Early stages still but the aim is to release them.
Exploring What’s on my Doorstep: WhistlingKite24 does South-east Queensland
- Thread starter WhistlingKite24
- Start date
Location 84 + 85: Jowarra + Gardener’s Falls, Sunshine Coast:
Target Species: Richmond Birdwing, Sapphire Rockmaster
Jowarra, is a remnant patch of lowland rainforest on the Sunshine Coast that forms part of the greater Mooloolah River National Park. As I have mentioned a few times, coastal rainforest in south-east Queensland is rare and vulnerable to development so it’s a real treat to encounter a small patch of dense forest so close to the Bruce Highway. If you plan on visiting be warned that it also doubles as a camping rest area so the carpark is pretty full but the track itself was empty and clearly largely undisturbed. It was a leaf litter walk so you can really hear movement very easily when looking for ground birds or reptiles. One of the flagship species of Jowarra is the threatened Richmond Birdwing – a butterfly that remains locally common in upland rainforest but has suffered from genetic bottlenecks in these fragmented coastal lowlands. I was fortunate to immediately see a healthy population of birdwings here including three females that were egg laying throughout their food vines. A magical experience as they are such large butterflies to see frantically flying from vine to vine and pause as they lower their yellow abdomen to deposit their eggs. It was around this time I started hearing the calls of Rose-crowned Fruit-Doves filling the canopy; the calls weren’t the usual distant ones but sounded very close. I kept my eyes peeled especially around the fruiting palms and viney clearings. There were a few common species around like a single Australian Rufous Fantail and Eastern Yellow Robin.
Richmond Birdwing
The walk led to some nice clearings that open up to the quiet river as it follows adjacent to the track. The calm riparian journey is quickly interrupting by thousands and thousands of cicadas that deafen the environment – six-centimetre-long Razor Grinders covered the trunks of the tallest trees. They are very quick fliers as well but they are erratic in movement, meaning you sometimes have to dodge them. Careful inspection of the tree trunks revealed a single Bar-sided Skink resting as well among the giant cicadas. On the leaf litter floor, I also spied a very bright caterpillar. It was black with cream spots and blue and red markings. It was covered sparsely in branched black spines and has a pair of hairy horns on its head. It belonged to a Leafwing – a butterfly species that breeds in lowland rainforest and one I had long been searching for. This species has a very large distribution from Nepal, across India and south-east Asia and the adults are masters at camouflage with incredible variation across subspecies. A second butterfly lifer was just around the corner; an Orange Grass-Dart sunning with Brown Ringlets.
Australian Leafwing – caterpillar
Among the antics of more fantails and a single Spectacled Monarch, the fruit-dove calls continued. After an extensive search, I finally spotted a single Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove in the canopy in a tiny pocket of sky, perched on a vine. There were no opportunities for a quick photo as it literally stayed in view for a second but I didn't care - I found one! I am surprised that it took me this long to see one as it’s a species that is recorded far more regularly closer to the city. The ‘top six’ I set back in 2021 has now been completed with the following results; Australian Logrunner (four locations), Paradise Riflebird (one location), Noisy Pitta (four locations), Rose-crowned Fruit Dove (one location), Topknot Pigeon (several locations) and Regent Bowerbird (six locations). While I searched for more fruit-doves, the final highlight was spotting a silent Green Catbird perched in full view. The catbird was uncharacteristically bold and approached me even. A great slice of diversity.
Green Catbird scratching
I then headed to Gardener’s Falls – a new location in Maleny. My reason for visiting was very simple. I wanted to see the Sapphire Rockmaster which I consider to be my favourite odonatid found in south-east Queensland. This species of broad-winged damselfly is found in Queensland and north-eastern New South Wales in exclusively fast-flowing streams and rivers. The male rockmaster is the brightest of blues and has a black body with darkish wings. The female is an olive-brown colour. With a thick rainforest backdrop with Topknot Pigeons, I arrived and realised there was a pathway that let straight to the main waterfall with lots of flat rocky surfaces that hosted large congregations of resting damselflies and dragonflies. I saw about eight different species in the span of a few minutes including some magnificent male rockmasters. There was a second new species as well with a single black and yellow Unicorn Hunter hanging around the common perchers. A superb place if you want up-close views of river life. There were a few other notable finds; a Green Tree Snake darted across the path and an Argentinian Scarab was seen which are often confused with the native Christmas beetles. A short little walk but if you sit and watch I am sure you would see a lot of interesting species. iNaturalist records species like Rough-scaled Snake, Regent Skipper, Dainty Tree-Frog and Richmond Birdwing along with the occasional Platypus.
Sapphire Rockmaster
From powerful owls to platypus, this year has been filled with some exciting finds - 39 bird lifers, seven herptile lifers, three mammal lifers coupled with about a hundred new invert species. With 40 new sites remaining in total as the countdown continues, 2024 should see more targeted wildlife watching with some big iconic sites. Throughout the year I ventured from the arid grasslands past Toowoomba to the montane rainforest of Lamington to the urban green heart of Brisbane, learning from every trip and gaining new insights regarding what’s on my doorstep. This now concludes my wildlife watching locally for 2023 as I will spend the next two weeks travelling outside of the region, hopefully seeing lots of new species in both zoos and in the wild (new travel threads to come all going well...).
Green Tree Snake
Target Species: Richmond Birdwing, Sapphire Rockmaster
Jowarra, is a remnant patch of lowland rainforest on the Sunshine Coast that forms part of the greater Mooloolah River National Park. As I have mentioned a few times, coastal rainforest in south-east Queensland is rare and vulnerable to development so it’s a real treat to encounter a small patch of dense forest so close to the Bruce Highway. If you plan on visiting be warned that it also doubles as a camping rest area so the carpark is pretty full but the track itself was empty and clearly largely undisturbed. It was a leaf litter walk so you can really hear movement very easily when looking for ground birds or reptiles. One of the flagship species of Jowarra is the threatened Richmond Birdwing – a butterfly that remains locally common in upland rainforest but has suffered from genetic bottlenecks in these fragmented coastal lowlands. I was fortunate to immediately see a healthy population of birdwings here including three females that were egg laying throughout their food vines. A magical experience as they are such large butterflies to see frantically flying from vine to vine and pause as they lower their yellow abdomen to deposit their eggs. It was around this time I started hearing the calls of Rose-crowned Fruit-Doves filling the canopy; the calls weren’t the usual distant ones but sounded very close. I kept my eyes peeled especially around the fruiting palms and viney clearings. There were a few common species around like a single Australian Rufous Fantail and Eastern Yellow Robin.
Richmond Birdwing
The walk led to some nice clearings that open up to the quiet river as it follows adjacent to the track. The calm riparian journey is quickly interrupting by thousands and thousands of cicadas that deafen the environment – six-centimetre-long Razor Grinders covered the trunks of the tallest trees. They are very quick fliers as well but they are erratic in movement, meaning you sometimes have to dodge them. Careful inspection of the tree trunks revealed a single Bar-sided Skink resting as well among the giant cicadas. On the leaf litter floor, I also spied a very bright caterpillar. It was black with cream spots and blue and red markings. It was covered sparsely in branched black spines and has a pair of hairy horns on its head. It belonged to a Leafwing – a butterfly species that breeds in lowland rainforest and one I had long been searching for. This species has a very large distribution from Nepal, across India and south-east Asia and the adults are masters at camouflage with incredible variation across subspecies. A second butterfly lifer was just around the corner; an Orange Grass-Dart sunning with Brown Ringlets.
Australian Leafwing – caterpillar
Among the antics of more fantails and a single Spectacled Monarch, the fruit-dove calls continued. After an extensive search, I finally spotted a single Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove in the canopy in a tiny pocket of sky, perched on a vine. There were no opportunities for a quick photo as it literally stayed in view for a second but I didn't care - I found one! I am surprised that it took me this long to see one as it’s a species that is recorded far more regularly closer to the city. The ‘top six’ I set back in 2021 has now been completed with the following results; Australian Logrunner (four locations), Paradise Riflebird (one location), Noisy Pitta (four locations), Rose-crowned Fruit Dove (one location), Topknot Pigeon (several locations) and Regent Bowerbird (six locations). While I searched for more fruit-doves, the final highlight was spotting a silent Green Catbird perched in full view. The catbird was uncharacteristically bold and approached me even. A great slice of diversity.
Green Catbird scratching
I then headed to Gardener’s Falls – a new location in Maleny. My reason for visiting was very simple. I wanted to see the Sapphire Rockmaster which I consider to be my favourite odonatid found in south-east Queensland. This species of broad-winged damselfly is found in Queensland and north-eastern New South Wales in exclusively fast-flowing streams and rivers. The male rockmaster is the brightest of blues and has a black body with darkish wings. The female is an olive-brown colour. With a thick rainforest backdrop with Topknot Pigeons, I arrived and realised there was a pathway that let straight to the main waterfall with lots of flat rocky surfaces that hosted large congregations of resting damselflies and dragonflies. I saw about eight different species in the span of a few minutes including some magnificent male rockmasters. There was a second new species as well with a single black and yellow Unicorn Hunter hanging around the common perchers. A superb place if you want up-close views of river life. There were a few other notable finds; a Green Tree Snake darted across the path and an Argentinian Scarab was seen which are often confused with the native Christmas beetles. A short little walk but if you sit and watch I am sure you would see a lot of interesting species. iNaturalist records species like Rough-scaled Snake, Regent Skipper, Dainty Tree-Frog and Richmond Birdwing along with the occasional Platypus.
Sapphire Rockmaster
From powerful owls to platypus, this year has been filled with some exciting finds - 39 bird lifers, seven herptile lifers, three mammal lifers coupled with about a hundred new invert species. With 40 new sites remaining in total as the countdown continues, 2024 should see more targeted wildlife watching with some big iconic sites. Throughout the year I ventured from the arid grasslands past Toowoomba to the montane rainforest of Lamington to the urban green heart of Brisbane, learning from every trip and gaining new insights regarding what’s on my doorstep. This now concludes my wildlife watching locally for 2023 as I will spend the next two weeks travelling outside of the region, hopefully seeing lots of new species in both zoos and in the wild (new travel threads to come all going well...).
Green Tree Snake
Muddy Shoes and Sandy Toes – Maiala + Kakadu Beach, Moreton Bay – 3rd + 4th January 2024:
Following widespread storms to commence the year, south-east Queensland has received a drenching of rain. With humid summers fed by these heavy downpours, cool rainforests and coastal beach breezes were both good options to explore for the new year. I started at Maiala as per usual at Mount Glorious. Something I haven’t mentioned since I started visiting here more regularly but the Mount Glorious Road has received a widespread upgrade meaning the journey is a lot smoother and safer. Still a windy road but it's nothing on the road up to Lamington National Park which is currently undergoing some patchy upgrades mainly for rockslides. I started on the western track which is across the road from the main picnic area and is a one-way path unlike the usual circuit. It’s a much quieter, less-visited track that goes through more rugged terrain but it’s quality subtropical rainforest. The lantana bushes are filled with life at this time of year – vibrant Blue Triangles, Macleay’s Swallowtails, Brown Ringlets and a lifer Southern Pearl-White which are small pale white butterflies with subtle black and sometimes yellow markings. Into the trail, Lewin’s Honeyeaters, Large-billed Scrubwrens and Eastern Yellow Robins dominated the walk with their calls and activities come to the leaf-litter floor. Suddenly, a Subtropical Antechinus popped onto a log and scurried through the leaves, crashing about with little caution. The antechinus disappeared but momentarily came back providing some of the best views I’ve had of this species.
Subtropical Antechinus
The fruit-laden floors of the rainforest brought down the Green Catbirds and I saw the occasional catbird even on the forest floor. These large emerald-green birds fill the canopies with their unusual calls but when they venture out in the open, remain very still and quiet. A close relative, there were a few mature male glossy Satin Bowerbirds feeding as well which I always think is quite an achievement. As one of the longest-lived passerines, it takes male bowerbirds up to seven years for them to reach their full adult plumage with their distinctive black feathers. It was interesting to observe all these bowerbirds feeding together close to the ground – there was definitely a very clear hierarchy among them all. There were lots of fruit-dove and cuckoo-dove calls throughout as well, but as usual, finding rainforest columbids is down to luck and patience.
Green Catbird
Wet conditions always bring the soil-lovers up to the forest floor and this trip’s highlight was a single rainforest millipede from the genus Anadenobolus I suspect. It was a large striped one with a stunning blackish-green and gold colouration throughout and reddish legs. Australian millipedes are difficult to identify to species level but there are some pretty spectacular ones that I have seen and they certainly deserve more attention. Mount Glorious is also a good site for giant pill millipedes but I have yet to see one here.
Rainforest Millipede
Continuing through the muddy walk, the whistling calls of a single Crimson Rosella caught my ear and I eventually found one high up looking like a glowing bauble in a towering Christmas tree. A few metres above the rosella was a single female Australian King-Parrot with slightly more muter shades with lighter green but also the crimson underparts. The final highlight of the walk was seeing a Russet-tailed Thrush up close, hunting for worms that the prior rain had brought to the surface. Often cryptic and secretive birds, this one stuck around for a while and provided great views.
Russet-tailed Thrush
Today Bribie Island was very eventful with the highlight being watching a full-blown osprey hunt. The Eastern Osprey circled the wader beach several times along the shoreline near the beach. It was fascinating to watch that when a large and opportunistic White-bellied Sea-Eagle flies over the flock of Eastern Curlews, they panic and go into a flurry of flight but when it's an Eastern Osprey, they continue as normal. The osprey launched into the water a few times with talons straight out. Missed a few times. A quick head turn by the osprey confirmed the presence of a large fish on the surface a bit further out near the boat. The raptor saw its target, swiftly flew down and plunged half its body into the water. There was a struggle but after readjusting its grip, the osprey flew across the coastline with its large fish.
Eastern Osprey with fresh catch
A quick change of the warm breeze brought the osprey to my direction, allowing me to see its prize up close. Really spectacular to watch. I have seen a few raptor hunts in the past but osprey fishing for several minutes was a memorable first. The Beach Stone-Curlews were in the nearby grasses and have been busy rearing their latest chick which was as large as the adults now. The pair and yearly offspring are so well-known and reliably seen at Kakadu Beach they can almost be identified and tracked as individuals. There were a few additional interesting sightings; a single Striated Heron lurking in the remnant mangroves, a Whimbrel in the waves and a Royal Spoonbill on the beach. There were lots of flower wasps in the plants along the main pathway that sits along the beach – a striking Orange-collared Flower Wasp with its deep blue wings, and a new one for the books, a Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp which looks like a strange insect mash-up with a small bee-like head and large stocky abdomen. I also saw a tarantula-hawk wasp which are massive orange-black spider specialists that have develop some unique rearing habits. They paralyse large spiders, dragging them into their burrows and use them as food for the next generation of monster wasps. I should be able to confirm it to species level as I got some clear shots as it rested.
Eastern Osprey taking off
Orange-collared Flower Wasp
Across the sand the Red-capped Plovers were a joy to see as always but they were dwarfed by something moving across the white sand. Quick Horned Ghost Crabs are a spectacularly large crustaceans that transverse the beach scavenging and hunting small prey. This large but elusive crab is commonly seen on many of the shores of the Indo-Pacific. Yet, it is hard to spot. It probably got its common name because it is active only at night, and it moves so swiftly over the sand that you usually literally only get a ghostly glimpse as it scurries away in the darkness. I find that since no one is allowed on the beach and it has full fenced protection, these ghosts are usually out and about in broad daylight.
