Thanks you!
I've finally found the perfect time and place to get me the best results. Also, I'm finally uploading and identifying photos I took months ago
Still have photos from my Florida trip I haven't uploaded/IDed
~Thylo
ZooChat Big Year 2013
- Thread starter jbnbsn99
- Start date
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Thanks you!
I've finally found the perfect time and place to get me the best results. Also, I'm finally uploading and identifying photos I took months ago
Still have photos from my Florida trip I haven't uploaded/IDed
~Thylo
nanoboy
Well-Known Member
I am still 200 less than you though.
I read about the powerful owl and chick online, so we just had to try to find them before the chick fledged. I didn't get the best view of the whipbird, but my wife, standing next to me got a cracking view by virtue of being at the right angle. We saw the lyrebird for about 10 seconds before it flew off, but it was a really good view.
Target species for the rest of the year include Rose Robin, Mistletoebird and Goshawk/Sparrowhawk, oh and the Koel that is supposed to be in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens at the moment.
zooboy28
Well-Known Member
I am still 200 less than you though.
.....
Target species for the rest of the year include Rose Robin, Mistletoebird and Goshawk/Sparrowhawk, oh and the Koel that is supposed to be in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens at the moment.
Well you're still beating me!
There are tons of mistletoebirds in central Australia, I saw them 5-6 times. They are so common because the number of mistletoes has skyrocketed, due to the decline in the local Brush-tail Possum population.
nanoboy
Well-Known Member
Oh they are supposed to be in my local park too, but all this time we have been looking for a honeyeater-size bird, but the Mistletoebird (according to the field guide) is actually tiny!
Why has the possum population declined, and what is its link to mistletoe? We also aren't sure what mistletoe actually looks like....
yep mistletoebirds are tiny, and sort of coloured like little swallows. They do like to spend their time high in the canopy though.
Possums love mistletoe -- in NZ they wipe it out over large areas of forest. It is a parasitic plant, grows up in trees. The mistletoebirds eat the berries which have a laxative ingredient so they pass through quickly, but are also sticky, so the birds have to wipe their droppings off on the branches hence "planting" the seeds in suitable places.
zooboy28
Well-Known Member
Yeah, they aren't that big. Maybe scarlet-headed honeyeater sized...
As Chlidonias said, possums love mistletoe, so its tends to be significantly more common where possums aren't. Mistletoe are fairly obvious in central Australia because they have quite different leaves to the plants they grow in, and are extremely abundant - we even saw one species of mistletoe growing on another species!
In the Northern Territory, the nominate subspecies of Brushtail Possum is considered to be endangered - see here: http://www.lrm.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/10822/brushtail_possum_EN_FINAL.pdf
I've seen about a dozen today.
Birds
349. Diamond Dove
350. Crimson Chat
351. Spinifex Pigeon
352. Brown Honeyeater
353. Splendid Fairy-Wren
354. White-fronted Honeyeater
355. Grey-headed Honeyeater
Hix
zooboy28
Well-Known Member
I've seen about a dozen today.
Birds
349. Diamond Dove
350. Crimson Chat
351. Spinifex Pigeon
352. Brown Honeyeater
353. Splendid Fairy-Wren
354. White-fronted Honeyeater
355. Grey-headed Honeyeater
Hix
Spinifex Pigeon was the bird our group was most focussed on seeing in central Australia, but we saw absolutely no sign of them anywhere!
Whereabouts are you presently bird spotting? Somewhere in the outback presumably?
flippin' 'eck, Hix has almost caught up with me again! I can see the year is going to be a close race between him and me (and probably Ituri and jbnbsn99 depending on how their trip goes)!
nanoboy
Well-Known Member
Yeah Hix, it would be helpful to know where your birds were spotted. I'm making a list of sites to visit in 2014.
Yes, I am in Alice Springs at present.
Nanoboy, those birds were all spotted the Alice Springs Desert Park. The previous post was from the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens.
