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Birding NSW Newsletter

birding Newsletternsw
NSW Field Ornithologists Club Inc
Issue 266

December 2014

President’s Report
I begin this report with a request for help. At short notice,
Rae Lister has had to give up editorship of the newsletter– this issue will be her last. If no one takes up the position,
there may be a hiatus between issues, which could last forsome time. If anyone is interested in assuming the task ofnewsletter editor, please let us know!
I take this opportunity to thank Rae for her work as editor
over the last five years. She joined the Club in 2000. She hastaken the newsletter into the electronic age, and due to her
efforts, many of our members now receive the newsletter
online, saving the club a considerable amount of money.
Rae has been active on our committee, contributing manyideas. She has taken part in many Club activities such as
the Grenfell Surveys, and recently coordinated our sectionof the NSW Bird Club Stall at the 1st Australasian Bird Fair
held at Sydney Olympic Park in October.
The brainchild primarily of Phil Straw among others andsupported by BirdLife Australia through BirdLife Southern
NSW, this fair was a great success.
The NSW Bird Club stall relied on the participation ofnumerous volunteers. I would like to thank Rae, Graham
Walters, Jill Molan, Ida Rohne, Elisabeth Karplus, Jason
Smart, Robyn Price, Norma Ikin, Russell Beardmore,
Adrian Nieuwenhuizen, Gisela and Arnold Fleischmann
and Stephen Hey for helping out on the weekend. Elisabetharranged a TV presentation of bird photographs and on
behalf of the club I would like to thank the following
photographers who allowed us to use their images – Daphne
Gonzalvez, Steve Merrett, Ian Montgomery, Jodi Osgood,
Trevor Quested, Alfred Schulte, Jon Spicer-Bell, John
Taylor and Andrew Walker.
In 2015 the Twitchathon will change to the 17–18 October
and the Bird Fair will be on the 24–25 October. I encourage
you to save the dates.

Surveys. The next Regent Honeyeater Survey will take placeon the 2015 October Long Weekend. If you are interested inparticipating please email Elisabeth on emhodson@exemail.
com.au. Alan Morris continues as our representative on thenational Regent Honeyeater Recovery Project.
The raffle to support the Powerful Owl Project of BirdLife
Australia raised $350 and was drawn at the October Meetingof the Birding NSW Central Coast Group. The main prizewinner was Steve Merrett and the second prize went to Ann
Pritchard.
The Outback Track Kangaroo Island Tour led by Mark
Fuller was well appreciated by the participants. The Sydney
tour of the members of the Nagoya Branch of the Wild Bird
Club of Japan went off well and further tours are planned.
Reminder: The December Club Meeting is on the second
Tuesday of the month this year ie 9 December, when the2014 Annual General Meeting, the Arnold McGill Memorial
Lecture and the Club Christmas party will also occur.
The December Meeting Date will revert to the first Tuesdayof the month in 2015.
Tom Karplus
President, Birding NSW

New Members

A warm welcome is extended to thefollowing new members:

Eileen Davy
Dennis Grimwood
Jill Hanvey
Paddy de Klerk
Janet Ryan
Karen Smedley
Mary Smith
Robin Smith
Joy Williams
Praveen Yerramothu

Douglas Bateman has been the Birding NSW Coordinator forthe biannual Capertee Valley Tree Planting and the October
Regent Honeyeater Survey for many years and has decided
that it is time for him to hand over the reins. Madeleine
Murray will be the Tree Planting Coordinator and Elisabeth
POST APPROVED PP100001080
Karplus has volunteered to take over the RegentPRINT
Honeyeater

Holgate NSW
Saratoga NSW
Mona Vale NSW
Mona Vale NSWBlackall NSW
Janet Ryan NSW
Greenwich NSW
Manly NSW
Mt St Thomas NSW
Randwick NSW

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Birding NSW Newsletter

CLUB ACTIVITIESFIELD OUTINGS AND MEETINGSFIELD OUTINGS
Bring a snack, lunch and a chair.
NATIONAL PARK USE FEES
Club Outings are sometimes held in National Parks. A valid day pass or annual pass is necessary for 46 national parks in NSW andthat includes most in the Sydney and Central Coast Regions. The pass must be displayed on your vehicle at all times while you arein the park.
TOTAL FIRE BANS
Members are reminded that no Central Coast outings are held on days when Total Fire Bans are in force. For Sydney outings in timesof a Total Fire Ban, check with the outing leader.
SECURITY
Members are reminded not to leave anything of value visible in unattended vehicles while bird watching.
CENTRAL COAST OUTINGS
Sydney Members should advise the leader in advance if they are coming to an outing so that they don’t leave without you!
FEES AT CAMPOUTS
A camping fee may be applicable at some campsites.
PETS
Members are reminded that pets including dogs are not allowed on any Club activity including campouts.

HEALTH AND SAFETY
When attending field outings ensure you are wearing appropriate clothing, including wet weather gear in inclement weather, andsuitable footwear. It is advisable to bring a hat, sunscreen, insect repellent and to carry water.
Please sign the attendance register at field outings and also at the meetings.
If you leave the outing early please let the leader know before you go.
Participants attend at their own risk and should refrain from any behaviour that might put themselves or others at risk. That
includes assessing whether they have a level of fitness required for the advertised outing. If in doubt contact the outing leader
beforehand.

DECEMBER
Saturday 6 December Christmas Outing: Scheyville and
Mitchell Park. Meet at 8:30 am at the corner of Whitmore
and Pitt Town Dural Roads, Maraylya. Flat but sometimes
uneven walking tracks. Bring along some food to share fora Christmas picnic lunch in the first picnic area in Mitchell
Park at about 12.30 pm. Leaders: Tom and Elisabeth
Karplus 9816 2285; 0421 665 553***Tuesday 9 December Club Meeting: Please note thismeeting is on the 2nd Tuesday of the month and not on
the usual 1st Tuesday. The Mitchell Theatre, Level 1, The
Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts, 280 Pitt Street, Sydney
at 7.30 pm. Annual General Meeting and Arnold McGill
Memorial Lecture, ‘Bird Flight’, speaker: John Dengate.
The Club Christmas Party will be after the lecture. Pleasebring finger food to share.
Wednesday 10 December Central Coast Half-day
Outing: Brisbane Water NP. Meet at 8.30 am at Staples
Lookout, Woy Woy Road, Kariong. Lunch at cars Leader:
Graeme Catt 4340 2109

Saturday 13 December Central Coast Christmas
Outing and Break-up: Mardi and Tuggerah. Meetat 7.30 am at Murrumbung Homestead, 37 The Valley
Way, Mardi for an early morning walk. Morning tea at
10.00 am then an outing to McPherson Road Swampand Central Coast Wetlands. Return at 12.30 pm to
Murrumbung Homestead for BBQ Christmas Lunch andbreak-up (BYO meat and drinks). Leaders: John and
Carole Carpenter 4352 1060
Christmas Day 2014 to New Year 2015 Club Campout:
Coolah Tops National Park. Temperatures will bepleasant because of the high altitude and nights will becool for sleeping. Please note that the access road is steep
and could be rough if it has not been graded recently.
Many of the roads within the park are closed during
wet weather. Access to the main camping area at The
Barracks is suitable for all vehicles with care. Turn off
the Coolah-Merriwa Road about four km east of Coolah
then travel about 20 km to the park. Bring everything thatyou need including drinking water. There is a pit-toilet atthe campsite. Leader: Allan Richards 9660 8062

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Birding NSW Newsletter
JANUARY 2015
Saturday 10 January Club Outing: Centennial Park andvarious other locations in the Botany Bay area. Meet at 8.30
am in Dickens Drive near The Learning Centre, Centennial
Park. Bird watching within the park and other nearby areas.
Leader: Allan Richards 9660 8062; 0432 064 660
Saturday 17 Saturday Club Outing: Warriewood
Wetlands and Long Reef. Meet at 8.30 am at Katoa Close,
Warriewood. Walking along flat paths and tracks towards
the end of Irrawong Reserve. Descent from the cliff at
Long Reef to the rock platform. Bring suitable footwear
for wading. Leader: Trevor Waller 0467 977 508
24–26 January Australia Day Long Weekend Club
Campout: A campout is being arranged on a private
property at Yaouk near Adaminaby. Please contact
the Activities Officer, Allan Richards, at activities@
birdingnsw.org.au or on 9660-8062 for directions.
Tuesday 27 January Central Coast Meeting: Meetin the Progress Hall in Anzac Street, Tuggerah opposite
McDonalds at 7.30 pm. Members’ night.
Wednesday 28 January Midweek Outing: Nurragingy
Reserve, Doonside. Meet at 8.30 am just inside theentrance, which is at 25 Knox Road Doonside. There is aset of traffic lights at the intersection of Cross Street andKnox Road, stay in the right hand lane, to turn right into
the reserve. We will find a picnic table for lunch. Gradient:Easy. Leader: Carol Abbott 99801201; 0414312538
Saturday 31 January Central Coast Outing: Breakfast
with the Birds–a combined activity with the Central Coast
Community Environment Network, Pioneer Dairy. Meet at
7.30 am at Central Coast Wetlands, Tuggerah. Bookings
required: phone Kate on 4349 4757. Cost of breakfast $10.
Alan Morris 0418 269 482

FEBRUARY
Tuesday 3 February Club Meeting: The Mitchell Theatre,
Level 1, The Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts, 280 Pitt
Street, Sydney at 7.30 pm, ‘Bush Stone-curlew Monitoring
and Nest Site Protection, Brisbane Water, Central Coast’,
speaker: Alan Morris.
Saturday 7 February Club Outing: Sydney Olympic
Park. Meet at 8.00 am at Belvedere Lake, Bicentennial
Park, parking area P10D. Proceed through the main gates,
along the road past the Conference Centre until the lake
is on your left hand side. The parking area is on the right,
just after crossing the bridge. Lunch at cars. Leader: Judy
Harrington 9712 5904; 0403 026 660
Saturday 14 February Club Outing: Hawkesbury area.
Meet at 8.30 am at the car park for Scheyville National
Park Office off Scheyville Road. Lunch at cars. Leader:
Trevor Waller 0467 977 508

Tuesday 24 January Central Coast Meeting: Meetin the Progress Hall in Anzac Street, Tuggerah opposite
McDonalds at 7.30 pm, ‘The Ethiopian Rift Valley’,speaker: Jay Nicholson.
Wednesday 25 February Midweek Outing: Narrabeen/Long Reef. Meet at 8.30 am at Jamieson Park. Turn into
Mactier Street from Pittwater Road, this becomes The
Esplanade, which bears right into Jamieson Park. We willvisit Long Reef when the tides are best and hope to include
Deep Creek as well. Gradient: Medium although there isa descent from the hill at Long Reef to the rock platform.
Bring suitable footwear for wading. Leader: Elisabeth
Karplus 9816 2285; 0421 665 553
Saturday 28 February Central Coast Outing: Ash
Island and Stockton. Meet at 8.30 am Recreation Ground,
Woodford Street, Minmi. Leader: Alan Morris 0418 269 482

URGENT
WANTED NEWSLETTER EDITOR
I haven’t managed this transition as well as Stan! I
began proofing for him in 2008–not so bad, with a
few reports each newsletter, and then he asked me totake over as his circumstances had changed. Scary!
I was an easy target as I am a sucker for wanting to
do what I can to make a contribution even if I am outof my depth. I fell for it and took over as he left. I am
so grateful to the experienced birders I dealt with on
the committee and still deal with who tolerated myinane questions and my general ignorance.
Can’t say I am a that much more knowledgeable
birder (an improvement) but I have learnt a heap
from those experienced birders on the committee
and those I have met in the Club and I have insights
into what is happening in birding locally, and moregenerally, many more insights than I would have hadjust staying a Club member, which has been a bonus
and enriching. I would never have known all those
things if I hadn’t taken on this role. So think about
coming in to contribute to the Club and I guarantee
you will get lots back.
I know someone very capable who is prepared toproof and edit the contributions but who also has
other commitments. What I am asking for to keep
this newsletter going is someone who can keeptabs on what is required each issue, chase it up
and gosh even source novel contributions. It’s reallyrole sharing which can be rewarding but also really
productive.
What do you think? Let’s not even think about thealternative!

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Birding NSW Newsletter

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2014
andCALL FOR NOMINATIONSThe Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Birding NSW (NSW Field Ornithologists Club Inc) will be held on
Tuesday 9 December 2014 at the monthly Club Meeting, which commences at 7.30 pm in the Mitchell
Theatre, Level 1, The Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts, 280 Pitt Street, Sydney.
The AGM will take place before the Arnold McGill Memorial Lecture - 28 November 2014.
All positions on the Club Committee automatically become vacant at the AGM. Nominations for thefollowing positions should be submitted in writing by 28 November 2014, signed by the nominee,
nominator and seconder, to the Returning Officer, Birding NSW, PO Box Q277, QVB Post Shop, Sydney,
NSW 1230.
OFFICE BEARERS:
President | Secretary | Treasurer | Public Officer
OTHER SPECIFIED POSITIONS:Membership Secretary | Minutes Secretary | Club Email Manager | Activities Officer
Assistant Activities Officer | Speakers Coordinator | Publicity Officer | Newsletter Editor
Website Coordinator | Conservation Subcommittee Chair + Conservation Officers
Records Officer | General Committee Positions

FEBRUARY TALKBush Stone-curlew Monitoring and Nest Site
Protection, Brisbane Water, Central Coast
Speaker: Alan Morris
The Gosford Friends of the Bush Stone-curlew
have been continuously monitoring a small remnant
population of five breeding pairs of Stone-curlews foralmost 15 years. The birds live within an increasingly
urban area under constant pressure from development
and a growing human population. They inhabit private
land, residential areas, bushland and foreshore reserves
around the edge of the Brisbane Water, a tidal inlet withassociated saltmarsh and mangrove habitats. Many of
the foreshore reserves are heavily utilised by the generalpublic and their dogs, and it appears that juvenile birds
find it difficult to find suitable habitat as well as mates.
This presentation highlights the challenges of conserving
a small population of Bush Stone-curlews within a
growing urban area, particularly conflicts arising from
off-leash dog exercise areas, the control of foxes, andprotecting nest sites in public spaces. This Bush Stonecurlew population is the most southerly on the east coastof Australia, and therefore significant, but may disappear
if local and state governments remain relatively inert intheir consideration of its requirements.

A MESSAGE FROM THE
MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY
Membership renewals were due on 30 September
2014. If you are one of the people who haveforgotten and plan to stay a member please renew
now.
If you have any changes of email, address etc
you can make those changes on a renewal form
downloaded from the website and email it to
info@birdingnsw.org.au as an attachment thenpay using direct deposit. Banking details are on
the membership form available on the website.
Use your surname and membership number as areference so that the deposit can be traced to you!
Or send your change of details form with acheque to the PO Box address.
Financial members will receive the February 2015
newsletter.
Financial online members will receive the new
password for 2015 with the notification that the
newsletter is available on the website.
Adrian Nieuwenhuizen
Membership Secretary – Birding NSW

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Birding NSW Newsletter

Birding NSW - NSW Field Ornithologists Club Incorporated
ABRIDGED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2014
Full accounts can be found on the website. The accounts will be presented and considered at the Annual General Meetingon Tuesday 9 December. Any queries can be put to the Treasurer, Leigh Hall on 9449 8370.

