Great Grasswren Air Safari update #2 (ADVERTISEMENT?)

> Hi all
> We’re already halfway through our Great Grasswren Air Safari! Never before
> has anyone attempted to search for all of Australia’s Grasswren species in
> one tour by private airplane. Here’s a brief update:
>
> Day 6: A pre-dawn departure from Birdsville for the 1-hr flight to Lark
> Quarry near Winton, central Qld. Main target: Rusty Grasswren, which we had
> short views of after a ½ hr search. We were then distracted by a pair of
> Rufous-crowned Emu-wrens which showed beautifully! After lunch we obtained
> much better views of Rusty Grasswren as it showed off singing while camera
> shutters were going off. Flocks of Cockatiels and Budgies were flying
> overhead. A very obliging Spinifexbird topped off the day – or so we
> thought. Driving back to the plane we checked out some babblers’ nests
> which yielded 2 Hall’s Babblers! To top off the day we flushed a
> Chestnut-breasted Quail-thrush which eventually gave good views. One of the
> best days of the tour so far!
>
> Day 5: We were up at first light trawling through sand-dunes covered in
> wildflowers along the Birdsville track. A pair of Eyrean Grasswrens proved
> very obliging, one bird coming in as close as 5 m to the delighted
> observers! In the surrounding bushes were Pied and Black Honeyeaters while
> the saltbush-flats had singing Chirruping Wedgebills, Diamond Doves and a
> Cinnamon Quail-thrush. Flocks of Budgies and Cockatiels whizzed past. We
> then drove up the Birdsville track to a magical swamp full of birds – but
> our main target, Grey Grasswren, only showed after a 3-hour trudge through
> mud and water! On the way to Birdsville we were treated to excellent views
> of Gibberbird and a few Flock Bronzewings.
>
> Day 4: The morning was spent in the bluebush plains near Lyndhurst where
> it didn’t take long to track down a pair of Thick-billed Grasswrens. A
> Cinnamon Quail-thrush and a pair of Rufous Fieldwrens provided a nice
> bonus. We then flew to Mungerannie, on the Birdsville track, and searched
> the sand –dunes for Eyrean Grasswren of which we eventually found one,
> followed by a pair of Banded Whiteface. The already great day was topped
> off by a sighting of 2 Grey Falcons, celebrated with sundowners in the
> field !
>
> Day 3: A frosty morning in the Flinders Ranges soon gave way to a
> beautiful, calm and sunny day. We started off with Southern Scrubrobin,
> Inland Thornbill and Black-eared Cuckoo but the highlight was no doubt
> provided by no less than 2 pairs of Short-tailed Grasswrens who gave
> multiple, prolonged and photographic views. The scenic Brachina Gorge
> yielded Elegant Parrot, nesting Little Eagles and a Tawny Frogmouth. We
> observed a prolific bed of Ediacara fossils (the first multi-cellular
> life-forms, 600MYO) and finished the day with a Black Honeyeater feeding on
> flowering Eremophila bushes.
>
> Day 2: Cool and cloudy conditions didn’t stop Western Grasswrens from
> providing a great show in the Bluebush plains surrounding Whyalla this
> morning. We found at least 2 pairs along with Slender-billed Thornbills,
> Crested Bellbird, Mulga Parrot and a trifecta of Cuckoos: Black-eared,
> Horsfield’s Bronze and Pallid. We then flew to Hawker where birding the
> local area yielded good views of Redthroat, Inland Thornbill, Grey-fronted
> Honeyeater and Australian Ringnecks.
>
> Day 1: Today we flew early from a shivery Melbourne to Mildura, Vic.
> Success! Striated Grasswren was located after 10 minutes, but it took
> another 3 hours to get prolonged, photographic views. We then hit the skies
> again to head to Whyalla, SA, in preparation for our search for Western
> Grasswren tomorrow.
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