The trip turned out to be quite an experience with everything from stinking hot conditions (45°C in the shade) and too many flies, through to extensive flooding of the outback region. It’s been amazing that at the time of the trip, central Australia was experiencing a severe prolonged drought and since then Australia has been blessed with extended periods of plentiful rain.
The trip however was a birding bonanza with great sightings of Flock Bronzewing, Australian Pratincole, Inland Dotterel, Letter-winged Kite, all five Grasswren (Striated, Short-tailed, Eyrean, Grey and Thick-billed), all five Chat (Yellow, Crimson, Orange, Gibberbird and White-fronted), Banded Whiteface, Black-eared Cuckoo, Ruff, Oriental Plover and Slender-billed Thornbill.
The overall trip covered some 2,800 km from Adelaide, via
Gluepot Reserve and Flinders Ranges, up the Birdsville Track as far as just
south of Birdsville, and then back south again.
The basic itinerary included:
·
Adelaide to Waikerie - Late
afternoon drive from Adelaide airport to Waikerie via Swan Reach Conservation
Park
·
Gluepot Reserve - Morning
visit to Gluepot and then early evening drive to Peterborough
·
Flinders / Mt Lyndhurst -
Early morning visit to Flinders Ranges, then Mt Lyndhurst, overnighting
in Mungerannie
·
Birdsville Track - Drive
up to the Inner Birdsville Track and back to Mungerannie
·
Mungerannie to Leigh Creek - Drive back down
to Leigh Creek, just south of Lyndhurst
·
Leigh Creek to Adelaide - Visited
Port Augusta and Port Gawler Conservation Park on the drive south to Adelaide
The daily account of the trip is as follows:
17
November: We departed from Adelaide airport late in the afternoon and
headed up to Waikerie, via the Swan Reach Conservation Park. We had our first
sightings of some good species including Orange Chat and Chestnut-crowned
Babbler, and saw plenty of Western Grey and Red Kangaroo as the sun was
setting. Stayed in the Waikerie Hotel Motel for the evening, which was
comfortable and had good meals.
Mallee Military Dragon (Ctenophorus fordi) |
18
November: We headed out early for the Gluepot Reserve, north of Waikerie,
and tracked down some good birds including Chestnut Quail-thrush, Red-backed
Kingfisher and Southern Scrub-Robin, on the way up to Gluepot. Once in the
Gluepot Reserve we managed to get onto a pair of Red-lored Whistler, with the
male singing and displaying nicely.
Then it was off to look for the Striated Grasswren, which was
difficult as their numbers had dropped significantly in recent years, due to
the ongoing drought. We tried quite a few different locations and by the time
we reached a fourth location it was the middle of the day and 45°C according to
Gluepot's weather station. At this site we
split up, with Murray and myself heading off with a walkie-talkie. We managed
to find a Striated Grasswren, as it moved between various bushes, and
eventually Don managed to see it as well.
That afternoon we were due to drive to the Flinders Ranges but
when our rented Toyota Landcruiser 4WD started blowing hot air out of the air
conditioner, we had to head back to Waikerie. After much haggling and cajoling,
Budget Rentals eventually agreed to send out a new vehicle, which we picked up
in Morgan and then we continued on to Peterborough in the evening.
We stayed at a motel in Peterborough which was a bit of a
disappointment as we had planned to stay in the Wilpena Pound for the night.
However at least the trip was back on again, at one time we thought we would
have to drive back to Adelaide to collect a new vehicle and that would have severely
disrupted the rest of the trip.
19
November: After another early morning start we arrived at the infamous Stokes
Hill in the Flinders Ranges just after sunrise. I call it infamous as I have
looked for Short-tailed Grasswren here before in winter and hadn’t managed to find
them. However on this visit it didn't take us long before we saw a pair of Short-tailed
Grasswren foraging between clumps of spinifex. My theory is that Grasswren
prefer the warmer conditions and dislike cold windy conditions. After a while
we had good views of one Short-tailed Grasswren in a rocky gulley before the
bird escaped by disappearing down a rabbit burrow and staying there.
We then headed off to Brachina Gorge, stopping off at the river
crossing. Here I managed to see and photograph Black-eared Cuckoo which I hadn’t
seen before. A little further on, we saw the endangered Yellow-footed
Rock-wallaby before we left the Flinders Ranges and drove up to Mt Lyndhurst on
the Strzelecki Track. The road up to
Lyndhurst is sealed and the lower section of the Strzelecki Track is a wide
dirt road in very good condition.
Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby |
At Mt Lyndhurst it didn't take long to get our second Grasswren of
the day, with a couple of Thick-billed Grasswren seen in the thick undergrowth in
the gulley. One gave great views and we also got the first of several Cinnamon
Quail-thrush and a Rufous Fieldwren.
Well disguised Thick-billed Grasswren |
We gave the Chestnut-breasted Whiteface site a miss at Mt
Lyndhurst as we were pressed for time and the plan was to revisit the site on the
way back. This was unfortunate as we missed out on the Whiteface and some three
years later I still haven’t seen the Chestnut-breasted Whiteface even after
revisiting Mt Lyndhurst.
We then had lunch back at the Lyndhurst pub and as we stepped outside
saw two Inland Dotterel at the edge of the car park. Not really the environment
that you would expect to see the birds, however the caravan park had sprinklers
running on a small patch of green grass, and this was attracting the birds.
We continued on through to Marree before turning off northwards
onto the Birdsville Track. We stopped off at the creek crossing at Dulkaninna
Station where we heard Red-browed Pardalote in the distance. We then drove up
to the Mungerannie roadhouse which was to be our base for the next two nights. The
accommodation was comfortable, the food plentiful and tasty, and it’s the way
to travel in the outback.
Mungerannie also has a large wetland close to the roadhouse, which
attracts many interesting birds, including Pink-eared Duck, Glossy Ibis,
Brolga, Crimson and Orange Chat, Bluebonnet and two species of Dotterel. I recorded
close to 50 birds at this site which is quite amazing considering that we were
in the middle of a desert.
In the evening we headed out to a nearby communications tower
where a Grey Falcon had been seen a couple of times previously. We dipped on
that but we did manage to track down a couple of Eyrean Grasswren and eight Banded
Whiteface on nearby sand dunes.
20
November: After an even earlier start we headed further northwards,
ultimately up the Inner Birdsville Track as far as just south of the Queensland
border. This is an area of remote outback landscape consisting of seasonally
inundated swamps (now dry), sandy deserts with sand dunes running for miles and
stony ‘gibber’ plains.
Typical Sand Dunes |
First target was Grey Grasswren which we got onto quickly and eventually
turned up 6 individuals. That meant that we'd seen all five target Grasswren in
less than 48 hours, which was great birding considering how difficult it can be
to find any species of Grasswren.
Birding the Birdsville Track - Murray, Don and Peter |
Then we headed further along the track and found huge numbers of
Flock Bronzewing on the grassy plains. They were seemingly everywhere; our estimate
was about 8,000 birds. Flocks took off
on both sides of the car as we drove, and would land again providing great
photo opportunities.
Flock Bronzewing |
Next stop was a waterhole where we saw another Inland Dotterel at close range and then had good views of four nesting Letter-winged Kite. While we watched them, huge flocks of Flock Bronzewing continued to fly past.
Letter-winged Kite |
Then we headed for the Yellow Chat site at the Pandiburra
Bore. It was bizarre to drive through hot dry land and then come to this artesian
bore with boiling water spraying out everywhere and lots of waterbirds. After
sorting our way through lots of Orange and Crimson Chats we eventually located
two distant Yellow Chat, which provided good scope views.
Pandiburra Bore |
There were lots of other waterbirds and waders present too,
including four Oriental Plover, a Ruff, a lone Plumed Whistling-duck and at
least forty Australian Pratincole.
On the way back we managed to locate more Eyrean Grasswren by
searching in suitable sand dune habitat. Don attempted to photograph a little
sneaky Eyrean Grasswren and it kept moving to the opposite side of the bush
where Don was, giving us great views, but eluding Don from getting a photograph.
21
November: We woke up to a cooler, overcast morning – what a pleasure. It
was time to head south and stops along the way produced some nice species including
White-backed Swallow, Diamond Dove and Brolga. The main target for the day was the
Gibberbird and it didn't take too much time to find a pair which we saw well. As
we returned to the track from looking at them we disturbed a flock of 25 Inland
Dotterel.
Inland Dotterel |
Heading south to Marree things started getting wetter. We'd had a few
drops of rain at Mungerannie but it was clear there had been a lot of rain further
south. The road got very slippery as we got to Marree and we started to worry
about the track being closed there. Luckily they hadn't done so (yet) and we
could continue.