Statement of Income For the year ended 30 June 2014

2014
$

2013
$

Revenue from sale of goods
Other revenues from operating activities
Total Revenue		

308
20,60920,917417
21,40821,825Purchase of inventories		

459

1,342

Decrease (increase) in inventories		

15(1,008)Administration expenses		

19,38819,551

Operating surplus/(deficit) before income tax

1,055

1,940

Accumulated surplus at the beginning of the year

63,853

61,913

Accumulated surplus at the end of the year

64,90863,853

Note
2014
		 $
Current assets
Cash		
67,575
Sundry debtors		
0Inventories		 1,068

2013$
66,1240
1,083

Total current assets		

68,643

67,208Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment		0191

Total assets		

68,64367,399Current liabilities
Payables & Deferred Income		

3,735

3,546

Total current liabilities		

3,735

3,546

Net assets		

64,90863,853

Members’ funds
Accumulated surplus		

64,90863,8532014		 $Cash flows from operating activities
Interest received		
2.560
Receipts from members subscriptions and sundry receipts		
18.050General administration expenses and direct expenses		
(19,160)

2013$

Statement of Financial Position for the year ended 30 June 2014

Statement of Cash Flows For the year ended 30 June 2014

3,204
18,204(15,696)

Net cash provided by/(used in) operating activities		

1,451

5,711

Net increase/(decrease) in cash held		

1,451

5,711

Cash at beginning of financial year		

66,12460,413

Cash at end of financial year		

67,575

66,124

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Birding NSW Newsletter

BIRDING NSW’S IMPORTANT BIRD AND
BIODIVERSITY AREA SURVEY AROUND GRENFELL
27 September 2014
Elisabeth Karplus
The seventh IBA survey around Grenfell took place on
Saturday 27 September 2014. Thirty surveyors planned
to take part in the survey – the largest number we have
had so far. Alas two people could not make the trip at thelast minute so 28 surveyors, including three from Grenfell,in seven teams surveyed the 28 sites. I would like tothank Allan Richards, David Winterbottom, Ted Nixon,
Jill Molan, Russell Beardmore and Richard Webber for
leading the survey groups. Seventy-seven species wereseen during the survey and at other times over the weekend.
This included five new species – Plumed Whistling-Duck,
Straw-necked Ibis, Whistling Kite, Brown Falcon and
Brown Songlark. The Brown Falcon was seen on Mark
Shortis’ place and Mark tells me that he has been seeing
this bird around for some time. The Brown Songlark wasseen on Ochre Arch and Phillip Diprose tells me that they
love watching these birds. Up to 50 Plumed WhistlingDucks were seen at various times over the weekend at ornear the sewage ponds. We have now seen 130 bird species
during the surveys or over the weekends at Grenfell.
Superb Parrots were seen at five sites during the survey
times and at several other places including three flyoversof the caravan park. Two birds were seen investigating anest hollow in a tree near the sewage ponds; alas Rainbow
Lorikeets were also in the area and seemed interested in
the same hollow. No Diamond Firetails were seen during
the surveys though two were seen during the weekend. The
number of species seen at each site varied between 5 and19 species. We became more aware of the threats to the

Red-capped Robin. Photo: Jodi WebberSuperb Parrot. Photo: Jodi Webber

survey areas; a site with one of the highest number of bird
species is part of an enlarging housing estate.
Of the declining woodland species, we did not see any Brown
Treecreepers during the weekend but we did see Speckled
Warblers at four survey sites, Grey-crowned Babblers at fivesites and Hooded Robins at three sites. Although we havenot seen Swift Parrots during our Grenfell weekends,
Dianne Deans, who joined us for this survey, saw
seven Swift Parrots in April 2014 at Holy Camp in
the Weddin Mountains National Park.
As has become the custom, the weekend began atdinner on Friday night at the Railway Hotel in Grenfell.
The cheerful staff at the hotel was unperturbed byhaving to feed an additional 30+ hungry guests. On
Saturday afternoon, about half of the group went toOchre Arch for a tour of the Aboriginal artefacts andother interesting natural areas. I would like to thankPhillip and Jan Diprose for organising this visit andfor providing a marvellous afternoon tea. Then we
met at Mikla and Wayne’s place for a barbecue on
Saturday evening. This has also become anothertradition of the weekend and we are very grateful to
Mikla and Wayne for their hospitality.

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Birding NSW Newsletter
On Sunday morning some of the surveyors
joined people from Grenfell for a walkaround Company Dam. As well as birds –we saw both Western and White-throated
Gerygone among others – Mikla showed
us many beautiful and delicate wildflowers
including several species of orchids.
The next two IBA surveys will take place
on 28 March and 26 September 2015. We
hope that our existing volunteers and newvolunteers will take part in the next survey.
In particular we hope that more people
from Grenfell will join us on the surveys.
Please contact Allan Richards (activities@
birdingnsw.org.au) or me (emhodson@
exemail.com.au) if you are not already on
our contact list and would like details of thenext survey.

Bird watching at Company Dam. Photo: Jodi Webber

32nd ANNUAL BIRDING NSW PHOTOGRAPHICCOMPETITION WINNERS
Congratulations to the following winners:
FIRST PRIZE:

1. Alfred Schulte– Australasian Grebes ($1000)

SECOND PRIZE:

2. Michael Hanvey–Black-shouldered Kite ($500)

GROUP OF BIRDS PRIZE:

3. Eric Yan–Red-rumped Parrots ($250)
4. Eric Yan–Black-winged Stilts
5. Eric Yan– Pale-headed Rosella
6. Michael Hanvey– Speckled Warbler

IN FLIGHT PRIZE:

7. Jodi Webber–Black-necked Stork ($250)
8. Eastern Spinebill– Alfred Schulte

SINGLE BIRD PRIZE:

9. David Turner–Nankeen Kestrel ($250)
10. Michael Hanvey– Budgerigars

MEMBERS’ CHOICE AWARD: Michael Hanvey–Spotted Pardalote ($200)
Thanks again to Charlie Andrews for coordinating the group and compering the proceedingson the night. It ran very smoothly. There were 103 entries from nine photographers in the 2014
Photographic Competition. All photographs entered in the competition were shown. The audience
voted for their favourite before the prize-winning photographs, chosen by the three judges Ofer
Levy, Adrian O’Neill and Charlie Andrews were announced. The winning photographers of themain prizes who were in the audience were presented with a cheque as well as a certificate.
Birding NSW is especially grateful to have the expertise of Ofer as a judge for the first time andwe thank him along with Adrian and Charlie who agreed to be a part of the judging for a fifth year.
Special thanks go to Adrian for gathering the entries and putting them all on disk and who had theunenviable task of making the individual entries compatible with the Birding NSW projector. The
winning photographs are available for viewing on the Birding NSW website.

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CAPERTEE VALLEY REGENT HONEYEATER SURVEY
3–6 October 2014
Douglas Bateman
An almost perfect weekend weather-wise was notmatched by any sightings of Regent Honeyeaters
unfortunately. This was also the case in the Augustand September surveys run by BirdLife Southern
NSW and Cumberland Bird Observers Club.
There are now two extra sites making a total of
twelve to be surveyed. This meant earlier starts in themornings and an extension into Monday. Generally
there were large numbers of birds but fewer species
and a good selection of honeyeaters apart fromRegents, including Painted, Black-chinned, Striped,
Brown-headed, White-naped, Yellow-faced and theubiquitous White-plumed. The site at Glen Alice Hall
was the most prolific with over 40 species observed in
the 45-minute time frame.

Striped Honeyeater. Photo: Jodi Webber

Plum-headed Finches were seen only at the Genowlan
Bridge (South) site in a patch of bramble near the curve inthe river.
The two new sites are: 1) Wiraki, a road site stretching 800
m from Noola Road south along Glen Alice Road. 2) Crown
Station Road another 800 m stretch from Rockview Property
back towards Glen Davis Road. They both have potential
but did not offer up anything exciting this time.
Observers: Douglas Bateman, Sharyn Brown, Richard
Webber, Jodi Webber, Lori Warren, Max Harris, Charlie
Andrews, Susie Giuffre, Maurice O’Donovan and welcome
to first timers to the October Survey Jill Molan, Phillip
Cuomo and Alexander Cuomo. The latter is the 13-year-old
son of Phillip who is to be commended on his knowledge,

Plum-headed Finch. Photo: Jodi Webber

attitude and enthusiasm, he rose early in the mornings toscout out the farm and found a pair of Yellow-rumped
Thornbills feeding a cuckoo possibly the offspring of aclosely attentive Horsfield’s Bronze-Cuckoo. We verymuch enjoyed your company Alexander. Thanks also
to the proprietors Di and Bob Page for their hospitality.
The cottage at Brymair Station was the headquarters witheight guests whilst the remainder stayed in accommodation
in Rylstone or Glen Davis. The cottage is free to the first eightparticipants containing two doubles and two twin share, so
in October 2015 show interest early to take advantage ofthis or be prepared to organise your own accommodation.
Maurice O’Donovan has offered to share his cabin in Glen
Davis with anyone who can’t get into the cottage.

Plum-headed Finch (juvenile). Photo: Jodi Webber

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Forum4Nature - ADELAIDE 26 MAY 2014ROLLING BACK THE YEARS - REGRESSION IN COMMONWEALTH ENVIRONMENTAL LAWSJohn Spiers
Forum4Nature was a meeting of conservation organisations
held in Adelaide on 26 May 2014. It was put on by theConservation Council of South Australia and the purpose
was to discuss the changes that have been put in place by the
Abbott Government since winning the election in September
2013. The keynote address, which is summarised here,
was by Adjunct Professor Rob Fowler of the Law School,
University of South Australia. Rob is past president of theConservation Council and a specialist in Environmental Law.
A BRIEF HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
Over the past 40 years it has been the Commonwealth that has
provided a level of leadership and objectivity in environmental
assessment that is difficult to identify at the State level. The
newly elected Commonwealth Government is intent on
dismantling what has been erected behind the oft-repeatedmantra of ‘red tape/green tape’ reduction. What is happening
is not attracting the attention of ordinary people but is, in fact,
a matter of the most profound importance and concern interms of the future protection of the Australian environment.
The Abbott Government argues that the Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA) procedures under the EPBC
Act are a duplication of state processes. In fact it was theCommonwealth that first adopted EIA legislation in theEnvironment Protection (Impact of Proposals) Act 1974
(EPIP). It was the States and Territories that adopted similar
legislation after 1974 and where this was done there werecooperative arrangements put in place to avoid duplication ofprocesses between the Commonwealth and State EIA systems.
COMMONWEALTH CONSTITUTIONAL POWERS
RE THE ENVIRONMENT
It is clear from a series of High Court decisions ranging back to
the Tasmanian Dam Case (Tasmania vs The Commonwealth)in 1982 that the Commonwealth has extensive power tolegislate on environmental matters by making use of its
authority under section 51 of the Constitution to makelaws with respect to matters such as trade and commerce,
corporations, external affairs, the peoples of any race andtaxation. This capacity has been used in about 50 separate
Acts including the Howard Government’s Water Act 2007
(Cth.). However the Commonwealth Government has only
rarely used this power to over-ride relevant state legislation.
Assertions of excessive Commonwealth ‘green tape’ havelittle foundation in reality but this has not discouraged the
Abbott Government from making them.
COOPERATIVE FEDERALISM – FORTY YEARSOF STEADY EVOLUTION
The political practice of ‘cooperative federalism’ withrespect to environmental matters has extended over the past
40 years, well beyond legislative measures, to include a large
range of strategies, policies and programmes that involve
collaborative arrangements between the Commonwealthand the States. Negotiations were conducted within a longline of Councils, the most recent of which was the Standing
Committee on Environment and Water (SCEW). Thesearrangements were abruptly brought to an end with anannouncement on its website, in December 2013, that SCEW
was no longer to continue.
The COAG communique at the end of December 2013 statedthat the Commonwealth respects that the States and Territories
are sovereign in their own sphere and should be able to get on
with delivering on their responsibilities without unnecessaryinterference from the Commonwealth. This evidences theview within the Abbott Government that environmental
matters are a State responsibility. This is a restatement ofwhat in the 1980’s was commonly called ‘States’ rights’ andwhich had ceased to have any real impact since the electionof the Hawke Government in 1983. There are indications that
this retreat will extend to other matters such as health andeducation. Such a radical re-conceptualisation of the role of
the Commonwealth government surely warrants a broader
public debate.
RECENT COMMONWEALTH REGRESSION ON
ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS
Here is a list of current environmental initiatives by the
Abbott Government:•

repeal of the carbon price legislation and replacement by
a Direct Action programme•

National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental
Management Authority (NOPSEMA) to be sole assessor
for environmental approval of offshore petroleum
projects•

26 March 2014 designated as a repeal day for the
purpose of repealing 1000 ‘redundant’ federal laws
and some 9500 regulations including measures relating
to agricultural and veterinary medicines, regulation ofozone-depleting substances and synthetic greenhousegases, permit and levy processes for sea installations, andrepealing S255A of Water Act 2007 which relates to theassessment of mining operations in the Murray-DarlingBasinreview of Renewable Energy Target and proposedabolition of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation
attempt to have 70 000 hectares of Tasmanian World
Heritage forest areas delisted by the World Heritage
Committee
refusal to include climate change on the agenda for theforthcoming G20 meeting in Brisbane
review of Water Act 2007 announced
approval of extensive dumping of sediments in the
Great Barrier Reef in connection with expansion of port
facilities at Abbott Point
abandonment of management plans for Commonwealthdesignated marine parks

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•
•

termination of National Wildlife Corridors initiative
termination of funding for Environmental Defenders
Officestermination of funding for GVESHO funding forenvironmental NGO’s
proposed extinguishment of a number of national bodies
addressing environmental matters, including Climate
Commission, National Water Commission and theAustralian Renewable Energy Agency
repeal of energy efficiency opportunities program
reduction of funding for Land Care by $484 million,
whilst allocating $525 million to a new ‘Green Army’referral by Attorney General George Brandis to theAustralian Law Reform Commission of a reference
to enquire into the incursion into ‘freedoms’ (egproperty rights) by particular types of laws, including
environmental laws.

THE ONE STOP INITIATIVEThe ‘one stop shop’ (OSS) initiative which will ultimately
see the transfer of Commonwealth approval powers under
the EPBC Act to the states involves three steps:•

execution of a Memorandum of Understanding witheach State• revision of existing assessment bilateral agreements• execution of approvals bilateral agreements with eachState transferring approvals powers to the States under
the EPBC Act.
The first stage was completed by December 2013, and thefurther steps are well advanced in Queensland and New
South Wales.
It is the proposed abdication by the Commonwealth of any
further role in relation to environmental approvals that has
most concerned ENGO’s.
JUSTIFICATIONS OFFERED FOR THE OSSINITIATIVE
Avoidance of duplication and streamlining ofenvironmental approval processes
The resource sector and State Governments are the parties
behind the ‘green tape’ argument. They argue that it isnecessary to eliminate excessive ‘green tape’ and the
duplication of functions already performed by the States
so that the costs and delays experienced by their industries
will be significantly reduced. The Abbott Government has
enthusiastically embraced this rhetoric in advancing its onestop-shop initiative.
In practice the Commonwealth has pursued a highly
coordinated and collaborative approach in this area. It has
confined itself to addressing the listed matters of nationalsignificance and has left the States to address all otherenvironmental aspects separately. Any lack of coordination
could be addressed by means other than the complete
withdrawal of the Commonwealth.
Extensive costs and unnecessary delays for industry
In relation to the arguments of excessive costs and delays
Professor Fowler notes that:

Birding NSW Newsletter
•

•

•

•

independent assessment has found that the allegations ofexcessive costs by the BCA in an April 2012 submission
to COAG have been found to be spurious and greatly
exaggerated
the level of costs genuinely occurred in complying
with the EPBC Act represent only a small proportion of
the overall development costs of most major resource
projects anddelays have often been a result of State processes rather
than Commonwealth processes and are often attributableto project proponents having failed to produce adequate
scientific analysis in their EIS’s
it is also arguable that when considering the costs ofthe EIA process one should also take into account thebenefits of the process.

