Hi all,
I am planning a weekend trip up to the Victorian Mallee next weekend. My main mission is to get a mate as many inland birds as possible (their first trip inland) combined with a few target species for me.
I was planning to go Lake Tyrrell, Bronzewing Reserve and Hattah-Kulkyne and have checked out Tim Dolby’s book, eremaea etc, but wondered if anyone had been up there recently so would have the up to date info. Limiting fact or is that we’ll only be in a 2WD so I know a lot of tracks will be out.
5 target species would be Regent Parrot, Rufous Fieldwren, Mallee Emu-wren, Crested Bellbird, Chestnut Quail-thrush and an outside chance on Striated Grasswren (although there seem to be no recent reports).
(Love to get Malleefowl and Black-eared miners but I’m not holding my hopes up there…)
Anyway, any info that anyone can give would be really appreciated.
Thanks all,
Ed Williams Seddon VIC
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Comments
One response to “Victorian Mallee, current conditions etc.”
Hi Ed
Others down that way may have more up to date info, but being an ex-Victorian & having been to Hattah a lot, hopefully the following from my trips there help you out a little….
Lake Tyrrell is great for Rufous Fieldwren & Redthroat – take the track that skirts the eastern side of the lake & drive slowly down that all the way out (not sure of conditions lately, it’s been 5 years since I’ve been there). If that’s no good for driving on, just walk it for a while & you should get something bobbing up. Otherwise, try the north end of Lake Walpool just to the east, you can drive straight to the saltbush areas – I’ve had both these guys there before as well, but it’s not as reliable as the good long drive you get along Lake Tyrell.
Regent Parrots can be found at Lake Mournpal in Hattah-Kulkyne NP, esp late in the day – this site is where I’ve always camped when in Hattah as it’s good for this species & very close to some other hot-spots in the mallee ares nearby. Drive the sandy tracks that go through the Kulkyne section to the NE of here late in afternoon & you should get some Regents flying about, or keep your fingers crossed at the camp as they sometimes turn-up there at dusk.
Mallee Emu-wren & Striated Grasswrens have usually performed for me in the mallee between Lake Mournpal & the Nowingi Track. Also the northern end of Nowingi Tr is a good area to hunt down the grasswren. Crested Bellbird & Chestnut QThrush are quite common anywhere in the mallee from Lake M to/& along Nowingi Track.
You also have a very good chance of Mallefowl if you walk slowly along the tracks here as well.
For BE Miners, I haven’t seen one there for 30 years, but someone else could add to this for the latest best area – note that a BE Miner pic was posted on Eremaea birdline today seen near Lake Mournpal – it appears to be a hybrid to me from the pic, but the pic resolution is not good enough to get a really good look at the salient features to see how much of a BE Miner it is – maybe one of the birdline moderators (Tim??) can comment further on this…
Try the area west of Hattah store into the salt lakes area, as the mallee in this area has been very good to me in the past for Mallee Emu-wrens as well. The salt pans here could help you with the fieldwren & Redthroat too, plus the Belah/Bulokes there used to be great for Major Mitchell Cockatoos at times – further into the Sunset Country from here could also get you a Red-lored Whistler too…. worth a look if I were you…
Hope this helps…good luck !
Cheers
Martin Cachard Cairns 0428 782 808
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