VARIED TRILLER
Dollarbird
Galah
Variegated Fairy-wren
Brown Thornbill

35 species; 2 additions to Year List

Current Tally: 144 species