My wife Val and I travelled with Stephen Debus, Russell Jago and Matt Templeton to Adelaide for the Australasian Raptor Association Conference held at the Adelaide Zoo last weekend. It was a swift car trip which took us three days each way. Despite the constant travel we did manage to clock up a few good sightings. Four of us travelled from Coutts Crossing to Armidale where Stephen joined us. On the way we observed 50+ Pied Currawongs at Nymboida. They may well have been migrating back to the high country as they usually do this time of year. The first of two roadkilled Eastern Barn Owls was seen at Bective Creek, between Tamworth and Gunnedah. A pair of adult Spotted Harriers at Somerton floated past the vehicle giving great views. A lunch stop at Carroll, east of Gunnedah produced both Little and Musk Lorikeets flying overhead as well as 2 Black Kites, Red-rumped Parrots and Sulphur-crested Cockatoos posing for the camera. Seven more Black Kites WSW of Gunnedah were followed by the second Eastern Barn Owl roadkill south of Coonabarabran. Another Black Kite NE of Gilgandra and 3+ N of Forbes were recorded before we arrived at Gum Swamp, Forbes. This is a great location to see Freckled Ducks, Pink-eared Ducks and Australasian Shovelers and we weren’t disappointed seeing 64+, 250+ and 50+ in that order. An adult pair of Peregrine Falcons was perched in a eucalypt while an adult White-bellied Sea-Eagle sat low on the nest as its mate, apparently not in full adult plumage, flew through the dead trees near the nest. We spent the night in West Wyalong and were surprised when Stephen observed a male White-winged Triller in non-breeding plumage as we were leaving the next morning. Between West Wyalong and Hay a small flock of Superb Parrots caught our attention. We stopped for photographs and we estimated that there were over 100 birds present. A pale morph Little Eagle soared high over the road. At Hay we saw the largest flock of Black Kites for the trip with over 200 spiralling high on a thermal with 6 Australian Pelicans. More Black Kites were seen over a local park with 3 Whistling Kites. The Black Kites were probably additional to the earlier flock. We were interested to see how many Black Kites were in their usual inland haunts as there are so many in coastal areas at present. A flock of 50+ House Sparrows E of Yanga National Park was a surprise but was within their known range. We had planned to camp at Gluepot Reserve, in South Australia, but decided that we would stay at Robinvale in Victoria, over the Murray River from Euston. Twenty Regent Parrots were a delight in the caravan park the next morning and this was a new species for a couple of the group, including me. A visit to Hattah-Kulkyne National Park allowed better views and photographs of the Regent Parrots with over 30 present. On to Adelaide and the weekend conference at the Adelaide Zoo. The return trip involved a night camping at Gluepot where the black-brown form of the Grey Currawong (subspecies melanoptera), the Crested Bellbird, Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, Chestnut-rumped Thornbill, Weebill and Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater were present. The only threatened endemic bird observed was the Black-eared Miner. Russell had good views but I only had fleeting glimpses as they disappeared across the road and into the trees. Black Kites were present at Euston (30+), Balranald (2) and Peak Hill (7) and an adult Spotted Harrier was photographed quartering a grassy paddock. We did a mini bird of prey watch between Forbes and Gunnedah and in addition to the Spotted Harrier we listed 18 Nankeen Kestrels, 10 Black-shouldered Kites, 5 Brown Falcons, 1 Whistling Kite, 7 Black Kites, 1 Black or Whistling Kite, 1 Brown Goshawk. Five separate Eastern Barn Owls in the Tamworth area, a Masked Owl near Ebor and five Tawny Frogmouths finished off an enjoyable trip. I will be posting a number of the photographs on my website. Greg Dr Greg. P. Clancy Ecologist and Birding-wildlife Guide | PO Box 63 Coutts Crossing NSW 2460 | 02 6649 3153 | 0429 601 960 http://www.gregclancyecologistguide.com =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) to: birding-aus-request@vicnet.net.au http://birding-aus.org ===============================
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