Horned Ghost Crab
They weren’t the only crustaceans that caught my attention. Thousands of Light-Blue Soldier Crabs were travelling across the sand into the low tide of the lapping water. Soldier crabs spend most of their time hidden in the sediments of sandflats, but as the tide falls, they emerge and form large assemblages. Safety in numbers. It is possible to be on a sandflat on a falling tide and not see any soldier crabs as they simply haven’t emerged from the sediment yet. As the tide starts to rise the soldier crabs bury themselves again in the sediment, and they won’t be seen. This pattern of emergence and burial means that if you only go to sandflats occasionally, you can miss their presence unless you are there for the short period of time in the tide cycle that they are active and aggregated. So, I find it always a special occasion when soldier crabs are actually out. A good omen to start the year.
Light-Blue Soldier Crabs
Following widespread storms to commence the year, south-east Queensland has received a drenching of rain. With humid summers fed by these heavy downpours, cool rainforests and coastal beach breezes were both good options to explore for the new year. I started at Maiala as per usual at Mount Glorious. Something I haven’t mentioned since I started visiting here more regularly but the Mount Glorious Road has received a widespread upgrade meaning the journey is a lot smoother and safer. Still a windy road but it's nothing on the road up to Lamington National Park which is currently undergoing some patchy upgrades mainly for rockslides. I started on the western track which is across the road from the main picnic area and is a one-way path unlike the usual circuit. It’s a much quieter, less-visited track that goes through more rugged terrain but it’s quality subtropical rainforest. The lantana bushes are filled with life at this time of year – vibrant Blue Triangles, Macleay’s Swallowtails, Brown Ringlets and a lifer Southern Pearl-White which are small pale white butterflies with subtle black and sometimes yellow markings. Into the trail, Lewin’s Honeyeaters, Large-billed Scrubwrens and Eastern Yellow Robins dominated the walk with their calls and activities come to the leaf-litter floor. Suddenly, a Subtropical Antechinus popped onto a log and scurried through the leaves, crashing about with little caution. The antechinus disappeared but momentarily came back providing some of the best views I’ve had of this species.
Subtropical Antechinus
The fruit-laden floors of the rainforest brought down the Green Catbirds and I saw the occasional catbird even on the forest floor. These large emerald-green birds fill the canopies with their unusual calls but when they venture out in the open, remain very still and quiet. A close relative, there were a few mature male glossy Satin Bowerbirds feeding as well which I always think is quite an achievement. As one of the longest-lived passerines, it takes male bowerbirds up to seven years for them to reach their full adult plumage with their distinctive black feathers. It was interesting to observe all these bowerbirds feeding together close to the ground – there was definitely a very clear hierarchy among them all. There were lots of fruit-dove and cuckoo-dove calls throughout as well, but as usual, finding rainforest columbids is down to luck and patience.
Green Catbird
Wet conditions always bring the soil-lovers up to the forest floor and this trip’s highlight was a single rainforest millipede from the genus Anadenobolus I suspect. It was a large striped one with a stunning blackish-green and gold colouration throughout and reddish legs. Australian millipedes are difficult to identify to species level but there are some pretty spectacular ones that I have seen and they certainly deserve more attention. Mount Glorious is also a good site for giant pill millipedes but I have yet to see one here.
Rainforest Millipede
Continuing through the muddy walk, the whistling calls of a single Crimson Rosella caught my ear and I eventually found one high up looking like a glowing bauble in a towering Christmas tree. A few metres above the rosella was a single female Australian King-Parrot with slightly more muter shades with lighter green but also the crimson underparts. The final highlight of the walk was seeing a Russet-tailed Thrush up close, hunting for worms that the prior rain had brought to the surface. Often cryptic and secretive birds, this one stuck around for a while and provided great views.
Russet-tailed Thrush
Today Bribie Island was very eventful with the highlight being watching a full-blown osprey hunt. The Eastern Osprey circled the wader beach several times along the shoreline near the beach. It was fascinating to watch that when a large and opportunistic White-bellied Sea-Eagle flies over the flock of Eastern Curlews, they panic and go into a flurry of flight but when it's an Eastern Osprey, they continue as normal. The osprey launched into the water a few times with talons straight out. Missed a few times. A quick head turn by the osprey confirmed the presence of a large fish on the surface a bit further out near the boat. The raptor saw its target, swiftly flew down and plunged half its body into the water. There was a struggle but after readjusting its grip, the osprey flew across the coastline with its large fish.
Eastern Osprey with fresh catch
A quick change of the warm breeze brought the osprey to my direction, allowing me to see its prize up close. Really spectacular to watch. I have seen a few raptor hunts in the past but osprey fishing for several minutes was a memorable first. The Beach Stone-Curlews were in the nearby grasses and have been busy rearing their latest chick which was as large as the adults now. The pair and yearly offspring are so well-known and reliably seen at Kakadu Beach they can almost be identified and tracked as individuals. There were a few additional interesting sightings; a single Striated Heron lurking in the remnant mangroves, a Whimbrel in the waves and a Royal Spoonbill on the beach. There were lots of flower wasps in the plants along the main pathway that sits along the beach – a striking Orange-collared Flower Wasp with its deep blue wings, and a new one for the books, a Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp which looks like a strange insect mash-up with a small bee-like head and large stocky abdomen. I also saw a tarantula-hawk wasp which are massive orange-black spider specialists that have develop some unique rearing habits. They paralyse large spiders, dragging them into their burrows and use them as food for the next generation of monster wasps. I should be able to confirm it to species level as I got some clear shots as it rested.
Eastern Osprey taking off
Orange-collared Flower Wasp
Across the sand the Red-capped Plovers were a joy to see as always but they were dwarfed by something moving across the white sand. Quick Horned Ghost Crabs are a spectacularly large crustaceans that transverse the beach scavenging and hunting small prey. This large but elusive crab is commonly seen on many of the shores of the Indo-Pacific. Yet, it is hard to spot. It probably got its common name because it is active only at night, and it moves so swiftly over the sand that you usually literally only get a ghostly glimpse as it scurries away in the darkness. I find that since no one is allowed on the beach and it has full fenced protection, these ghosts are usually out and about in broad daylight.
Horned Ghost Crab
They weren’t the only crustaceans that caught my attention. Thousands of Light-Blue Soldier Crabs were travelling across the sand into the low tide of the lapping water. Soldier crabs spend most of their time hidden in the sediments of sandflats, but as the tide falls, they emerge and form large assemblages. Safety in numbers. It is possible to be on a sandflat on a falling tide and not see any soldier crabs as they simply haven’t emerged from the sediment yet. As the tide starts to rise the soldier crabs bury themselves again in the sediment, and they won’t be seen. This pattern of emergence and burial means that if you only go to sandflats occasionally, you can miss their presence unless you are there for the short period of time in the tide cycle that they are active and aggregated. So, I find it always a special occasion when soldier crabs are actually out. A good omen to start the year.
Light-Blue Soldier Crabs
Location 86: Kings Beach, Sunshine Coast – 7th January 2024:
Target Species: chitons, hermit crabs, cowries
Beaches in south-east Queensland are well-known and popular tourist destinations. They are often manicured lifeless deserts with a lot of the coastal vegetation and habitat having been removed for the expanding demands of beachfront living and housing. There aren’t too many natural sites that are dedicated to the preservation of wildlife along the coast but the Kings Beach on the Sunshine Coast is a unique location among them. While ever popular with locals and tourists, it has an incredibly extensive system of littoral rocky shores – a rare habitat type regionally - with overlapping ocean currents from north and south allowing tropical species found up towards the Great Barrier Reef and southern temperate species to intermingle here. There are small pockets of smooth rock wave-battered platforms in the Sunshine Coast that collect water to create rock pools in the low tide. The most common species here were Yellow-footed Hermit Crabs that were found across the area. Many were moving across the shoreline from pool to pool and congregated in very large numbers. Unlike gastropods, these Clibanarius hermit crabs are unable to completely seal off the opening of the shell during times of environmental pressure, such as when seawater is diluted by freshwater. Field studies conducted along the Queensland coast have found them to be better indicators of shifting intertidal conditions and community structure than molluscs.
Yellow-footed Hermit Crab
These habitats are also home to a few species of unique birds like Wandering Tattlers, Sooty Oystercatchers and a species I saw in abundance here today - Eastern Reef Egrets. They regularly flew over the horizon and they were all grey morphs. The abundance of molluscs was really fascinating and searching around the nooks and crannies of the rock surfaces revealed several new species – Tropical Periwinkles, Mulberry Whelks, Variegated Limpets, Blotched Nerites and Striped-mouth Conniwinks. There were lots of small sea anemones, my first wild sea cucumber and some small gobies I will get identified. Chitons, which is a growing area of interest of mine, were out in force and each one was documented carefully – some really interesting patterns and shapes. The distinctive feature of chitons is their eight overlapping plates, which protect them from predators and strong crashing waves. Australia has about 150 species of chitons and most of them are endemic.
Eastern Reef-Egret
A very large vividly-patterned Mottled Lightfoot Crab caught my eye as it dashed for cover under a rock. This species occurs across the rocky shores and coral reefs of the Indo-Pacific from eastern Africa all the way across through to Chile. It’s in the same genus as those iconic sally lightfoot crabs often associated with the Galapagos. Overall, there were lots of interesting species at the rockpools and it is definitely worth spending a few hours here to get a better snapshot of coastal life. If you plan on visiting, ensure you check what time low tide will occur for maximum activity.
Mottled Lightfoot Crab
Target Species: chitons, hermit crabs, cowries
Beaches in south-east Queensland are well-known and popular tourist destinations. They are often manicured lifeless deserts with a lot of the coastal vegetation and habitat having been removed for the expanding demands of beachfront living and housing. There aren’t too many natural sites that are dedicated to the preservation of wildlife along the coast but the Kings Beach on the Sunshine Coast is a unique location among them. While ever popular with locals and tourists, it has an incredibly extensive system of littoral rocky shores – a rare habitat type regionally - with overlapping ocean currents from north and south allowing tropical species found up towards the Great Barrier Reef and southern temperate species to intermingle here. There are small pockets of smooth rock wave-battered platforms in the Sunshine Coast that collect water to create rock pools in the low tide. The most common species here were Yellow-footed Hermit Crabs that were found across the area. Many were moving across the shoreline from pool to pool and congregated in very large numbers. Unlike gastropods, these Clibanarius hermit crabs are unable to completely seal off the opening of the shell during times of environmental pressure, such as when seawater is diluted by freshwater. Field studies conducted along the Queensland coast have found them to be better indicators of shifting intertidal conditions and community structure than molluscs.
Yellow-footed Hermit Crab
These habitats are also home to a few species of unique birds like Wandering Tattlers, Sooty Oystercatchers and a species I saw in abundance here today - Eastern Reef Egrets. They regularly flew over the horizon and they were all grey morphs. The abundance of molluscs was really fascinating and searching around the nooks and crannies of the rock surfaces revealed several new species – Tropical Periwinkles, Mulberry Whelks, Variegated Limpets, Blotched Nerites and Striped-mouth Conniwinks. There were lots of small sea anemones, my first wild sea cucumber and some small gobies I will get identified. Chitons, which is a growing area of interest of mine, were out in force and each one was documented carefully – some really interesting patterns and shapes. The distinctive feature of chitons is their eight overlapping plates, which protect them from predators and strong crashing waves. Australia has about 150 species of chitons and most of them are endemic.
Eastern Reef-Egret
A very large vividly-patterned Mottled Lightfoot Crab caught my eye as it dashed for cover under a rock. This species occurs across the rocky shores and coral reefs of the Indo-Pacific from eastern Africa all the way across through to Chile. It’s in the same genus as those iconic sally lightfoot crabs often associated with the Galapagos. Overall, there were lots of interesting species at the rockpools and it is definitely worth spending a few hours here to get a better snapshot of coastal life. If you plan on visiting, ensure you check what time low tide will occur for maximum activity.
Mottled Lightfoot Crab
Location 87: Lake Currimundi, Sunshine Coast – 26th January 2024:
Situated between two Sunshine Coast tourist hotspots – Mooloolaba and Caloundra – is a quieter coastal region that has received relative protection of its natural assets largely thanks to local opposition to development. Lake Currimundi and a greater strip of bushland that reaches northwards of this remnant heathland towards Point Cartwight. Unfortunately, the main trail to Lake Currimundi, as it’s a sandy path, floods easily with all the recent rain, the flat earth was saturated. Fortunately, there is an extensive pathway that leads into the sleepy beachside suburb of Bokarina through thick remnant coastal forest with several exit points into the sandy dunes of large sandy beaches and rocky outcrops. I was struck but this scenery and it’s was very expansive with some spectacular views of coastland. The cast of wildlife was unique; some beach species but also some wet-forest creatures in the viney thickets and dense scrub. A Lace Monitor was a nice find early on in the walk in full view, lumbering across the pathway before reaching a quicker gait once a few cyclists past by forcing it off the path. The young monitor clambered up a tree, melding into the canopy. The life around the dunes was interesting to observe with several fleeting glimpses of a lovely lifer – Tussock Rainbow-Skinks had deep sandy burrows. Coming from a large genus Carlia, these skinks are often incredibly colourful and found in undisturbed patches along the coast especially including several island pockets along the Great Barrier Reef. There were a few interesting beach finds as well - a few cuttlefish bones, a blue bottle and an impressive internal shell of a deep-water ram’s-horn squid.
Lace Monitor
Ram's Horn Squid
There were lots of invertebrates around but not many birds – mainly Little Wattlebirds, Lewin’s Honeyeaters and Noisy Friarbirds along with a pair of Red-backed Fairywrens near the weedy beachside. The most memorable encounter was a single Four-spined Spiny Spider which simply don’t look real in the flesh. They have a large shield plastered around their body that looks like it has melted like cheese – a plastic-looking armour that ranges from yellow to deep red. This one has a burnt orange colouration that have spiny protrusions. It was just so incredibly spectacular. I’d see their close relatives, the Christmas Jewel Spiders, but these are next level. They are forest spiders so it was nice to see one near the beach. The masses of silk pod vines housed large populations of giant insects – Large Squash Bugs and Giant Grasshoppers filled the foliage while beach butterflies included Glasswings, Small Dusky-Blues and Large Purple Line-Blues were everywhere. A pleasant stroll and I will have to return to have real access to the site and the ‘wilder’ parts.
Four-spined Spiny Spider
Situated between two Sunshine Coast tourist hotspots – Mooloolaba and Caloundra – is a quieter coastal region that has received relative protection of its natural assets largely thanks to local opposition to development. Lake Currimundi and a greater strip of bushland that reaches northwards of this remnant heathland towards Point Cartwight. Unfortunately, the main trail to Lake Currimundi, as it’s a sandy path, floods easily with all the recent rain, the flat earth was saturated. Fortunately, there is an extensive pathway that leads into the sleepy beachside suburb of Bokarina through thick remnant coastal forest with several exit points into the sandy dunes of large sandy beaches and rocky outcrops. I was struck but this scenery and it’s was very expansive with some spectacular views of coastland. The cast of wildlife was unique; some beach species but also some wet-forest creatures in the viney thickets and dense scrub. A Lace Monitor was a nice find early on in the walk in full view, lumbering across the pathway before reaching a quicker gait once a few cyclists past by forcing it off the path. The young monitor clambered up a tree, melding into the canopy. The life around the dunes was interesting to observe with several fleeting glimpses of a lovely lifer – Tussock Rainbow-Skinks had deep sandy burrows. Coming from a large genus Carlia, these skinks are often incredibly colourful and found in undisturbed patches along the coast especially including several island pockets along the Great Barrier Reef. There were a few interesting beach finds as well - a few cuttlefish bones, a blue bottle and an impressive internal shell of a deep-water ram’s-horn squid.
