Brisbane Big Day 27th June

I started extremely early this morning, arriving at Mount Glorious at just after four in the morning with a target of 100 species for the day.

I had a great start, as I spotted a Frogmouth perched upon a road-sign right next to the Maiala picnic area. It was slightly disappointing to discover that it was 'just' a Tawny, rather than Marbled Frogmouth (which would have been a lifer), but I was absolutely overjoyed with the sighting. The next two-and-a-half hours were extremely quiet sadly, as I wandered about the lonely rainforest with my torch hoping to find some night birds, in particular a Sooty Owl. I saw and heard nothing at all, besides an unidentifiable native rat species.

As light broke, some of the common birds began to appear, though in such cold and overcast conditions it was unsurprisingly tough trying to find birds. The highlight of a lengthy search through the forest was undoubtedly a stunning Wompoo Fruit-Dove, while Wonga Pigeon, Australian Logrunner, Green Catbird, Satin Bowerbird, Russet-tailed Thrush, Crimson Rosella and Pale-yellow Robin were among the other rainforest specialities seen. Five Red-necked Pademelons were fantastic to find as well!

Female Satin Bowerbird at Mount Glorious before sunrise

Green Catbird

A frustratingly blurry Australian Logrunner, my camera struggled with the lack of light in the forest!

Russet-tailed Thrush

Sadly I missed a number of key birds here that I knew would be virtually impossible to find elsewhere on my day's itinerary, notably five species of Pigeon, Noisy Pitta, Regent Bowerbird and Paradise Riflebird, but such is the nature of birding!

My next stop was Enoggera Reservoir, right on the edge of D'Aguilar National Park. It became obvious immediately that the area was swarming with passerines, as a choir of birdsong greeted me as I got out of my car. Before heading into the forest, I checked the reservoir for waterbirds, all of which were day ticks.

Some of the waterbirds around the reservoir: Australasian Grebe, Hardheads, Intermediate Egret and Eurasian Coot

Once again, the majority of the songbirds were Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, they seem to be extraordinarily abundant around Brisbane right now, while a selection of the classic Brisbane dry forest birds were also present, including both species of Whistler, Brown and Striated (a Brisbane tick surprisingly) in large numbers, Eastern Whipbirds, Eastern Yellow Robins, stunning Scarlet and rather more dull Brown and Lewin's Honeyeaters, Spotted Pardalote, Rainbow Bee-eaters, Variegated and Red-backed Fairywrens, three species of Lorikeet and a pair of Galahs. A stunning pink Rose Robin (my first in this plumage) was a fantastic sight, while White-bellied Sea Eagle, Varied Triller and Fan-tailed Cuckoo made for great surprises. 

Australian Golden Whistler at Enoggera Reservoir. What a stunning bird!

Eastern Yellow Robins were abundant at Mount Glorious and Enoggera Reservoir today

I was extremely happy to discover that a a group of Melithreptus Honeyeaters showed a red eye-ring, rather than a blue one, making them my first-ever White-naped Honeyeaters, a very pleasing lifer for me that I have been looking for for some time. Even better was finding a pair of White-eared Monarchs, a total surprise and an immensely satisfying first for me, this species was not on my radar at all!

White-eared Monarch at Enoggera Reservoir. What a magnificent bird and an amazing surprise for me this morning, probably the highlight of the day for me!

I had planned to head to Mount Coot-tha next, but with the success of my visit to Enoggera, I knew that there were only three additional species I could pick up there that I would most likely not get elsewhere on the day (Pale-headed Rosella, Striated Pardalote and White-throated Honeyeater), and thought the prospect of potentially finally seeing the Powerful Owl tempted me, I decided to head to Black Duck Hole in the northeast of Brisbane. I picked up a number of the common urban-dwelling species on the way, while a stop at an intriguing pond in Bald Hills produced an unexpected flock of Magpie Geese, a fantastic bonus (though I did later see three at Black Duck Hole). I had also seen what was surprisingly my first Nankeen Kestrel within the metropolitan area hovering above the road in Bendacre.

Two of 35 Magpie Geese on a small urban pond in Bald Hills

I soon reached Black Duck Hole, and immediately headed towards where I had seen the seven Cotton Pygmy Geese a few weeks ago. I found the adult pair there almost immediately, feeding distantly in the middle of the lake, though there was no sign of any juveniles, which have presumably moved on. A decent selection of other waterbirds were present, including several Grey Teal, two Black Swans, several Australasian Darters, three Magpie Geese, the manky feral Muscovy Duck and a profusion of Australasian Swamphens.

