page_title: Capricorn and Bunker Group
section_title: Birds
hierarchical_section_title: Capricorn and Bunker Group / Fauna / Birds
context_page_description: The islands and reefs of the Capricorn and Bunker Group are situated astride the Tropic of Capricorn at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef, approximately 80 kilometres east of Gladstone, which is situated on the central coast of the Gladstone Region, Queensland, Australia.
  Many of these islands form part of the Capricornia Cays National Park and are part of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
context_section_description: The Capricorn and Bunker Group contains 73–75 percent of all seabird biomass in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
  All the cays, except Broomfield Cay, have been identified as significant seabird breeding islands. In recent years, a colony of lesser crested tern Sterna bengalensis has used Broomfield Cay for breeding. Up to eight seabird species breed on Masthead Island, One Tree Island and Wreck Island, and seven species are recorded from Tryon Island, Erskine Island and Fairfax Islands.
  The islands making up the Capricorn and Bunker Groups provide habitat for thousands of nesting seabirds, including
  Wedge-tailed shearwater (Puffinus pacificus)
  Southwestern black noddy (Anous minutus minutus),
  Northern silver gull (Larus novaehollandiae forsteri)
  Brown booby (Sula leucogaster)
  Black-naped tern (Sterna sumatrana)
  Bridled tern (Sterna anaethetus)
  Roseate tern (Sterna dougalli)
  The breeding season is between October and April.
  The white-bellied sea-eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) once nested on most of the cays and breeds during the winter months, nest sites are now restricted to Tryon, North West, Wilson, Wreck, East Fairfax and West Hoskyn Islands.
  All-year resident and breeding within the group are:
  Common eastern reef egret (Egretta sacra sacra)
  Australian buff-banded rail (Gallirallus philippensis mellori)
  Common bar-shouldered dove (Geopelia humeralis humeralis)
  Australian sacred kingfisher (Todiramphus sanctus sanctus)
  Common black-faced cuckoo-shrike (Coracina novaehollandiae novaehollandiae)
  Capricorn silvereye (Zosterops lateralis chlorocephalus)
  Migratory waders often sighted within the group include:
  The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings,
  Pacific golden plover (Pluvialis fulva)
  Mongolian plover (Charadrius Mongolus)
  As well as the Scolopacidae are which are a family of waders. Many of the smaller species are often called "sandpipers" and include curlews and snipes.
  Wandering tattler (Tringa brevipes)
  Grey-tailed tattler (Tringa incana)
  Bar-tailed godwit (Limosa lapponica)
  Black-tailed godwit Limosa limosa
  Ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
  Red-necked stint (Calidris ruficollis)
  Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)
  Birds that often visit the group includes:
  The Haematopodidae or oystercatchers
  Pied oystercatcher (Haematopus longirostris)
  Sooty oystercatcher (Haematopus fuliginosus)
  The bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 species of cormorants and shags 2 of which are regularly found in the area
  Little black cormorant (Phalacrocorax sulcirotris)
  Little pied cormorant (Phalacrocorax varius)
  The bird family Sulidae comprises the gannets and boobies. Both groups are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish
  Brown booby (Sula leucogaster)
  Terns are seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily (Sterninae) of the gull family Laridae. They form a lineage with the gulls and skimmers which in turn is related to skuas and auks. Terns have a worldwide distribution.
  Crested tern (Sterna bergii)
  Lesser crested tern (Sterna bengalensis)
  Black-naped tern (Sterna sumatrana)
  Roseate tern (Stern dougallii)
  Bridled tern (Sterna anaethetus)
  Little tern (Sterna albifrons)
  The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos (family Musophagidae, sometimes treated as a separate order, Musophagiformes).
  Shining Bronze cuckoo (Chrysococcyx lucidus)
  White-bellied sea-eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster)
  Australian hobby (Falco longipennis)
  Lesser frigatebird FREGATIDAE (Fregata ariel)
  Leaden flycatcher MUSCICAPIDAE (Myiagra rubecula)
  Peewee or Australian magpie lark GRALLINIDAE (Grallina cyanoleuca)
  House sparrow PASSERIDAE (Passer domesticus)
  Channel-billed cuckoo CUCULIDAE (Scythrops novaehollandiae)
caption: A Pisonia tree full of black noddy nests.
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