Lace Monitor
Ram's Horn Squid
There were lots of invertebrates around but not many birds – mainly Little Wattlebirds, Lewin’s Honeyeaters and Noisy Friarbirds along with a pair of Red-backed Fairywrens near the weedy beachside. The most memorable encounter was a single Four-spined Spiny Spider which simply don’t look real in the flesh. They have a large shield plastered around their body that looks like it has melted like cheese – a plastic-looking armour that ranges from yellow to deep red. This one has a burnt orange colouration that have spiny protrusions. It was just so incredibly spectacular. I’d see their close relatives, the Christmas Jewel Spiders, but these are next level. They are forest spiders so it was nice to see one near the beach. The masses of silk pod vines housed large populations of giant insects – Large Squash Bugs and Giant Grasshoppers filled the foliage while beach butterflies included Glasswings, Small Dusky-Blues and Large Purple Line-Blues were everywhere. A pleasant stroll and I will have to return to have real access to the site and the ‘wilder’ parts.
Four-spined Spiny Spider
Location 88 + 89: Cedar Grove Environmental Centre + Berrinba Wetlands, Logan – 3rd February 2024:
Target Species: Nankeen Kestrel, Eastern Striped Skink
It has been extremely hot recently here in Brisbane with oppressively humid northerly component winds producing night time minimums of up to 27°C with humidity making it feel like 33°C one night recently and daytime temperatures approaching the 40s. The injection of weekly thunderstorms and showers have created the perfect conditions for a breeding boom of invertebrates and lots of activity from reptiles. Sightings of birds have been very fleeting with little activity as they seek shade from the constant heat and the sunrise is always so early at this time of year. Today, I ventured into the Logan region, south-west of Brisbane, to visit a relatively new site – the Cedar Grove Environmental Centre. It was completed in August 2020 following time as a waste water treatment plant, and prior to that, as an area that was logged extensively and indiscriminately. Since its redevelopment, 120 000 trees and shrubs have been planted here and it’s definitely one of those sites to visit in a few years time to see how this place evolves. The track is a simple loop that passes the Logan River and provided a few glimpses of the embankment with a a White-faced Heron and Australian Wood-Ducks. The haunting cooing calls of at least three Pheasant Coucals travelled far while I saw a single Spangled Drongo. The most interesting species that has appeared here recently was Banded Lapwing but I unfortunately left it too late to find them when they were being seen regularly here a few months ago. An abundance of butterflies filled the field – Monarch, Lesser Wanderer and Chequered Swallowtail were the main subjects.
Chequered Swallowtail
Among Grey Teals and bold Red-backed Fairywrens, a magnificent sighting of a Royal Spoonbill in adult plumage with those yellow 'eyebrows' and reddish accent on its head was almost joyous in the searing heat now. I was surprised to see the bird didn’t move as I walked past it and it remained low to the ground in thick reedbed. At a careful distance I noticed that the bird was in serious trouble – it was stuck in the caked mud and clearly had a serious fracture with a twisted wing at a disturbing angle that would not be conducive with flight. Panting in the full sun and covered in flies, the bird had been there a while and was clearly on its final legs and only lifted its head once with a gentle sway. I called a wildlife emergency number and received an update later in the day that the bird was fortunately put out of its misery and euthanised. The harsh and sobering realities of wildlife.
Royal Spoonbill
On my way out with not a lot else seen, I was really pleased to find a single Nankeen Kestrel perched high above on my way out among Crested Pigeons and a Pied Butcherbird. This species is largely found west of Brisbane among grasslands and the Logan region is as east as they reliably get. There are some old records of them breeding in the trees behind Saint Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane City but these are all but historical now. Half an hour away was the expansive Berrinba Wetlands which could be coupled with the neighbouring Karawatha Forest (location #48) to cover a whole suite of contrasting habitat in the one area for maximum diversity. It was a far larger wetlands than I was expecting and this was reflected with the big birds that were supported here – flocks of Australian Pelicans and Magpie Geese dominated here with the later showing signs of breeding activity as summer is when these nomadic birds settled down for a few months to rear chicks. I do particularly enjoy watching the geese in large noisy concentrations. Small birds were limited to Superb and Variegated Fairywrens, a distant call of a Silvereye and the cries of kingfishers in the thicket.
Magpie Goose
The dominant reptile at Berrinba were Elegant Snake-eyed Skinks that covered the tree trunks in high densities. They are long-limbed, flat-bodied lizards, swiftly defying gravity as they race over rocks, fences, tree trunks and buildings. These skinks have adapted well to human dwellings and can pop up in most places, well within city limits. Interestingly, they have been observed carrying out a form of piracy whereby they rob ants of the food they are carrying. Another skink that has adapted well to human habitation is the glorious Eastern Water Skink which is a large species that are common around here. There were a few particularly glossy ones that soaked up the bright sun along several of the bridges that pass over the quieter corners of streams.
Eastern Water Skink
A few interesting butterflies were around as well – a single mangrove-loving Swamp Tiger was seen clearly which I found intriguing for a freshwater wetland. There was also an lifer in the form of a single rusty-like Orange Ochre among abundant Common Crows and Common Eggflys. My favourite find today however was a single Eastern Bearded Dragon that sat on the pathway while it fed on insects crawling around the hot cement. As most wild bearded dragons do when approached, it froze and propped itself at an angle. In a city inundated with water dragons, I must say wild bearded dragons is something I really wish I saw more often so fortunately the drier region of Logan is a good area for them. Some really nice wildlife corridors in Logan that despite the heat were productive with careful searching and patience.
Eastern Bearded Dragon
Target Species: Nankeen Kestrel, Eastern Striped Skink
It has been extremely hot recently here in Brisbane with oppressively humid northerly component winds producing night time minimums of up to 27°C with humidity making it feel like 33°C one night recently and daytime temperatures approaching the 40s. The injection of weekly thunderstorms and showers have created the perfect conditions for a breeding boom of invertebrates and lots of activity from reptiles. Sightings of birds have been very fleeting with little activity as they seek shade from the constant heat and the sunrise is always so early at this time of year. Today, I ventured into the Logan region, south-west of Brisbane, to visit a relatively new site – the Cedar Grove Environmental Centre. It was completed in August 2020 following time as a waste water treatment plant, and prior to that, as an area that was logged extensively and indiscriminately. Since its redevelopment, 120 000 trees and shrubs have been planted here and it’s definitely one of those sites to visit in a few years time to see how this place evolves. The track is a simple loop that passes the Logan River and provided a few glimpses of the embankment with a a White-faced Heron and Australian Wood-Ducks. The haunting cooing calls of at least three Pheasant Coucals travelled far while I saw a single Spangled Drongo. The most interesting species that has appeared here recently was Banded Lapwing but I unfortunately left it too late to find them when they were being seen regularly here a few months ago. An abundance of butterflies filled the field – Monarch, Lesser Wanderer and Chequered Swallowtail were the main subjects.
Chequered Swallowtail
Among Grey Teals and bold Red-backed Fairywrens, a magnificent sighting of a Royal Spoonbill in adult plumage with those yellow 'eyebrows' and reddish accent on its head was almost joyous in the searing heat now. I was surprised to see the bird didn’t move as I walked past it and it remained low to the ground in thick reedbed. At a careful distance I noticed that the bird was in serious trouble – it was stuck in the caked mud and clearly had a serious fracture with a twisted wing at a disturbing angle that would not be conducive with flight. Panting in the full sun and covered in flies, the bird had been there a while and was clearly on its final legs and only lifted its head once with a gentle sway. I called a wildlife emergency number and received an update later in the day that the bird was fortunately put out of its misery and euthanised. The harsh and sobering realities of wildlife.
Royal Spoonbill
On my way out with not a lot else seen, I was really pleased to find a single Nankeen Kestrel perched high above on my way out among Crested Pigeons and a Pied Butcherbird. This species is largely found west of Brisbane among grasslands and the Logan region is as east as they reliably get. There are some old records of them breeding in the trees behind Saint Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane City but these are all but historical now. Half an hour away was the expansive Berrinba Wetlands which could be coupled with the neighbouring Karawatha Forest (location #48) to cover a whole suite of contrasting habitat in the one area for maximum diversity. It was a far larger wetlands than I was expecting and this was reflected with the big birds that were supported here – flocks of Australian Pelicans and Magpie Geese dominated here with the later showing signs of breeding activity as summer is when these nomadic birds settled down for a few months to rear chicks. I do particularly enjoy watching the geese in large noisy concentrations. Small birds were limited to Superb and Variegated Fairywrens, a distant call of a Silvereye and the cries of kingfishers in the thicket.
Magpie Goose
The dominant reptile at Berrinba were Elegant Snake-eyed Skinks that covered the tree trunks in high densities. They are long-limbed, flat-bodied lizards, swiftly defying gravity as they race over rocks, fences, tree trunks and buildings. These skinks have adapted well to human dwellings and can pop up in most places, well within city limits. Interestingly, they have been observed carrying out a form of piracy whereby they rob ants of the food they are carrying. Another skink that has adapted well to human habitation is the glorious Eastern Water Skink which is a large species that are common around here. There were a few particularly glossy ones that soaked up the bright sun along several of the bridges that pass over the quieter corners of streams.
Eastern Water Skink
A few interesting butterflies were around as well – a single mangrove-loving Swamp Tiger was seen clearly which I found intriguing for a freshwater wetland. There was also an lifer in the form of a single rusty-like Orange Ochre among abundant Common Crows and Common Eggflys. My favourite find today however was a single Eastern Bearded Dragon that sat on the pathway while it fed on insects crawling around the hot cement. As most wild bearded dragons do when approached, it froze and propped itself at an angle. In a city inundated with water dragons, I must say wild bearded dragons is something I really wish I saw more often so fortunately the drier region of Logan is a good area for them. Some really nice wildlife corridors in Logan that despite the heat were productive with careful searching and patience.
Eastern Bearded Dragon
Just a quick update with some of the interesting species I have spotted over the past week at some familiar sites:
1) Copper-tailed Skink Ctenotus taeniolatus
This is a new one for the books. I went to Kakadu Beach, Bribie Island the other day and carefully searched the sandy soils of the pathway that sit alongside the coast. This species is very striking but is quick and favours rocky crevices. Its body is coloured with stripes that run from the back of the head to partway down the tail. Along the centre of the back runs a black stripe, edged with white. A coppery stripe is present each side of the central stripe, followed by alternating black and white stripes down the lizard's sides. The tail is bright coppery-orange but it takes a while for the full flush to appear as they grow. There was a decent population just beyond the second bird hide with several smaller juveniles sunning in the open. A large bulky Eastern Bearded Dragon was among the skinks as well. Bribie Island is such a good place for lizards and apparently has some of the fragmented southern populations of Frill-necked Lizards and Yellow-spotted Monitors towards the national park. Both species that are target reptiles for additional adventures.
2) Red-necked Pademelon Thylogale thetis
It wouldn’t be summer without an influx of rainforest pademelons. At Maiala of course, the Red-necked Pademelons have full pouches and, in the afternoon mainly, head out towards the bountiful grass near the toilets. The recent rain has encouraged a widespread blossoming allowing lots of invert activity. I actually spent a few hours solely in the picnic area and was pleased with the results. A few regionally uncommon butterflies like Yellow Admiral, Bordered Rustic and Macleay’s Swallowtail were seen. The admiral particularly is one of my favourites. There were a few new beetles as well – the most striking was a metallic pinkish-green one called a Hop-bush Leaf Beetle. Collared Sparrowhawks nest in the picnic nest but all I have seen thus far is a large pile of sticks in the sparse eucalypts that fringe the rainforest.
3) Wader hunt
Back at Kakadu Beach, I spent a few hours at the bird hide accompanied by a very bold Buff-banded Rail that simply would not stop following me around. It followed me up and down the pathway and towards the exit as well. Usually they are quite shy but become very tame and bold when used to humans in their habitat. They are well known on Green Island for being inquisitive and stealing the odd chip off unsuspecting visitors. The waders were out on the protected beach in their hundreds with huge congregations of Great Knots and Bar-tailed Godwits with a few dozen Eastern Curlews. A young White-bellied Sea-Eagle continued doing laps over the beach sending the waders into an incredible flurry of flight. They did large laps out towards Toorbul and returned after a couple of minutes. The sea-eagle pursued them, swooped down and plunked a knot off the beach. It took off but the knot escaped after a quick fumble. Amazing to watch.
Waders
White-bellied Sea-Eagle
1) Copper-tailed Skink Ctenotus taeniolatus
This is a new one for the books. I went to Kakadu Beach, Bribie Island the other day and carefully searched the sandy soils of the pathway that sit alongside the coast. This species is very striking but is quick and favours rocky crevices. Its body is coloured with stripes that run from the back of the head to partway down the tail. Along the centre of the back runs a black stripe, edged with white. A coppery stripe is present each side of the central stripe, followed by alternating black and white stripes down the lizard's sides. The tail is bright coppery-orange but it takes a while for the full flush to appear as they grow. There was a decent population just beyond the second bird hide with several smaller juveniles sunning in the open. A large bulky Eastern Bearded Dragon was among the skinks as well. Bribie Island is such a good place for lizards and apparently has some of the fragmented southern populations of Frill-necked Lizards and Yellow-spotted Monitors towards the national park. Both species that are target reptiles for additional adventures.
2) Red-necked Pademelon Thylogale thetis
It wouldn’t be summer without an influx of rainforest pademelons. At Maiala of course, the Red-necked Pademelons have full pouches and, in the afternoon mainly, head out towards the bountiful grass near the toilets. The recent rain has encouraged a widespread blossoming allowing lots of invert activity. I actually spent a few hours solely in the picnic area and was pleased with the results. A few regionally uncommon butterflies like Yellow Admiral, Bordered Rustic and Macleay’s Swallowtail were seen. The admiral particularly is one of my favourites. There were a few new beetles as well – the most striking was a metallic pinkish-green one called a Hop-bush Leaf Beetle. Collared Sparrowhawks nest in the picnic nest but all I have seen thus far is a large pile of sticks in the sparse eucalypts that fringe the rainforest.
3) Wader hunt
Back at Kakadu Beach, I spent a few hours at the bird hide accompanied by a very bold Buff-banded Rail that simply would not stop following me around. It followed me up and down the pathway and towards the exit as well. Usually they are quite shy but become very tame and bold when used to humans in their habitat. They are well known on Green Island for being inquisitive and stealing the odd chip off unsuspecting visitors. The waders were out on the protected beach in their hundreds with huge congregations of Great Knots and Bar-tailed Godwits with a few dozen Eastern Curlews. A young White-bellied Sea-Eagle continued doing laps over the beach sending the waders into an incredible flurry of flight. They did large laps out towards Toorbul and returned after a couple of minutes. The sea-eagle pursued them, swooped down and plunked a knot off the beach. It took off but the knot escaped after a quick fumble. Amazing to watch.