Grey Teal

An extremely overexposed Cotton Pygmy Goose surrounded by Eurasian Coots and Dusky Moorhens

Black Swan

Australasian Swamphens, an abundant bird at Black Duck Hole

I was very pleased to find a Brisbane tick in the form of a Forest Kingfisher perched by the lake. This species is well overdue for me in Brisbane, so it was great to finally see one!

Forest Kingfisher at Black Duck Hole, my fifth and most likely final new species of Kingfisher in Brisbane

Crested Pigeon at Black Duck Hole. What a stunning creature!

I then headed to Dowse Lagoon in Sandgate hoping to pick up some of the remaining waterbirds missing from my day's total. It was frustrating to discover that there was a major disturbance going on, with some form of dredging occurring and quite literally sucking up Comb-crested Jacana habitat from under their feet! I hope this doesn't prevent them from returning, I'm slightly unsure about what the council is hoping to achieve with it.

Two of approximately twelve Comb-crested Jacanas walking about the lillypads that were being sucked up by a council-operated vehicle. What is going on?!!

I had seen reports of a pair of Black-necked Storks (also known as Jabirus) roaming around the lake recently. I was very happy to find them strolling along the distant opposite shoreline of the lake, away from all the disturbance of the dredging.

Black-necked Storks at Dowse Lagoon. The sight of these one-and-a-half-metre-tall birds was incredible, even despite the distance they were away from me. This was an awesome Brisbane tick for me, without a doubt one of Australia's most impressive birds.

Sadly the disturbance seemed to have disturbed most of the waterbirds, and I had to make do with one Great and one Intermediate Egret as the only representatives of the Heron family present, while a Great Cormorant was a decent bonus sighting and a White-bellied Sea Eagle overflying with a fish made for a magnificent spectacle.

Nudgee Beach was my next stop. Sadly I had neglected to check the tide times, and was greeted by a totally high tide, and no obvious shorebird presence. Day ticks came in the form of circling Whistling and Brahminy Kites (my third White-bellied Sea Eagle of the day also went over), and Silver Gulls, Australian Pied Cormorants and Crested, Caspian and Gull-billed Terns around the water. A pair of Pied Oystercatchers flew past, landed, and immediately went to sleep, while at the far end of the road, I finally came upon a distant wader flock consisting of only White-headed Stilts and Bar-tailed Godwits. Somehow, despite the state of the tide, I had only missed Whimbrel and Torresian Kingfisher out of the expected birds at this time of year.

Pied Oystercatchers

Australian Pelicans and Little Black Cormorants chilling at Nudgee Beach

My final stop for the day was one of my favourite reserves, Kedron Brook Wetlands, though I made a short detour on the way to pick up this species for my day's total:

I can't believe I'm posting such a terrible photograph of a House Sparrow, but the carpark for Coles supermarket at Toombul Shopping Centre is the only place in Brisbane I have ever seen them! Today it took approximately a whole minute for one to appear, the longest I have ever had to wait for them. I have no idea why they are so rare here but they do love this carpark!

I had a number of targets remaining for Kedron Brook Wetlands, though a strong wind had set in, making finding passerines virtually impossible. Despite this, a Mistletoebird and two Common Starlings appeared, two of FIVE firsts for me at the reserve seen today. The others came in the form of a group of Rainbow Bee-eaters heading low overhead, a Royal Spoonbill that appeared to land on the other side of the road from the reserve (totally ignoring the vast expanse of perfect wetland habitat on offer on the reserve!) and a Brown Quail that briefly poked its head out of some grassland, before rapidly hiding itself again after seeing me. This reserve never disappoints, in fact every trip I have made there has provided me with at least one species I have previously not seen there, and my total is now 89 species- extremely respectable for an inner city area!

Besides the aforementioned species, the birding was fantastic at Kedron Brook today. Raptors were present in good numbers, most notably Brahminy Kites (at least 7), along with at least three Swamp Harriers, two Black-shouldered Kites and a Brown Goshawk. I was totally overjoyed by this total, it really shows quite how healthy the habitat here is.

Black-shouldered Kite at dusk at Kedron Brook Wetlands

Brahminy Kite

Swamp Harrier

With a large amount of water covering the area, waterbirds were present in good numbers, with at least 34 Chestnut Teals accompanied by a smaller number of Grey Teal and a pair of Black Swans. Herons were also conspicuous, with at least 22 White-faced Herons, along with Great, Intermediate, Little and Cattle Egrets and the Royal Spoonbill.

White-faced Heron

Pair of Black Swans, only my second sighting here

Five Australian Pelicans went overhead, along with a flock of White-breasted Woodswallows and (surprisingly) a Fork-tailed Drongo. A Sacred Kingfisher was also seen, while six Black-fronted Dotterels were scurrying rapidly about the muddy water's edge.

