Exploring Australia - Looking for Wildlife

[OskarGC]

I've created this thread to share my travels & the species I encounter exploring Australia. I'll first post some of my adventures from the last few weeks.

East Point (Darwin) - 28.11.22
Targets: Rainbow Pitta, Shining Flycatcher & White-Breasted Whistler
We started off at the Mangrove Boardwalk. On arrival I quickly noticed some of the common suburban birds of Darwin, such as Bar-Shouldered Dove, Brown Honeyeater, Pied Imperial-Pigeon & White-Breasted Woodswallow. The path starts in a park where there were many Gilbert's Dragon on the grass, as we approached they ran up trees. The path travels into a scrubby forest & as I walked along we noticed a Blunt-Spined Monitor which quickly bolted away into the undergrowth. The path turns into a boardwalk which leads into the mangroves, as it was low-tide hundreds of fiddler crabs such as Flame-Backed Fiddler-Crab fed on the exposed mud, scurrying into their burrows as we got closer. There were no more birds seen along the boardwalk, although we did hear a pair of Collared Kingfisher calling to each other from either side. On the way back along the path there was a Yellow White-Eye in a bush & more dragons.

 

[OskarGC]

I've created this thread to share my travels & the species I encounter exploring Australia. I'll first post some of my adventures from the last few weeks.

East Point (Darwin) - 28.11.22
Targets: Rainbow Pitta, Shining Flycatcher & White-Breasted Whistler
We started off at the Mangrove Boardwalk. On arrival I quickly noticed some of the common suburban birds of Darwin, such as Bar-Shouldered Dove, Brown Honeyeater, Pied Imperial-Pigeon & White-Breasted Woodswallow. The path start next to Lake Alexander, a shady park with a lake & many trees, there were quite a few Gilbert's Dragon on the grass, as we approached they ran up trees. The path then travels through a scrub forest, as we walked along I saw a Blunt-Spined Monitor but it quickly bolted into the undergrowth. Leaving the scrub forest, the path turns into a boardwalk into the mangroves. As it was low-tide, hundreds of fiddler crabs such as Flame-Backed Fiddler-Crab fed on the exposed mud on each side of the boardwalk, scurrying into their burrows as we walked past. I didn't manage to see any more birds from the boardwalk, but at least we heard a pair of Collared Kingfisher calling to each other from either side of the boardwalk. Along the path on the way back to the car there was a Yellow White-Eye in a bush & more of the dragons. We got back into the car & drove further up the road until we reached the Monsoon Forest Walk. As we walked through the monsoon forest along a dirt track I could heard imperial-pigeons & Rose-Crowned Fruit-Dove calling in the canopy above, but we didn't manage to see any. Suddenly I saw a flash of colour on the forest floor to the side of the track up ahead. As I got closer I realised it was a pair of Rainbow Pitta feeding in the leaf litter, one of my targets & a my first lifer for the trip. I spent about five minutes with them trying to get a good photo before they hopped away. The last thing we saw on this walk were Orange-Footed Scrubfowl & one of their enormous mounds. It would have to have been the biggest I'd ever seen. The pittas were more than enough to compensate for not seeing anymore of my targets or lifers at this hotspot.

 

[OskarGC]

I've created this thread to share my travels & the species I encounter exploring Australia. I'll first post some of my adventures from the last few weeks.

East Point (Darwin) - 28.11.22
Targets: Rainbow Pitta, Shining Flycatcher & White-Breasted Whistler
We started off at the Mangrove Boardwalk. On arrival I quickly noticed some of the common suburban birds of Darwin, such as Bar-Shouldered Dove, Brown Honeyeater, Pied Imperial-Pigeon & White-Breasted Woodswallow. The path starts in a park where there were many Gilbert's Dragon on the grass, as we approached they ran up trees. The path travels into a scrubby forest & as I walked along we noticed a Blunt-Spined Monitor which quickly bolted away into the undergrowth. The path turns into a boardwalk which leads into the mangroves, as it was low-tide hundreds of fiddler crabs such as Flame-Backed Fiddler-Crab fed on the exposed mud, scurrying into their burrows as we got closer. There were no more birds seen along the boardwalk, although we did hear a pair of Collared Kingfisher calling to each other from either side. On the way back along the path there was a Yellow White-Eye in a bush & more dragons.
View attachment 594672 View attachment 594673

The first post posted randomly before I'd finished writing it up & editing. & I don't know how to delete it.