Waders
White-bellied Sea-Eagle
A Household Skink – 19th February 2024:
For a couple of months now, there has been this large skink that has made a home in my house. It had initially been seen around the bathroom, scurrying across the floor and then there were sightings in the pantry. It eventually became more present in the early morning with its body splayed on the kitchen floor especially on sunny days. The skink quietly disappeared for a week but suddenly I turned around while I was sitting on an old couch one day near a leafy window and it popped up out of nowhere. This Dark Bar-sided Skink with its more pronounced markings that the commoner Bar-sided Skink has settled into the couch for the past week, using the gaps as the perfect replica for bark, hunting for lazy moths and the occasional beetle. A species of forested areas, they can be found in Brisbane built-up suburbs occasionally so it’s a real treat to have one around. A more than welcome house guest. There has been a lot of rain recently which has quashed plans for a Springbrook weekend trip for land mullets and lyrebirds, leaving me to continue with localised pursuits for now. An Azure Kingfisher remains at Kalinga Park in a very exposed area surprisingly and I picked up two butterfly lifers in the area; a moth-like Narrow-banded Awl on Saturday trapped in a spider’s web and a Varied Dusky-Blue on Sunday. In other news, I have just finalised plans for my first proper pelagic trip in a couple of months. This gives me some time to brush up on my petrels and shearwaters and winter is a great time when a lot of seabirds travel to the region from down south – exciting times ahead!
Dark Bar-sided Skink in an old couch
For a couple of months now, there has been this large skink that has made a home in my house. It had initially been seen around the bathroom, scurrying across the floor and then there were sightings in the pantry. It eventually became more present in the early morning with its body splayed on the kitchen floor especially on sunny days. The skink quietly disappeared for a week but suddenly I turned around while I was sitting on an old couch one day near a leafy window and it popped up out of nowhere. This Dark Bar-sided Skink with its more pronounced markings that the commoner Bar-sided Skink has settled into the couch for the past week, using the gaps as the perfect replica for bark, hunting for lazy moths and the occasional beetle. A species of forested areas, they can be found in Brisbane built-up suburbs occasionally so it’s a real treat to have one around. A more than welcome house guest. There has been a lot of rain recently which has quashed plans for a Springbrook weekend trip for land mullets and lyrebirds, leaving me to continue with localised pursuits for now. An Azure Kingfisher remains at Kalinga Park in a very exposed area surprisingly and I picked up two butterfly lifers in the area; a moth-like Narrow-banded Awl on Saturday trapped in a spider’s web and a Varied Dusky-Blue on Sunday. In other news, I have just finalised plans for my first proper pelagic trip in a couple of months. This gives me some time to brush up on my petrels and shearwaters and winter is a great time when a lot of seabirds travel to the region from down south – exciting times ahead!
Dark Bar-sided Skink in an old couch
Location 90 + 91 – Pooh Corner Bushland Reserve + Pullenvale Forest Park, Brisbane – 9th March 2024:
Target Species: Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Blue Argus
A quick few highlights from a previous trip last weekend before I cover the new ones. After a very hectic month I spent a few hours at the local national park that surrounds Enogerra Reservoir. It was midday and very hot so I decided to bring the short lens instead of logging around the big camera gear to search for birds when it was the optimal time for butterflies and dragonflies. There were still a few targets get to get as the warm weather continues into autumn. The track was full of activity in the leaf litter; high numbers of White-spotted Swift Spiders, a few Habronestes spiders which are very pretty creatures with a yellow-spotted abdomen and those really big spider ants that cover tree trunks. There was a huge Carlia skink that was resting among the leaf litter. This one couldn’t be identified confidently as I didn’t get it at the right angle but it was a stunner. I asked the museum for another opinion just in case. The grass has grown tall with all the recent rain attracting lots of little grasshoppers pinging off the muddy path proving a real challenge to identify confidently. The muddy puddles interestingly brought in large numbers of butterflies; something I’d see in documentaries but not in the flesh. Pale Triangles were everywhere mud-puddling sucking up excess water and nutrients.
Pale Triangle
The mud was right at the entrance of the walk so they were constantly being disturbed by joggers but there were a few quiet moments when I could appreciate these pale-blue wonders up close that possess more spots than the commoner Blue Triangles. There were some magical sightings of Clearwing and the recently-split Canopus Swallowtail along with an explosion of Orchard Swallowtails and Blue Triangles frantically egg laying. Five swallowtail species is not bad at all! Dragonflies hunted in the overflow of water in the weedy growth and I picked up two of my targets before the hot weather recedes with two interesting names – Palemouth and Grenadier. Bird wise, I had pleasing sightings of female Cicadabird and several young noisy Spangled Drongos as the main highlights along with fleeting glimpses of Rufous Shrike-thrush and Variegated Fairywren.
Palemouth
Today I did a combo along the western fringes of Brisbane. I started at the open eucalypt forest of Pooh Corner Bushland Reserve which sits in Wacol right next to a prison. Odd name and location. Apparently, back in the days when most people had outside toilets, and the contents of local thunderboxes were dumped nearby, passengers travelling by train between Brisbane and Ipswich, noted unpleasant odours in this area, so called it 'Pooh Corner’. The odour has passed but the name stuck. It is a very easy four-kilometre loop through open well-established woodland with a grassy understorey. Pooh Corner is a butterfly hotspot as well and one avid naturalist spotted a Blue Argus Junonia orithya here last month which is a top-tier northern species to see in south-east Queensland being very rare regionally. I immediately started the walk with noisy lorikeets with Rainbow, Scaly-breasted and even Little Lorikeets in full views with Little Friarbirds as well and a single uplifting Pale-headed Rosella as well. It was particularly good to see the little lorikeets so early in the year as they are usually a prime winter target. Cockatoos screeched past as I started scanning for Blue Argus which I didn’t pinpoint today. There were lots of Evening Browns, No-brand Grass-Yellows, Glasswings, Meadow Arguses, Lesser Wanderers which are a personal favourite and two small but appreciated lifers – Grey Ringlet and Spotted Grass-Blue. There were a handful of other memorable sightings during the windy morning at Pooh Corner – a single radiant Sacred Kingfisher that perched along the trainline, a large mob of Eastern Grey Kangaroos that can reliably be seen clearly on the grounds of the prison through a few fence lines with a barbed wire backdrop and great views of Rainbow Bee-eaters.
Sacred Kingfisher
Another western Brisbane site is the Pullenvale Forest Park. There are walking tracks that extend deeper into the 12-hectare park, through rainforest, vine forest and eucalypt forests. There is also a newish boardwalk that allows you to walk along Pullen Pullen Creek. There was immediate activity here with at least four Fan-tailed Cuckoos quickly pursuing scrubwrens – there were both White-browed and Large-billed. The cuckoos were unusually bold and sat along the boardwalk at a very close distance and eventually dodged their way through the viney entanglement. The whipbirds were responding to each other’s call while I admired a juvenile Olive-backed Oriole, two immature Black-faced Monarchs, Red-browed Finches along the riverbank and squabbling Lewin’s Honeyeaters. The main highlight went to a very special moth - Burgena varia. I have seen it once before at Mount Glorious but it was great to find one within the Brisbane region. It’s a striking and very active species that favours wet forest. Overall, some really nice finds and hopefully the birds start picking up further soon for the cooler months ahead.
Fan-tailed Cuckoo
Target Species: Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Blue Argus
A quick few highlights from a previous trip last weekend before I cover the new ones. After a very hectic month I spent a few hours at the local national park that surrounds Enogerra Reservoir. It was midday and very hot so I decided to bring the short lens instead of logging around the big camera gear to search for birds when it was the optimal time for butterflies and dragonflies. There were still a few targets get to get as the warm weather continues into autumn. The track was full of activity in the leaf litter; high numbers of White-spotted Swift Spiders, a few Habronestes spiders which are very pretty creatures with a yellow-spotted abdomen and those really big spider ants that cover tree trunks. There was a huge Carlia skink that was resting among the leaf litter. This one couldn’t be identified confidently as I didn’t get it at the right angle but it was a stunner. I asked the museum for another opinion just in case. The grass has grown tall with all the recent rain attracting lots of little grasshoppers pinging off the muddy path proving a real challenge to identify confidently. The muddy puddles interestingly brought in large numbers of butterflies; something I’d see in documentaries but not in the flesh. Pale Triangles were everywhere mud-puddling sucking up excess water and nutrients.
Pale Triangle
The mud was right at the entrance of the walk so they were constantly being disturbed by joggers but there were a few quiet moments when I could appreciate these pale-blue wonders up close that possess more spots than the commoner Blue Triangles. There were some magical sightings of Clearwing and the recently-split Canopus Swallowtail along with an explosion of Orchard Swallowtails and Blue Triangles frantically egg laying. Five swallowtail species is not bad at all! Dragonflies hunted in the overflow of water in the weedy growth and I picked up two of my targets before the hot weather recedes with two interesting names – Palemouth and Grenadier. Bird wise, I had pleasing sightings of female Cicadabird and several young noisy Spangled Drongos as the main highlights along with fleeting glimpses of Rufous Shrike-thrush and Variegated Fairywren.
Palemouth
Today I did a combo along the western fringes of Brisbane. I started at the open eucalypt forest of Pooh Corner Bushland Reserve which sits in Wacol right next to a prison. Odd name and location. Apparently, back in the days when most people had outside toilets, and the contents of local thunderboxes were dumped nearby, passengers travelling by train between Brisbane and Ipswich, noted unpleasant odours in this area, so called it 'Pooh Corner’. The odour has passed but the name stuck. It is a very easy four-kilometre loop through open well-established woodland with a grassy understorey. Pooh Corner is a butterfly hotspot as well and one avid naturalist spotted a Blue Argus Junonia orithya here last month which is a top-tier northern species to see in south-east Queensland being very rare regionally. I immediately started the walk with noisy lorikeets with Rainbow, Scaly-breasted and even Little Lorikeets in full views with Little Friarbirds as well and a single uplifting Pale-headed Rosella as well. It was particularly good to see the little lorikeets so early in the year as they are usually a prime winter target. Cockatoos screeched past as I started scanning for Blue Argus which I didn’t pinpoint today. There were lots of Evening Browns, No-brand Grass-Yellows, Glasswings, Meadow Arguses, Lesser Wanderers which are a personal favourite and two small but appreciated lifers – Grey Ringlet and Spotted Grass-Blue. There were a handful of other memorable sightings during the windy morning at Pooh Corner – a single radiant Sacred Kingfisher that perched along the trainline, a large mob of Eastern Grey Kangaroos that can reliably be seen clearly on the grounds of the prison through a few fence lines with a barbed wire backdrop and great views of Rainbow Bee-eaters.
Sacred Kingfisher
Another western Brisbane site is the Pullenvale Forest Park. There are walking tracks that extend deeper into the 12-hectare park, through rainforest, vine forest and eucalypt forests. There is also a newish boardwalk that allows you to walk along Pullen Pullen Creek. There was immediate activity here with at least four Fan-tailed Cuckoos quickly pursuing scrubwrens – there were both White-browed and Large-billed. The cuckoos were unusually bold and sat along the boardwalk at a very close distance and eventually dodged their way through the viney entanglement. The whipbirds were responding to each other’s call while I admired a juvenile Olive-backed Oriole, two immature Black-faced Monarchs, Red-browed Finches along the riverbank and squabbling Lewin’s Honeyeaters. The main highlight went to a very special moth - Burgena varia. I have seen it once before at Mount Glorious but it was great to find one within the Brisbane region. It’s a striking and very active species that favours wet forest. Overall, some really nice finds and hopefully the birds start picking up further soon for the cooler months ahead.
Fan-tailed Cuckoo
Location 92: Griffin, Moreton Bay – 16th March 2024:
Target Species: Brolga, Bearded Mudskipper
The Moreton Bay suburb of Griffin sits just above Brisbane and connects to two important wildlife sites that have already been covered being Tinchi Tamba (location #9) and the Osprey House (location #22). It is home to large patches of refuge along the North Pine River and contains a rich diversity of species alongside expanding residential development with 10,000 people moving to the area in a decade. I started my morning returning to Tinchi Tamba which was certainly an interesting experience with overwhelming numbers of mosquitos but I was determine to continue straight to the bird hide for a very special reason. About a year ago, I discovered south-east Queensland actually had mudskippers which I had always thought been a group of amphibious fish which I had reserved on my bucket list for up north along the esplanades of Cairns. This group of gobies had not been recorded in the Brisbane region since 1919, until sightings of mudskippers along the Brisbane River started emerging and a comprehensive survey in the 1990s revealed that Brisbane contained one species of mudskipper that was hypothesised to be seasonal – the Bearded Mudskipper Scartelaos histophorus - with Brisbane being one of the more southern populations for mudskippers globally. There are very scant recent records of mudskippers and they are poorly-understood with their overall habits in this region. Commencing mudskipper duty during low tide, the bird hide was tucked away in a little corner at Tinchi Tamba with a great bench seating that has eye-level views out towards the mudlats that swarmed with long-eyed sentinel crabs that covered every inch of the thick mud. This attracted the larger waterbirds including a Striated Heron, several Eastern Great Egrets, a Little Egrets, copious amounts of ibis, White-faced Heron and small populations of waders which comprised of Bar-tailed Godwits and Whimbrels. Being so close to the mudflats, revealed the small details. The Compressed Fiddler Crabs emerged in small numbers and the cormorants were fishing in a large party as the water came in. I suddenly saw these worm-liked creatures leaping a considerable height and then rest among the crab metropolis. Binoculars confirmed mudskipper! Wow! Once my eyes adjusted to the ‘look’ of Bearded Mudskippers in the wild they materialised everywhere. Incredible fish and I never thought I could see them locally. A moment I will relish.
Bearded Mudskipper
After the thrill of the mudskippers, I realised that the raptors had a greater presence locally today. I had the closest view of a wild White-bellied Sea-Eagle as it past a few metres overhead as it was being pursued by a crow and the winds pushed it towards where I was standing. A slightly hair-raising moment but the sea eagle pushed forward with a few slow audible wingbeats and headed towards the mangroves. It did several circle along the North Pine River and was joined by its mate later on. No less than three Whistling Kites circled from a great distance as well. The Eastern Grey Kangaroos are recovering well after the floods a few years ago and were in good numbers with several large adult males among the large mobs.
White-bellied Sea-Eagle with Torresian Crow
On a quiet corner of suburban Griffin, lives a celebrity. Probably the most famous wild bird in all of south-east Queensland. Bruce the Brolga is a legacy of what was expansive wetland and a symbol for local human-wildlife interactions. The legend goes his parents frequented the area for 20 years mainly living at Nathan Road Wetlands and had a final chick around eight years ago. The adults have left and Bruce has remained after all these years, habituated to the hum of suburbia with sightings of Bruce ranging from among the local train station to schools and mainly people’s front yards. He has been known to enter people’s homes as well. The search for Bruce was far too easy this afternoon and I really should have tried a few years ago, but I am glad I didn’t leave it too late in the plan. Whilst he was more a glorified lawn ornament than fleeting sighting, he was my first proper wild brolga following the zoo escapee on the Gold Coast a few years back. Brolgas are rarer than storks in south-east Queensland so he is a pleasing tick and my first wild crane. It was one of those uncommon days where both target species were seen! A few big sites coming up over the Easter weekend all going well.
