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birdlovers naturally.
Jan. 24th, 2004 07:06 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gemfyreTwo new birds to add to my life list!!
Pallid Cuckoo (Cuculus pallidus)
Black-Tailed Native Hen (Gallinula ventralis)
The cuckoos seemed to be show-offs, they'd fly pretty close, as if they wanted me to take a good look at them.
Bayswater Bird Sanctuary was a filled in swamp come rubbish tip during the 60's and 70's (when it was all the rage to fill in all the wetlands and turn them into tips or shoddy housing sites). In the late 70's they allowed water to fill in the centre of the piles of landfill and started removing weeds and replanting native plants. The area is now a designated sanctuary and there are about 80 species of birds that regularly frequent the area and some others that are not so regular. There is a path all around the lake down to the nearby Swan River and a large bird hide.
Looking west.
Close up looking west. Foreground - Grey teal, middle - Dusky moorhen chick. Rear - Black-winged stilt.
Looking west. Most of the waders and ducks congregate in this area. Among them are yellow-billed spoonbills. The white things in the dead trees are nesting boxes.
Other birds seen
Pacific Black Duck - I'd be alarmed if I DIDN'T see these.
Eurasian Coot - being noisy as usual.
Black Winged Stilt - many of these, including some juvenilles. They can get pretty noisy at times.
Purple Swamphen - Stealthily walking through the long grass.
Dusky Moorhen - and chicks. For a while I thought I was hearing black swans honking but couldn't see them. Then I realised it was just the moorhens carrying on.
Pelican - Just one, sleeping.
Red Wattlebird - heard chicks as well.
Rainbow Lorikeet - many, as usual.
Hoary Headed Grebe - it's amusing to watch when these guys dive, often they'll come up underneath other birds and startle them.
28 parrot - 2 of these, I recognised them by their flight pattern.
Peewee (Magpie Lark) - Many. Again, I got very close to these, they don't seem awfully fazed by humans.
Magpie - These were hunting worms and insects in the grass. There were a few young ones.
Singing Honeyeater - Singing VERY loudly.
Welcome Swallow - Soaring and diving overhead.
Rainbow Bee Eater - Before today I had only seen rainbow bee eater, it flitted past as I left uni one day. Today I saw many birds flying about that looked similar to swallows but not quite and looked up swifts, swallows and martins in my book trying to ID them. A little later on the other side of the lake I got a better look at them and realised to my delight that they were bee-eaters. There were loads of them!! And you could hear their trilling from a long way off.
Willie Wagtail - These guys were hawking for insects in the grass. One let me get pretty close.
Yellow Billed Spoonbill - There were about 3 of these in the main wader area of the swamp.
Great Cormorant - Perched on a dead tree at the far end of the lake.
Little Black Cormorant - In the same area.
Straw Necked Ibis - I spotted one of these in the breeding area on the other side of the path. This area is out of bounds to people, but you can walk along one edge and peer between the trees.
Sacred Ibis - In the main wader area.
Sacred Kingfisher - Spotted one of these sitting on a dead tree.
Australian Raven - Flying about the place as usual.
Senegal Dove - As for crows, these are just everywhere.
Grey Teal - The only duck (apart from Pacific Black) that I positively identified. I'm sure there were other sorts of ducks but I couldn't see them well enough to make out what they were.
Bird of prey - Again, it looked like a square tailed kite or black kite or little eagle, couldn't see close enough for a positive I.D.
I really need to invest in a pair of binoculars. I think I'll do either Kings Park in the city or Herdsman Lake next up.
Other news!
I made a batch of muffins and cleaned the microwave!! It was disgusting in there.
Pallid Cuckoo (Cuculus pallidus)
Black-Tailed Native Hen (Gallinula ventralis)
The cuckoos seemed to be show-offs, they'd fly pretty close, as if they wanted me to take a good look at them.
Bayswater Bird Sanctuary was a filled in swamp come rubbish tip during the 60's and 70's (when it was all the rage to fill in all the wetlands and turn them into tips or shoddy housing sites). In the late 70's they allowed water to fill in the centre of the piles of landfill and started removing weeds and replanting native plants. The area is now a designated sanctuary and there are about 80 species of birds that regularly frequent the area and some others that are not so regular. There is a path all around the lake down to the nearby Swan River and a large bird hide.
Looking west.
Close up looking west. Foreground - Grey teal, middle - Dusky moorhen chick. Rear - Black-winged stilt.
Looking west. Most of the waders and ducks congregate in this area. Among them are yellow-billed spoonbills. The white things in the dead trees are nesting boxes.
Other birds seen
Pacific Black Duck - I'd be alarmed if I DIDN'T see these.
Eurasian Coot - being noisy as usual.
Black Winged Stilt - many of these, including some juvenilles. They can get pretty noisy at times.
Purple Swamphen - Stealthily walking through the long grass.
Dusky Moorhen - and chicks. For a while I thought I was hearing black swans honking but couldn't see them. Then I realised it was just the moorhens carrying on.
Pelican - Just one, sleeping.
Red Wattlebird - heard chicks as well.
Rainbow Lorikeet - many, as usual.
Hoary Headed Grebe - it's amusing to watch when these guys dive, often they'll come up underneath other birds and startle them.
28 parrot - 2 of these, I recognised them by their flight pattern.
Peewee (Magpie Lark) - Many. Again, I got very close to these, they don't seem awfully fazed by humans.
Magpie - These were hunting worms and insects in the grass. There were a few young ones.
Singing Honeyeater - Singing VERY loudly.
Welcome Swallow - Soaring and diving overhead.
Rainbow Bee Eater - Before today I had only seen rainbow bee eater, it flitted past as I left uni one day. Today I saw many birds flying about that looked similar to swallows but not quite and looked up swifts, swallows and martins in my book trying to ID them. A little later on the other side of the lake I got a better look at them and realised to my delight that they were bee-eaters. There were loads of them!! And you could hear their trilling from a long way off.
Willie Wagtail - These guys were hawking for insects in the grass. One let me get pretty close.
Yellow Billed Spoonbill - There were about 3 of these in the main wader area of the swamp.
Great Cormorant - Perched on a dead tree at the far end of the lake.
Little Black Cormorant - In the same area.
Straw Necked Ibis - I spotted one of these in the breeding area on the other side of the path. This area is out of bounds to people, but you can walk along one edge and peer between the trees.
Sacred Ibis - In the main wader area.
Sacred Kingfisher - Spotted one of these sitting on a dead tree.
Australian Raven - Flying about the place as usual.
Senegal Dove - As for crows, these are just everywhere.
Grey Teal - The only duck (apart from Pacific Black) that I positively identified. I'm sure there were other sorts of ducks but I couldn't see them well enough to make out what they were.
Bird of prey - Again, it looked like a square tailed kite or black kite or little eagle, couldn't see close enough for a positive I.D.
I really need to invest in a pair of binoculars. I think I'll do either Kings Park in the city or Herdsman Lake next up.
Other news!
I made a batch of muffins and cleaned the microwave!! It was disgusting in there.