 

[OskarGC]

Darwin Botanic Gardens (Darwin) - 28.11.22
Targets: Owls (Barking & Rufous)
First we headed towards the monsoon forest. The gardens are large with many different habitats, water features & lots of large trees. Just past the carpark there was a Yellow Oriole in one of the big trees. Walking past one of the smaller gardens, I noticed that there was a female Gilbert's Dragon sunning herself on a rock, right out in the open. As we walked through the monsoon forest I saw many Orange-Footed Scrubfowl scratching in the leaf litter. As we continued on I heard the distinctive call of the Spangled Drongo & looked up to see one in the tree right above us. We stopped at water feature as this is where Rufous Owl had been seen roosting recently. I looked up into the trees & realised there a large bird in the canopy with a barred belly, was it the owl? But as I walked into one of the gardens to get a better view I realised it was actually a Brown Goshawk & there was another one nearby. We started walking back towards the carpark, running out of time to get to our next activity. The last thing I saw before we left was a Dusky Honeyeater feeding in a flower garden. Later in the day, about half an hour before sunset we returned to the botanic gardens in order to try & see one of the owl species. We headed back towards the water feature within the monsoon forest, but before we could even reach there a sound in the canopy. We looked up & I realised it was a Barking Owl, one of my targets & a lifer. Although I couldn't get a clear shot due to the dim lighting. Suddenly another bird responded to it's call, we walked back the way we came & saw it was another owl calling from the top of a tree. But this time it was easier to get a good shot. We sat listening to this bird for about ten minutes. Before we left I saw an Orange-Footed Scrubfowl sitting in the same tree as the owl.

 

[OskarGC]

Buffalo Creek (Darwin) - 29.11.22
Targets: Chestnut Rail, Great-Billed Heron & Mangrove Golden Whistler
We arrived at Buffalo Creek around 6:30AM. Apart from the mangrove-lined creek there is mudflats along the beach, a path through the monsoon forest & a muddy track into the mangroves. We first headed into the mangroves along the muddy track, there were many Yellow White-Eye along with a few Red-Headed Honeyeater feeding in the trees. At the end of the track there was a muddy beach. A trio of Black Butcherbird were calling loudly from the tall dead trees opposite this. After this we walked out of the mangroves & headed towards the mudflats. There were many species of shorebird feeding on the shoreline. There were mainly Great Knot, but there was also a few other species such as Bar-Tailed Godwit, Eastern Curlew, Grey-Tailed Tattler, plovers (Greater Sand-, Grey & Red-Capped), Sanderling & Terek Sandpiper. Along with Australian Pelican, Caspian Tern & Silver Gull. Further up the beach, back towards the carpark, there was a Crested Tern resting on the beach & a Brahminy Kite landed in a tall dead tree. In the vegetation bordering the monsoon forest there was a Northern Fantail, Rufous-Banded Honeyeater & a few Rainbow Bee-Eater. We sat down at the boat ramp & carefully scanned the apposing mangrove forest waiting for Chestnut Rail to emerge, but that didn't happen. As we waited a Common Sandpiper & Striated Heron fed on the exposed mud at the bottom of the boat ramp. After this we walked along the path through the monsoon forest heading towards the bird-hide. There were many Bar-Shouldered Dove & Australasian Figbird in the trees & a pair of Red-Winged Parrot even flew through. In the dead trees next to the bird-hide there was Yellow Oriole, Forest Kingfisher & Spangled Drongo. From the bird-hide we could see large flocks of spooked shorebirds & terns flying through the air over the shoreline. After watching for a few minutes we walked back to the carpark. Along the way we saw an old campfire with the remains & shell of a sea-turtle in it. As we left the area a Brown Goshawk & flocks of Red-Collared Lorikeet flew overhead.