Brolga
Target Species: Brolga, Bearded Mudskipper
The Moreton Bay suburb of Griffin sits just above Brisbane and connects to two important wildlife sites that have already been covered being Tinchi Tamba (location #9) and the Osprey House (location #22). It is home to large patches of refuge along the North Pine River and contains a rich diversity of species alongside expanding residential development with 10,000 people moving to the area in a decade. I started my morning returning to Tinchi Tamba which was certainly an interesting experience with overwhelming numbers of mosquitos but I was determine to continue straight to the bird hide for a very special reason. About a year ago, I discovered south-east Queensland actually had mudskippers which I had always thought been a group of amphibious fish which I had reserved on my bucket list for up north along the esplanades of Cairns. This group of gobies had not been recorded in the Brisbane region since 1919, until sightings of mudskippers along the Brisbane River started emerging and a comprehensive survey in the 1990s revealed that Brisbane contained one species of mudskipper that was hypothesised to be seasonal – the Bearded Mudskipper Scartelaos histophorus - with Brisbane being one of the more southern populations for mudskippers globally. There are very scant recent records of mudskippers and they are poorly-understood with their overall habits in this region. Commencing mudskipper duty during low tide, the bird hide was tucked away in a little corner at Tinchi Tamba with a great bench seating that has eye-level views out towards the mudlats that swarmed with long-eyed sentinel crabs that covered every inch of the thick mud. This attracted the larger waterbirds including a Striated Heron, several Eastern Great Egrets, a Little Egrets, copious amounts of ibis, White-faced Heron and small populations of waders which comprised of Bar-tailed Godwits and Whimbrels. Being so close to the mudflats, revealed the small details. The Compressed Fiddler Crabs emerged in small numbers and the cormorants were fishing in a large party as the water came in. I suddenly saw these worm-liked creatures leaping a considerable height and then rest among the crab metropolis. Binoculars confirmed mudskipper! Wow! Once my eyes adjusted to the ‘look’ of Bearded Mudskippers in the wild they materialised everywhere. Incredible fish and I never thought I could see them locally. A moment I will relish.
Bearded Mudskipper
After the thrill of the mudskippers, I realised that the raptors had a greater presence locally today. I had the closest view of a wild White-bellied Sea-Eagle as it past a few metres overhead as it was being pursued by a crow and the winds pushed it towards where I was standing. A slightly hair-raising moment but the sea eagle pushed forward with a few slow audible wingbeats and headed towards the mangroves. It did several circle along the North Pine River and was joined by its mate later on. No less than three Whistling Kites circled from a great distance as well. The Eastern Grey Kangaroos are recovering well after the floods a few years ago and were in good numbers with several large adult males among the large mobs.
White-bellied Sea-Eagle with Torresian Crow
On a quiet corner of suburban Griffin, lives a celebrity. Probably the most famous wild bird in all of south-east Queensland. Bruce the Brolga is a legacy of what was expansive wetland and a symbol for local human-wildlife interactions. The legend goes his parents frequented the area for 20 years mainly living at Nathan Road Wetlands and had a final chick around eight years ago. The adults have left and Bruce has remained after all these years, habituated to the hum of suburbia with sightings of Bruce ranging from among the local train station to schools and mainly people’s front yards. He has been known to enter people’s homes as well. The search for Bruce was far too easy this afternoon and I really should have tried a few years ago, but I am glad I didn’t leave it too late in the plan. Whilst he was more a glorified lawn ornament than fleeting sighting, he was my first proper wild brolga following the zoo escapee on the Gold Coast a few years back. Brolgas are rarer than storks in south-east Queensland so he is a pleasing tick and my first wild crane. It was one of those uncommon days where both target species were seen! A few big sites coming up over the Easter weekend all going well.
Brolga
An additional video of Bruce’s adventures over the years.
The Top Ten – 25th March 2024:
For the past couple weekends, I have been searching across my local parks while I prep for a few longer trips and I have enjoyed viewing familiar sites with a keener and more comprehensive eye. I have spent several sunny afternoons at a new site called Burnie Brae Park. It’s a rather barren open space but it has some small patches of bushland along the fringes and it’s poorly documented on iNaturalist so I thought I would contribute for the site in some form. The footprint is very small but was productive on one particular Sunday with about 100 individual observations. I quickly discovered there were lots of bugs around the community garden among the flowers and vegetables. The citrus trees were filled with Orchard Swallowtails laying their eggs with several caterpillars including some green ones that were enormous. A week later most were in chrysalises. Two further bird species were some nice finds for suburbia; a trio of Bush Stone-Curlews and a pair of Tawny Frogmouths a couple metres from each other. There are a pair of ancient eucalypts that sit tall over the dramatically transformed landscape. It was a refuge for small beetles and bugs; the highlight being a large population of Eight-spotted Leaf Beetles, Harlequin Hibiscus Bugs, Dark Zebra Shield Bugs and some orange-footed Notius consputus. I then continued looking around Keith Boden Wetlands which had two raptors around; a single Pacific Baza that had the looming figure of a bat as it travelled through remanent bushland next to a cricket field as the sharp cries of rosellas and galahs filled the horizon. A Brown Goshawk was then seen in a very open space as it swooped down towards a few Noisy Miners. It was quickly chased away by every territorial bird in the area and reached the cover of a large shady tree. Here are my top ten from these small little parks, showing you can find wildlife locally even in often the most nondescript places.
1) Blue Eye Lacewing, Nymphes myrmeleonides
2) Eight-spotted Leaf Beetle, Paropsisterna sexpustulata
3) Indigo Flash, Rapala varuna
4) Wandering Gliders, Pantala flavescens
5) Orchard Swallowtail, Papilio aegeus
6) Bush Stone-Curlew, Burhinus grallarius
7) Harlequin Hibiscus Bug, Tectocoris diophthalmus
8) Tawny Frogmouth, Podargus strigoides
9) Eastern Water Skink, Eulamprus quoyii
10) Galah, Eolophus roseicapilla
For the past couple weekends, I have been searching across my local parks while I prep for a few longer trips and I have enjoyed viewing familiar sites with a keener and more comprehensive eye. I have spent several sunny afternoons at a new site called Burnie Brae Park. It’s a rather barren open space but it has some small patches of bushland along the fringes and it’s poorly documented on iNaturalist so I thought I would contribute for the site in some form. The footprint is very small but was productive on one particular Sunday with about 100 individual observations. I quickly discovered there were lots of bugs around the community garden among the flowers and vegetables. The citrus trees were filled with Orchard Swallowtails laying their eggs with several caterpillars including some green ones that were enormous. A week later most were in chrysalises. Two further bird species were some nice finds for suburbia; a trio of Bush Stone-Curlews and a pair of Tawny Frogmouths a couple metres from each other. There are a pair of ancient eucalypts that sit tall over the dramatically transformed landscape. It was a refuge for small beetles and bugs; the highlight being a large population of Eight-spotted Leaf Beetles, Harlequin Hibiscus Bugs, Dark Zebra Shield Bugs and some orange-footed Notius consputus. I then continued looking around Keith Boden Wetlands which had two raptors around; a single Pacific Baza that had the looming figure of a bat as it travelled through remanent bushland next to a cricket field as the sharp cries of rosellas and galahs filled the horizon. A Brown Goshawk was then seen in a very open space as it swooped down towards a few Noisy Miners. It was quickly chased away by every territorial bird in the area and reached the cover of a large shady tree. Here are my top ten from these small little parks, showing you can find wildlife locally even in often the most nondescript places.
1) Blue Eye Lacewing, Nymphes myrmeleonides
2) Eight-spotted Leaf Beetle, Paropsisterna sexpustulata
3) Indigo Flash, Rapala varuna
4) Wandering Gliders, Pantala flavescens
5) Orchard Swallowtail, Papilio aegeus
6) Bush Stone-Curlew, Burhinus grallarius
7) Harlequin Hibiscus Bug, Tectocoris diophthalmus
8) Tawny Frogmouth, Podargus strigoides
9) Eastern Water Skink, Eulamprus quoyii
10) Galah, Eolophus roseicapilla
Location 93: Bunya Mountains National Park, South Burnett – 30th March 2024:
Target Species: Red-necked Wallaby, Black-striped Wallaby, Heteronympha butterflies
Sitting 1100 metres above sea level on the Great Dividing Range and about 2.5 hours from Brisbane, the mist-covered chilly Bunya Mountains is a very special place and geographically unique. The range is the remains of a shield volcano which was built from numerous basalt lava flows about 23-24 million years ago. As Queensland’s second oldest national park declared in 1908 and the most western subtropical rainforest fragment in southern Queensland, the Bunya Mountains is the final western frontier for many species of wet forest endemics before reaching the dry and comparatively barren interior. The forest was largely protected from logging due to its inaccessibility and mountainous terrain, harbouring the largest expanse of statuesque bunya pines on the planet. These ancient pines are very distinctive trees and frame every vista in this rugged part of the world with their unique silhouette against the fog and mist. In summer, there are large green soccer ball-sized bunya cones with 50–100 ‘nuts’ surrounded by a thick, fleshy outer-casing that peppers the grassy slopes. These heavy cones crash to the forest floor where possums, melomys and other animals feast on the nuts and help disperse the seeds through the forest. With the potential of being fatal, these enormous cones can be dangerous if one hits you on the head, so never dawdle too long under a bunya… Apparently they are quite tasty as well. Within the national park, Dandabah is the most popular spot on the mountain. Surrounded by thick forest, the picnic area has electric barbecues, an abundance of colourful birdlife and is the entrance for short and long rainforest walks. The camping area, local natural history museum, small grocery store, restaurants and accommodation options are nearby. Leaving Brisbane at 4am, the drive up to the Bunyas was filled with wildlife highlights. In the township of Yarraman, I encountered my first ever wild flock of Apostlebirds in the main open park in the centre of town along the route that led onto the highway. They were actively foraging in the early light and kept together with their series of interesting scolding calls. These often-fearless birds remained common in every strip of appropriately-sized roadside and park until I reached the bunyas. While they are only found in the western fringes within Brisbane, these cooperative breeders with a complex social hierarchy are found in more rural areas of south-east Queensland especially towards the west of the region. They are also one of two mud nesters – Corcoracidae – in existence. Both species are endemic to Australia. Fascinating birds to watch.
Apostlebird
The ascent towards the Bunya Mountains can only be described as other-worldly. The mist and fog consumed the landscape with only the largest bunya pines remaining in view as tall figures of reassurance. The winding rainforest road revealed glimpses of large awkward columbids feeding on the roadside as movement that cut through the thick fog provided momentary glances of a single plump Wonga Pigeon that shot up into the canopy and a trio of Brown Cuckoo-Doves while reaching the final turn. An Eastern Yellow Robin further made an appearance for a brief second along a thick grove. Like Lamington National Park, the wildlife of the Bunya Mountains is very present and visible. This area is most well-known for its wallabies. Mainly there are large populations of Red-necked Wallabies everywhere. I immediately saw dozens and dozens of them grazing out in the open. They are fearless and habituated to humans, allowing for fantastic opportunities to observe them around the national parks. Black-striped and Swamp Wallabies are also found here but are shier and generally are seen near the grassy balds. I didn’t see any among all the red-necks.
Red-necked Wallaby
The bunya pines, which can grow to around 45-50 metres tall, were shelter for many species. The parrots were the most notable initially and it was quite an incredible sight to see hundreds of snowy white Sulphur-crested Cockatoos sweep through the cloudy landscape and land in the pines. White against white. They were raucous and very present throughout the open space along with hordes of smaller but equally vocal Satin Bowerbirds everywhere and the passing pair of Galahs. It felt a tad odd to see these pink cockatoos here so close to rainforest but this largely reflects the westerly location of the site and the farmland that surrounds the national park. The bowerbirds were still retreating and elusive when approached as they darted into bushes but they fed alongside the wallabies in distant rolling hills. Mainly there were the brown-olivey females and immature birds but a few glossy blue-black males as well in the taller pines near the picnic tables especially were noted. I was then excited to hear ravens rather than the usual Torresian Crow. A quick search in the mist revealed at least four Australian Ravens with their prominent throat cackles and higher-pitch and more drawn-out call. Besides the abundant Australian Brush-Turkey which fill these leaf-litter rich forests floors here, a single emerald Green Catbird was surprisingly visible right near its close bowerbird cousins. There was a second catbird seen later on during the walk but not a single one heard.
Green Catbird
The small birds started to materialise as the mist cleared and the sunshine began to overtake the clouds. A single male Superb Fairywren sat brilliantly near a picnic table while a pair of Red-browed Finches were courting and nest-building. They are monogamous birds, and both finches incubate and feed the young. Pair bonding remains constant throughout the year, even when moving in flocks outside the breeding season. In the right conditions, groups nest communally with several nests in a tree and I could hear more finches around. The habituated parrots which are fed at the eating area were also starting to appear; dozens of Australian King-Parrots started materialising in the large rainforest trees that towered above the rest. There was one male with a few yellow markings that made for a very distinct bird. The Crimson Rosellas were far sparser; saw only four by the end of the day but heard many more rosella whistles. I saw a Pale-headed Rosella about half a hour away from the bunyas along the road that connects to the rainforest; I wonder if the two species hybridise where their altitudes meet like in the Sunshine Coast.
Superb Fairywren
Red-browed Finch
The rainforest classics appear consistently in the picnic grounds along the rainforest fringes. A fleeting but frustrating sighting of an antechinus on the barbeque top was memorable to see. It was completely out in the open but bolted and jumped off the table as soon as I saw it. Brown Gerygones remain low and vocal; in a couple of scrubby places overlapping their feeding with chatty White-browed Scrubwrens. There were both Australian Rufous and Grey Fantails along with more elusive Golden Whistlers. Lewin’s Honeyeaters were present as well. The fantails here were fluffed up and looked larger than usual. Unlike Lamington, the small birds aren’t fed daily but the range of species was very strong and pleasing thus far.
Brown Gerygone
White-browed Scrubwren
The Scenic Circuit was a four-kilometre trek of thick rainforest, rocky outcrops, two waterfalls and an expansive lookout. The walk was a challenge following frequent rain a few days prior leaving the ground a muddy wasteland. I saw dingo tracks (domestic dogs are banned in the area) notably in the mud but didn’t see any. I do believe I heard some howling early in the morning but they mainly stick to the accommodation areas where there are less people and even more wallabies and pademelons to hunt. Eastern Yellow Robins, Yellow-throated Scrubwrens and Large-billed Scrubwrens filled the ferny parts of the walk along the usual fleeting glimpses of Eastern Whipbirds as they scuttle across the ground. At one point there were three males ‘whipping’ one after each other with a single female responding. The clear streams of water were filled with large tadpoles, diving beetles and a rather prehistoric-looking dragonfly – Sigma Darner – only found in mountainous rainforest. A Black-faced Monarch was also spotted. I also heard a riflebird call as well which are found here in the Bunyas unlike lyrebirds.
Eastern Yellow Robin
Bunya Pines
Birds weren’t the only creatures around. A large Lace Monitor emerged from the grassland that sits in front of the rainforest. Over hundred native grasslands, known locally as 'balds', are dotted across the Bunya Mountains. The vulnerable blue grass was first discovered in the Bunya Mountains and grows only in the eastern Darling Downs. Swamp rats, brown quail and fairywrens live in these grasslands, as do other animals that would not survive inside dense forests. The rare and endemic Bunya Sunskink also lives in this grassland. I actually found a small skink but wasn’t quick enough to get a good look. Next time…The old plump monitor headed into the camp ground, no doubt to terrorise unsuspecting campers and raid any food items that had been left out in the open. It was on a mission. Butterflies were another highlight with a few sections of open sunny spaces; Monarchs and Blue Tigers were everywhere. As weather-dependent visitors to the region, it had been a few years since I had seen Blue Tigers as there had been a lot of rain and generally, they come towards the coast when there is drought. Inside the forest, I was excited to find three Bank’s Browns sunning in a small patch of light. This species of brown butterfly is a type found in south-eastern Australia but just reaches this region at its northerly limit. A semi-slug that needs to be identified properly was a unique point of difference as well along with many flower wasps and grass moths along the balds.
