This island is a true coral cay in the Bunker Group of the southern Great Barrier Reef. The approach to Bundaberg varied but some of us saw large numbers of Scaly-breasted Lorikeets even in the main streets of towns like Dalby. Satin Bowerbirds, catbirds and Topknot Pigeons were noted in the Bunya Bunya NP. In Bundaberg, orange tulip trees, orioles and Figbirds along the Burnett River were spectacular. Steve slopped around in the mud and eventually photographed the lovely Mangrove Kingfisher. The Baldwin Wetlands were impressive with Wandering Whistling Duck, Pacific Baza, Pheasant Coucal, jacana, and Cotton Pygmy Geese all in attendance. An excursion to the Hummock, an extinct volcano remnant, revealed the Black-faced Monarch in some littoral rainforest, along with the Fairy Gerygone.
The Island itself, which is 52 nautical miles from the mainland, was reached by a high-powered catamaran from Port Bundaberg. The marine life at the Island's permanent pontoon was viewed from glass-bottomed bats and a semi-submersible; it was dramatic! Large numbers of Black Noddies were everywhere dominant. Black Noddies and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters were feeding in the open water as we approached the Island; over the lagoon and along the shoreline Black-naped, Bridled and Roseate Terns were present, the latter nesting with eggs in a colony. Silver Gulls, Little and Crested Terns were also here, and each morning the beautiful Brown Boobies would fly over after roosting the night on adjacent Fairfax Island. On one occasion they were attacked by two Greater Frigatebirds.
At low tide many waders spread out across the sand flats including Whimbrel, Bar-tailed Godwit, Mongolian Dotterel, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper and the Eastern Golden Plover. Oystercatchers (Pied and Sooty) and Ruddy Turnstones shared the more rocky places with the Eastern Reef Egret (both dark and light morphs). The Wandering Tattler was also here but it was often seen higher up on the shingly sands amongst the vegetation advancing down the slopes to the very white coral beaches.
The pandanus-casuarina association at the top of the beach slopes provided viewing spots for the Sacred Kingfisher and resting places for the frigatebirds. Beyod them in a few places were patches of low shrub-lands left after guano mining. These were fringed with sandpaper figs which were populated by the large island Silvereye. The dense pisonia forest was the dominant island habitat, sheltering thousands of nesting Black Noddies. From time to time gulls and reef egrets would descend clumsily into the outer foliage to steal eggs from the nests amid consternation and confusion. In several places the ground was honeycombed with the burrows of the Wedge-tailed Shearwaters and one night we all arose at 4 am to witness the squadrons of mutton birds taking off like dark missiles in volleys through gaps in the pisonias they use as flight-paths. Underneath the canopy the rich humus of rotting pisonia leaves and guano supported a large population of Buff-banded Rails who dined pretty well on the crumbs from the COG table!
Alan Scrymgeour was our very genial leader on this trip and his expertise, especially on marine life, was a continuous source of fact and fascination. In addition to the snorkelling sessions and ref walks which he and Lyn conducted, we all participated in a data-gathering "crab-fest". This took the form of a carefully designed study of hermit crabs and their allies.
Jeffrey Clyde