THE WIDER AGENDA BEYOND THE ONE STOPSHOP INITIATIVEThe resources industry has been waging a campaign against
Commonwealth involvement in EIA since adoption of theEPIP Act in 1974. The current ‘green tape’ propaganda issimply the latest stanza. Underlying this campaign is thegrowing pressure to shift Australia’s energy generation fromfossil fuels to renewables in response to the challenge ofclimate change. The Abbott Government has become thehandmaiden of the fossil fuel industry and is vigorously
promoting its cause.
The one-stop-shop agenda has found willing ears at theState level, where governments are keen to eliminate
Commonwealth involvement in decision-making concerning
large-scale resource projects that they wish to attract to theirstate. The South Australian Premier, Jay Weatherill, indicatedas much in a recent letter to Professor Fowler. The Premierused a report by the Productivity Commission to justify his
decision to negotiate an approval bilateral agreement with
the Commonwealth. The report in fact recommended thatbilateral agreements should only be proceeded with if fiveother conditions are satisfied.
THE MAINTENANCE OF HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL
STANDARDS UNDER THE OSS SYSTEM
The Abbott Government has insisted that the handover of its
approval powers to the States will only be pursued where
the State systems offer equivalent standards of protection to
those required under the EPBC Act. For this to happen there
must be:• Legal equivalence. For this to happen there would
have to be substantial modification of most Stateenvironmental legislation. This could result in substantial
delays in the implementation of the proposed handoverof Commonwealth powers. The Abbott Governmentis attempting to circumvent this by amendments to the
EPBC Act.
• Practical equivalence. The principal argument against
the OSS scheme is that the States are overly influenced
by the economic benefits they expect from resource
development. They do not take into account the needs ofthe whole of Australia in their decisions. There have been
a number of cases where the Commonwealth has steppedPage 11

Birding NSW Newsletterin to prevent a State Government proceeding with anenvironmentally damaging project – sand mining on
Fraser Island, the Franklin River Dam, and the Traveston
Crossing Dam in Queensland.
There are checks on the misuse by the states of their newfoundpowers in the form of judicial review actions. Judicial
review, however, is hard to secure unless some reasonably
obvious flaw in the decision-making process is evident. The
reduction of government resources in Canberra will greatly
limit the practical ability of the Commonwealth to review
State assessments.
OTHER ARGUMENTS AGAINST THE OSS• The elimination of the Commonwealth as an ‘honest
broker’is likely to result in a return to direct action protests,
legal proceedings and the new tactic of discouraging
financial investment in contentious projects.
•

A likely outcome is more complexity and uncertainty forindustry. There will in practice develop an ‘eight stop
shop’ with differences in the detailed procedures andpractices of the States and Territories.

CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONSThe OSS initiative may be no more than a cost shifting
exercise rather than a red-tape reduction one. Staffing levels
have already been reduced within the Commonwealth
Environment Department. Most States, on the other
hand, have made significant reductions within their own
environment departments. It is difficult to see how theycan effectively perform their new tasks at the same level as

the Commonwealth has done. Increased litigation against
inadequate performance may cause them to seek handing
back their powers to the Commonwealth.
Where should we go from here?
The scale of the environmental challenges needing to be
faced make it difficult to understand the rationale for a
withdrawal from the field of environmental management by
the Commonwealth. Professor Fowler advocates:•

The establishment of a Commonwealth Environment
Protection Authority to administer State of Environment
Reporting, establish national standards for environmental
quality, administer the EIA process and replace theEnvironment Minister in the performance of many
biodiversity-related functions needed to be performed
under the EPBC Act.

•

A reversal of the OSS process so that the Commonwealthprocess prevails over State process in regards to mattersof national environmental significance.

While it may be difficult to prevent the Abbott Government
from undertaking the transfer of its responsibilities under
the EPBC Act every effort should be made to do so, whilelooking forward to a next generation Commonwealthenvironmental law that could offer the possibility of truly
effective protection for the Australian environment.
This article was first printed in Birds SA Newsletter No 213,
August 2014 and is reprinted with permission from John
Spiers.

BOOK REVIEWS
Birds of Australia
A Photographic Guide
Iain Campbell, Sam Woods& Nick Leseberg
Paperback $49.95 391pp
This has been published by
Princeton University and isactually intended for serious
birders who are visiting
Australia, but that isn’t to saythat Australian birders won’t find this guide valuable. It
covers 714 species and has more than 1100 photographs,
which include photos of sub-species and plumage
variations. It is well organised and easy to use, with theclearly marked photographs facing the descriptions anddistribution maps. Seabirds are usually shown in flight,
raptors in flight and perched, waders also usually both on
ground and in the air, so the photographs are quite useful.
It mightn’t replace your prized Slater or Pizzey, but it will
be an excellent addition to your library!
Lindy Jones

The World of Birds
Jonathan Elphick
Hardback $89.95
608pp
This handsome volume
is a succinct andaccessible guide tobird biology, covering
evolution, anatomy,
physiology, habitat,
migration and human interaction. It relates the
key facts, appearance and behaviour of every
one of the 195 families of birds alive today.
Beautiful photographs (over 1000) are a joy
to behold and enhance the clear text. When I
brought an advance copy in to show off at one
monthly meeting, those who saw it didn’t want
to give it back - and one respected member evenlearnt something new! Put it on the Christmas
wishlist…
Lindy JonesPage 12Birding NSW Newsletter

FROM A COUNTRY PERCH
Stephen Debus
To continue the occasional item from a country member, I
report briefly on a project that was partly funded by the then
NSW Field Ornithologists Club Research Grants. I shouldlike to thank the FOC (now Birding NSW) for supportingthat project (a PhD on declining woodland birds at the
University of New England in 2000–2003), and convey
some of the essentials. The study sites were primarily Imbota
and Yina Nature Reserves near Armidale, and the study
subjects were Eastern Yellow Robins and Scarlet Robins(and, opportunistically, a few Hooded Robins).

in small patches with little cover; poor habitat quality insmall remnants; and/or harassment and exclusion by Noisy
Miners. Some data on an unauthorised Noisy Miner cull, that
fortuitously came my way, showed the profound positiveeffect of Noisy Miner removal, and establishment of native
shrub cover, on small bush birds. Despite a hostile matrix,
some Eastern Yellow Robins were able to move up to 7 km
between patches, provided that dispersal routes had tree
cover (eg paddock trees) less than 100 m apart, or corridorsof natural or planted woodland.

Among a range of woodland remnants surveyed, reserves
greater than 300 ha in size supported more bird species thanremnants of less than 100 ha on private land. Threatened andother declining species occurred mainly in patches of morethan 100 ha, whereas guilds of small and medium-sized
insectivores were impoverished in degraded patches of lessthan 100 ha on private land.

Finally, it was apparent that Hooded Robins in fragmented
native woodland on the tablelands have very poor nest
success, owing to nest predation. However, a few pairs on
the edge of exotic pine plantations, where there is a rangeof pine ages and densities, and with some open areas andeucalypt woodland nearby, managed to rear young. Hence,certain pine plantations can have some value to native birds,
especially (as in this case) where densities of currawongs andother avian nest predators were low in the plantation.

Eastern Yellow Robins typically nested low in shelteredpositions in saplings, live trees and shrubs, whereas Scarlet
Robins typically nested high in exposed positions in live
trees, dead branches or dead trees. Both, but particularly
the Scarlet Robin, suffered high nest predation, withcorrespondingly poor fledging success. Fledging success andjuvenile survival in the Eastern Yellow Robin were related
to habitat complexity around nest sites, and to the densityof wattles, other shrubs, and rough-barked eucalypt saplings.
Nest success of Scarlet Robins was too low to identify
relevant habitat factors, but the availability of foraging
substrate (logs, coarse woody debris), and hence foodsupply, may determine nest attendance (ie hiding of the eggs
or chicks) by the cryptically coloured sitting female. Males
feed incubating or brooding females, but hungry females will
leave nests exposed while they forage for themselves.
Protection of nests by predator-proof cages, and removal of
Pied Currawongs, identified currawongs as a nest predator
significantly affecting the robins’ breeding success. Hence,
there is a case for control of overabundant currawongs,
preferably by eradication of the exotic, invasive, berry-bearing
bushes (ie environmental weeds) in gardens, farms andbushland that sustain high winter populations of currawongs.
That includes the pepper tree, the ‘privet of the inland’ now
going feral on the western slopes, as well as the usual suspects(privet, camphor laurel, firethorn, hawthorn etc).
Successful reintroduction and radio-tracking of Eastern
Yellow Robins to patches where they had become extinct(Yina and other remnants) showed that they have trouble
recolonising small, isolated patches. However, several
factors may be operating, including: low production ofpotential emigrants in source patches (like Imbota); predation(eg by Grey Butcherbirds) in the agricultural matrix or

Two upshots of this project are that (i) the Scarlet Robin is
now listed as Vulnerable, and (ii) competitive exclusion by
the Noisy Miner is now listed as a key threatening process,under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act.
Publications arising from the project are listed below, andcan be accessed and downloaded as PDFs from my website:www.une.edu.au/staff/sdebus.php
Debus, S.J.S. 2(006a). Breeding and population parameters of robins in awoodland remnant in northern New South Wales, Australia. Emu 106: 147–156.
_____ (2006b). Breeding biology and behaviour of the Scarlet Robin Petroica
multicolor and Eastern Yellow Robin Eopsaltria australis in remnant woodlandnear Armidale, New South Wales. Corella 30: 59–65.
_____ (2006c). Breeding habitat and nest-site characteristics of Scarlet
Robins and Eastern Yellow Robins near Armidale, New South Wales. PacificConservation Biology 12: 261–271.
_____ (2006d). The role of intense nest predation in the decline of Scarlet
Robins and Eastern Yellow Robins in remnant woodland near Armidale, NewSouth Wales. Pacific Conservation Biology 12: 279–287.
_____ (2008). The effect of Noisy Miners on small bush birds: an unofficial culland its outcome. Pacific Conservation Biology 14: 185–190.
_____ (2013). Breeding of the Hooded Robin Melanodryas cucullata in nativeand exotic woodlands near Armidale, New South Wales. Corella 37: 49–56.
Debus, S.J.S. & Ford, H.A. (2012). Responses of Eastern Yellow Robins
Eopsaltria australis to translocation into vegetation remnants in a fragmented
landscape. Pacific Conservation Biology 18: 194–202.
Debus, S.J.S., Ford, H.A. & Page, D. (2006). Bird communities in remnant
woodland on the New England Tablelands, New South Wales. PacificConservation Biology 12: 50–63.
See also:
Ford, H.A., Walters, J.R., Cooper, C.B., Debus, S.J.S. & Doerr, V.A.J. (2009).
Extinction debt or habitat change? – Ongoing losses of woodland birds in northeastern New South Wales, Australia. Biological Conservation 142: 3182–3190.

Dr Stephen Debus is Adjunct Lecturer, School ofEnvironmental and Rural Science at the University of New
England Armidale NSW.

Page 13

Birding NSW NewsletterTHE 2014 AUSTRALASIAN BIRD FAIR
Norma Ikin
I arrived very early on Saturday
morning, 25 October at the 2014
Australasian Bird Fair held at
Sydney Olympic Park. I came with
my friend Jill and we were bothdoing a shift volunteering on the
Birding NSW Stall. Jill was on thefirst shift of the day and I was on
the last of the day. As the weather
was warming up even at 9.30 am I
headed straight for cover into where
the lectures were being held. These
were free talks by world experts andso good that I listened to them all of
the morning. After lunch I visited themany marquees. A whole range oftravel brochures were being offered
for birding tours overseas and inAustralia but my main interest wasin the bird artists and I bought abeautiful calico apron with RedNorma Ikin and Robyn Price volunteering at the Birding NSW Stall.
tailed Black-Cockatoos printed on Photo: Elisabeth Karplus
it. I also found the live frog exhibit
was interesting. Another friend had bought new binoculars Observers, The Hunter Bird Observers and Cumberlandfrom one of the binocular outlets represented at the fair. Bird Observers Club. The interest from the public in what
Birding NSW shared a marquee with Blue Mountains Bird these local clubs had to show and offer was consistent.
POSTSCRIPT
Congratulations–we reached our target of raising $20 000 to go towards the recovery programs for two endangered
species, the Plains-wanderer and the Rock Wren of New Zealand. These two species were selected by a panel ofexperts chaired by Professor Stephen Garnett because their recovery programs would significantly benefit from
relatively small amounts of money (up to $10 000 each).
We attracted more than 2000 people to the event. Get ready for the 2015 Australasian Bird Fair the weekend after
the Twitchathon! Phil Straw

BIRD-WATCHING PELAGIC TRIPS
Sydney Pelagic Trips are scheduled for Saturday 13 December 2014. They depart Mosman Wharf at 6.45 am and Rose Bay
Public Wharf at 7.00 am–return to Mosman will be by 4.00 pm. The tour costs will be $120 and seniors /students $110. Pleasecontact Roger or Hal to make a booking. Roger McGovern 9953 3484 roglou@bigpond.net.au or Hal Epstein 0411 311 236
hepstein@bigpond.net.au
Wollongong Pelagic Trips depart on the 4th Saturday of each month. To make a booking on a SOSSA Wollongong pelagic
trip, contact Lindsay or Janice of SOSSA by phone: 02 4272 4626 or email: sossa@tpg.com.au or visit the website: www.sossainternational.org <http://www.sossa-international.org>
Port Stephens Pelagic Trips are arranged sporadically throughout the year, with usually about ten trips including two trips
held in the peak months of March, April and October. Additionally occasional trips out of Swansea, south of Newcastle, are also
being organised. For enquiries or bookings contact Mick Roderick by mobile: 0421 761 237 or email: mickhhb@yahoo.com.au

Page 14Birding NSW Newsletter

TWITCHATHON REPORT
25 - 26 OCTOBER 2014
REPORT FROM THE CHAMPAGNE SHRIKE-TITS– TWITCHATHON 2014
Elisabeth Karplus

Each year Alan Morris, Frances Czwalinna
and Pixie Maloney organise the twitchathon
to raise funds for a research or conservation
project. The project to be funded is determinedon alternate years by BIGnet (Bird Interest
Group Network), which comprises bird clubs
from throughout NSW, and by BirdLife
Southern NSW. In 2014 the proceeds fromthe Twitchathon will go towards the Bird
Conservation Portal project, to complement
the BirdLife Australia Bird Atlas Project. The
Bird Conservation Portal will draw together
bird monitoring reports, the synthesis
and analysis of bird data and biological,
ecological and conservation reporting for
BirdLife Australia, into one place. A userfriendly free App (Android and iOS) will
be developed to allow volunteers to recordand submit data. Hopefully a user-friendly
portal will encourage repeat surveys of Tom and Philip relaxing with champagne and nibbles at the end of Twitchathon 2014.
fixed sites, which are needed to support bird Photo: Elisabeth Karplus
conservation. Certainly I hope that entering data from the were singing so that during the day we identified many
Grenfell surveys will prove easier via the new portal. Each species on call including six species of cuckoos. Afteryear there are 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes for the Main Race and several stops along Boundary Road, we spent some time at
the Champagne Race and for the individuals raising the Maraylya Park, on the corner of Dunns Road and Boundary
most money. In 2013, thanks to the generosity of Birding Road. A Common Bronzewing was calling and we soon
NSW members, we won second prize in the third category. located him walking on the ground. Other birds there were
Red and Little Wattlebirds, Rufous Whistlers and EasternOnce again Philip Brook, Tom and I comprised the team of
Whipbirds. Our next stop was on Pitt Town Dural Road
Champagne Shrike-tits. In 2013 we saw 135 bird species
beside Scheyville Forest. Despite large numbers of Bellin the Champagne Race in the 24 hours of the Twitchathon
Miners, that infest the forest and drive out other birds,– a record for us. We hoped to beat this score. Our route
we did see or hear White-winged Trillers, Pallid Cuckoo,changes little from year to year. This year at 4 pm on
Eastern Yellow Robin, Olive-backed Oriole and our
Saturday 25 October, we started at Lake Belvedere innamesake, a Crested Shrike-tit. However this year there
Sydney Olympic Park, where one can rapidly add a number
were no nesting Jacky Winters or Dusky Woodswallows.
of waterbirds including Royal Spoonbills. Using a tip off
On the track alongside the forest, we did hear/see Whitefrom Judy Harrington, we found a Latham’s Snipe andthroated Gerygones, Yellow-faced Honeyeaters anda Buff-banded Rail at one of the water quality ponds. In
Scarlet Honeyeaters as well as a pair of Jacky Winters –another pond there was a single Glossy Ibis. The walk fromthe only ones seen during the day. Scarlet Honeyeaters
Wentworth Common to the hide at the Waterbird Refuge
were heard at many sites but we never actually saw one. A
provided the usual Brown Quail while from the hide, we
Cicadabird called as we returned to our car. We went to thesaw Red-necked Avocets, Sharp-tailed Sandpipers as wellpark headquarters at Scheyville National Park for morning
as Cattle Egrets in beautiful breeding plumage. At the final
tea and to see Striated Pardalote – we managed this andstop, we found a Tawny Frogmouth on a nest – a tip off
added Fuscous Honeyeater and Horsfield’s Bronze Cuckoo
this time from Adrian Dick. By the end of the day we hadto the list. The next stop was at Mitchell Park around 11
reached 54 species.
am. By now the temperature was rising significantly. We
On Sunday, we met up at the beginning of Boundary Road heard Wonga Pigeon but missed out on Brown Cuckooon the way to Maraylya. On a warm morning, many birds Dove. Both Sacred Kingfisher and Dollarbird were calling.

