ZooChat Big Year 2020

Chlidonias

Chlidonias

Moderator
Staff member
15+ year member
The basic rules as always:

1. Make sure to number your lists.
2. Keep separate numbered lists for whichever animals you are listing (birds, mammals, herptiles, fish, invertebrates)
3. Species must be part of an established wild population or be a natural migrant/vagrant/straggler. Exotics don't count unless they are part of an established breeding population in the country.
4. Animals must be wild.
5. Subspecies do not count towards your total, only full species.
6. Don't bother counting Human on your mammal list - everyone is going to see at least one.
7. Have fun and go out looking for animals.

*It is helpful if you include scientific names (especially for the mammals because I keep track of them to post a full list at the end of the year).


Links to the previous years can be found here: ZooChat Big Year - Index
 
OK I will kick it off:

Outside the backdoor (staying in a farmhouse across the road at the moment, so all introduced):

1. European blackbird Turdus merula
2. House sparrow Passer domesticus
3. Spotted turtle-dove Spilopelia chinensis

On the 200m walk to the office.

4. Striated thornbill Acanthiza lineata
5. Australasian swamphen Porphyrio melanotus

More later.
 
Outside our Phillip island beach house a few species to start off the year

1. Rainbow Lorikeet Trichoglossus moluccanus
2. Australian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen
3. Common Myna Acridotheres tristis


Invertebrates

1. White Cabbage Moth Pieris rapae
 
Just a few common birds seen in the Goldcoast Suburbs. There will almost certainly be more later on.

Birds:
1. Noisy Miner (Manorina melanocephala)
2. White-throated Needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus)
3. Indian Mynah (Acridotheres tristis)
4. Australians White Ibis (Threskiornis moluccus)
5. Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus moluccanus)
 
I feel bad for @MRJ that I’ve purposely gone out to get an early lead which I definitely won’t maintain but it ended up yielding an unexpected unidentifiable lifer.
If you can help ID the bird it is under Aussie Wildlife in Media.

Phillip and Churchill Island

4. Red Wattlebird
5. Black Shouldered Lapwing
6. Magpie Lark
7. Silver Gull
8. Australasian Swamphen
9. Cape Barren Goose
10. Australian White Ibis
11. Little Raven
12. Black Swan
13. Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoo
14. Fork Tailed Swift

Invertebrates

2. Australasian Hornet

(it’s not actually a hornet it’s a mud dauber)


I really really really can’t be bothered doing scientific names.
 
Successful ID

15. White Fronted Chat

First lifer of the year and certainly is not going to be the last.
 
Sorry, @Yoshistar888, at least you are still ahead in invertebrates. ;)

Walking around at work. I love my job.

6. Royal spoonbill Platalea regia
7. Chestnut teal Anas castanea
8. Grey teal Anas gracilis
9. Pacific black duck Anas superciliosa
10. Cape Barren goose Cereopsis novaehollandiae
11. Maned duck Chenonetta jubata
12. Eurasian coot Fulica atra
13. Dusky moorhen Gallinula tenebrosa
14. Masked lapwing Vanellus miles
15. Crested pigeon Ocyphaps lophotes
16. Common bronzewing Phaps chalcoptera
17. Rainbow lorikeet Trichoglossus moluccanus
18. Red wattlebird Anthochaera carunculata
19. Noisy miner Manorina melanocephala
20. Weebill Smicrornis brevirostris
21. Grey shrikethrush Colluricincla harmonica
22. Grey fantail Rhipidura albiscapa
23. Magpie-lark Grallina cyanoleuca
24. Silvereye Zosterops lateralis
25. Common Myna Acridotheres tristis
26. European starling Sturnus vulgaris
 
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I'll give this another go this year. I don't expect to collate a very a big list this year but I get personal enjoyment, satisfaction and new-found appreciation from the species I do find.