Flooding Outback |
When we finally reached the sealed road at Lyndhurst, we found that the
lower section of the Strzelecki track had been closed after some 55mm of rain (half of their annual average),
so we weren't going to be able to look for Chestnut-breasted Whiteface. Bit of
a disappointment but nothing we could do about it.
Strzelecki Track - Road Closure |
We decided to head as far south as we could because of the risk of
further rain stranding us. Unfortunately we only made it to Leigh Creek before a
fast flowing creek, just south of Leigh Creek, had closed the road to all
traffic. The local kids were enjoying the water, which was about
a metre deep across the road and flowing fast. We spent the night at Leigh
Creek Tavern which was very comfortable and had a good dinner that evening.
South of Leigh Creek |
22
November: Luckily by the morning the creek was low enough to cross. Further
south there was still water everywhere with trees and sandbars across the road at
creek beds. We saw some 4WD’s driving up and down in the water in an attempt to
clean off all the mud from their vehicles.
We saw a few Banded Stilts at Port Augusta and spent some time at
the Arid Lands Botanical Gardens
nearby, getting Pied Honeyeater and Chirruping Wedgebill. We then drove down
to Port Gawler Conservation Park to find Slender-billed Thornbill in the
coastal samphire.
Chirruping Wedgebill |
Our tour finished in Adelaide and I made an unsuccessful attempt
to find Barbary Dove (an introduced species to Adelaide) around the hotel where
I was staying in Glenelg for the evening.
What a trip with some great birds being seen, 12 of these were
lifers, and some fantastic organisation by Peter Waanders given the difficult
conditions. Well done to Peter for all the long days of driving and then
finding the birds when conditions were quite trying.
As a word of advice, especially for those travelling from overseas,
always allow a least a couple of day’s leeway for a trip of this nature. One
never knows what may go wrong on the trip and if it does, there may be long
delays given the remoteness of the area.
If we had been a day later into Marree, then we would have been
stuck, as the road had been closed the day after we managed to get through. As the
delay in Marree could easily have been a couple of days, until the road had
dried out sufficiently to be drivable, this would have meant that we would have
missed our return flights. This isn’t too much of a problem for those with only
local flights booked however missing overseas flights could be expensive.
Outback Travel Advice |
For the overall trip I
managed to record 138
birds seen, with the Red-browed Pardalote only being heard. The birds seen and heard are
listed below:
CASUARIIFORMES
Emu
(Dromaiidae)
Emu [sp] (Dromaius
novaehollandiae)
Galliformes
Pheasants,
Fowl & Allies (Phasianidae)
Stubble Quail
(Coturnix pectoralis)
Anseriformes
Ducks,
Geese & swans (Anatidae)
Plumed Whistling
Duck (Dendrocygna eytoni)
Black Swan (Cygnus
atratus)
Pink-eared Duck
(Malacorhynchus membranaceus)
Maned Duck
(Chenonetta jubata)
Pacific Black Duck
[sp] (Anas superciliosa)
Grey Teal (Anas
gracilis)
Chestnut Teal (Anas
castanea)
Podicipediformes
Grebes
(Podicipedidae)
Australasian Grebe
[sp] (Tachybaptus novaehollandiae)
Pelecaniformes
Ibises,
Spoonbills (Threskiornithidae)
Australian White
Ibis [sp] (Threskiornis moluccus)
Glossy Ibis
(Plegadis falcinellus)
Herons,
Bitterns (Ardeidae)