Page 15

Birding NSW Newsletter
A Leaden Flycatcher confused us in the riverine forest
along Cattai Creek but we could not make it into a Satin
Flycatcher, which generally avoid rainforest.
Now it was time for lunch at Pitt Town Lagoon. There wereHouse Sparrows to see and a Goldfinch went by. Beside thebird hide, a Collared Sparrowhawk was surprised out of its
hiding place where it was presumably watching for small
birds. Pitt Town Lagoon was disappointing with many of thebirds seen on the previous weekend during Trevor Waller’s
outing no longer there. We did manage to see Pink-eared
Duck and Freckled Duck but no Australasian Shoveler,
Hoary-headed Grebe or Red-kneed Dotterel. Where we
had seen Caspian Terns on the previous weekend, there
were now Whiskered Terns with several birds in breedingplumage. If anything the water level at Pitt Town was toohigh. At McGrath’s Hill, the water level was so low that we
had no chance of seeing the large numbers of Red-kneed
Dotterels, the Chestnut-breasted Mannikins or the Baillon’s
Crake seen on the previous weekend. Finally we visited theturf and lucerne farms on the flats between Windsor andRichmond, where the temperature was 40°C. We had great
views of a Brown Songlark before it took off making its
harsh cry and finally found several White-necked Herons.
We ended the Twitchathon at Pugh’s Lagoon near Richmondat 4 pm with the last bird seen being a Black-shouldered Kite
to get to our total of 126 species. We finished the day withchampagne and nibbles under a tree, which was home to two
noisy fledgling Restless Flycatchers, and we were joined by
the picnic ground Willie Wagtail, who was happy to accept
some biscuit crumbs.

REPORT FROM THE CENTRAL COAST CHAMPION CHOUGHS - TWITCHATHON 2014
Alan Morris
The Big Twitch, Round Hill Nature Reserve to the Central Coast 25–26 October 2014

It has been the usual practice for the past few years for
our Twitchathon Team to start our 24-hour search for birds
in the annual Twitchathon in the Macquarie Marshes,somewhere in the vicinity of The Mole Station Wetlands,
but alas, the Marshes are very dry and there is no waterin The Mole Wetlands. This was very unfortunate because
our team of Mike Kuhl, Nick Carson and myself have hadour best result of 211 birds in 24 hours by spending thefirst four hours at this site. So following on from a recce 10days before the Twitchathon down to Lake Cargelligo andthe adjoining Round Hill and Nombinnie Nature Reserves
located in the mallee country, it was decided to start thisyear’s Twitch at the Lake Cargelligo Sewage Treatment
Works (STW) and then go onto Round Hill Nature Reserve(NR) and the famous former ‘wheatfield’ paddock in themallee because there were plenty of good birds at bothsites.
During the recce in mid-October the temperature out
at Lake Cargelligo did not reach 30°C, there were someshowers and the nights were quite cool. Alas the weekendof 25–26 was very hot, the temperature reached 41°C andduring the preceding 10 days the countryside had dried out
a lot more and the birds had become scarce. We had left
on the Friday to check out some sites and drove straight
through Euabalong to Round Hill NR and searched out
a number of locations for mallee birds and then cameonto Lake Cargelligo to stay the night and plan our route.
While at the old wheatfield in the mallee we saw Chestnut
Quail-thrush, Southern Scrub-Robin, Shy Heathwren and
Gilbert’s Whistler, all birds we dipped on later that evening
when the Twitch had started. We had decided to commenceat the far section of the Waste Water Treatment Plant andthen take half an hour to walk out counting all the way. In

checking out various sites around the mallee and the lake,
we ran into three other teams, the Hunter Home Brewers,
the Cowra Woodland Birdbrainers and the Feathered
Rustlers plus the Illawarra Bird Observers (IBOC) werealso out at the lake on their annual camp! There were
birders everywhere!
We started on time at 4 pm at the STW and at the end of
30 minutes we had seen some 35 species, like Freckled
and Pink-eared Ducks, Variegated and White-winged
Fairy-wrens, Common Greenshanks, Red-necked Stints,
Latham’s Snipe, Marsh and Sharp-tailed Sandpipers,
Baillon’s and Australian Spotted Crakes, Red-capped
Plovers and Plum-headed Finches. Great Birds! But here
is where we had out biggest dips, in that around 3.55 pm,
a flock of 20 White-fronted Chats and a pair of Australian
Shelducks took off but did not circle back to the wetlands
so that by 4 pm they were nowhere to be seen and we did notsee either species during the Twitch! But it was while wewere checking out some sites around the shores of the lakeat 5 pm that disaster struck, in the form of a thunderstorm
and a severe dust storm. The strong winds some rain
and very thick dust made bird watching impossible forsome time. All the birds hid and became silent so we hadgreat difficulty finding any at all. Then when we werein the mallee about 7 pm another thunderstorm struck us
again and made all the mallee birds go totally quiet andnot move so that extra time in the mallee was almost awrite off. One of the other teams out there operating on
a schedule like ours had a similar disaster, but the othertwo teams were in different locations and did not receive
the intensity of the storm that we did. Later that night, on
the gravel Euabalong-Condobolin Road we had a flat tyrethat put us back 45 minutes, which made us arrive at ourPage 16

Birding NSW Newsletter

three-hour sleeping place that much later and thenwe were 45 minutes behind starting next morning!
(This was my first flat tyre in any twitch since they
began about 1985.) We did have a bonus at nightat the Lachlan River Bridge at Euabalong, where
we picked up Barn Owl, Little Corella, Southern
Boobook and Tawny Frogmouth all at the one stop!
While changing the tyre we were serenaded by two
different Boobooks; pity they were not Barking
Owls!! Our count by midnight was 102 species but
we had hoped to be 120!
Our departure from Lithgow at 4.45 am was in fog
and the fog continued over the Blue Mountains until
about 7 am making planned bird watching in the
Richmond-Windsor area well nigh impossible. It
was not until Wisemans Ferry and we commenced
the drive through St Albans up Settlers Road to
Mogo and Bucketty that we began any serious
birding as the fog lifted. Along those windy roads
we soon saw Wonga Pigeons, Satin Bowerbird,
Superb Lyrebird, Australian Brush-turkey and
Brown Cuckoo-Doves. Driving with the windows
down enabled us to hear and stop for Glossy BlackCockatoos, Little and Musk Lorikeets, Whitewinged Choughs, Channel-billed and Fan-tailed
Cuckoos and White-throated and Brown Gerygones.
Mogo Camp came good with the pair of Spotted
Quail-thrushes feeding in the camping area andWhite-bellied Cuckoo-shrikes and Yellow-tufted Alan Morris and Mike Kuhl looking for Gilbert’s Whistlers in the mallee
Honeyeaters, seen there only a few days before, at Round Hill NR. Photo: Nick Carson
while the Bucketty Waterhole rewarded us with
Gang-gang Cockatoos and Common Bronzewings. We Soldiers Point it was high tide and a flat sea, no seabirds
did a quick prearranged diversion through Dan Tomich’s other than a pretty sick Short-tailed Shearwater close inplace at Kulnura (a BNSW member) to tick the Double- (tick!!) and a pair of Wedgies flying past! A few Ruddy
banded Finches at his bird feeder (yeah!!!) and headed to Turnstones, Grey-tailed Tattlers, Curlew Sandpipers, Pied
Ourimbah Creek RTA Reserve, arriving there at 9.50 am Oystercatcher and Golden Plovers did bring our count to
188 at 2 pm. We only got six species in the next two hours,with 146 species under our belt.
dipping on Tawny-Crowned Honeyeaters at Munmorah
As we came into the reserve we met the members of the SCA, but finding Scaly-breasted Lorikeets at Budgewoi
Which is it Team coming out, we reckoned that they chased and half an hour spent at the Dairy Swamp before the finish
all the birds away that we expected to see there! We did pick at 4 pm at the Dairy Cottage, Central Coast Wetlands, didup the Yellow-throated, White-browed and Large-billed yield Intermediate and Cattle Egrets, White-bellied SeaScrubwrens, Rufous Fantail and Green Catbird so time was Eagle and Torresian Crow. So we finished the day withnot wasted. At McPherson Road Swamp disaster struck again 194 species, coming 6th in the Main Race out of a field 13
for while I both saw and heard Golden-headed Cisticolas each teams. We joined the other Birding NSW teams Which istime my other team members were looking the other way, so it (Margaret and Kaye Pointer, Carole and John Carpenter)
we dipped on that species but did pick up Tawny Grassbird. and the Lousy Jacks Team (Paul Burcher, Deryk Engel
Much time was wasted looking for common species like Red and Ross Rapmund) for a sumptuous afternoon tea on
Wattlebirds, Chestnut Teal, Little Egrets and Eastern Koel the verandah of the Dairy Cottage, organised by Annebut eventually they turned up. No luck with a Red-whiskered Morris. The hot dry conditions meant that we arrived home
Bulbul! For the first time ever we failed to find any new exhausted but will we do it again next year; of course we
species at The Entrance due to our Twitch coinciding with will!! The teams on the Central Coast raised $600, $350
the annual Hot Rod Car Display and the whole area was a and $1000 respectively for the BirdLife Australia Bird
car park with people and dogs all over the sand flats. At Atlas Special App Project.

Page 17

Birding NSW Newsletter

A BIRD-WATCHING TOUR BY MEMBERS
OF THE WILD BIRD SOCIETY OF JAPAN
10 – 17 October 2014
Allan Richards
Our Club is twinned with the
Aichi chapter of the Wild Bird
Society of Japan which is basedin Nagoya. An invitation was
extended to any of their members
visiting Sydney to contact theClub and arrangements would
be made for Club members toaccompany them bird watching.
Their response was that theywould like to arrange a tour for
5–10 of their members lead by
Satoshi Kanazawa.
We eventually decided on aseven-day itinerary which would
include bird watching around
Sydney as well as time in theBlue Mountains. Outback Track
Tours handled the bookings andprovided the transport. I acted as
their bird guide for the durationof the trip.
Our Japanese visitors with Club members at Royal NP. Photo: Furihata Mitsuhiro

With Werner driving the coach,fellow Club member, Yuko Chiwata, and I were at the
airport in plenty of time to meet the group of eight earlyon the morning of Thursday, 10 October. Being too early
to book into their accommodation, we took them toCentennial Park to introduce them to our Australian birds.
Many are keen photographers so were quickly out of thecoach to start their adventure. It was difficult to drag themaway from photographing Noisy Miners to show them
the pair of Powerful Owls! We spent the morning in thepark finding many interesting birds including two Tawny
Frogmouth nests.
They booked into the hotel and we then shared pizza forlunch. I had thought they would want to rest after lunch
but they arrived armed with their binoculars and cameras
ready for an afternoon’s birding. We walked through HydePark and then along Macquarie Street to the Royal Botanic
Garden. Again they had plenty of opportunities for more
photographs including another Powerful Owl. A highlight
was a family of Australian Wood Ducks with nine young.
After viewing the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge,
Yuko and I put them in taxis at 6:30 pm to go back to theirhotel. A very long day for them!

We were joined by another club member, Norma Ikin,the following day in the Royal National Park. They weredelighted to see the male Satin Bowerbird attending hisbower. Sadly we couldn’t find a Superb Lyrebird forthem but we did see an Azure Kingfisher. We watched alarge Lace Monitor on the other side of the river before
we realised that there was one almost at our feet on ourside. While eating our lunch in the picnic area at Bonnie
Vale, we spotted Royal Spoonbills and a Nankeen Night
Heron at the pond. We finished the day on the cliff topsat Wattamolla where a White-bellied Sea-Eagle put on ashow for us – at one stage, carrying a fair-sized fish. A
Rock Warbler chattered away from the top of a rock.
On our way to the Blue Mountains, we spent several hours at
Featherdale Wildlife Park, which specialises in Australiannative fauna. The group were very enthusiastic about it
and we could have stayed for much longer. However wewanted to stop at some other places before reaching ouraccommodation at Katoomba. At Kings Tableland, wesearched in vain for Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos but
were rewarded with excellent views of Australian KingParrots.

Page 18

Birding NSW Newsletter

We spent a whole day searching theBlackheath, Katoomba and Megalong
Valley area. We visited Grovetts Leap
and Evans Lookout several times but
failed to find a Superb Lyrebird. The
only Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos
were a pair flying through the trees.
Their request to try meat pies was
accomplished at the tearooms in the
Megalong Valley. They got the tick ofapproval!
They wanted to see kangaroos so wewent to a spot in Hartley Vale where
I have regularly seen them. They
weren’t disappointed; there wereabout twenty Eastern Grey Kangaroos
in a paddock. Nearby they watched a
Wedge-tailed Eagle soar overhead. A
visit to Lithgow Sewage Treatment
Ponds added many species of ducks Tawny Frogmouth. Photo: Kazuko Yada
including Freckled, Pink-eared andShovelers. Lake Wallace was also fruitful although most Herons at Pitt Town Bottoms. A flock of Straw-necked Ibis
missed a female Blue-billed Duck that I spotted from the flew overhead.
coach. However other birds were more cooperative with Their last chance to see new birds was at Sydney Olympic
good views–a Black-tailed Native-hen, Hoary-headed Park and they were not disappointed. Pied Cormorant,
Grebe and Eastern Rosella but the best was a displaying Black-fronted Dotterel, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Blackmale Musk Duck. It had become bitterly cold and started winged Stilt, Red-necked Avocet, Red-rumped Parrot
to rain heavily as we left the lake.
and Australasian Figbird were all added to their list. We
Our plan to drive back to Sydney via the Bells Line ofRoad was thwarted by overnight snow. The Causeway
between Mt Victoria and Bells was blocked so we cameback to Sydney via Winmalee, Yarramundi and Windsor.
Highlights were Rufous Songlarks and Golden-headed
Cisticolas at Cornwallis and close views of White-neckedfinished the day early so that they had time to shop forsouvenirs and books in the city.

They saw over 140 species in all, many of which were
photographed many times! I always enjoy showing
overseas visitors our birds but it is an added bonus when
they are such a pleasant, happy group.

MIDWEEK OUTING KU-RING-GAI CHASE NATIONAL PARK
27 August
Coleen Southall
Five members met at the Duck Holes Picnic Area on a wet
and not a very promising day weather-wise. The first birds
we saw were an Eastern Yellow Robin, Eastern Spinebill,
Eastern Whipbird and a Pacific Black Duck swimming
against a very strong current and making headway.
Our next stop was the Elvina Trail. This was a great site
for honeyeaters. We observed Little Wattlebirds, New
Holland, and Fuscous Honeyeaters and we had great viewsof a Scarlet Honeyeater feeding on Darwinia fascicularisat eye level. We found White-cheeked and White-naped
Honeyeaters. A Brown Goshawk flew overhead as well asa White-bellied Sea-Eagle and on our way back along the

track we saw a Grey Fantail, Grey Shrike-thrush, Welcome
Swallow and a Golden Whistler.
Throughout the day we managed to dodge the showers.
At our lunch stop we found a pair of Masked Lapwings
zealously guarding two eggs. Our last stop was the Chiltern
Trail where we found Red-browed Finches, Silvereyes,
Brown Cuckoo-Dove, Red Wattlebird and a pair of Scarlet
Honeyeaters feeding with a Fuscous Honeyeater on a
Darwinia fascicularis again at eye level.
Thank you to the four hardy members who joined me for an
enjoyable day in spite of the weather.