Lace Monitor
Bank’s Brown
The Bunya Mountains was magical and I will definitely return soon for a longer trip. The dramatic landscape, unique cool climate, cloud-covered forest and vibrant blend of western, southern and wet forest species creates this to be an unmissable sight. Its isolation makes it unique and possess a sacred quality. Never had I been taken aback by such a landscape; wilderness in its purest sense. On my way back I ventured into the Yarraman Weir Park for a few western species. It was a low-stakes trip as I was happy with my apostlebirds already seen but was thrilled to immediately pick up a nice lifer around the creek area. Among masses of Plumed Whistling-Ducks, I found a single Eastern Long-necked Turtle on the roadside with its beady little eyes tucked into its shell. It was seemingly unharmed so I moved it to nearby stream to avoid it been squashed by a car. It would be an uncommon find for Brisbane but around Toowoomba they are recorded more often. Overall, a very memorable and successful day.
Eastern Long-necked Turtle
Target Species: Red-necked Wallaby, Black-striped Wallaby, Heteronympha butterflies
Sitting 1100 metres above sea level on the Great Dividing Range and about 2.5 hours from Brisbane, the mist-covered chilly Bunya Mountains is a very special place and geographically unique. The range is the remains of a shield volcano which was built from numerous basalt lava flows about 23-24 million years ago. As Queensland’s second oldest national park declared in 1908 and the most western subtropical rainforest fragment in southern Queensland, the Bunya Mountains is the final western frontier for many species of wet forest endemics before reaching the dry and comparatively barren interior. The forest was largely protected from logging due to its inaccessibility and mountainous terrain, harbouring the largest expanse of statuesque bunya pines on the planet. These ancient pines are very distinctive trees and frame every vista in this rugged part of the world with their unique silhouette against the fog and mist. In summer, there are large green soccer ball-sized bunya cones with 50–100 ‘nuts’ surrounded by a thick, fleshy outer-casing that peppers the grassy slopes. These heavy cones crash to the forest floor where possums, melomys and other animals feast on the nuts and help disperse the seeds through the forest. With the potential of being fatal, these enormous cones can be dangerous if one hits you on the head, so never dawdle too long under a bunya… Apparently they are quite tasty as well. Within the national park, Dandabah is the most popular spot on the mountain. Surrounded by thick forest, the picnic area has electric barbecues, an abundance of colourful birdlife and is the entrance for short and long rainforest walks. The camping area, local natural history museum, small grocery store, restaurants and accommodation options are nearby. Leaving Brisbane at 4am, the drive up to the Bunyas was filled with wildlife highlights. In the township of Yarraman, I encountered my first ever wild flock of Apostlebirds in the main open park in the centre of town along the route that led onto the highway. They were actively foraging in the early light and kept together with their series of interesting scolding calls. These often-fearless birds remained common in every strip of appropriately-sized roadside and park until I reached the bunyas. While they are only found in the western fringes within Brisbane, these cooperative breeders with a complex social hierarchy are found in more rural areas of south-east Queensland especially towards the west of the region. They are also one of two mud nesters – Corcoracidae – in existence. Both species are endemic to Australia. Fascinating birds to watch.
Apostlebird
The ascent towards the Bunya Mountains can only be described as other-worldly. The mist and fog consumed the landscape with only the largest bunya pines remaining in view as tall figures of reassurance. The winding rainforest road revealed glimpses of large awkward columbids feeding on the roadside as movement that cut through the thick fog provided momentary glances of a single plump Wonga Pigeon that shot up into the canopy and a trio of Brown Cuckoo-Doves while reaching the final turn. An Eastern Yellow Robin further made an appearance for a brief second along a thick grove. Like Lamington National Park, the wildlife of the Bunya Mountains is very present and visible. This area is most well-known for its wallabies. Mainly there are large populations of Red-necked Wallabies everywhere. I immediately saw dozens and dozens of them grazing out in the open. They are fearless and habituated to humans, allowing for fantastic opportunities to observe them around the national parks. Black-striped and Swamp Wallabies are also found here but are shier and generally are seen near the grassy balds. I didn’t see any among all the red-necks.
Red-necked Wallaby
The bunya pines, which can grow to around 45-50 metres tall, were shelter for many species. The parrots were the most notable initially and it was quite an incredible sight to see hundreds of snowy white Sulphur-crested Cockatoos sweep through the cloudy landscape and land in the pines. White against white. They were raucous and very present throughout the open space along with hordes of smaller but equally vocal Satin Bowerbirds everywhere and the passing pair of Galahs. It felt a tad odd to see these pink cockatoos here so close to rainforest but this largely reflects the westerly location of the site and the farmland that surrounds the national park. The bowerbirds were still retreating and elusive when approached as they darted into bushes but they fed alongside the wallabies in distant rolling hills. Mainly there were the brown-olivey females and immature birds but a few glossy blue-black males as well in the taller pines near the picnic tables especially were noted. I was then excited to hear ravens rather than the usual Torresian Crow. A quick search in the mist revealed at least four Australian Ravens with their prominent throat cackles and higher-pitch and more drawn-out call. Besides the abundant Australian Brush-Turkey which fill these leaf-litter rich forests floors here, a single emerald Green Catbird was surprisingly visible right near its close bowerbird cousins. There was a second catbird seen later on during the walk but not a single one heard.
Green Catbird
The small birds started to materialise as the mist cleared and the sunshine began to overtake the clouds. A single male Superb Fairywren sat brilliantly near a picnic table while a pair of Red-browed Finches were courting and nest-building. They are monogamous birds, and both finches incubate and feed the young. Pair bonding remains constant throughout the year, even when moving in flocks outside the breeding season. In the right conditions, groups nest communally with several nests in a tree and I could hear more finches around. The habituated parrots which are fed at the eating area were also starting to appear; dozens of Australian King-Parrots started materialising in the large rainforest trees that towered above the rest. There was one male with a few yellow markings that made for a very distinct bird. The Crimson Rosellas were far sparser; saw only four by the end of the day but heard many more rosella whistles. I saw a Pale-headed Rosella about half a hour away from the bunyas along the road that connects to the rainforest; I wonder if the two species hybridise where their altitudes meet like in the Sunshine Coast.
Superb Fairywren
Red-browed Finch
The rainforest classics appear consistently in the picnic grounds along the rainforest fringes. A fleeting but frustrating sighting of an antechinus on the barbeque top was memorable to see. It was completely out in the open but bolted and jumped off the table as soon as I saw it. Brown Gerygones remain low and vocal; in a couple of scrubby places overlapping their feeding with chatty White-browed Scrubwrens. There were both Australian Rufous and Grey Fantails along with more elusive Golden Whistlers. Lewin’s Honeyeaters were present as well. The fantails here were fluffed up and looked larger than usual. Unlike Lamington, the small birds aren’t fed daily but the range of species was very strong and pleasing thus far.
Brown Gerygone
White-browed Scrubwren
The Scenic Circuit was a four-kilometre trek of thick rainforest, rocky outcrops, two waterfalls and an expansive lookout. The walk was a challenge following frequent rain a few days prior leaving the ground a muddy wasteland. I saw dingo tracks (domestic dogs are banned in the area) notably in the mud but didn’t see any. I do believe I heard some howling early in the morning but they mainly stick to the accommodation areas where there are less people and even more wallabies and pademelons to hunt. Eastern Yellow Robins, Yellow-throated Scrubwrens and Large-billed Scrubwrens filled the ferny parts of the walk along the usual fleeting glimpses of Eastern Whipbirds as they scuttle across the ground. At one point there were three males ‘whipping’ one after each other with a single female responding. The clear streams of water were filled with large tadpoles, diving beetles and a rather prehistoric-looking dragonfly – Sigma Darner – only found in mountainous rainforest. A Black-faced Monarch was also spotted. I also heard a riflebird call as well which are found here in the Bunyas unlike lyrebirds.
Eastern Yellow Robin
Bunya Pines
Birds weren’t the only creatures around. A large Lace Monitor emerged from the grassland that sits in front of the rainforest. Over hundred native grasslands, known locally as 'balds', are dotted across the Bunya Mountains. The vulnerable blue grass was first discovered in the Bunya Mountains and grows only in the eastern Darling Downs. Swamp rats, brown quail and fairywrens live in these grasslands, as do other animals that would not survive inside dense forests. The rare and endemic Bunya Sunskink also lives in this grassland. I actually found a small skink but wasn’t quick enough to get a good look. Next time…The old plump monitor headed into the camp ground, no doubt to terrorise unsuspecting campers and raid any food items that had been left out in the open. It was on a mission. Butterflies were another highlight with a few sections of open sunny spaces; Monarchs and Blue Tigers were everywhere. As weather-dependent visitors to the region, it had been a few years since I had seen Blue Tigers as there had been a lot of rain and generally, they come towards the coast when there is drought. Inside the forest, I was excited to find three Bank’s Browns sunning in a small patch of light. This species of brown butterfly is a type found in south-eastern Australia but just reaches this region at its northerly limit. A semi-slug that needs to be identified properly was a unique point of difference as well along with many flower wasps and grass moths along the balds.
Lace Monitor
Bank’s Brown
The Bunya Mountains was magical and I will definitely return soon for a longer trip. The dramatic landscape, unique cool climate, cloud-covered forest and vibrant blend of western, southern and wet forest species creates this to be an unmissable sight. Its isolation makes it unique and possess a sacred quality. Never had I been taken aback by such a landscape; wilderness in its purest sense. On my way back I ventured into the Yarraman Weir Park for a few western species. It was a low-stakes trip as I was happy with my apostlebirds already seen but was thrilled to immediately pick up a nice lifer around the creek area. Among masses of Plumed Whistling-Ducks, I found a single Eastern Long-necked Turtle on the roadside with its beady little eyes tucked into its shell. It was seemingly unharmed so I moved it to nearby stream to avoid it been squashed by a car. It would be an uncommon find for Brisbane but around Toowoomba they are recorded more often. Overall, a very memorable and successful day.
Eastern Long-necked Turtle
Location 94: Scarborough, Moreton Bay – 31st March 2023:
Target Species: Ruddy Turnstone
Today I was visiting the Redcliffe area for non-birding purposes but decided to make the trek up to the neighbouring suburb of Scarborough to try my luck at a few interesting waders that turn up at Scarborough. Also I simply wanted to get away from the crowds at the Easter markets and find the more ‘wild’ parts of the area. Scarborough sits at the northern most tip of the peninsula and is about a four-kilometre walk from Redcliffe along the pleasant coastline which is highlighted below in pink. The #680 bus travels to Redcliffe from Brisbane and there are some additional bus services that further connect to Scarborough but I thought the walk would allow me to see more as I scanned the coastline continually. Perhaps even for dolphins. It was high tide but I knew for a fact that the waders often sought refuge near the rocks which are highlighted below in light green. They especially congregate just past the main Scarborough Beach underneath a lookout where they are generally free to roost away from dogs and holidayers as the waves that surround these outcrops during hide tide are treacherous. The Ruddy Turnstone, Arenaria interpres is my nemesis species and has continually been my “just missed it” bird and I have never been able to pinpoint them following recent records. I largely think this is because I haven’t found a good section of undisturbed rocky habitat for them. In Australia, these stocky orange-legged wonders migrate from the Arctic region and about 14 000 individuals make the journey annually leaving around April. It would be really my final chance before the turnstones leave to breed.
Redcliffe has always been a fantastic spot for Eastern Reef Egret and today was no different. There was a single grey morph hanging around the rocky parts right near the town’s centre. The jetty area is often an excellent spot for them as well as they rest with all the Silver Gulls and Little Pied Cormorants out near the boat ramp. They always seem so imposing in flight with larger-looking feet than the commoner White-faced Herons. Both of these birds were common throughout but were largely passing through the area as the water was still very high. My walk along the beach was pleasant with the long row of Norfolk Island Pines that cover the entire way. While not native, these pines are a staple of the area and have heritage value in the otherwise exposed landscape. The sandy beaches made way for rockpools and outcrops which I will target for some future rockpooling trips. They looked almost as expansive as the Caloundra rockpools. I saw lots of bright and large Mottled Lightfoot Crabs and Zebra Top Snails cover the weathered rocks. Once I reached the Bill Marsh Lookout which provided a quiet relief from the Easter crowds, the landscape was dramatic. The area has red cliffs that sits against the rocks the birds prefer. During low tide, you would be able to access one of the several staircases that head down the cliff to the mudflats. I immediately saw a large flock of noisy birds. There was a beautiful female Australasian Darter, dozens of Little Pied Cormorants and Great Crested Terns. Then there were waders; a single Whimbrel, a dozen Grey-tailed Tattlers and excitingly six Ruddy Turnstones among them as well. The turnstones did take to the air for a few moments as they ventured to a mudflat now appearing as the tide receded.
Ruddy Turnstones, Grey-tailed Tattlers and Whimbrel
From the lookout, I could see another group of waders emerge as they flew out with the turnstones. They were about a dozen Pacific Golden-Plovers with several in striking breeding plumage. They plovers and turnstones fed together with a few Pied Oystercatchers that had now joined them. When in full breeding plumage, it is a sight to witness with the upper parts of the bird being a patchwork of golden, buff and black feathers and the underparts are black with white flecking on the tail. There is a continuous white flank line that separates the upper and underparts, that run from above the eye back to the tail. When not breeding, the feathers are buff brown with duller golden brown and white spots. It has a white eyebrow and the underparts are brown to light grey. A Caspian Tern also appeared as well.
Pacific Golden Plovers
The icing on the cake today with all these rockpool waders was a brilliant Sooty Oystercatcher among their black-and-white cousins. This was only my second ever sighting of this species and first time I’d seen one feeding. They are residents to rocky coastal areas and coral reefs but are significantly rarer than the commoner oystercatcher species. The southern race (fuliginosus) of Sooty Oystercatcher can be distinguished by the red eye-ring. The northern race (ophthalmicus) has a yellow eye-ring with a hybrid zone as well. I was overall happy with the finds today. There isn’t much untouched natural space in this area but I was surprised with the diversity of species in these limited rocky shores. I reflected on how little protection Scarborough has for its fragile waders; hopefully this will change to ensure these birds have opportunities to feed and roost without much disturbance.
Sooty Oystercatcher
Target Species: Ruddy Turnstone
Today I was visiting the Redcliffe area for non-birding purposes but decided to make the trek up to the neighbouring suburb of Scarborough to try my luck at a few interesting waders that turn up at Scarborough. Also I simply wanted to get away from the crowds at the Easter markets and find the more ‘wild’ parts of the area. Scarborough sits at the northern most tip of the peninsula and is about a four-kilometre walk from Redcliffe along the pleasant coastline which is highlighted below in pink. The #680 bus travels to Redcliffe from Brisbane and there are some additional bus services that further connect to Scarborough but I thought the walk would allow me to see more as I scanned the coastline continually. Perhaps even for dolphins. It was high tide but I knew for a fact that the waders often sought refuge near the rocks which are highlighted below in light green. They especially congregate just past the main Scarborough Beach underneath a lookout where they are generally free to roost away from dogs and holidayers as the waves that surround these outcrops during hide tide are treacherous. The Ruddy Turnstone, Arenaria interpres is my nemesis species and has continually been my “just missed it” bird and I have never been able to pinpoint them following recent records. I largely think this is because I haven’t found a good section of undisturbed rocky habitat for them. In Australia, these stocky orange-legged wonders migrate from the Arctic region and about 14 000 individuals make the journey annually leaving around April. It would be really my final chance before the turnstones leave to breed.