Nankeen Night Heron
[sp] (Nycticorax caledonicus)
White-necked Heron
(Ardea pacifica)
Great Egret [sp]
(Ardea alba)
White-faced Heron
(Egretta novaehollandiae)
Little Egret [sp]
(Egretta garzetta)
Pelicans
(Pelecanidae)
Australian Pelican
(Pelecanus conspicillatus)
Suliformes
Cormorants,
Shags (Phalacrocoracidae)
Little Pied
Cormorant [sp] (Microcarbo melanoleucos)
ACCIPITRIFORMES
Kites,
Hawks & Eagles (Accipitridae)
Letter-winged Kite
(Elanus scriptus)
Black Kite [sp]
(Milvus migrans)
Whistling Kite
(Haliastur sphenurus)
Swamp Harrier
(Circus approximans)
Spotted Harrier
(Circus assimilis)
Brown Goshawk [sp]
(Accipiter fasciatus)
Collared Sparrowhawk
[sp] (Accipiter cirrocephalus)
Wedge-tailed Eagle
[sp] (Aquila audax)
Little Eagle
(Hieraaetus morphnoides)
Falconiformes
Caracaras,
Falcons (Falconidae)
Nankeen Kestrel
[sp] (Falco cenchroides)
Brown Falcon [sp]
(Falco berigora)
Black Falcon (Falco
subniger)
OTIDIFORMES
Bustards
(Otididae)
Australian Bustard
(Ardeotis australis)
Gruiformes
Rails,
Crakes & Coots (Rallidae)
Australian Crake
(Porzana fluminea)
Purple Swamphen
[sp] (Porphyrio porphyrio)
Black-tailed
Nativehen (Tribonyx ventralis)
Eurasian Coot [sp]
(Fulica atra)
Cranes
(Gruidae)
Brolga (Grus
rubicunda)
Charadriiformes
Stilts,
Avocets (Recurvirostridae)
White-headed Stilt
(Himantopus leucocephalus)
Banded Stilt
(Cladorhynchus leucocephalus)
Red-necked Avocet
(Recurvirostra novaehollandiae)
Plovers
(Charadriidae)
Masked Lapwing [sp]
(Vanellus miles)
Red-kneed Dotterel
(Erythrogonys cinctus)
Inland Dotterel
(Peltohyas australis)
Red-capped Plover
(Charadrius ruficapillus)
Oriental Plover
(Charadrius veredus)
Black-fronted
Dotterel (Elseyornis melanops)
Sandpipers,
Snipes (Scolopacidae)
Sharp-tailed
Sandpiper (Calidris acuminata)
Ruff (Philomachus
pugnax)
Coursers,
Pratincoles (Glareolidae)
Australian
Pratincole (Stiltia isabella)
Gulls,
Terns & Skimmers (Laridae)
Silver Gull [sp]
(Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae)
Caspian Tern
(Hydroprogne caspia)
Whiskered Tern [sp]
(Chlidonias hybrida)
Columbiformes
Doves and
Pigeons (Columbidae)
Spotted Dove [sp]
(Spilopelia chinensis)
Common Bronzewing
(Phaps chalcoptera)
Flock Bronzewing
(Phaps histrionica)
Crested Pigeon [sp]
(Ocyphaps lophotes)
Diamond Dove
(Geopelia cuneata)
Peaceful Dove [sp]
(Geopelia placida)
Psittaciformes
Cockatoos
(Cacatuidae)
Galah [sp]
(Eolophus roseicapilla)
Little Corella [sp]
(Cacatua sanguinea)
Sulphur-crested
Cockatoo [sp] (Cacatua galerita)
Parrots and
Macaws (Psittacidae)
Australian Ringneck
[sp] (Barnardius zonarius)
Bluebonnet [sp]
(Northiella haematogaster)
Red-rumped Parrot
[sp] (Psephotus haematonotus)
Mulga Parrot
(Psephotus varius)
Elegant Parrot [sp]
(Neophema elegans)
Budgerigar
(Melopsittacus undulatus)
Regent Parrot [sp]
(Polytelis anthopeplus)
Cuculiformes
Cuckoos
(Cuculidae)
Black-eared Cuckoo
(Chrysococcyx osculans)
Coraciiformes
Kingfishers
(Alcedinidae)
Sacred Kingfisher
[sp] (Todiramphus sanctus)
Red-backed
Kingfisher (Todiramphus pyrrhopygius)
Bee-Eaters
(Meropidae)
Rainbow Bee-eater
(Merops ornatus)
Passeriformes
Australasian
Treecreepers (Climacteridae)
Brown Treecreeper
[sp] (Climacteris picumnus)
Fairywrens
(Maluridae)
Variegated
Fairywren [sp] (Malurus lamberti)
White-winged
Fairywren [sp] (Malurus leucopterus)
Grey Grasswren [sp]
(Amytornis barbatus)
Short-tailed
Grasswren [sp] (Amytornis merrotsyi)
Striated Grasswren
[sp] (Amytornis striatus)
Eyrean Grasswren
(Amytornis goyderi)