Black-fronted Dotterel

I was too tired to stay on to try for the Grass Owl, but with strong winds I suspected seeing it would be unlikely to put it mildly. Such weather conditions had prevented me from finding Tawny Grassbird, Golden-headed Cisticola, Australian Pipit and Chestnut-breasted Mannikin, all of which I would expect here, but it had still be an immensely successful visit and day, with 117 species seen in the end, far above what I had hoped. I shall be attempting again as soon as possible, and my intention is to visit an entirely-new set of sites next time to make things more interesting! The total list is posted below. Unsurprisingly I missed some common birds, most notably Straw-necked Ibis and Grey Butcherbird- I honestly have no idea how I missed those two!

The list: Red denotes a bird seen only at that location

Mount Glorious: 27 species; 14 unique

1. Tawny Frogmouth

2. Yellow-faced Honeyeater

3. Eastern Yellow Robin

4. Large-billed Scrubwren

5. Brown Thornbill

6. Australian Golden Whistler

7. Australian Brushturkey

8. Pied Currawong

9. Satin Bowerbird

10. Laughing Kookaburra

11. Torresian Crow

12. Rainbow Lorikeet

13. Welcome Swallow

14. Grey Shrikethrush

15. Yellow-throated Scrubwren

16. Red-browed Finch

17. Crimson Rosella

18. Pale-yellow Robin

19. Brown Gerygone

20. Wompoo Fruit Dove

21. Eastern Whipbird

22. White-browed Scrubwren

23. Russet-tailed Thrush

24. Wonga Pigeon

25. Australian Logrunner

26. Green Catbird

27. Grey Fantail

Mount Nebo:

28. Bell Miner

Enoggera Reservoir: 44 species; 12 unique

29. Noisy Miner

30. Scaly-breasted Lorikeet

31. Dusky Moorhen

32. Hardhead

33. Australasian Grebe

34. Brown Honeyeater

35. Red-backed Fairywren

36. Eurasian Coot

37. Little Black Cormorant

38. Intermediate Egret

39. Australasian Swamphen

40. Pacific Black Duck

41. Sulphur-crested Cockatoo

42. Variegated Fairywren

43. Willie Wagtail

44. Rose Robin

45. Scarlet Myzomela

46. Striated Thornbill

47. Galah

48. Rufous Whistler

49. Lewin's Honeyeater

50. White-eared Monarch

51. Varied Triller

52. White-naped Honeyeater

53. White-bellied Sea Eagle

54. Little Lorikeet

55. Rainbow Bee-eater

56. Silvereye

57. Spotted Pardalote

58. Fan-tailed Cuckoo

59. Noisy Friarbird

Driving:

60. Australian Magpie

61. Pied Butcherbird

62. Australasian Figbird

63. Little Corella

64. Australian White Ibis

65. Eastern Cattle Egret

66. Masked Lapwing

67. Rock Dove/Feral Pigeon

68. Magpie-lark

69. Nankeen Kestrel

Harold Keilly Park, Bald Hills: 12 species; 0 unique

70. Maned Duck 

71. Crested Pigeon

72. Magpie Goose

73. Spotted Dove

74. Australian Pelican

Black Duck Hole: 30 species; 2 unique

75. Little Pied Cormorant

76. Grey Teal

77. Australasian Darter

78. Black Swan

79. Forest Kingfisher

80. Cotton Pygmy Goose

81. Common Myna

82. Blue-faced Honeyeater

Dowse Lagoon: 38 species; 4 unique

83. Black-necked Stork

84. Comb-crested Jacana

85. Tree Martin

86. Great White Egret

87. Great Cormorant

88. Fairy Martin

Driving:

89. Black-faced Cuckooshrike

Nudgee Beach: 24 species; 9 unique

90. Whistling Kite

91. Caspian Tern

92. Crested Tern

93. Pied Oystercatcher

94. Silver Gull

95. Brahminy Kite

96. Australian Pied Cormorant

97. Gull-billed Tern

98. White-faced Heron

99. Mangrove Honeyeater

100. White-headed Stilt

101. Bar-tailed Godwit

Toombul Shopping Centre:

102. House Sparrow

Kedron Brook Wetlands Reserve: 46 species; 15 unique

103. Mangrove Gerygone

104. Mistletoebird

105. Swamp Harrier

106. Chestnut Teal

107. Superb Fairywren

108. Brown Goshawk

109. Royal Spoonbill

110. Spangled Drongo

111. Sacred Kingfisher

112. Common Starling

113. White-breasted Woodswallow

114. Black-fronted Dotterel

115. Black-shouldered Kite

116. Little Egret

117. Brown Quail

Brisbane year total: 199; additions: 6 (White-eared Monarch, White-naped Honeyeater, Nankeen Kestrel, Forest Kingfisher, Black-necked Stork)

Winter is here

With temperatures dropping into the teens this week, it seems like Brisbane's (extremely mild!) winter has arrived.