Page 19

Birding NSW Newsletter

HALF-DAY OUTING YARRAMALONG AND GLENOLA RESERVE,BUNNING CREEK
10 September 2014
Margaret PointerNine birders met opposite the historic Yarramalong
Church at 8.30 am. Overnight rain had dampened thealready sodden soil and no doubt deterred people fromcoming but in the end the rain cleared and the day proved
to be very pleasant. At the meeting place at Yarramalong
Church we saw and or heard 31 species, including
a flock of 18 Australian Magpies, a calling Wonga
Pigeon, seven Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos, and in
the distance Jacky Winter was spotted singing heartilyon power lines. A Green Catbird fed on the path to thecemetery and we all had great views of this interesting
bird. A small flock of Long-billed Corellas flew by andStriated, Yellow and Brown Thornbills were observed.
En route to Glenola Reserve we saw White-faced Heron,
Pacific Black and Australian Wood Ducks. The track up
the slope to the second gate at Glenola was slushy, so
a good run up was required to get the vehicles on site.
Once at the shelter shed we enjoyed morning tea. A
brilliantly plumaged Galah spied on us from the entrance
to its nest hole in a nearby gum tree. A Common Mynah,none of which were sighted, usually occupies thishole. A Shining Bronze-Cuckoo called from the creek
trees and White-faced Heron, Masked Lapwings andAustralian Magpies enjoyed the waterlogged areas. On
the waterhole we had seven Pacific Black Ducks, four
Australasian Grebes, one secretive Eurasian Coot and alone Purple Swamphen. Absent were the usual Goldenheaded Cisticolas, Grassbirds and Brown Quail but wet
conditions limited where we could go but a lone Blackshouldered Kite remained on a perch. A pair of AustralianKing-Parrots fed on the ground in the paddock. Yellowfaced, White-naped and Lewin’s Honeyeaters were seenin the riparian areas, while Brown Gerygones, Superb
Fairy-wrens and Grey Fantails were the most common
small birds seen at the site where 25 species were counted.
Only seven birders remained to walk around Jack Gear
Oval in Yarramalong Village where we recorded 19 species
including Dusky Moorhen, Grey Goshawk, Red andLittle Wattlebirds, Bar-shouldered Dove, Yellow-throatedScrubwren and Eastern Spinebill. A small friendly groupshared another enjoyable birding experience when 47
species were seen.

SYDNEY PELAGIC TRIP
13 September
Roger McGovern
We departed from Rose Bay with 14 passengers,
our smallest group of birders this year, and while wewere still in the harbour we sighted a group of theresident Inshore Bottlenose Dolphins and a distantloafing fur seal. As we left the heads, the fish offal
berley immediately brought in good numbers ofSilver Gulls and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters along withsome Greater Crested Terns and the odd AustralasianGannet. These were joined by a few immature Blackbrowed Albatross and several groups of Fluttering-type
shearwaters flew by which were very hard to identify
in the gloomy conditions. However, examination ofphotographs revealed that most of these birds were
Fluttering Shearwaters and just a few were Hutton’s
Shearwaters. A classic newly fledged Shy (Whitecapped) Albatross in very fresh plumage joined us fora while and a few Short-tailed Shearwaters were seenin passing. About 12 NM off Sydney, we had to makea detour to pass behind a large merchant vessel which
was travelling northwards and, as we crossed its
wake, the throng of birds following our boat suddenly

Providence Petrel. Photo: Stephen Hey

Page 20

Birding NSW Newsletter

peeled off and instantaneously
disappeared all in the spaceof about 30 seconds - it was avery strange occurrence which
I haven’t seen before. For the
rest of the trip to the shelf breakat Brown’s Mountain, we hadno birds following the vessel
despite attempts to berley themin. We had distant views ofa small group of False Killer
Whales and a brief visit from a
pod of Short-beaked Common
Dolphins. A giant petrel wasseen at some distance and did
not approach the boat closely
enough to allow identification
as to species and a distantly Humpback Whales. Photo: Stephen Hey
seen storm petrel was thought to be a White-faced. (A second giant petrel with quite indistinct coloration on the bill tip
storm petrel was seen later in the trip and examination of a but examination of photographs on board showed it to be avery fuzzy photograph the next day confirmed that it was Northern Giant-Petrel.
indeed a White-faced Storm Petrel).
Shortly after turning for home, we spotted a group of
As we approached Brown’s Mountain medium distance Humpback Whales travelling south and motored over forviews of both Great-winged and Providence Petrels were a closer look. While we drifted waiting for the whales
obtained but none came very near the boat.
to appear, we were visited by several Black-browed andSimilarly, our only Wandering-type albatross of the day Shy (White-capped) Albatross, the Northern Giant-Petrel
passed by the boat at a distance of 400 metres and wasn’t and a Southern Ocean Sunfish. The four Humpbacks
seen again. The large size and very white appearance eventually re-surfaced close by giving great views andof the bird indicated that it was indeed a Wandering photo opportunities.
Albatross (Diomedea exulans) rather than the Gibson’s
race of Antipodean Albatross. We started a drift at Brown’s
Mountain and, for the first time in my memory and despite
the good berley trail, we did not see a bird of any sort for
45 minutes. The decision was taken to motor northwards
and see if we could find some birds by travelling, and toa certain degree this tactic paid off. We had the visit of aOn the journey back to Sydney, no new species were seen
but we came across some large flocks of Fluttering and
Hutton’s Shearwaters resting on the water. For the regulars
on board, it was something of a disappointing day but there
were several people for whom this was their first pelagic
trip and they found plenty to hold their interest during theday.

BIRD LIST SYDNEY PELAGIC TRIP
(Note that the numbers in parentheses represent the approximate maximum number of that species in view at one time)
Wandering Albatross
Black-browed Albatross
Shy Albatross
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross
Northern Giant Petrel
Giant Petrel (sp)Great-winged Petrel
Providence Petrel
Wedge-tailed Shearwater
Short-tailed Shearwater
Fluttering Shearwater
Hutton’s Shearwater

1
12
5
1
1
1
4
3
200
15
500
20

(1)
(5) no adult birds(2) all thought to be White-capped(1) seen by only one person on board
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(120)
(6)
(450)
(15) numbers estimated based on the			

proportions of those identified

White-faced Storm Petrel
Australasian Gannet
Greater Crested Tern
Silver Gull

2
8
8
80

OTHER
Humpback Whale
False Killer Whale
Inshore Bottlenose Dolphin
Short-beaked Common Dolphin
Southern Ocean Sunfish
Fur seal (sp)Flying fish

4
6
6
20
2
4
1

(1)
(3)
(4)
(60)

Page 21

Birding NSW Newsletter

OUTING TO WARRIEWOOD WETLANDS
13 September 2014
Graeme Stevens
There were occasional heavy showers along the coast anda grey and overcast morning with soft rain falling as nine
members met at Katoa Close. Birders though are a hardy
lot and encouraged by the forecast of clearing weather
later in the day, we headed for the boardwalk through thewetlands with Russ Beardmore leading the way. Withoccasional sunny breaks arriving in line with the forecast
it lifted bird activity so we were in for a very satisfactory
morning. The boardwalk had already produced manyof the usual suspects with Australian Grey Teal, PacificBlack Duck, nesting Eurasian Coot and courting Chestnut
Teal when a Nankeen Night Heron flew in and landed in
the reeds giving brief but excellent views. A small flockof about twelve Topknot Pigeons then flew over givingvery unsatisfactory views when Coleen Southall locatedthe juvenile Striated Heron recently reported on Eremaea.
The bird provided excellent viewing as it hunted with great
success and at some detriment to the local frog population.
The resident Australian Brush-turkey males are now in full
breeding trim with bright red heads and extended yellow
wattles and the Warriewood Wetlands and neighbouring
Irrawong Reserve have a few active breeding mounds. The
deep booming calls were heard many times as a backdrop to
the morning. Further along the boardwalk Russell showed
us an active Brown Gerygone nest neatly suspended as usual
and appearing to be just a natural extension of the vegetationand vines where it is positioned. Adorned as usual withlichen and with the hooded entrance; surely one of the mostdelightful nest constructions. At this point we concluded thatthe weather was having odd effects on the birds! We hadseen White-browed Scrubwrens foraging quite high in the
canopy, Eastern Whipbirds foraging along tree trunks like

Treecreepers and here was a Purple Swamphen perched well
above head height on a Tree Fern watching us pass. Whichperhaps only goes to prove that bird behaviour is not always
restricted to the textbook version.
We then walked through Irrawong Reserve to the large
waterfall and returned to the settlement ponds where thefirst Australian Reed-Warbler of the spring announced
its presence and gave fleeting views. Perhaps it had
overwintered. A skulking Little Grassbird was much lessobliging. Willie Wagtails had just finished building theirneat spider web plastered nest and with the position overwater it was unusually below eye level giving very clear
views. Returning along the boardwalk to the cars Varied
Sittellas were sighted and Judy Clark spotted a bird
returning to the nest. Brilliantly camouflaged it would havebeen almost certainly missed without Judy’s work andeveryone agreed that it was a highlight of the morning. As isgenerally the case the outside of the nest was covered withbark fragments of the nest tree perfectly aligned to makethe nest appear to be just an extension of the woodwork.
The Striated Heron then made another appearance close to
the end of the boardwalk.
There were 49 species sighted by the group with anotherfour heard only, including for many the first Channel-billed
Cuckoo of the year. Five breeding records were noted aswell: Eurasian Coot, Dusky Moorhen, Brown Gerygone,
Willie Wagtail and Varied Sittella. A very satisfactory
morning for Warriewood considering the lack of blossom
at this time of year, the winter visitors having departed andthe summer migrants only just starting to appear. Many
thanks to Russell for a very enjoyable morning.

CENTRAL COAST PARKES CAMPOUT
19–21 September
Carole and John Carpenter
Parkes and the surrounding areas had been lucky to have rain
at the appropriate time so the paddocks of golden canola andlush green grain crops were a delight to see. The weather
generally was also kind to us with warm sunny days but acouple of zero temperatures overnight made us grateful for
our warm clothes although some campers had to get extra
blankets from the camp ground managers! The Spicer Park
Caravan Park was spacious and conveniently placed at thebase of Memorial Hill and close to all our needs. In the caravanpark we had resident nesting Apostlebirds, many, many
Noisy Friarbirds, Musk Lorikeets, Blue-faced Honeyeaters,
and a single Australian Hobby and Little Friarbird were seen.

On Friday we headed east out of town stopping near the airport
road where our special finds were Fan-tailed Cuckoo andShining Bronze-Cuckoo, Western Gerygone, White-winged
Triller, Olive-backed Oriole, Peaceful Dove and a Blackshouldered Kite hovering over a paddock. We continued onto
the old Parkes water supply dam, called Bumberry Dam,
where we saw Dusky Moorhens, Hardhead, Australian Grey
Teal, Eurasian Coot, Australasian Grebe, Pacific Black andAustralian Wood Ducks. The bush birds were plentiful with
Grey-crowned Babbler, Spotted Pardalote and Grey Fantail
all nesting and or feeding young. Rufous Whistler, Rufous
Songlark, Yellow-rumped and Yellow Thornbills, White-

Page 22
winged Choughs, Mistleoebird, Common Bronzewing and asurprised Nankeen Night Heron were all good bird finds. Afterour morning tea we drove further on and stopped in a sectionof Goobang National Park on the Ridge Trail Bumberry
where we added Buff-rumped Thornbill, Brown-headed,
Fuscous and White-eared Honeyeaters before heading backto camp for lunch. Our afternoon outing was to the Parkes
Sewage Treatment Works (STW) where we had been given
permission to drive or walk around the ponds. Whiskered
Terns were dipping and diving over the ponds as the usualcommon waterbirds were present and we also saw c.10 Rednecked Avocets, Black-winged Stilts, Red-kneed and Blackfronted Dotterels, a Glossy Ibis, several Freckled Ducks,
many Pink-ears, Australasian Shovelers, two Australian
Shelduck, five Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, a Black-tailed Nativehen and a Swamp Harrier made a brief appearance. After our
Bird Call back at camp we dined out at the Services Club.
Saturday we headed south towards Forbes, atlassing in the
Tichbourne area, finding Wedge-tailed Eagle, Whistling
Kite, Sacred Kingfisher and Cockatiel. At the water ponds
near the Forbes Golf Course we saw Fairy Martins nestingunder the railway bridge, White-breasted Woodswallows
flying overhead, an Eastern Great Egret posed for thephotographers as it perched on a walkway railing, and a
Yellow-billed Spoonbill fed in the shallows. We had morning
tea there and watched the Australian Reed-Warblers andLittle Grassbirds as we enjoyed out tea and coffee. Our next
stop was Gum Swamp and as usual there were plenty ofwater and bush birds. The White-bellied Sea-Eagles wereat their nest, White-winged Choughs were feeding young intheir nest, and Striped Honeyeaters, Brown Treecreepers andRainbow Bee-eaters were soon located, and a lone Blacktailed Native-hen preened and sunned itself on an exposed
log in the water. Both Hoary-headed and Little Grebes were
present, A few Freckled Ducks were seen but the Blue-bills
could not be located.

Birding NSW Newsletter
We headed northwest for lunch in a forest reserve on Warrigal
Road, where we had good views of Weebills, Cockatiels
and a Wedge-tailed Eagle overhead. At Bogan Gate we hada slow drive around the village adding Mallee Ringnecks
to our list. Another bush stop on a Travelling Stock Routefound Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater, Inland Thornbill, Redcapped Robin and Western Gerygones feeding young in alow, well-concealed nest in a bunch of eucalypt leaves. Ourlast stop of the day was at Trundle where Australian Pelicans
and White-necked Herons were found at a waterhole andJacky Winters were seen. Our intended look at the Trundle
STW did not happen owing to us not being able to find it!
We headed back to camp Bird Call and a barbecue at our
airy shelter meeting place where we sat around the log fire.
On Sunday we set off for Baldry atlassing along the way
and we saw both Little and Musk Lorikeets, an Australasian
Pipit and a Brown Songlark near Terrills Lane. Also ofinterest was a large drooping swarm of bees, hanging ina eucalypt branch over the road. Morning tea was at the
Spring Creek section of Goobang National Park, where
we saw both Rufous and Golden Whistlers, Western andWhite-throated Gerygones, Speckled Warbler, Striated andInland Thornbills and a Brown Goshawk. Further along
Spring Creek we found both White-throated and Brown
Treecreepers, Brown Quail and a Collared Sparrowhawk,a group of White-browed Babblers were seen and Blackchinned Honeyeaters were heard calling but not seen. Lunch
was at the Baldry Hall in the shade before we did a loop
along the Manildra Road. Here we added Diamond Firetails,
Zebra and Double-barred Finches and a Brown Falcon.
Striated Pardalotes were heard and seen at most of our stops
and a pair were found nesting in a fallen tree and on a crossbar on a power pole. Our daily counts were 98, 96 and 99
species with a total of 144 species for the camp. We had
23 birders and thanks to all of you for your attendance andhelping to make the camp a great success.

MIDWEEK OUTING CAPE SOLANDER AND BOAT HARBOUR
24 September
Ann Pritchard
On a sparkling morning three of us met to walk round to therock platform at Boat Harbour. We flushed birds at the startof the platform including Ruddy Turnstones and Doublebanded Plovers but they quickly flew right out to the end of
the rocks where many more were roosting and feeding. There
was an interesting mix of birds– Double-banded Plovers
starting to go into breeding plumage; some 20 or so Golden
Plovers, a few quite blotchy on the chest; lots of Red-necked
Stints (two with a little bit of a reddish tinge on their necks)
plus Ruddy Turnstones, Crested Terns and Silver Gulls.
Feeding on rocks were two White-faced Herons with
nice breeding plumage, a dark phase Eastern Reef Egret
and an Eastern Great Egret also with breeding plumes.
The latter flew up to the cliff top where we had to walkbut as it was stalking something it was unfazed by us.