 

[OskarGC]

Territory Wildlife Park (Darwin) - 29.11.22
Targets: none
Territory Wildlife Park is a government-run zoo set on 400-hectares of land which encompasses three habitats: monsoon forest, wetland & woodland. Apart from the excellent captive collection of native fauna, there is also lots of wildlife found on the grounds. Although we had other plans, we ended up spending most of the day at the wildlife park & almost struggled to see everything before it closed. This post will be about the actual wildlife we saw, although I'll say which captive species were my highlights during the visit. First off right at the entrance to the park were a few larger enclosed reptile exhibits within the one for Coastal Taipan there was also a wild Douglas' Skink. Also around the entrance there was a grassy area bordering monsoon forest where I saw a Blue-Winged Kookaburra & heard a Great Bowerbird. Following the sounds of the bowerbird behind a bamboo thicket I saw its bower which was decorated with snail shells, although the bird hid in the trees while I was around. On the way to the bird show at the Flight Deck there was a Northern Water-Dragon sunning itself on a fallen tree, we continued to see these lizards all over the park. At the Billabong we saw a Barramundi & lots of Northern Yellow-Faced Turtle right around & under the viewing platform. Merten's Water-Monitor & Freshwater Crocodile are also seen around this area sometimes to. The last main wildlife highlight of the park were a pair of Radjah Shelduck in a staff area near the Monsoon Forest Walk. After visiting the wildlife park I'd have to say it was probably the best/my favourite zoo I've ever visited. The main highlights were the mammals, especially the Antilopine Wallaroo, Black Wallaroo, Common Planigale, Nabarlek & Northern Brushtail-Possum, Spectacled Hare-Wallaby. But other new mammals I'd never seen before include Asian Water-Buffalo, Black Flying-Fox, Black-Footed Tree-Rat, Golden Bandicoot, Northern Quoll & Savanna Glider. I even saw fourteen new bird species & sixteen new freshwater fish species. The main avian highlights were Beach Stone-Curlew, Black Bittern, Rainbow Pitta & Shining Flycatcher.

 

[OskarGC]

Lee Point Dam (Darwin) - 29.11.22
Targets: finches (Gouldian & Star) & Yellow-Rumped Mannikin
Lee Point Dam is an area abundant in birdlife, particularly with finches. Recently there has been an abundance in rarer finch species at this sight, especially Gouldian Finch. Almost every species of finch found in NT has been seen at this hotspot. We arrived just before sunset meanwhile an afternoon shower was happening. Many Rainbow Bee-Eater & White-Breasted Woodswallow were hawking for insects & then landing on the fence next to the road. We started walking around the paths wondering which way to go in order to look for finches. Suddenly a Bar-Breasted Honeyeater flew into a bush in front of us, it was a lifer. As we walked around the dam, the tall grass was filled with flocks of finches (Crimson & Double-Barred. Around one side of the dam White-Throated Honeyeater were gleaning bushes next to the path for insects & up ahead a group of finches were feeding on the path. As we got closer I realised they were more Crimson Finch but these were accompanied by a few Masked Finch, another lifer. Rufous-Banded Honeyeater were hopping through the branches of waterside trees as we made our way around the corner & onto the last stretch of path before getting back to the carpark. I heard the distinctive, almost frog-like call of a Paperbark Flycatcher, which was hunting low to the ground close to the water's edge. The last birds seen before reaching the car were a pair of Chestnut-Breasted Mannikin at the top of a tall dead tree. A pretty good variety of birds for half an hour of birdwatching.

 

[OskarGC]

Howard Springs Nature Park (Darwin) - 30.11.22
Targets: Arafura File-Snake & Merten's Water-Monitor
Today was the day we headed into Kakadu NP & this was the first stop of the day. My main target was Arafura File-Snake as this was the only place I'd be visiting in which I'd be able to get close enough to the water to have a look safely. We arrived early in the morning & walked over to the viewing platform so that we could have a look at the spring/pool. A Northern Yellow-Faced Turtle was swimming in the water just in front of the viewing platform. We walked around the spring & stopped along the weir where the spring-water spilled down into a shallow & clear creek. I climbed down the weir & balanced on a thin wall of concrete looking down into the water for file-snakes, although I didn't manage to find any. Many species of native freshwater fish (archerfish, rainbowfish etc.) were swimming in a shallow pool, as well as two large Barramundi. Without noticing it's presence I accidentally scared my first ever Merten's Water-Monitor which was sunning itself on a log out of view until it dived into the water & swam further up the creek. Once having a further look around this area we walked further around the spring & sighted another Merten's Water-Monitor, this time resting on the lawn near the picnic area. We had a quick look along the Monsoon Forest Walk, but as I'd already seen Rainbow Pitta I didn't have much reason to continue, so we headed back towards the carpark. There were a few Gilbert's Dragon on rocks bordering the carpark.

 

[OskarGC]

I want to continue this so will be restarting in a seperate thread but only posting the photos and species lists of what I saw.