I’ve just been speaking with Judy Terracall, the woman who lives in Wonga Beach, FNQ, next to the pond on which the Spotted Whistling Ducks spent much of their time through September, October and November last year. (They also spent considerable time on her back-yard pond.) She told me that they left for a couple of weeks but then returned in considerably greater numbers (>50) for some weeks. She last saw them on 8 December.
Does anyone know where they might have gone? A big flock like that should have been seen somewhere.
Richard
PS It was disappointing to hear that some visitors behaved less well than might be hoped and expected, particularly a well-known bird photographer who trespassed on her property to get shots (as previously reported by Dell Richards – I think).
Richard NOWOTNY
Port Melbourne, Victoria
M: 0438 224 456
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Didn’t Richard forward a response last night saying SWDs had been seen at Daintree?
Peter Shute
What sort of birder would venture on to unfenced land without doing a Title search first? Oh I see, it wasnt a birder at all, he had a camera.
If accosted at the site then a simple apology & leave is all that is required, not a tar & feathering in the best Salem tradition.
Chris Charles 0412 911 184 licole@ozemail.com.au
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OK, I’ve had a bit of a surf and it appears that said lady lives at the north end of Snapper Island Drive, no 89. Looking on google the ponds in question must be in the block next to, on the left, and north of 89. Right, now we know where we are talking about. Two largish ponds and a building set well back.
My previous query remains though – does anyone know whether the ducks still in that area?
Tony
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Hi Colin. I understand your wish to clarify the situation and respect your effort to do so.
However, for a number of reasons I don’t intend to engage in a public debate about the finer details of the circumstances, other than to say that your description of the properties doesn’t accord with my recollections [which are that there is a large vacant (ie no house or other improvements), unfenced, but certainly private, block with a deep pond on its right-hand (southern) side (where my wife and I, and many others, saw the original 14 ducks back in late September) and immediately adjacent to and south of that block and the pond is Judy Terracall’s property, with front fence and gate, large modern house, extensive established garden, large pond in the back-yard, but no fence separating it from the vacant block]. The reported trespass was onto her property, not onto the vacant block (which as far as I know she does not own). Perhaps I should add that I have only ever met Judy once (the day I visited the pond on the vacant block beside her property) and spoken with her by phone twice since (one of her dogs was bitten by a Red-bellied Black-snake while Diana and I were having tea with her, requiring urgent, and wildly expensive, veterinary treatment – happily it survived).
I would be happy to discuss this with you by phone to sort out conflicting recollections/descriptions if you would care to send me a phone number off-line (and I might be able to clarify one or two other matters at the same time).
All the best. Richard
Sounds like trespass to me!
Alan
With all due respect Richard, I think it is fair to describe the location so that all readers have an idea of how and why the alleged intrusion might have happened. It has been made to sound like an invasion into someone’s house, but in reality the property is as follows: A large block of land in a suburban street – probably 100 meter frontage? The house set well back (~70 meters?) from the road and apparently vacant as a For Sale sign indicates. No fence or gate or personal possessions anywhere in sight at the front. The pool I believe the birds were first seen on is about 30 metres from the road across open grass and is a steep sided dam of relatively small size. Therefore 80% of the edges of the water are all but invisible from the road as the property is essentially flat. It would be a natural step to walk in to the dam to try to see any birds that may be present, but out of sight below the dam ‘edge’. The neighbour’s – I believe she lives on the right side of the property – fence is close to the edge of the dam – close but there would be no need to enter her property or intrude in any way to access the pond. The second pond is to the left of the house (the first is on the right side of the block). It is set back a little further – maybe 50 meters? but still well clear of the house. It is of similar design and visibility to the first altho more water surface is visible from the road. Along the road frontage at this point is a raised hill crowned by a line of palm trees – again no fence or barrier in any real sense. While I am not condoning the claimed ‘invasion’ I think it is important to understand the situation and appreciate how easy it would be to walk in to see something as rare as Spotted Whistling Ducks – we’re not talking scaling fences, climbing over private property or disturbing people at rest or play. Yes, its private property and yes, permission should have been requested, although I don’t know how one would have gone about that, however it would appear to me – and others I have spoken to – that the neighbour’s reaction was extreme and unusual. To my mind she would have served her community better by requesting a donation towards the local school from visiting birders and, if she insisted, monitor their behaviour on site. In fact, due to the position of her well vegetated fence line, viewing from her property would have been excellent – and discreet. Word has it that she has actually been observed clapping her hands to flush the birds off these dams so they would fly in and land on her property. If true (and I hasten to add it is a second hand tale) then she is in breach, as I understand it, of the wildlife laws herself for unnecessary disturbance – something, I hope I am right in saying, most birders would not do deliberately. The ownership of the property is unknown to me – altho from the email below it suggests the neighbour owns the property. I don’t know, but if she did then she has some cause to complain – however this is in no way obvious and no sign present in early December when I visited indicated such ownership. For the record I visited the property twice and failed to see the birds. It was very very tempting to walk in, but despite the temptation and with respect to local birders we stayed on the road. I don’t believe the birds were there at the time of our visit anyway. I don’t intend to prolong this argument and am in no way defending ANYONE’s actions or statements, I just believe it is a situation that demanded clarification and as a result some understanding of the situation on the ground – in my opinion, easy to have happened and an over the top reaction for whatever reason. It will be interesting to see if the birds re-appear especially if there were 50 +? We did see Wandering Whistle Ducks at the left hand pond when we were there – I assume the neighbour can tell the difference?
Written with good intentions and absolutely no malice afore thought!
Cheers
Colin
Any info on this? Like are they still at Wonga or are they somewhere else.?
Tony