Overhead we saw a Whistling Kite and a White-bellied
Sea-Eagle and in the grass there were Superb Fairy-wrens
and Red-browed Finches. An Australasian Pipit flew inand New Holland Honeyeaters called from the bushes.
On to Bonna Point for lunch where the new facilities
are excellent and we found a Sacred Kingfisher who
was very vocal as were the Red Wattlebirds. Down
on the bay there was an Eastern Curlew and a Pied
Oystercatcher plus many birds on posts but apart froman Australian Pelican all were too far away to identify.
In spite of lots of people and dogs (due to school holidays)
we had a modest list of 30 species but some quality birding
and good views of unusual plumages and behaviour.
Thanks ladies.       Page 23

Birding NSW Newsletter

DUBBO GULLY OUTING
27 September
Kaye Pointer
A cool spring morning, very different from last year’s hightemperature but only eight birders flocked where the usual
species were added to the day’s list like Little and Red
Wattlebirds, Noisy Friarbirds and Grey Fantails were seen
and White-throated Gerygones, Peaceful Dove, Shining
Bronze-Cuckoo, Eastern Whipbird, Spotted Pardalote andScarlet Honeyeaters made vocal claims for their territories
and gave alarm calls while two Brown Goshawks circled
overhead. While car-pooling was organised, a White-necked
Heron flew over the meeting place at the corner of Waratah
Road and Wisemans Ferry Road at Mangrove Mountain.
With 33 species on the list before we started, we could
only add another two species, Crimson Rosella and Willie
Wagtail before we reached the first gate, but as we opened
the gate, Wonga Pigeons, Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, Brown
Cuckoo-Dove and White-throated Treecreepers let theirpresence be known. A not so familiar call was heard from thetree tops which turned out to be three Black-faced Monarchs
returning for the summer visit, closely followed by a pair of
Leaden Flycatchers, also a first return for the season.
When we arrived at the second gate and entered the valley
we were observing a White-browed Scrubwren when thefirst Fan-tailed Cuckoo was heard calling, as did a Superb
Lyrebird and then three Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos
flew over and a Grey Butcherbird called in the distance.
A short walk down the creek added Brown Thornbill,
Silvereyes and Rufous Whistlers and the first sighting of a
Shining Bronze-Cuckoo. We had a short cuppa break here
before moving onto the recently slashed grass parking areaadjacent to the big waterhole. A short walk to the second

gate added Satin Bowerbird and Olive-backed Oriole.
While waiting for a truck to pass through this gate weall had great views of a Scarlet Honeyeater feeding in aflowering Native Clematis. On the walk back a party ofVariegated Fairy-wrens were seen. We checked out thewaterhole but there were not many birds but Australian
Reed-Warblers were loudly disputing territory boundaries.
During lunch at the waterhole we had several diversions
first a Brown Quail flew past although all but a few saw it
before it disappeared in the long grass. The second was acall from Malcolm seeking confirmation about two raptors
overhead, a reply came, ‘That’s not a raptor, it’s a hangglider!!’ Fortunately for Malcolm, on closer inspection, we
observed two Wedge-tailed Eagles, one carrying a large
object, probably a large tree branch for nest construction.
A walk along the edge of the waterhole which was echoing
with Australian Reed-Warblers calling, revealed a Purple
Swamphen, one Black Swan, an Australian Raven on a nest,
nine Pacific Black Ducks, a sun-baking Red-bellied Black
Snake and a Brush Cuckoo calling. The loop to the cemeteryand back to the cars provided some interesting vocals from atleast three Fan-tailed Cuckoos and several Crimson Rosellas.
Back at the corner of the Dubbo Gully and Waratah Road wemade a brief stop to say farewell and we observed two Jacky
Winters, the only ones sighted for the day, Eastern Spinebill,
House Sparrow and Yellow-rumped Thornbills. A total of
62 species were seen and heard, and were added to Gosford
Council’s Monitoring Program for the Gully. An enjoyable
days birding with interesting vocals and sightings. Thanks
again to the support team and all reporters.

HALF-DAY OUTING OURIMBAH CREEK RAINFORESTS
8 October 2014
Alan Morris
Thirty birders met on a cool, wet morning at the M1 Rest area
at Ourimbah, being a combined Cumberland Bird Observers
and Birding NSW Outing to rainforest on three private
properties in the Ourimbah Creek Valley. Unfortunately
it rained or drizzled rain for most of the morning, the rain
only stopping around lunchtime. However despite the rain
there were plenty of birds to see. Our time at the meeting
place enabled us to see just how busy the Australian Brushturkeys could be at that time of the morning, three small
flocks of Topknot Pigeons flew over, and an adult male anda number of female Regent Bowerbirds, Satin Bowerbirds
and Green Catbirds all fed in a fruiting Wild Tobacco Bushalongside the loop road of the rest area car park! Our firststop along the Ourimbah Creek Valley Road was at theproperty of Eileen and Brian Patterson, which consists offive acres of rainforest along Ourimbah Creek. Twenty years
ago this was just cleared land but now, what with natural revegetation and careful plantings to supplement the remnant
rainforest trees present when the property was purchased,
the Patterson’s have returned this property to a delightful
rainforest. Some good birds were found here including
Rufous Fantail, Black-faced Monarchs, Superb Lyrebird,
Striated Thornbills, Australian King-Parrots, Channel-billed
Cuckoos and Scarlet Honeyeaters, while in the paddocks
nearby were Cattle Egrets, White-faced Herons, Long-billed
Corellas and Dusky Moorhens.

Page 24
We moved onto Rosanna Jone’s property Lilly Pilly where
we joined Rosanna for a well-provisioned morning tea inout of the rain followed by a walk around her rainforest
block. Highlights there were a Superb Lyrebird foraging in
the garden, a pair of Eastern Shrike-tits busily demolishingsome hanging bark in a large Blue Gum, Olive-backed
Oriole, plenty of Yellow-throated Scrubwrens andmore Rufous Fantails and Black-faced Monarchs. Our
final stop for the day was at Pattie Koln’s Forest ofTranquility. Despite the rain we were soon traversing
the constructed paths through this rainforest where wesaw seven separate Yellow-throated Scrubwren nests plus
another, which had been taken over by some Large-billed
Scrubwrens. Additional birds for our list here were Sacred

Birding NSW Newsletter
Kingfisher, White-throated Treecreeper, Brown CuckooDove, Fan-tailed Cuckoos and Shining Bronze-Cuckoos,
Bell Miners, Eastern Whipbirds and Brown Gerygones.
We were able to have lunch in the picnic shelters that areavailable at this site and during lunch we watched theantics of a Satin Bowerbird that had a bower nearby. Redwhiskered Bulbuls were present in the creek and the raptor
seen overhead turned out to be a Square-tailed Kite, ably
photographed by Christian Port. I want to thank Brian andEileen and Rosanna and Patti for being our hosts for themorning and giving us access to their properties. Despite
the wet weather we saw 66 species and gained a good
insight and knowledge about the rainforest areas and theirbirds of the Ourimbah Creek Valley.

SYDNEY PELAGIC TRIP REPORT
11 October 2014
Roger McGovern
We departed from Rose Bay in the Zane Grey with 20 Albatross, and a few Flesh-footed Shearwaters were spotted
passengers, mostly locals but with visitors from the UK amongst the Wedge-taileds behind the boat. A distant jaeger
and Canada. We set up a trail of fish offal behind the boat was seen harassing the Silver Gulls behind the boat andbefore leaving the harbour and soon had large numbers of although it was almost certainly an Arctic Jaeger, it was too
Silver Gulls and several Great Cormorants following the far away to be certain. As we headed into deeper water, theboat. As we passed through the heads, those on the upper number of birds following the boat began to drop off but
deck had distant views of the resident pod of Inshore we had a number of sea creatures to maintain our attention
Bottlenose Dolphins and we soon had good numbers of as we came across a breaching marlin, two Southern Ocean
Wedge-tailed Shearwaters joining the gulls behind the Sunfish (one of which was well seen close to the boat), aboat. A single Hutton’s Shearwater was well seen behind couple of fur seals and a shark near a ball of bait fish, which
the boat and several more were seen close in to the heads. may have been a Tiger Shark.
Small numbers of Short-tailed
Shearwaters showed well andwe soon had our first views of
a distant group of Humpback
Whales - although we saw up
to 10 Humpbacks on the way
out, none were close enough for
us to observe at closer quarters
unfortunately. The small groupof Great Cormorants continued
to stay with the boat until about
4 NM off the heads which is mostunusual behaviour. As we travelled
through the first half of the 22 NM
journey to Brown’s Mountain, we
added good numbers of Fluttering
Shearwaters to the tally alongwith a few Australasian Gannets,
Greater Crested Terns and our
first albatrosses of the day, young
Shy Albatross (ssp steadi or‘White-capped’ Albatross) and asingle immature Black-browed Dwarf Minke Whale. Photo: Stephen Hey

Page 25

Birding NSW Newsletter
As we approached Brown’s Mountain, a giant petrel wasseen behind the boat and made a couple of reasonably
close passes showing the pale green bill tip which
confirmed that it was a Southern Giant Petrel. Although
there were a few Providence Petrels around the shelf
break, we decided to keep motoring into deeper water totry and find greater concentrations of birds. This was notparticularly successful but we eventually stopped about 5
NM east of Brown’s Mountain and set up a berley slick
to see what would come in. A few Providence Petrels,
Wedge-tailed Shearwaters and the odd Great-winged
Petrel came by and then several Wilson’s Storm Petrels
came to the slick and provided good, close views. The
first Wandering-type Albatross of the day approached
the boat and settled on the slick revealing itself to be an
Antipodean Albatross ssp gibsoni. With no new species
coming in to the berley trail, we motored back up the
slick to give close views of this bird before taking off ona course to the northeast. We continued to see a few birds
but no new species - the highlight of this period was apassing look at a very young Wandering-type Albatross(probably another gibsoni) resplendent in its chocolate
brown plumage and white face.

On the journey back to Sydney, no new bird species wereseen and it was generally a very quiet trip back to the heads.
Another fur seal was well seen and showed itself to be an
Australian Fur Seal. By far the highlight of the day occurred
about 10 NM off the heads when a glimpse of a medium
size whale was seen near the boat. We immediately stopped
and cut the engines and the whale surfaced again nearby
showing itself to be a DWARF MINKE, a species that werarely see off Sydney possibly because off the difficulty inlocating them rather than because of their extreme rarity.
As we drifted quietly, the Dwarf Minke continued to swimaround the boat, obviously curious, and it surfaced several
times in close proximity. It was still with us more than 20
minutes later when we decided to resume our homeward
trip. As we approached Sydney Heads, a couple of us on
the upper deck found a Sooty Shearwater amongst the
many Wedge-tailed Shearwaters but it had quickly gonefrom view before others could be alerted.
Although there were not huge numbers of birds evident on
the day, there was plenty to keep the attention and everyone
on board enjoyed a typical Sydney pelagic experience on abeautiful spring day.

BIRD LIST SYDNEY PELAGIC TRIP
(Note that the numbers in parentheses represent the approximate maximum number of that species in view at one time)
Antipodean Albatross
Black-browed Albatross

2
3(1) both gibsoni(1) all immature with one looking much

Shy Albatross
Southern Giant Petrel
Great-winged Petrel
Providence Petrel
Wedge-tailed Shearwater
Short-tailed Shearwater
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater
Fluttering Shearwater
Hutton’s Shearwater
Wilson’s Storm Petrel

7
1
3
10
120
150
3
1
30
8
9

(2) all steadi
(1)
(1)
(2)
(60)
(40)
(1)
(1)
(5)
(3)
(5)

			

like a Campbell Albatross

Australasian Gannet
Greater Crested Tern
Jaeger sp

8
4
1

(3)
(2)
(1) probably an 		Silver Gull

200

(120)

10
1
3
5

one confirmed

2
1
1

probably a Tiger Shark

			

OTHER
Humpback Whale
DWARF MINKE WHALE
Inshore Bottlenose Dolphin
Fur Seal (sp)Australian Fur Seal
Southern Ocean Sunfish
Marlin (sp)Shark (sp)Arctic Jaeger

ROYAL NATIONAL PARK OUTING
11 October 2014
Wendy Cope
The group of nine began the day in the Wattle Forest
Picnic Area and passed the bower of the Satin Bowerbird
on the way along the river where good views were hadof a Superb Lyrebird busily scratching on the opposite
bank. A Shining Bronze-Cuckoo was a welcome find
before coming upon Brown Gerygones building a nest.
On Lady Carrington Drive some photographers captured

a Green Catbird and our group enjoyed a Black-faced
Monarch. The birds of the day were the Topknot Pigeons,
which we saw many times throughout the day sitting not
too far away affording clear views. We were also very
close to three Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos after lunch.
The species count for the day was 46.

Page 26

Birding NSW Newsletter

CENTRAL COAST CAMPOUT URUNGA HEADS
17-19 October 2014
Graeme Catt
Twenty-seven birders arrived at Urunga Heads
Caravan Park in glorious weather. The countaround the park and boardwalk on the Thursday
resulted in us seeing 69 species which wasoutstanding, some we saw each day including
the Beach Stone-curlews, along with the Sooty
Oystercatchers, Nankeen Night Heron, Eastern
Curlews, 30+ Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos andRainbow Bee-eaters nesting in a bank 20 metresfrom the start of the boardwalk.
On Friday we left for Sawtell to do the walk below
the caravan park along the waters’ edge seeing
many Little Terns and Pied Oystercatchers, Lesser
Sand, Pacific Golden and Red-capped Plovers,
Brahminy Kite, Eastern Osprey, Whimbrel and a
distant Australasian Gannet. Coming back throughthe park the usual camp followers of Pied and Grey
Butcherbirds and Australian Brush-turkeys wereseen. Back to the car park for morning tea thenup the hill and along 200 metres on the left a short Beach Stone-curlew. Photo: Graeme Cattwalk of a few hundred metres produced Drongo,
Regent Bowerbirds, Golden Whistlers, Eastern Rosellas, Brown Cuckoo-Dove, Australian Logrunners, Large-billed
Eastern Shrike-Tit, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike, Fan-tailed Scrubwrens, Shinning Bronze-Cuckoo, great views of Roseand Brush Cuckoos, Black-faced Monarch, Eastern Yellow Robins and Rufous Fantail and White-browed Scrubwrens
Robin and both Grey and Rufous Fantails. Along about two feeding young in a nest at the base of a large tree which
km north of Sawtell, a walk along the base of the lookout had blown over in a recent storm. Back up on the road for
was a bit quiet seeing only Brown Cuckoo-Dove, White- the walk back to the Information Centre 100 metres fromcheeked Honeyeater, Variegated Fairy-wren and an Eastern the car park two Topknot Pigeons gave great views at close
Spinebill. We retuned to camp via Mylestrom, and on the way range. While I walked back to the car to get my camera, a
we saw Eastern Great and Cattle Egrets, a Pied Butcherbird male Paradise Riflebird appeared to the delight of many but
and an Eastern Koel was calling. Around our campsite we I missed it. We returned to photograph the pigeons and only
found two Regent Bowerbirds and a Black-faced Monarch four of us were there to see three female Paradise Riflebirds,
and along the road, White-breasted Woodswallows were obviously the best birds of the weekend. Where else could
seen on the wire. Around the Yellowrock Road we found a you see Paradise Riflebirds and Beach Stone-curlews withinlarge flock 30 + Red-browed Finches, Common Starlings, 35 km in a straight line from each other?
Dollarbirds, a White-breasted Sea-Eagle and Figbirds.
On Sunday we did an early morning walk along the boardwalk
On Saturday after picking up Richard Jordon at Bellingen and saw 49 Little Black Cormorants roosting on a sandbank,and doing a short walk along near the bridge over the as well as Gull-billed Terns, Mangrove Gerygones, Channelriver a Tawny Grassbird was found, which was the first billed Cuckoos, Pied Cormorant and Bar-tailed Godwit. We
one that Richard had seen in the ten years he had been went south from Urunga to the Sewage Treatment Worksin Bellingen. On the way to Dorrigo a friendly Emu was (STW) where all the usual ducks and waterfowl were seen
seen in the house yard of a property. We went up the top and down along the fence on the southern side of the ponds
to the lookout overlooking the Thora Valley for morning a Buff-banded Rail and a Swamp Harrier were found. Fromtea and the Forest Ravens were making their deep note there we went to Hungry Head and turned left at the blue
call. Many Satin Bowerbirds were seen crossing the road shelter shed to the first freshwater lagoon which produced
and there were Australian King-Parrots Crimson Rosellas, the resident female Musk Duck and Hardheads, an Aussie
Eastern Yellow Robins, Pied Currawongs and Yellow- Grebe and a Spangled Drongo that nearly landed on John
throated Scrubwrens. Back to the Information Centre and Carpenter’s lap. Yellow-tailed Black- Cockatoos were calling
along the trail below the Sky Walk we saw Green Catbird, and then onto the second lagoon where only a few waterfowl

Page 27

Birding NSW Newsletter
were seen. We relocated to Valla Reserve and morning
tea. Afterwards we walked along the Valla Estuary which
produced Striated Pardalotes, Galahs, Figbirds, StriatedHeron, Black-winged Stilts, a Little Egret and a pair of Scalybreasted Lorikeets were very busy looking in and out a hollow
limb. Also along the edge there were Pied Oystercatchers,
Eastern Osprey, Bar-tailed Godwits and a Black Swan. On
the way back five Royal Spoonbills gave great camera shotswith one male in breeding plumage having a bad hair day inthe strong Nor’easter wind that was blowing. Some members
crossed the footbridge to look for the Red-backed Fairy-wrens
but they could only find Superb Fairy-wrens.
After lunch we moved to Nambucca Heads STW arriving
about 2.30 pm and it was starting to warm up. It was great

to see the mowed walk all the way round the Ponds wasin the shade. Here we saw two Goannas and an Azure
Kingfisher, White-breasted Sea-Eagle, Yellow-faced
Honeyeaters, Grey Butcherbird, Square-tailed Kite, Olivebacked Oriole, White-throated Gerygone, Lathams Snipe
and all the common species of waterfowl. Along to the
Nambucca Cemetery where it was very warm and the best
bird was a Brahminy Kite that flew over but there was very
little else to be seen. Over the weekend we saw and heard
158 species, which was a very good count. Best birds were
without doubt the Paradise Riflebirds and the Beach Stonecurlews. Special Thanks to Richard Jordon for the Sunday
trip to Bellingen and Neville Compton for his great help inplanning this trip.

