Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker, SA

We spent a couple of hours before lunch in the drizzle at Laratinga today, There were the usual bush birds around but one exception was a Crested Shrike-tit which was a nice addition. Water birds in the pondage included 3 Latham’s Snipe, two Spotted Crakes, two Spotless Crakes, one Baillons Crake, Pacific Black Duck, Hardhead, Chestnut Teal, Grey Teal, Pink-eared Duck, Aust Shoveler, Wood Duck (on grass near the horse paddock), Aust Grebe, Purple Swamphes, Eurasian Coot, Dusky Moorhen, Little Pied Cormorant, one Pelican, some Aust Reed Warblers and probably some Little Grass Birds ( although they weren’t giving their distinctive call). Also of interest were the hundreds of Tree Martins flying over the ponds, probably feeding on flying insects. As we got rather wet we retired to the bakery in Mt Barker. ( hundreds of Little Corellas in the main town, near the ponds ) Tony.