It is now the beginning of my month-long inter-semester break from university, during which I will be trying my best to do as much wildlife-watching as possible.

I'll start where my last post finished, with my evening search for Eastern Grass Owls at Kedron Brook Wetlands Reserve. I arrived just as the sun was starting to set, allowing me a small amount of time searching the reserve before returning to my Owl spot once darkness appeared. This search produced some interesting birds such as a Brahminy Kite, a Spangled Drongo, three Grey Fantails and a Great Egret.

Great Egret, Kedron Brook Wetlands Reserve

Once darkness took-over, I waited the Owl to appear. Large, dark silhouettes flying low over the grassland repeatedly morphed in Fruit Bats as the torch moved onto them, while simiarly-large-sized shadows in the sky became Australian White Ibises. After some time, with the optimum dusk period over, I decided to head home, only for a medium-sized ghostly pale object to flutter down into the grass near me. With my torch in place and ready, I waited with my heart beating rapidly for the bird to reappear. Soon enough, it did. It was a magnificent Eastern Grass Owl that flew straight for to investigate my torch, giving mind-blowing views that I shall never forget. What an extraordinary creature and an incredible privilege to see it so close. Sadly I didn't have an available hand for the camera, but I think that sometimes I spend too much trying to photograph birds and not actually enjoying watching them as I was able to do on this occasion. 

On the 26th May, I went on another non-birding trip to Gold Creek Reservoir with a friend from university. I totally forgot about bringing binoculars with me, something I quickly regretted as it became very obvious very quickly, with a fantastic number of passerines present once more. On this occasion, they included Wonga Pigeon (only my third ever), four Bar-shouldered Doves, a pair of Australian King Parrots, high numbers of Lorikeets including numerous Little and a profusion of the more common passerines, notably Yellow-faced Honeyeaters and Red-browed Finches. Most interesting was the sight of four 'Quails' that remained unidentified as they crept through the undergrowth next to the path.

I returned to the same location on the 29th, this time with my Mum (but also binoculars!). It was extremely exciting to spot a Grey Goshawk heading low over the lake, what a truly stunning bird that is. It was shortly followed by an equally-magnificent Common Emerald Dove (a first for me this year) that I flushed up from the footpath. In-between those two sightings, however, something far more exciting had happened. In the same spot as I had seen the four 'Quails' earlier in the week, one bird was crouching out in the open. Getting my binoculars onto it, it was hardly believable to discover that it was a Black-breasted Buttonquail, and in fact four of them were present. This species- endemic to eastern central and southern Queensland and north NSW- is a highly secretive and skulking bird facing a severe risk of extinction. With a declining  current breeding population of just 2500 birds, finding four of this amazing bird felt like an amazing privilege, despite once more not managing a photograph. What an amazing city Brisbane for birds!

A pair of Australian King Parrots, two Large-billed Scrubwrens, an Australian Golden Whistlers and 7 Rufous Whistlers were among the other birding highlights of a great morning.

On the 12th June, I headed to Nudgee Beach to walk my dog. I didn't expect to see many birds, with winter's arrival bringing to an end the stay of most Siberian-breeding waders in our country. Not all of the birds had left on this occasion, with a single Far Eastern Curlew and about 12 Whimbrel present. A decent selection of other birds were present, including Gull-billed, Caspian and Crested Terns, a Striated Heron, two White-bellied Sea Eagles and numerous White-headed Stilts and  Pied Oystercatchers. Seven Torresian Kingfishers were seen dashing about the mangroves, while a stunning Australian Hobby shot rapidly overhead. Despite seeing nothing of great interest, it had been another fantastic trip.

Finally, on the 15th June, a very brief look around a tiny park in Auchenflower (right next to the CBD) produced a surprise pair of Bush Stone-Curlews, and an even more surprising Pacific Baza flying overhead. The latter was a Brisbane tick, and certainly not in the place I expected to find it!

I am planning on leaving home very early tomorrow for my 'big day', whereby I shall try and find as many bird species as possible in twelve hours. This should be extremely fun!

Brisbane year total: 193, additions: 5 (Eastern Grass Owl, Lewin's Rail, Black-breasted Buttonquail, Common Emerald Dove, Pacific Baza)