STANNIX PARK OUTING
18 October 2014
Trevor Waller
I just knew this outing was going to be a good one. As I
drove past McGrath’s Hill Treatment Works I saw the waterlevel in the pond beside the road was very low. This changed
my plans for the day and I’m glad it did.
While waiting for members to arrive at Stannix Park three
Yellow-tailed Black- Cockatoos flew low overhead. Aroundme there was an avalanche of bird calls. This is as good as
I’ve seen Stannix Park for birds in a long time. We spent sometime looking around the bush area along the river where wefound nesting White-throated Gerygone, Sacred Kingfisher
and Little Corella. These were some of the many nesting
birds we saw during the day. Other birds found here included
Restless Flycatcher, Little Lorikeet and Black-faced Monarch.
We then walked along the road towards the bridge and foundDollarbird, Australian King-Parrot and Brown Goshawk.
We were treated to a prolonged display of aerial gymnastics
by a Grey Fantail. There were also nesting Grey Butcherbird
and Yellow Thornbill.
Our morning tea stop was at Wilberforce Park. Here we saw
a distant Australian Hobby that then came close enough to
swoop low between the trees. We then moved on to Pugh’s
Lagoon where we found a Black-shouldered Kite, Azure
Kingfisher and Fairy Martin. In one tree we had nesting
Magpie-lark and Willie Wagtail.
Our next stop was along Triangle Lane in the Richmond Turf
Farms. Here we had views of a few Rufous Songlarks, Goldenheaded Cisticola and Cattle Egret in breeding plumage. Along
Cornwallis Lane we stopped for a Brown Songlark that sat on
a post next to the road and allowed great views for all.
McGrath’s Hill Treatment Works was definitely worth astop. There were many Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and Blackwinged Stilts to be seen. There were also Red-kneed Dottereland Chestnut-breasted Mannikins. The star of the show was
the Baillon’s Crake that Elizabeth found.
We had lunch near the cars at Pitt Town Lagoon before
venturing down to the hide. There were many water birds
and we found Freckled Duck, Australasian Shoveler, Pinkeared Duck and Hardhead. Two Caspian Terns flew in andlanded on one of the islands. There were three Pacific Golden
Plovers roosting on an island as well. This was a great day
birding and one in which we saw 100 species.

GREBES ON THE PARRAMATTA
RIVER (INNER HARBOUR)
Barrie Ayres

I have now lived in Chiswick, close to a cliffbank of the Parramatta, looking down at about
45° into the water, for well over 20 years . . .
and, even with kayaking for about 10 years,
have never seen a shark!
Despite reports from other people of sightings,
until the other day, I had not seen a grebe in theriver either. Then, by pure chance, my eye wasin the right spot to see a tiny blur a moment
before it hit the water, with hardly a splash or aripple. The grebe dived almost immediately anddid not reappear within my sight . . . (probably
resurfacing nearer to the bank).
Normally my peripheral vision is good . . . but
the flight of the bird across the water had notbeen noticed. Now I understand that they areabout – but almost invisible!

Page 28

Birding NSW Newsletter

THE BEST UNUSUAL REPORTS FOR NEW SOUTH WALES, AUGUST-OCT 2014
ALAN MORRIS
Region Abbreviations: NC–North Coast; H–Hunter, CC–Central Coast; S–Sydney Region; I–Illawarra; SC–South Coast;
NT–Northern Tablelands; CT–Central Tablelands; ST–Southern Tablelands; NS–North-west Slopes; CS–Central-west Slopes;
SS–South-west Slopes; NP–North-west Plains; CP–Central-west Plains; R–Riverina; UW–Upper Western; LW–Lower Western
Emu
Australian Brush-turkey
Magpie Goose
Magpie Goose
Freckled Duck
Freckled Duck
Blue-billed Duck
Blue-billed Duck
Blue-billed Duck
Plumed Whistling-Duck
Australian Shelduck
White-headed Pigeon
Brush Bronzewing
Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove
Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove
Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove
Topknot Pigeon
Topknot Pigeon
Topknot Pigeon
White-throated Nightjar *White-throated Nightjar *Wandering Albatross
Black-browed Albatross
Campbell Albatross
Shy Albatross
Buller’s Albatross
Northern Giant Petrel
South Giant Petrel (WP)
Cape Petrel
White-headed Petrel
White-headed Petrel
Black Petrel
Great-winged Petrel
Great-winged Petrel
Fairy Prion
Buller’s Shearwater
Little Penguin
Black-necked Stork
Black-necked Stork
Australasian Bittern
Australasian BitternBlack Bittern
Striated Heron
Striated Heron
Eastern Osprey
Eastern Osprey
Eastern Osprey
Pacific Baza
Pacific Baza
Pacific Baza
Pacific Baza
Square-tailed Kite

1
AM
8
90
2
11
2
2
4+1Y
6
2
50
1
1 HC
2
Im
50+
20
100+
2
1
1
12
2
6
5
1
1
1
1
1
1
40
40
4
1
1
Im M
F
1
HC
1
1+N?
1
N+1Y
1
1
1
4
2
2+N
2

29/08/14
09/09/14
04/09/14
18//09/14
05–09/09/14
20/09/14
29/09/14
30/09/14
03/10/14
14/09/14
19/09/14
24/08/14
30/08–21/09
26/08/14
27/09/14
04/10/14
21/09/14
22/09/14
27/09/14
19/09/14
03/10/14
27/08/14
15/09/14
23/10/14
27/08/14
30/08/14
15/09/14
06/09/14
27/09/14
30/08/14
03/09/14
23/10/14
30/08/14
03/09/14
30/08/14
27/09/14
02/10/14
29/08–02/09
30/08/14
16 & 29/09
28/09/14
30/08 & 21/09
08/09/14
12/09/14
17–25/08/14
06/09/14
10/09/14
29/08/14
13/09/14
22/09/14
22/09–13/10
06/09/14

Dunheved G C St Marys
Gore Hill (entered a house)
Clarenza (small wetland)
Narrabri Lake
McPherson Rd Swp Tuggerah
Gum Swamp Forbes
Lake Wallace Wallerawang
Little Llangothlin Lgn NR
Gum Swamp Forbes
Bungendore Wetlands
Parkes STW
Derby St Epping (privet feeding)
Deep Ck Narrabeen (2 on 31/08)
Iluka NR
Mungo Brush Myall Lakes NP
Caniaba Lismore
Deep Creek Narrabeen
Lake Conjola Estuary
Bulli Pass
Station Ck Yuraygir NP
Wog Wog NP Sunny Corner
North Head Sydney Harbour NP
Sydney pelagic
Sydney Pelagic
North Head Sydney Harbour NP
Wattamolla Royal NP (1 on 06/09)
Sydney pelagic
Wattamolla Royal NP
Wollongong pelagic
Wattamolla Royal NP (1 on 06/09)
Mistral Point Maroubra
Sydney Pelagic
Wattamolla Royal NP
Mistral Point Maroubra
Wattamolla Royal NP
Wattamolla Royal NP
Chinamans Bch Sydney Harbour
McPhersons Dairy Swp Tuggerah
Ellalong Lagoon Paxton
Fivebough Wetlands Leeton
Hexham Swamp
Deep Ck Narrabeen
Deepwater Park Milperra
Warriewood Wetlands
Erina (nesting) (died 25/08)
Cobar (soaring over– out of range)
Penrhyn Estuary Botany Bay
Terrys Creek Parkland
Kooringal Ave ThornleighQuarry Ck Lane Cove NP
Wattletree Rd Holgate (re-nesting)
Cattai Wetlands Coopernook

S
S
NC
NP
CC
CS
CT
NT
CS
ST
CS
S
S
NC
H
NV
S
I
I
NC
CT
S
S
S
S
S
S
S
I
S
S
S
S
S
S
S
S
CC
H
R
H
S
S
S
CC
UW
S
S
S
S
CC
H

Mark Fuller
Judy Clarke
Greg Clancy
Michael Dahlem
Allan Benson
John CarpenterDavid James
Greg Clancy
Warren Chad
Martin Butterfield
Robyn Price
Jenny Stiles
Henry Coleman
Greg Clancy
Joshua Bergmark
Paul Griffin
Paddy De Klerk
Richardson Family
Paul FreemanPeter Higgins
Marc Anderson
Ivan Chapman
Roger McGovern
Roger McGovern
Ivan Chapman
Michael Ronan
Roger McGovern
Michael Ronan
Brook Wylie
Michael Ronan
David Mitford
Roger McGovern
Michael Ronan
David Mitford
Michael Ronan
Michael Ronan
David Potter
Alan Morris
Christina PortSue Proust
Joshua Bergmark
Henry Coleman
Greg McLachlan
Carl Weber
Lisa Ford
Val Curtis
Allan Richards
Irene Timmins
Cameron Ward
Noela Jones
Eileen DavyMark Ley

Page 29

Birding NSW Newsletter
Square-tailed Kite
Square-tailed Kite
Black Kite
Brahminy Kite
Grey Goshawk
Spotted Harrier
Wedge-tailed Eagle
Lewin’s rail
Baillon’s Crake
Australian Spotted Crake
Australian Spotted Crake
Black-tailed Native-hen
Beach Stone-curlew
Beach Stone-curlew
Bush Stone-curlew
Red-necked Avocet
Red-necked Avocet
Red-necked Avocet
Red-necked Avocet
Grey Plover
Double-banded Plover **Double-banded Plover **Hooded Plover
Hooded Plover
Latham’s Snipe *Latham’s Snipe *Latham’s Snipe *Little Curlew
Great Knot *Red Knot *Curlew Sandpiper *Sharp-tailed Sandpiper *Sharp-tailed Sandpiper *Sharp-tailed Sandpiper *Painted Button-quail
Painted Button-quail
Kelp Gull
Common Tern
Whiskered Tern *Whiskered Tern *Whiskered Tern *Glossy Black-Cockatoo
Glossy Black-Cockatoo
Glossy Black-Cockatoo
Gang-gang Cockatoo
Little Corella
Superb Parrot
Superb Parrot
Superb Parrot
Red-winged Parrot
Little Lorikeet
Little Lorikeet
Swift Parrot **Swift Parrot **Swift Parrot **Turquoise Parrot
Turquoise Parrot
Turquoise Parrot

1
1
8
2 Im
1
1
AF+J
1
1
4
1
1
1
2
2
62
450
40
120
1
1
1
8
2
1
1
2
1
3
4
1
12
3
4
1
1D
2
78
6
1
30
3
2+J
10
2
300
24
12
25
3
100+
6
4
2
4
2
2
6

11/09/14
18/09/14
09/09/14
21/09/14
25/09/14
27/09/14
01/09/14
15/09/14
29/08/14
29/08/14
13/09/14
30/09/14
29/08/14
17–19/10/14
27/09/14
28/08–02/10
04/09/14
01/10/14
06/10/14
22–25/09/14
04/09/14
08/09/14
24/07/14
25/09/14
12/09/14
13–18/09/14
20/09/14
21/09/14
30/08/14
23/08/14
08/09/14
14/09/14
18/09/14
01/10/14
30/09/14
02/10/14
30/08/14
08/09/14
14/09/14
19/09/14
19/09/14
16/07/14
09–10/09/14
20/09/14
09/09/14
09/09/14
19–20/07/14
01/08/14
26/09/14
19/09/14
08/09/14
13/09/14
08/09/14
22/09/14
25/09/14
22/09/14
28/09/14
29/09/14

Kellyville
Sydney Olympic Park
Duranbah Tweed Valley
Wybung Head Munmorah SCA
Wingham Brush
Bylong Valley Way
Castlereagh
Chipping Norton
Fivebough Wetlands Leeton
Fivebough Wetlands Leeton
Putta Bucca Wetlands Mudgee
Lake Wallace Wallerawang
Wooli
UrungaBarhamTuggerah Bay Saltmarsh
Swan Pond Ash Island
Ashley (Cotton Farm)
Waterbird Refuge SOP
Lake Conjola EstuaryLong Reef
Pelican Point Norah head
Racecourse Bch Ulladulla
Cudmirrah Beach
Kings Rd Swamp Wauchope
Putta Bucca Wetlands Mudgee
Mt Annan Botanic Gardens
Stockton Sandspit
Clarence River Yamba
Stockton Sand Spit (71 on 05/09)
Soldiers Pt Norah Head
Waterbird Refuge SOP
Eastlakes Golf Course
Ashley (Cotton Farm)Glen Alice
Wilson St Botany (found dead)Long Reef Aquatic Reserve
Soldiers Point Norah Head
Pejar Dam Crookwall
Cattai Wetlands Coopernook
Parkes STW
Bangadilly NP Canyonleigh
Coutts Crossing
Butterleaf SF Glen Elgin
North Epping
147 Levenstrath Rd Levenstrath
Cowra Shire (5 sites)
Kidman Hwy (105 km S Cobar)
Orange Botanic Gardens
Glen Innes (19 km W)
Eight Mile Lane Glenugie
Cambridge Gardens
Deepwater Pk Milperra
Wilpinjong Ck Murracamba
Blacktown (McDonalds)
Wilpinjong Ck Murracamba
Crown Stn Rd Glen Davis
Binya SF

S
S
NC
CC
H
CT
S
S
R
R
CT
CT
NC
NC
R
CC
H
NP
S
I
S
CC
I
I
NC
CT
S
H
NC
H
CC
S
S
NP
CT
S
S
CC
ST
H
CS
I
NC
NT
S
NC
CT
UW
CT
NT
NC
S
S
CT
S
CT
CT
R

Carl Corben
Stephen Davey
Rob Morrow
Rebecca Citroni
Nicholas Beswick
Tom Wilson
Akos Lumnitzer
David JamesMax O’Sullivan
Max O’Sullivan
Lisa Abra
David James
Roger Stonehouse
Graeme Catt
Karl Just
Luke Ullrich
Roger Giller
Curtis Hayne
Tom Wilson
A Wolinski
Nicholas Beswick
Steve Merrett
Charles Dove
Cameron Ward
Alan Morris
Lisa Abra
David Vickers
Andrew O’Brien
Darryl Eggins
Liz Crawford
Alan Morris
Jenny Stiles
Mark Young
Curtis Hayne
Dion Hobcroft
David Mitford
Tom Wilson
Alan Morris
Chris Gladwin
Nicholas Beswick
Alan Morris
Terry Edwell
Greg Clancy
David CharleyFrances Rein
Warren Thompson
Cowra Surveys
Jane Anthony
Tom Wilson
David Charley
Greg Clancy
Akos Lumnitzer
Greg McLachlan
Kurtis Lindsay
Henry Cook
Kurtis Lindsay
Tom Wilson
Nick Leseberg