And these are from the West McDonnell gorges:
Birds
356. Red-browed Pardalote
357. Weebill
358. Budgerigar
359. Rainbow Bee-eater
360. Brown Falcon
Reptiles
18. Long-nosed Dragon
19. Mulga Snake
Hix
Nanoboy, those birds were all spotted the Alice Springs Desert Park. The previous post was from the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens.
And these are from the West McDonnell gorges:
Birds
356. Red-browed Pardalote
357. Weebill
358. Budgerigar
359. Rainbow Bee-eater
360. Brown Falcon
Reptiles
18. Long-nosed Dragon
19. Mulga Snake
Hix
For the NT it's around 50. Australia overall is only around 173. My 18 days in Uganda brought in 187 (but I still haven't identified a few species I photographed).
Mammals
48. Black-footed Rock Wallaby
Going spotlighting tonight, so I might be ale to add to that list in a few hours time. And possibly some birds too. And maybe even a reptile or two.
Hix
Mammals
48. Black-footed Rock Wallaby
Going spotlighting tonight, so I might be ale to add to that list in a few hours time. And possibly some birds too. And maybe even a reptile or two.
Hix
The spotlighting was not through the park per se, but through a specially constructed predator proof enclosure into which they had released mala, boodie, bandicoots and sticknest rats. Although these species are naturally occurring in the area, they are either rare or extinct because of feral cats, and all these animals were released into the enclosure where they have been breeding. Although the enclosure is over 4 hectares in size, it is still an enclosure and the animals are captive, so I can't include any on my mammal list. However, I did see two wild non-mammals which I can include:
Reptiles
20. Inland Bearded Dragon
Birds
361. Collared Sparrowhawk
Hix
Reptiles
20. Inland Bearded Dragon
Birds
361. Collared Sparrowhawk
Hix
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zooboy28
Well-Known Member
The spotlighting was not through the park per se, but through a specially constructed predator proof enclosure into which they had released mala, boodie, bandicoots and sticknest rats. Although these species are naturally occurring in the area, they are either rare or extinct because of feral cats, and all these animals were released into the enclosure where they have been breeding. Although the enclosure is over 4 hectares in size, it is still an enclosure and the animals are captive, so I can't include any on my mammal list. However, I did see two wild non-mammals which I can include:
Reptiles
20. Inland Bearded Dragon
Birds
361. Collared Sparrowhawk
Hix
So this was at the Alice Springs Desert Park? Do you recommend the night tours? I missed this on my visit up there. Were there only those four species present, or did you see more mammals too?
Where did you see the Mulga Snake and Rock Wallaby?
The night tour was $25 for adults, and went for about an hour. You might think that's expensive, but the money goes to a good cause. Plus it probably covers the overtime for the staff that have to remain behind, and insurance premiums for operating out-of-hours etc. For a zoo or wildlife enthusiast, I would certainly recommend it as some of these species you might not see anywhere else.
The species found in the enclosure are: Greater Sticknest Rat, Golden Bandicoot, Bilby, Brushtailed Bettong, Burrowing Betting, Mala (or Rufous Hare Wallaby), Spectacled Hare Wallaby and Echidna. And there were plenty to see. The stick nest rats and mala breed like crazy, and we glimpsed one of the bilby juveniles (they have two offspring at present).
The Mulga Snake was on the road to Redbank Gorge, the Black-footeds were at Simpson's Gap.
Hix
The species found in the enclosure are: Greater Sticknest Rat, Golden Bandicoot, Bilby, Brushtailed Bettong, Burrowing Betting, Mala (or Rufous Hare Wallaby), Spectacled Hare Wallaby and Echidna. And there were plenty to see. The stick nest rats and mala breed like crazy, and we glimpsed one of the bilby juveniles (they have two offspring at present).
The Mulga Snake was on the road to Redbank Gorge, the Black-footeds were at Simpson's Gap.
Hix
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