Birds:
1. Noisy Miner Manorina melanocephala
2. Indian Myna Acridotheres tristis
3. Pied Butcherbird Cracticus nigrogularis
4. Spotted Turtle Dove Spilopelia chinensis
5. Scaly-breasted Lorikeet Trichoglossus chlorolepidotus
6. Torresian Crow Corvus orru
7. Australian White Ibis Threskiornis moluccus
8. Rainbow Lorikeet Trichoglossus moluccanus
9. Welcome Swallow Hirundo neoxena
10. Australasian Figbird Sphecotheres vieilloti
11. Pied Currawong Strepera graculina
12. Australian Magpie Cracticus tibicen
13. Feral Pigeon Columba livia
14. Magpie Lark Grallina cyanoleuca
15. Crested Pigeon Ocyphaps lophotes
16. Straw-necked Ibis Threskiornis spinicollis
17. Brush Turkey Alectura lathami
18. Pacific Black Duck Anas superciliosa
19. Intermediate Egret Ardea intermedia
20. Grey Teal Anas gracilis
21. Purple Swamphen Porphyrio melanotus
22. Dusky Moorhen Gallinula tenebrosa
23. Little Black Cormorant Phalacrocorax sulcirostris
24. Laughing Kookaburra Dacelo novaeguineae
25. Superb Fairy Wren Malurus cyaneus
26. Masked Lapwing Vanellus miles
27. Galah Eolophus roseicapilla
28. Willie Wagtail Rhipidura leucophrys
29. Grey Butcherbird Cracticus torquatus

Herptiles:
1. Eastern Water Dragon Intellagama lesueurii
2. Cane Toad Rhinella marina

Fish:
1. Long-finned Eel Anguilla reinhardtii

Invertebrates
1. Plumbago Blue Leptotes plinius
2. Housefly Musca domestica
3. Meadow Argus Junonia villida
4. Odorous Black Ant Tapinoma sessile
5. Lemon Migrant Butterfly Catopsilia pomona
6. Large Grass-yellow Eurema hecabe
7. Cabbage White Pieris rapae
8. Blue Skimmer Orthetrum caledonicum
9. Scarlet Percher Diplacodes haematodes
10. Red Arrow Rhodothemis lieftincki
11. Golden-tailed Spiny Ant Polyrhachis ammon
12. Green-headed Ant Rhytidoponera metallica
13. Orchard Swallowtail Papilio aegeus
14. Common Crow Butterfly Euploea core
15. Dome Tent Spider Cyrtophora moluccensis
16. European Honeybee Apis mellifera
 
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For today's New (Big) Year I went to Zealandia. First days of the year are great - everything is new again - but they are also frustrating because all those birds which you see everywhere casually have suddenly become really difficult to find.

On the day-list, the first seven and the last three of the birds were just around the neighbourhood, and all the rest were in Zealandia.

For most of December when coming home in the evenings I have been seeing a young rabbit around the corner from my place, grazing on the edge of a bit of parkland. I popped round there just before and (surprisingly!) he was there tonight and became mammal number one for 2020.



BIRDS:

1) House Sparrow Passer domesticus
2) Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris
3) Feral Pigeon Columba livia
4) Tui Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae
5) Southern Black-backed (Kelp) Gull Larus dominicanus
6) European Blackbird Turdus merula
7) Red-billed Gull Larus novaehollandiae
8) Kaka Nestor meridionalis
9) Little Pied Shag Phalacrocorax melanoleucos
10) Pied Shag Phalacrocorax varius
11) New Zealand Scaup Aythya novaeseelandiae
12) Pied Fantail Rhipidura fuliginosa
13) Waxeye Zosterops lateralis
14) Mallard Anas platyrhynchos
15) Brown Teal Anas chlorotis
16) Hedge Sparrow (Dunnock) Prunella modularis
17) Whitehead Mohoua albicilla
18) Red-crowned Kakariki Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae
19) Grey Warbler Gerygone igata
20) New Zealand Robin Petroica australis
21) Stitchbird Notiomystis cincta
22) New Zealand Bellbird Anthornis melanura
23) Welcome Swallow Hirundo neoxena
24) Californian Quail Callipepla californica
25) Saddleback Philesturnus carunculatus
26) New Zealand Pigeon Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae
27) New Zealand Falcon Falco novaeseelandiae
28) Paradise Duck Tadorna variegata
29) European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis
30) Australian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen
31) Spur-winged Plover (Masked Lapwing) Vanellus miles


MAMMALS:

1) European Rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus
 
Happy hunting for 2020 everyone.
I kicked off 2020 with a terrible first bird. I would have loved a night parrot as No.1 but it wasn't to be. Maybe next year.
1/1/2020
1. House sparrow
2. Apostlebird
3.Australian Magpie
4. Australian pelican
5. Australian raven
6. Australian reed warbler
7. Australian white ibis
8. Australian wood duck
9. Black kite
10. Black-fronted dotterel
11. Black-winged stilt
12. Blue-faced honeyeater
13. Brown songlark
14. Common blackbird
15. Common myna
16. Common starling
17. Crested pigeon
18. Dusky moorhen
19. Galah
20. Glossy ibis
21. Grey butcherbird
22. Grey shrike-thrush
23. Grey teal
24. Magpie-lark
25. Masked lapwing
26. Nankeen Night-heron
27. Pacific black duck
28. Peaceful dove
29. Pied butcherbird
30. Red-rumped parrot
31. Red-winged parrot
32. Rock dove
33. Straw-necked ibis
34. Superb parrot
35. Welcome swallow
36. Whistling kite
37. White-breasted woodswallow
38. White-necked heron
39. White-winged chough
40. Willie wagtail
41. Yellow-throated miner
 
For anyone in Victoria there is currently a very unusual duck at the Western Treatment Plant.

Most people think it’s either a paradise shelduck or a South African shelduck. Either way, a very exciting and rare bird for Australia.
 
Yoshistar888 said:
More species

Birds

16. Spotted Turtle Dove
17. Eurasian Blackbird
18. Straw Necked Ibis
19. Common Starling
Click to expand...

So I’ve got the good news and bad news

The good news is I’ve picked up some new and some other species.

The bad news is I didn’t get photos of any of them as my glimpses of them were brief and a whopping 2 species are making me hit the books again I’ll briefly list their features.


A) Small ground dwelling bird with soft white belly but not a willie wagtail. Small poking tail kind of like a wren but down. Had small bits of black but was predominantly grey. Hopped around.


B. I only got an aerial view of this bird but it was large and had a flowing tail and was up very high. Was most likely some type of migratory bird.

C?) I’m not too sure of this one but it was cuckoo and honeyeater like and had a reddish green wing


Now the definite additions.

Birds


20. Australian Raven
21 New Holland Honeyeater
22. Little Wattlebird
23. Galah
24. Dusky Moorhen
25. Sooty oystercatcher



I’m really happy about that oystercatcher while in the car leaving the island as it’s a lifer.

Bad news: i didn’t see a kookaburra today which leaves me with the unlikely event of seeing one soon on the mainland (unless I get to banuyle flats)

Unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to go to woolami or Nobbies and still haven’t seen a short tailed shearwater. Also unfortunately I haven’t seen a penguin on the trip but they are fairly easy to see at Stkilda Pier.

I could tell that the Australian raven was not a little raven was by its call. (I did see the bird)



animal_expert01 said:
For anyone in Victoria there is currently a very unusual duck at the Western Treatment Plant.

Most people think it’s either a paradise shelduck or a South African shelduck. Either way, a very exciting and rare bird for Australia.
Click to expand...

I’ve never been to Werribee (Treatment plant I have been to the zoo) before and and trying to however I’m quite busy so I hope the duck will stay there.
 
And my first few.
  1. Feral pigeon, Columba livia
  2. House sparrow, Passer domesticus
  3. Eurasian blue tit, Cyanistes caeruleus
  4. Great tit, Parus major
  5. Common wood pigeon, Columba palumbus
  6. Eurasian magpie, Pica pica
  7. Common raven, Corvus corax
  8. Carrion crow, Corvus corone
 
animal_expert01 said:
Just a few common birds seen in the Goldcoast Suburbs. There will almost certainly be more later on.

Birds:
1. Noisy Miner (Manorina melanocephala)
2. White-throated Needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus)
3. Indian Mynah (Acridotheres tristis)
4. Australians White Ibis (Threskiornis moluccus)
5. Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus moluccanus)
Click to expand...
Birds:
6. Short Billed Corella (Cacatua sanguinea)
7. Galah (Eolophus roseicapilla)
8. Feral Pigeon (Columba livia)
9. Crested Pigeon (Ocyphaps lophotes)
10. Blue-faced Honeyeater (Entomyzon cyanotis)
11. Masked Plover (Vanellus miles)
12. Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxena)
13. Torresian Crow (Corvus orru)
14. Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen)

Mammals:
1. Grey-headed Flying Fox (Pteropus poliocephalus)
 
New Year, New Start!

A walk in my city brought me some species, including even a lifer!

Birds

1. Italian Sparrow - Passer italiae

2. Yellow-legged Gull - Larus michahellis

3. Black Redstart - Phoenicorus ochrusos

4. Black-headed Gull - Chroicocephalus ridibundus

5. Gray Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea

6. Eurasian Blackbird - Turdus merula

I won't count feral pigeons in my checklist, but only genuine Rock Doves.
 
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