Page 30Ground Parrot
Channel-billed Cuckoo *Channel-billed Cuckoo *Channel-billed Cuckoo *Eastern Koel *Eastern Koel *Eastern Koel *Little Bronze-Cuckoo
Little Bronze-Cuckoo
Brush Cuckoo *Brush Cuckoo *Oriental Cuckoo
Pallid Cuckoo *Pallid Cuckoo *Powerful Owl
Powerful Owl
Barking Owl
Southern Boobook
Sooty Owl
Forest Kingfisher
Sacred Kingfisher *Sacred Kingfisher *Sacred Kingfisher *Red-backed Kingfisher *Red-backed Kingfisher *Red-backed Kingfisher *Red-backed Kingfisher *Rainbow Bee-eater *Rainbow Bee-eater *Rainbow Bee-eater *Dollarbird *Dollarbird *Dollarbird *Noisy Pitta
Noisy Pitta
Noisy Pitta
Paradise Riflebird
White-throated Gerygone *White-throated Gerygone *White-throated Gerygone *Mangrove Gerygone
Rockwarbler
Chestnut-rumped Heathwren
Rufous Fieldwren
Redthroat
Southern Whiteface
Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater
Regent Honeyeater
Regent HoneyeaterBlack-chinned HoneyeaterBlack-chinned HoneyeaterBlack-chinned HoneyeaterBlack Honeyeater
Painted Honeyeater
Painted Honeyeater
Painted Honeyeater
Spotted Quail-thrush
Ground Cuckoo-shrike

Birding NSW Newsletter
2 HC
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1`
1
1
1
1D
1
1
1
HC
AM
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
3
2
12
1
1
2
1
1
1 HC
AM
1
1
1
3
2
2
1
2
5
4
4
2+N
4
3
2 HC
2
3
12
3
2
4

19/09/14
03/09/14
04/09/14
07/09/14
30/08/14
09/09/14
13/09/14
14/09/14
20/09/14
27/09/14
29/09/14
31/08/14
30/09/14
25/09/14
09/09/14
22/09/14
20/07/14
24/08/14
27/09/14
11/09/14
10/09/14
12/09/14
13/09/14
18–23/09/14
02–05/10/14
05/10/14
01/10/14
31/08/14
01/09/14
11/09/14
21/09/14
23/09/14
24/08–09/14
04/09/14
07/09/14
11/09/14
10/09/14
26/08/14
06/09/14
14/09/14
15/09 & 06/10
08/09/14
01/10/14
04/10/14
23/09/14
19/07/14
29–31/08/14
29/08–09/09
14/09/14
20/07/14
08/09/14
23/09/14
23/09/14
11/09/14
22/09/14
22/09/14
03/10/14
14/09/14

Brooms Hd Heath Yuraygir NP
Eulah Creek Narrabri
Balmain
Kurrajong Heights
Kingsford
Maryville Newcastle
Bellevue Hill & Sawtell
Old Glen Innes Rd Grafton (TSR)
South Grafton Water Reserve
Dubbo Gully Mangrove Mtn
Lower Pappinbarra
Cremorne Point
Glen Alice
Poley Bridge Orara River
Pearl Beach (found dead)Royal Bot Gardens Sydney
Cowra Shire
Nielsen Pk Vaucluse
Mt Hyland Wilderness Reserve
Taloumbi Brooms Head
Coutts Crossing
Ingleside
Bundeena
Rushworth Rd Grafton
Eulah Creek Narrabri
Bombi SF Grenfell
Bogee Rylstone
Main Beach Byron Bay
Sawtell
Koolumbung Ck Pt Macquarie
Richmond Vale
Warriewood Wetlands
Hallidays Point
Kincumba Mountain Reserve
Irrawong Reserve Warriewood
Forest of Tranquility Ourimbah
Mortons Ck Beechwood
Caniaba Lismore
King Ck Wauchope
Tathra Taila HSD Mangrove Mtn
Sydney Olympic Park
Giants Creek Sandy Hollow
Kings Plains NP Inverell
Broken Hill (10 km NW)
Broken Hill
Breakfast Ck & Cowra Hills
Giants Ck Sandy Hollow
Giants Ck Sandy Hollow
Widden Valley
Nandewar HSD Cowra
Eight Mile Lane Glenugie
Spring Ck Goobang NP Parkes
Broken Hill
Yarrie Lake Narrabri
Medhurst Bridge Martindale
Wilpinjong Ck Murracamba
Mogo Camp Yengo NP
Back Yamma SF Forbes

NC
NP
S
S
S
H
S
NC
NC
CC
NC
S
CT
NC
CC
S
CT
S
NC
NC
NC
S
S
NC
NP
CS
CT
NC
NC
NC
H
S
H
CC
S
CC
NC
NC
NC
CC
S
H
NS
UW
UW
Ct
H
H
H
CT
NC
CS
UW
NP
H
CT
S
CS

Peter Higgins
Michael Dahlem
Robert Griffin
Eric Finley
Michael Hooper
Tom Clarke
Gladwin/Higgins
Gary Eggins
Greg Clancy
Kaye PointerIan Kerr
Simon Blanchflower
Dion Hobcroft
Greg Clancy
Ian Harvey
Ted Nixon
Cowra Surveys
Marie Lister
Greg Clancy
Russell Jago
Greg Clancy
Roger McGovern
Deryk Engel
Alan Pilkington
Michael Dahlem
Kim Farley-Larmour
Edwin Vella
Ian Kerr
Michael Cheers
Alan Morris
Dan Williams
Jayden Walsh
Nicholas Beswick
Warren Brown
Nicholas Beswick
John Weigel
Sue Proust
Paul Griffin
Clive Meadows
Margaret PointerJ Stiles/T Wilson
Mick Roderick
Greg Roberts
James Gunn
Greg Roberts
Cowra Surveys
Mick Roderick
Mick RoderickMichael Ronan
Cowra Surveys
Greg Clancy
Alan Morris
Greg Roberts
Michael Dahlem
John Weigel
Kurtis Lindsay
Alan Morris
Loran Szucs

Page 31

Birding NSW Newsletter
Ground Cuckoo-shrike
White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike
White-winged Triller *White-winged Triller *Varied Triller
White-breasted Woodswallow
White-breasted Woodswallow
White-browed Woodswallow *Dusky Woodswallow *Rufous Whistler*
Black-faced Monarch *Black-faced Monarch *Spectacled Monarch *Spectacled Monarch *White-eared Monarch
White-eared Monarch
Leaden Flycatcher *Rufous Fantail *Spangled Drongo
Spangled Drongo
Flame Robin
Scarlet Robin
Rose Robin
Flame Robin
Hooded Robin
Horsfield’s Bushlark
White-backed Swallow
Rufous Songlark *Rufous Songlark *Rufous Songlark *European Blackbird
Beautiful FiretailDiamond FiretailDiamond FiretailDiamond Firetail
Plum-headed Finch
Plum-headed Finch
Citrine Wagtail

3
2
3
2
1
2
2
2
4
1
1
1
1
2
HC
1
F
1
1
1
11
2
3
1P
4
6+
2
1
1
2
AM
2
2
2
4
3
10
AF

20/09/14
30/08/14
29/08/14
04/10/14
14/09/14
31/08/14
04/09/14
23/09/14
08/09/14
29/08/14
19/09/14
19/09/14
06/09/14
02/10/14
24/08/14
14/09/14
04/09/14
26/08/14
07/09/14
21/09/14
19/07/14
19/07/14
20/07/14
24/09/14
29/08/14
23/09/14
23/09/14
14/09/14
21/09/14
28/09/14
22/09/14
22/09/14
21/09/14
30/09–04/10
03/10/14
30/08–13/09
03/10/14
28/08-–08/09

Eulah Creek Narrabri
Putta Bucca Wetlands Mudgee
Giants Ck Sandy Hollow
Mt Banks Blue Mtns NP
Old Glen Innes Rd Grafton
Sawtell
McPherson Rd Swamp
Pearsons Lkt Capertee
Bawley Point Batemans Bay
Koolumbung Ck Pt Macquarie
Canaiba Lismore
Cattai Wetlands Coopernook
Sawtell
Ourimbah Ck RTA Res
Iluka NR Iluka
Old Glen Innes Rd Grafton
Crows Nest Swp Pillar valley
Caniaba Lismore
Irrawong Reserve Warriewood
Deep Creek Narrabeen
Cowra Shire (4 sites)
Kooragindi HSD Cowra
Mulyan & Conimbla NP Cowra
Mt Hyland Wilderness Lodge
Giants Ck Sandy Hollow
Bureen Rd Martindale
Martindale
Causeway Royal NP
Richmond Lowlands
Crown Stn Rd Glen Davis
Wattle Flat Royal NP
Barren Grounds NR
Baldry (5 km SE)
Crown Stn Rd Glen Davis
Back Yamma SF Forbes
Putta Bucca Wetlands Mudgee
Gum Swamp Forbes
Putta Bucca Wetlands Mudgee

NP
CT
H
CT
NC
NC
CC
CT
I
NC
NC
H
NC
CC
NC
NC
NC
NC
S
S
CT
CT
CT
NC
H
H
H
S
S
CT
S
I
CS
CT
CS
CT
CS
CT

Michael Dahlem
Mark Fuller
Mick Roderick
Eric Finley
Darryl Eggins
Peter Higgins
Allan Benson
Tom Wilson
Margaret Harmon
Ian Kerr
Paul Griffin
Nicholas BeswickPeter Higgins
Alan Morris
Greg Clancy
Darryl Eggins
Greg Clancy
Paul Griffin
Nicholas Beswick
Jayden Walsh
Cowra Surveys
Cowra Surveys
Cowra Surveys
Boyd Essex
Mick Roderick
Mick Roderick
Mick RoderickMartin Odino
Akos Lumnitzer
Tom Wilson
Marie Lister
Marc Anderson
Carole Carpenter
Dion Hobcroft
Nick Leseberg
Edwin Vella
Nick Leseberg
Sue Chatfield*=First Return ** Last Date hw= hit window rk = road kill bc= beach cast, CWBS= Cowra Woodland Bird Survey
Bold – On the Review list of the NSW Ornithological Records Appraisal Committee – submission required.
(Bird names used and the order in which they occur are in accord with ‘Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds’2008)
COMMENT
Springs has arrived and the migrants are funneling through fast but there have been no special rarities other than the Citrine Wagtail that made the Putta Bucca
Wetlands at Mudgee its home, staying for over three weeks and it is the 3rd NSW record. The drought in south-west Queensland and western NSW with theaccompanying drying up of wetlands in the Paroo, Bulloo and Lake Eyre Basin continues to drive large numbers of Freckled Ducks, Pink-ears and Whitenecked Herons into north-eastern and eastern NSW with extraordinary numbers of each species being seen in places not previously reported, however Black
Kites which were also pushed into north-west NSW appear to have gradually returned to the western Regions. Other Freckled Ducks: 2 Parkes STW 22/09 (CS),
2 Lithgow STW 25–30/09 (CT); White-throated Nightjar: 1 Brooms Hd Heath Yuraygir NP 19/09 (NC); Eastern Osprey: 1 Long Reef Aquatic Res 06/09, 1
Lane Cove River, LCNP (S) 14/09; Other records of Pacific Baza include: 1 Dunbogan 06/08, 1 Kororo, Coffs Harbour 25/08 (NC), 1 Kurrajong 13/09, 1 Devlins
Rd Castlereagh 20/09 (S), 1 South Grafton WR 20/09, 1 Mt Hyland Wilderness Lodge 28/09, 1 Shark Ck Grafton 05/10 (NC); Square-tailed Kites have also beenreported from Dunbogan 07/08 (NC), Warden Hd Ulladulla 27/08 (I), Chiltern Trl Ingleside 10 & 28/09, 1 Middle Dural 04/10 (S); Coastal Spotted Harriers
remain in many locations including singles at Killalea SRA 26/07 (I); Gull-billed Tern: The one reported from The Entrance Channel on 16/08, is only the firstCentral Coast report this year! (CC); Glossy Black-Cockatoo: 2 Capertee Village 24/09 (CT); Other Superb Parrots seen included: 2 Tarcutta Ck Tarcutta (SS), 3
Holmwood HSD 30 km E of Parkes 18/09 (CS); Turquoise Parrot: 2 Coco Ck Glen Davis 04/10 (CT); Swift Parrots occurred in smaller numbers than usual thiswinter with only one report from the Central Coast and only a few northern records from the Hunter and North Coast, other records include: 9 Badgery TSR 20/07,
2 St Clair 24/08 (S), 2 McPherson Rd Swamp Tuggerah 29/08 (CC), 12 Dunheved GC St Marys 03/08 (S); Other Powerful Owls HC include: King Ck Waughope
19/09 (NC) ; Channel-billed Cuckoos returned early again (last year first record was 29/08!) Bundeena 05/09, Bicentennial Pk Glebe 07/09, North Epping 09/09(S); Other Eastern Koels: 1 Epping 15/09 (S), Hawks Nest 19/09 (H), Kariong 27/09 (CC); Other Sacred Kingfisher arrivals included 5 Gum Swp Forbes 22/09(CS), Bradleys Head 28/09 (S); Other Dollarbird arrivals were: 2 Bundeena (S) and Sawtell (NC) 25/09, 2 Clarencetown 27/09 (H), 2 Ourimbah Ck Chittaway
29/09 (CC); Noisy Pittas continue to be regularly reported for the Sydney region, other records include 2 Woody Head, Bunjalung NP 22–23/08, another Iluka NR
24/08 (NC); Regent Honeyeaters have been noticeably absent this winter while a few Black-chinned Honeyeaters have been around viz: 1 Crown Stn Rd Glen
Davis 28/09 (CT) ; Painted Honeyeaters have returned in reasonable numbers this spring and other records include 2 Giants Ck Sandy Hollow 23/09 (H) and 1
Binya TSR 29/09 (R), 1 Genowlan Bridge Glen Alice 04/10 (CT); Leaden Flycatcher: Other arrivals Coutts Crossing 09/09, Taloumbi and Red Cliff 11/09 (NC),
Dubbo Gully 27/09 (CC); Other Black-faced Monarch arrivals : 3 Dubbo Gully 27/09 (CC), Bradleys Head 28/09 (S). Good Birding!

Page 32

Birding NSW Newsletter

BIRDING NSW DIRECTORY
Postal address:
Birding NSW, PO Box Q277,
QVB Post Shop, NSW 1230
Email: info@birdingnsw.org.au
Website: www.birdingnsw.org.au

Sydney Club Meetings:
The Club meets on the first Tuesday of themonth, February to December at 7.30 pm
on Level 1, Sydney Mechanics School ofArts, 280 Pitt Street, Sydney. There is an
illustrated talk followed by Club businessand unusual sighting reports. Visitors arewelcome.

Central Coast Club Meetings
Meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday ofthe month at Anzac Street, Tuggerah at 7.30
pm. Convenor: Alan Morris 4334 2776

Annual membership fee:Single adult $35.00
Family $40.00

Junior (under 18 years) $15.00

Fees are due on 1 October. Membership
includes subscription to the Newsletter andthe Club’s Annual Bird Report.

CLUB COMMITTEEPRESIDENT:Dr Tom Karplus
9816 2285

VICE-PRESIDENT:

Vacant

SECRETARY:

Vacant

TREASURER:

Leigh Hall9449 8370

PUBLIC OFFICER:

Dick Dallimore
9953 7562

MEMBERS SECRETARY:

Adrian Nieuwenhuizen
8920 2935

NEWSLETTER EDITOR:

Rae Lister9982 1924

ACTIVITIES OFFICER:

Allan Richards
9660 8062

SPEAKERS COORDINATOR: Graham Walters
9534 3039
RECORDS OFFICER:

Alan K. Morris4334 2776

CONSERVATIONSUBCOMMITTEE:

Carol Bye
9314 2421
Barry & Carlotta Payne

PUBLICITY OFFICER:

VacantWEBSITE COORDINATOR:

VacantCLUB EMAIL MANAGER:

Marlene Henderson

CLUB OFFICERS
BIRDING BULLETIN:

Keith Morris &Elisabeth Karplus

SALES TABLE,
STOCK & ASSETS:

Coleen Southall

activities@birdingnsw.org.au

RHERP PROGRAM:

Madeleine Murray
Norma Ikin

Newsletter contributions:

NAME TAGS &HAT/LAPEL BADGES:CAPERTEE REGENTHE SURVEYS:

Elisabeth Karplus

Email for Club Activities:

Email articles, trip reports etc to
newsletter@birdingnsw.org.au

FEBRUARY Newsletter Deadline:
22 December 2014

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contact Rae Lister:
Email: newsletter@birdingnsw.org.au

Visit Birdline NSW online:
www.eremaea.com
This site is for the reporting of rare or unusual birds outside
their normal range, unusually high or low numbers, early orlate arrivals or departures for migrant species and interesting
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