Redcliffe has always been a fantastic spot for Eastern Reef Egret and today was no different. There was a single grey morph hanging around the rocky parts right near the town’s centre. The jetty area is often an excellent spot for them as well as they rest with all the Silver Gulls and Little Pied Cormorants out near the boat ramp. They always seem so imposing in flight with larger-looking feet than the commoner White-faced Herons. Both of these birds were common throughout but were largely passing through the area as the water was still very high. My walk along the beach was pleasant with the long row of Norfolk Island Pines that cover the entire way. While not native, these pines are a staple of the area and have heritage value in the otherwise exposed landscape. The sandy beaches made way for rockpools and outcrops which I will target for some future rockpooling trips. They looked almost as expansive as the Caloundra rockpools. I saw lots of bright and large Mottled Lightfoot Crabs and Zebra Top Snails cover the weathered rocks. Once I reached the Bill Marsh Lookout which provided a quiet relief from the Easter crowds, the landscape was dramatic. The area has red cliffs that sits against the rocks the birds prefer. During low tide, you would be able to access one of the several staircases that head down the cliff to the mudflats. I immediately saw a large flock of noisy birds. There was a beautiful female Australasian Darter, dozens of Little Pied Cormorants and Great Crested Terns. Then there were waders; a single Whimbrel, a dozen Grey-tailed Tattlers and excitingly six Ruddy Turnstones among them as well. The turnstones did take to the air for a few moments as they ventured to a mudflat now appearing as the tide receded.
Ruddy Turnstones, Grey-tailed Tattlers and Whimbrel
From the lookout, I could see another group of waders emerge as they flew out with the turnstones. They were about a dozen Pacific Golden-Plovers with several in striking breeding plumage. They plovers and turnstones fed together with a few Pied Oystercatchers that had now joined them. When in full breeding plumage, it is a sight to witness with the upper parts of the bird being a patchwork of golden, buff and black feathers and the underparts are black with white flecking on the tail. There is a continuous white flank line that separates the upper and underparts, that run from above the eye back to the tail. When not breeding, the feathers are buff brown with duller golden brown and white spots. It has a white eyebrow and the underparts are brown to light grey. A Caspian Tern also appeared as well.
Pacific Golden Plovers
The icing on the cake today with all these rockpool waders was a brilliant Sooty Oystercatcher among their black-and-white cousins. This was only my second ever sighting of this species and first time I’d seen one feeding. They are residents to rocky coastal areas and coral reefs but are significantly rarer than the commoner oystercatcher species. The southern race (fuliginosus) of Sooty Oystercatcher can be distinguished by the red eye-ring. The northern race (ophthalmicus) has a yellow eye-ring with a hybrid zone as well. I was overall happy with the finds today. There isn’t much untouched natural space in this area but I was surprised with the diversity of species in these limited rocky shores. I reflected on how little protection Scarborough has for its fragile waders; hopefully this will change to ensure these birds have opportunities to feed and roost without much disturbance.
Sooty Oystercatcher
Attachments
Location 95: Wellington Point Reserve, Redland – 3rd April 2024:
Target Species: Australian Hobby, Double-banded Plover
Today I continued my ‘wader cram’ with another new site that sits further south. Wellington Point Reserve is located on the northern point of the Redlands region, just south of Manly and Wynnum and towards North Stradbroke Island. It is a large recreational reserve consisting of land to the western side of Main Road, extending down the slope to the largely flat reserve and water’s edge. The site is inclusive of King Island, the jetty on the north-eastern point, and south on the eastern water edge of mudflats. A unique point of difference to other places is that King Island is connected to Wellington Point via a sand bar (see below) that is accessible at low tide only but disappears at high tide. King Island is a conservation park to the north of the Point. It is a small sandy mangrove-filled island that is accessible at low tide, incorporating an approximate two-kilometre round walk that cuts through the sea. It’s relatively straightforward to get to via public transport. The Cleveland train is a godsend for nature reserves with Redcliffe/Scarborough, Nudgee Beach, Sandy Camp, Wynnum Boardwalk and Wellington Point all connected with this single train service. It’s also the line to catch to connect to the ferry to several of the neighbouring islands. Wader paradise. My main target was the Double-banded Plover, Charadrius bicinctus, also known as the Banded Dotterel by Kiwis. Unlike most migratory waders that come from the Northern Hemisphere in the warmer season, this wader is a winter migrant from New Zealand where it breeds. In non-breeding plumage, they look similar to the sand-plovers that are just starting to colour up and leave. They are a near threatened species with their total population predicted to be around 14, 000 individuals at a maximum by the IUCN.
I had never really been to this part of south-east Queensland properly. On the train I noticed this region still has quite large sections of mangrove remaining with valuable coastal habitat. I spotted a White-bellied Sea-Eagle soar across the area and it did a few laps as I approached Wellington Point. The park area had the usual staple species like Blue-faced Honeyeaters and Laughing Kookaburras but there have been quiet records of Australian Hobby as well persisting in the area. I spotted a Spangled Drongo out of the corner of my eye as I approached the jetty and was rewarded with a glorious up-close sighting of an Australian Hobby. In fact, there were three separate sightings of hobbies here at Wellington Point. Their presence was always revealed by other birds chasing them like the drongo so they were easy to see as the hovered over the beach. I have seen hobbies in coastal areas once before in Bundaberg but it’s always great to see this locally uncommon species especially so close to Brisbane. Hobbies have been recorded using the street lights that attract insects as an opportunity to hunt for their prey.
Australian Hobby
Onto the long and hot walk across the sandbar (it’s mid-autumn but temps are still around 30 degrees), I immediately saw a huge group of eyewatering waders right near the island. I quickly made my way over but about half away through the walk they suddenly all took off into the distance, journeying to another island seen across the horizon. Blasted sea-eagle! Once I made it to the muddy corners of King Island, there were four Grey-tailed Tattlers remaining as they fed and a few Bar-tailed Godwits. Very striking birds and I enjoyed watching them while I waited for the waders. Suddenly, a huge swarm of tiny little waders returned into view. Hundreds and hundreds of minute little waders. Most of them were Siberian Sand-Plovers with the majority of them in their rich red and black breeding plumage. I’d only seen these plovers at Bribie Island once but this was a feast for the eyes and ears. They were everywhere and were flanked with Red-necked Stints that gave the illusion of moving sand from a distance. The sand-plovers were joined by dozens of stone-flipping Ruddy Turnstones as well which was a lifer only a couple of days ago. One of my best experiences this year so far watching them all feeding along the sandbar. A keener look through the binos revealed Curlew Sandpipers with that slight curved bill and emerging deep red eye-popping breeding plumage as well. Great Knots were good to have nearby as well to compare both similar species.
Waders arrived!
The search for Double-banded Plover continued with a trio of Whimbrels also now present with Little Egrets. There were just so many sand-plovers but there were a few key points of difference I was looking for them in non-breeding plumage. A slightly smaller bird, two bands/tabs along the chest and a buff wash on the forehead instead of the clear white of sand-plovers and a slight bill. I pinpointed about five different candidates out of 60-70 sand-plovers, photographed them and checked them later. Success! Very nice to see them finally. It has been a pretty good season for waders as it comes to the end. I still have some gaps to cover for the commonish species like Greenshank but have made progress with this group of birds finally.
Double-banded Plover
Target Species: Australian Hobby, Double-banded Plover
Today I continued my ‘wader cram’ with another new site that sits further south. Wellington Point Reserve is located on the northern point of the Redlands region, just south of Manly and Wynnum and towards North Stradbroke Island. It is a large recreational reserve consisting of land to the western side of Main Road, extending down the slope to the largely flat reserve and water’s edge. The site is inclusive of King Island, the jetty on the north-eastern point, and south on the eastern water edge of mudflats. A unique point of difference to other places is that King Island is connected to Wellington Point via a sand bar (see below) that is accessible at low tide only but disappears at high tide. King Island is a conservation park to the north of the Point. It is a small sandy mangrove-filled island that is accessible at low tide, incorporating an approximate two-kilometre round walk that cuts through the sea. It’s relatively straightforward to get to via public transport. The Cleveland train is a godsend for nature reserves with Redcliffe/Scarborough, Nudgee Beach, Sandy Camp, Wynnum Boardwalk and Wellington Point all connected with this single train service. It’s also the line to catch to connect to the ferry to several of the neighbouring islands. Wader paradise. My main target was the Double-banded Plover, Charadrius bicinctus, also known as the Banded Dotterel by Kiwis. Unlike most migratory waders that come from the Northern Hemisphere in the warmer season, this wader is a winter migrant from New Zealand where it breeds. In non-breeding plumage, they look similar to the sand-plovers that are just starting to colour up and leave. They are a near threatened species with their total population predicted to be around 14, 000 individuals at a maximum by the IUCN.
I had never really been to this part of south-east Queensland properly. On the train I noticed this region still has quite large sections of mangrove remaining with valuable coastal habitat. I spotted a White-bellied Sea-Eagle soar across the area and it did a few laps as I approached Wellington Point. The park area had the usual staple species like Blue-faced Honeyeaters and Laughing Kookaburras but there have been quiet records of Australian Hobby as well persisting in the area. I spotted a Spangled Drongo out of the corner of my eye as I approached the jetty and was rewarded with a glorious up-close sighting of an Australian Hobby. In fact, there were three separate sightings of hobbies here at Wellington Point. Their presence was always revealed by other birds chasing them like the drongo so they were easy to see as the hovered over the beach. I have seen hobbies in coastal areas once before in Bundaberg but it’s always great to see this locally uncommon species especially so close to Brisbane. Hobbies have been recorded using the street lights that attract insects as an opportunity to hunt for their prey.
Australian Hobby
Onto the long and hot walk across the sandbar (it’s mid-autumn but temps are still around 30 degrees), I immediately saw a huge group of eyewatering waders right near the island. I quickly made my way over but about half away through the walk they suddenly all took off into the distance, journeying to another island seen across the horizon. Blasted sea-eagle! Once I made it to the muddy corners of King Island, there were four Grey-tailed Tattlers remaining as they fed and a few Bar-tailed Godwits. Very striking birds and I enjoyed watching them while I waited for the waders. Suddenly, a huge swarm of tiny little waders returned into view. Hundreds and hundreds of minute little waders. Most of them were Siberian Sand-Plovers with the majority of them in their rich red and black breeding plumage. I’d only seen these plovers at Bribie Island once but this was a feast for the eyes and ears. They were everywhere and were flanked with Red-necked Stints that gave the illusion of moving sand from a distance. The sand-plovers were joined by dozens of stone-flipping Ruddy Turnstones as well which was a lifer only a couple of days ago. One of my best experiences this year so far watching them all feeding along the sandbar. A keener look through the binos revealed Curlew Sandpipers with that slight curved bill and emerging deep red eye-popping breeding plumage as well. Great Knots were good to have nearby as well to compare both similar species.
Waders arrived!
The search for Double-banded Plover continued with a trio of Whimbrels also now present with Little Egrets. There were just so many sand-plovers but there were a few key points of difference I was looking for them in non-breeding plumage. A slightly smaller bird, two bands/tabs along the chest and a buff wash on the forehead instead of the clear white of sand-plovers and a slight bill. I pinpointed about five different candidates out of 60-70 sand-plovers, photographed them and checked them later. Success! Very nice to see them finally. It has been a pretty good season for waders as it comes to the end. I still have some gaps to cover for the commonish species like Greenshank but have made progress with this group of birds finally.
Double-banded Plover
Attachments
Location 96: Toowoomba City, Toowoomba – 10th April 2024:
Target Species: Red Wattlebird, Yellow Admiral
Today I ventured around a few of the more urban sites around chilly Toowoomba. The city has two long sections of nature strip that sit on either side of town called ‘Eastern Creek’ and ‘Western Creek’ which harbour a range of nature reserves, ornamental parks and a few bushier habitats. This morning reached the lowest temperatures so far this year and it seems that finally autumn is materialising and it was under ten degrees at my first site reaching the edges of the Great Dividing Range. Along the drive towards Gatton, farmers were busily sowing and planting. Raptors were abundant in the clear skies above the farms. There were Black-shouldered Kites and Black Kites but the highlight was seeing my second ever Spotted Harrier. Unlike the juvenile straggler from last time that ended up in Brisbane, this was an enormous adult, most likely a female as they are notably larger than males, complete with black-tipped wings, a chestnut-coloured facial disc and barred tail. Very unique-looking birds. The harrier was actively hunting for rodents and swiftly turned over the road’s edge contrasting the frantic hovers of the white kites and Nankeen Kestrels. Eastern Grey Kangaroos were common in the hilly farmland as well along with flocks of Magpie Geese, Straw-necked Ibis and Little Corellas regularly flying over. My first site today was called the J E Duggan Park which has magnificent views out towards the Table Top Mountain, sitting 700 metres above elevation. Formerly called One Tree Hill, the mountain is a sacred site and was the location of one of Australia’s frontier wars in the 1840s. The park itself is a beautifully rugged one and there is a kilometre loop with several short linked tracks. There was a wallaby track and sure enough I spotted two Red-necked Wallabies hop across the pathway into the adjacent scrub along farmland. I am still on the hunt for Black-striped Wallaby following a probable but hard to confirm sighting last year in Toowoomba. The birds were few and far between due to the windy conditions but I did manage to see flocks of Galahs, Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, Pale-headed Rosellas and some smaller bush birds like Grey Fantail, Variegated Fairywren, Lewin’s Honeyeater and Brown Thornbill. A very pleasant site along the mountainous fringes of the city.
Pale-headed Rosella
I really wanted to see some Red Wattlebirds and the Eastern Creek had some recent records. I have seen them in Melbourne and Sydney with great ease but never in Queensland. The search along the Toowoomba Waterbird Habitat and neighbouring parkland was unsuccessful but I was impressed with the setup for the waterbirds. There was a large fenced-off area with three large water bodies with several islands as well to allow space for breeding colonies. The site is locked nightly. An overwhelming number of Australian White Ibis that were surprisingly very flighty was my first impression and the flock of hundreds quickly took off but returned following any disturbance. I was pleased to see Australasian Darter, Little Pied Cormorant, Little Black Cormorant and especially Great Cormorant all together on one island. Lots of coots, moorhens, black ducks, wood ducks and swamphens of course as well. The walk across the road included Superb Fairywren, Golden Whistler, Silvereye and the loud calls of Brown Honeyeater. There were also some Little Friarbirds and quick-moving Australasian Figbirds that tricked me for wattlebirds.