Thick-billed
Grasswren (Amytornis modestus)
Honeyeaters
(Meliphagidae)
Singing Honeyeater
[sp] (Lichenostomus virescens)
Yellow-plumed
Honeyeater (Lichenostomus ornatus)
White-plumed
Honeyeater [sp] (Lichenostomus penicillatus)
White-fronted
Honeyeater (Purnella albifrons)
Yellow-throated
Miner [sp] (Manorina flavigula)
Black-eared Miner
(Manorina melanotis)
Spiny-cheeked
Honeyeater (Acanthagenys rufogularis)
Pied Honeyeater
(Certhionyx variegatus)
Crimson Chat
(Epthianura tricolor)
Orange Chat
(Epthianura aurifrons)
Yellow Chat [sp]
(Epthianura crocea)
White-fronted Chat
(Epthianura albifrons)
Gibberbird (Ashbyia
lovensis)
Pardalotes
(Pardalotidae)
Red-browed
Pardalote [sp] (Pardalotus rubricatus)
Thornbills
(Acanthizidae)
White-browed
Scrubwren [sp] (Sericornis frontalis)
Weebill [sp]
(Smicrornis brevirostris)
Chestnut-rumped
Thornbill (Acanthiza uropygialis)
Buff-rumped
Thornbill [sp] (Acanthiza reguloides)
Slender-billed
Thornbill [sp] (Acanthiza iredalei)
Southern Whiteface
[sp] (Aphelocephala leucopsis)
Banded Whiteface
(Aphelocephala nigricincta)
Australasian
Babblers (Pomatostomidae)
White-browed
Babbler [sp] (Pomatostomus superciliosus)
Chestnut-crowned
Babbler (Pomatostomus ruficeps)
Whipbirds,
Jewel-babblers, Quail-Thrushes (Psophodidae)
Chirruping
Wedgebill (Psophodes cristatus)
Chestnut-backed
Quail-thrush [sp] (Cinclosoma castanotum)
Cinnamon
Quail-thrush [sp] (Cinclosoma cinnamomeum)
Butcherbirds
(Cracticidae)
Grey Butcherbird
[sp] (Cracticus torquatus)
Australian Magpie
[sp] (Gymnorhina tibicen)
Woodswallows
(Artamidae)
White-breasted
Woodswallow [sp] (Artamus leucorynchus)
Masked Woodswallow
(Artamus personatus)
White-browed
Woodswallow (Artamus superciliosus)
Black-faced
Woodswallow [sp] (Artamus cinereus)
Dusky Woodswallow
[sp] (Artamus cyanopterus)
Cuckooshrikes
(Campephagidae)
Black-faced
Cuckooshrike [sp] (Coracina novaehollandiae)
White-winged
Triller (Lalage tricolor)
Whistlers
and Allies (Pachycephalidae)
Red-lored Whistler
(Pachycephala rufogularis)
Gilbert's Whistler
(Pachycephala inornata)
Grey Shrikethrush
[sp] (Colluricincla harmonica)
Crested Bellbird
[sp] (Oreoica gutturalis)
Fantails
(Rhipiduridae)
Willie Wagtail [sp]
(Rhipidura leucophrys)
Monarch
Flycatchers (Monarchidae)
Magpie-lark [sp]
(Grallina cyanoleuca)
Crows and
Jays (Corvidae)
Little Crow (Corvus
bennetti)
Australian Raven
[sp] (Corvus coronoides)
White-winged
Chough and Apostlebird (Corcoracidae)
White-winged Chough
[sp] (Corcorax melanoramphos)
Australasian
Robins (Petroicidae)
Red-capped Robin
(Petroica goodenovii)
Southern Scrub
Robin (Drymodes brunneopygia)
Larks
(Alaudidae)
Horsfield's Bush
Lark [sp] (Mirafra javanica)
Swallows
and Martins (Hirundinidae)
White-backed
Swallow (Cheramoeca leucosterna)
Welcome Swallow
[sp] (Hirundo neoxena)
Fairy Martin
(Petrochelidon ariel)
Tree Martin [sp]
(Petrochelidon nigricans)
Reed
warblers and allies (Acrocephalidae)
Australian Reed
Warbler [sp] (Acrocephalus australis)
Grassbirds
and allies (Locustellidae)
Rufous Songlark
(Megalurus mathewsi)
Brown Songlark
(Megalurus cruralis)
Starlings
(Sturnidae)
Common Starling
[sp] (Sturnus vulgaris)
Thrushes
(Turdidae)
Common Blackbird
[sp] (Turdus merula)
Old World
Sparrows and Snowfinches (Passeridae)
House Sparrow [sp]
(Passer domesticus)
Waxbills,
Munias and Allies (Estrildidae)
Zebra Finch [sp]
(Taeniopygia guttata)
Pipits and
Wagtails (Motacillidae)
Australian Pipit
[sp] (Anthus australis)
No comments:
Post a Comment