Great Cormorant
The Japanese Gardens at the University of Southern Queensland is a unique cold-climate garden that attracts more of those southern temperate species than subtropical ones. One my target species was to get a good view of Yellow Admiral. A common butterfly in southern Australia, New Zealand and a few nearby islands as it is found in open country and gardens. This species has done well in built-up areas, as it can find a reliable supply of its caterpillar food plant, Stinging Nettle. They are one of my favourites. Probably my favourite Australian butterfly actually. One of those species you just can’t explain why you like them so much but you just do. It’s a wonderful contrast of red and yellow and were thankfully common here in the warm patches of sunlight. I had a wander around the edges of the university as well and picked up a butterfly lifer – a Yellow-spotted Jezebel. An equally attractive butterfly with a striking black and white base with yellow accents that I have searched for many years in rainforests around Brisbane but it seems to also do well in the chilly altitudes of suburban Toowoomba. Finally, I briefly visited Queens Park which is a large open parkland with a small botanical garden. Not much around but there were some random highlights – a single Fan-tailed Cuckoo in a maple tree and a very large Guava Moth which has bright yellow hind wings. Overall, a random assortment of locations and finds but they were interesting enough to paint a more detailed picture of Toowoomba generally.
Yellow Admiral
Yellow-spotted Jezebel
Target Species: Red Wattlebird, Yellow Admiral
Today I ventured around a few of the more urban sites around chilly Toowoomba. The city has two long sections of nature strip that sit on either side of town called ‘Eastern Creek’ and ‘Western Creek’ which harbour a range of nature reserves, ornamental parks and a few bushier habitats. This morning reached the lowest temperatures so far this year and it seems that finally autumn is materialising and it was under ten degrees at my first site reaching the edges of the Great Dividing Range. Along the drive towards Gatton, farmers were busily sowing and planting. Raptors were abundant in the clear skies above the farms. There were Black-shouldered Kites and Black Kites but the highlight was seeing my second ever Spotted Harrier. Unlike the juvenile straggler from last time that ended up in Brisbane, this was an enormous adult, most likely a female as they are notably larger than males, complete with black-tipped wings, a chestnut-coloured facial disc and barred tail. Very unique-looking birds. The harrier was actively hunting for rodents and swiftly turned over the road’s edge contrasting the frantic hovers of the white kites and Nankeen Kestrels. Eastern Grey Kangaroos were common in the hilly farmland as well along with flocks of Magpie Geese, Straw-necked Ibis and Little Corellas regularly flying over. My first site today was called the J E Duggan Park which has magnificent views out towards the Table Top Mountain, sitting 700 metres above elevation. Formerly called One Tree Hill, the mountain is a sacred site and was the location of one of Australia’s frontier wars in the 1840s. The park itself is a beautifully rugged one and there is a kilometre loop with several short linked tracks. There was a wallaby track and sure enough I spotted two Red-necked Wallabies hop across the pathway into the adjacent scrub along farmland. I am still on the hunt for Black-striped Wallaby following a probable but hard to confirm sighting last year in Toowoomba. The birds were few and far between due to the windy conditions but I did manage to see flocks of Galahs, Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, Pale-headed Rosellas and some smaller bush birds like Grey Fantail, Variegated Fairywren, Lewin’s Honeyeater and Brown Thornbill. A very pleasant site along the mountainous fringes of the city.
Pale-headed Rosella
I really wanted to see some Red Wattlebirds and the Eastern Creek had some recent records. I have seen them in Melbourne and Sydney with great ease but never in Queensland. The search along the Toowoomba Waterbird Habitat and neighbouring parkland was unsuccessful but I was impressed with the setup for the waterbirds. There was a large fenced-off area with three large water bodies with several islands as well to allow space for breeding colonies. The site is locked nightly. An overwhelming number of Australian White Ibis that were surprisingly very flighty was my first impression and the flock of hundreds quickly took off but returned following any disturbance. I was pleased to see Australasian Darter, Little Pied Cormorant, Little Black Cormorant and especially Great Cormorant all together on one island. Lots of coots, moorhens, black ducks, wood ducks and swamphens of course as well. The walk across the road included Superb Fairywren, Golden Whistler, Silvereye and the loud calls of Brown Honeyeater. There were also some Little Friarbirds and quick-moving Australasian Figbirds that tricked me for wattlebirds.
Great Cormorant
The Japanese Gardens at the University of Southern Queensland is a unique cold-climate garden that attracts more of those southern temperate species than subtropical ones. One my target species was to get a good view of Yellow Admiral. A common butterfly in southern Australia, New Zealand and a few nearby islands as it is found in open country and gardens. This species has done well in built-up areas, as it can find a reliable supply of its caterpillar food plant, Stinging Nettle. They are one of my favourites. Probably my favourite Australian butterfly actually. One of those species you just can’t explain why you like them so much but you just do. It’s a wonderful contrast of red and yellow and were thankfully common here in the warm patches of sunlight. I had a wander around the edges of the university as well and picked up a butterfly lifer – a Yellow-spotted Jezebel. An equally attractive butterfly with a striking black and white base with yellow accents that I have searched for many years in rainforests around Brisbane but it seems to also do well in the chilly altitudes of suburban Toowoomba. Finally, I briefly visited Queens Park which is a large open parkland with a small botanical garden. Not much around but there were some random highlights – a single Fan-tailed Cuckoo in a maple tree and a very large Guava Moth which has bright yellow hind wings. Overall, a random assortment of locations and finds but they were interesting enough to paint a more detailed picture of Toowoomba generally.
Yellow Admiral
Yellow-spotted Jezebel
A Hybrid Rosella – Obi Obi Boardwalk, Sunshine Coast – 4th May 2024:
Today I ventured to Maleny once again. Every weekend for the past month or so has been interrupted by rain showers and today was no exception. There hasn’t been much of note except for lifer Common Terns a few weeks back at a beach on the Sunshine Coast. I was tired of the indoors and decided that the showers were only light and it would be worth the trip. Wild rosella hybrids are well-documented and there are two main hybrid zones in south-east Queensland. There is a population of rosellas along the Queensland/New South Wales border that are Eastern x Pale-headed Rosellas in the leafier suburbs of the Gold Coast. They can be seen at David Fleay Wildlife Park living on the zoo grounds once in a while. There are also the far crazier-looking hybrids of the Sunshine Coast hinterland being Crimson x Pale-headed Rosellas at just the right altitudes where the two species can overlap. There are also a few records near the rainforest remnants close to Toowoomba as well. Careful examination of each hybrid rosella is required as juvenile Pale-headed Rosellas often have reddish heads, adding confusion to identification. At Obi Obi Boardwalk, I finally spied a flock of four rosellas. There were definitely three Pale-headed Rosellas among them but suddenly I spotted a fourth bird with the impression of a Western Rosella oddly enough. It didn’t have the pale cheek that both adult and juvenile pale-heads possess but rather a full blue cheek and throat. The red on the vent further extended up the body with strange patches of red on the neck intermingling with a bright contrast of yellow. There were also red flecks on the blue breast. It was a confirmed hybrid and Maleny is a known location for these eye-popping birds.
Crimson x Pale-headed Rosella
Today I ventured to Maleny once again. Every weekend for the past month or so has been interrupted by rain showers and today was no exception. There hasn’t been much of note except for lifer Common Terns a few weeks back at a beach on the Sunshine Coast. I was tired of the indoors and decided that the showers were only light and it would be worth the trip. Wild rosella hybrids are well-documented and there are two main hybrid zones in south-east Queensland. There is a population of rosellas along the Queensland/New South Wales border that are Eastern x Pale-headed Rosellas in the leafier suburbs of the Gold Coast. They can be seen at David Fleay Wildlife Park living on the zoo grounds once in a while. There are also the far crazier-looking hybrids of the Sunshine Coast hinterland being Crimson x Pale-headed Rosellas at just the right altitudes where the two species can overlap. There are also a few records near the rainforest remnants close to Toowoomba as well. Careful examination of each hybrid rosella is required as juvenile Pale-headed Rosellas often have reddish heads, adding confusion to identification. At Obi Obi Boardwalk, I finally spied a flock of four rosellas. There were definitely three Pale-headed Rosellas among them but suddenly I spotted a fourth bird with the impression of a Western Rosella oddly enough. It didn’t have the pale cheek that both adult and juvenile pale-heads possess but rather a full blue cheek and throat. The red on the vent further extended up the body with strange patches of red on the neck intermingling with a bright contrast of yellow. There were also red flecks on the blue breast. It was a confirmed hybrid and Maleny is a known location for these eye-popping birds.
Crimson x Pale-headed Rosella
Location 97: Noosa Botanic Gardens, Sunshine Coast – 6th May 2024:
The Noosa area that sits north of the Sunshine Coast is an overpopulated tourist mecca. The highway from Brisbane up towards Noosa is often very congested with holiday traffic especially with families seeking an escape from the city. Noosa Heads alone attracts about 2 million visitors annually; an incredible figure considering the resident population of Queensland is 6 million people across our 1.853 million km² state. While umbrella-filled beaches and sunscreen-soaked tourist hotspots are not something I particularly enjoy, Noosa Heads does have the benefit of having a large national park along the shoreline which promises land-based cetacean watching, Glossy Black Cockatoos and Koalas. So, it’s on the list but that will be for an early start, most likely on a weekday. For a quieter place however to dip my toe into the Noosa region, I selected their botanic gardens with sits along the platypus-populated Lake MacDonald, providing a nice blend of waterbirds with typical Sunny Coast bushbirds. The botanic garden is an easy loop with formal gardens, some more swamp-like habitat along the lake and a few rainforest remanent patches as well. I started with a large flock of Blue-faced Honeyeaters; very common species that I see daily but the group were lively and drew my attention. There were a few juveniles that were transitioning from the olive-green facial skin to the deep blue which was interesting to see. There were also a few Lewin’s Honeyeaters with them. Laughing Kookaburras were very bold here as well with the honeyeaters. The lake had a large population of Australian Pelican flying along the horizon of the lake, having their feeding disturbed by kayakers. Like many waterbirds, pelicans breed in boom-and-bust cycles according to environmental conditions. After heavy rain, they’re known to flock in their thousands to breed in huge colonies on islands and secluded shores. After consecutive wet years fuelling breeding, their numbers are anecdotally up.
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Australian Pelican
There were a few reed beds that fringed the water and I immediately saw a large population of Eastern Dwarf Tree Frogs perched on the reeds in full view. I counted about ten of these tiny little lumps that sat very still. A blue flash of an Azure Kingfisher was a vivid treat among the dwarf frogs. A few rainforest species were also among the wetter areas and I saw no less than five Eastern Whipbirds bolting through the bushes, a single male Golden Whistler calling loudly and Black Jezebels starting to emerge for their winter boom. A Green Catbird also almost swooped me as well. That was a first. It clipped me just above the ears and then took off to nearby tree for a moment. Overall, an interesting botanic gardens that was boosted by rich aquatic diversity that travels into the formal gardens.
Eastern Dwarf Frog
Golden Whistler
The Noosa area that sits north of the Sunshine Coast is an overpopulated tourist mecca. The highway from Brisbane up towards Noosa is often very congested with holiday traffic especially with families seeking an escape from the city. Noosa Heads alone attracts about 2 million visitors annually; an incredible figure considering the resident population of Queensland is 6 million people across our 1.853 million km² state. While umbrella-filled beaches and sunscreen-soaked tourist hotspots are not something I particularly enjoy, Noosa Heads does have the benefit of having a large national park along the shoreline which promises land-based cetacean watching, Glossy Black Cockatoos and Koalas. So, it’s on the list but that will be for an early start, most likely on a weekday. For a quieter place however to dip my toe into the Noosa region, I selected their botanic gardens with sits along the platypus-populated Lake MacDonald, providing a nice blend of waterbirds with typical Sunny Coast bushbirds. The botanic garden is an easy loop with formal gardens, some more swamp-like habitat along the lake and a few rainforest remanent patches as well. I started with a large flock of Blue-faced Honeyeaters; very common species that I see daily but the group were lively and drew my attention. There were a few juveniles that were transitioning from the olive-green facial skin to the deep blue which was interesting to see. There were also a few Lewin’s Honeyeaters with them. Laughing Kookaburras were very bold here as well with the honeyeaters. The lake had a large population of Australian Pelican flying along the horizon of the lake, having their feeding disturbed by kayakers. Like many waterbirds, pelicans breed in boom-and-bust cycles according to environmental conditions. After heavy rain, they’re known to flock in their thousands to breed in huge colonies on islands and secluded shores. After consecutive wet years fuelling breeding, their numbers are anecdotally up.
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Australian Pelican
There were a few reed beds that fringed the water and I immediately saw a large population of Eastern Dwarf Tree Frogs perched on the reeds in full view. I counted about ten of these tiny little lumps that sat very still. A blue flash of an Azure Kingfisher was a vivid treat among the dwarf frogs. A few rainforest species were also among the wetter areas and I saw no less than five Eastern Whipbirds bolting through the bushes, a single male Golden Whistler calling loudly and Black Jezebels starting to emerge for their winter boom. A Green Catbird also almost swooped me as well. That was a first. It clipped me just above the ears and then took off to nearby tree for a moment. Overall, an interesting botanic gardens that was boosted by rich aquatic diversity that travels into the formal gardens.
Eastern Dwarf Frog
Golden Whistler
Lafone
Well-Known Member
Location 97: Noosa Botanic Gardens, Sunshine Coast – 6th May 2024:
The Noosa area that sits north of the Sunshine Coast is an overpopulated tourist mecca. The highway from Brisbane up towards Noosa is often very congested with holiday traffic especially with families seeking an escape from the city. Noosa Heads alone attracts about 2 million visitors annually; an incredible figure considering the resident population of Queensland is 6 million people across our 1.853 million km² state. While umbrella-filled beaches and sunscreen-soaked tourist hotspots are not something I particularly enjoy, Noosa Heads does have the benefit of having a large national park along the shoreline which promises land-based cetacean watching, Glossy Black Cockatoos and Koalas. So, it’s on the list but that will be for an early start, most likely on a weekday. For a quieter place however to dip my toe into the Noosa region, I selected their botanic gardens with sits along the platypus-populated Lake MacDonald, providing a nice blend of waterbirds with typical Sunny Coast bushbirds. The botanic garden is an easy loop with formal gardens, some more swamp-like habitat along the lake and a few rainforest remanent patches as well. I started with a large flock of Blue-faced Honeyeaters; very common species that I see daily but the group were lively and drew my attention. There were a few juveniles that were transitioning from the olive-green facial skin to the deep blue which was interesting to see. There were also a few Lewin’s Honeyeaters with them. Laughing Kookaburras were very bold here as well with the honeyeaters. The lake had a large population of Australian Pelican flying along the horizon of the lake, having their feeding disturbed by kayakers. Like many waterbirds, pelicans breed in boom-and-bust cycles according to environmental conditions. After heavy rain, they’re known to flock in their thousands to breed in huge colonies on islands and secluded shores. After consecutive wet years fuelling breeding, their numbers are anecdotally up.
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Australian Pelican
There were a few reed beds that fringed the water and I immediately saw a large population of Eastern Dwarf Tree Frogs perched on the reeds in full view. I counted about ten of these tiny little lumps that sat very still. A blue flash of an Azure Kingfisher was a vivid treat among the dwarf frogs. A few rainforest species were also among the wetter areas and I saw no less than five Eastern Whipbirds bolting through the bushes, a single male Golden Whistler calling loudly and Black Jezebels starting to emerge for their winter boom. A Green Catbird also almost swooped me as well. That was a first. It clipped me just above the ears and then took off to nearby tree for a moment. Overall, an interesting botanic gardens that was boosted by rich aquatic diversity that travels into the formal gardens.
Eastern Dwarf Frog
Golden Whistler
I do enjoy this thread it's such a fantastic contrast on what's in your daily birding to what I'd see here wandering about doing the same in the UK. That honey eater is lovely for example and while common there it's a super shot and to me, exotic!