A small group had a very pleasant camp overnight on Saturday, complete with pasta and wine for dinner, and with three vehicles surveyed 14 grids in the southeastern part of COG's area (before the wet weather arrived). This area included thicker wooded spots as well as open grazing country with remnant roadside vegetation from Bredbo through to Jerangle and on various roads to Numerella and Slap Up Road. We did a combination of 2-ha searches and area searches in each grid.
This area was one of Jack Holland's atlassing spots for the first national atlas over 15 years ago, and what is interesting is that species like Hooded Robins and Brown Treecreepers do appear to have declined in the area, just as they have around Canberra. We recorded only one Hooded Robin on this visit, whereas Jack recalls that they were far more numerous. And there was only one spot in a remnant Apple Box woodland just east of Bredbo where we got Brown Treecreepers; the general consensus is that removal of dead and fallen timber is a major reason for their decline.
The Strike-a-Light river area gave us a good list including at last 20 Fuscous Honeyeaters, Restless Flycatcher, Dollarbird, two pairs of Scared Kingfisher, Brown Falcon and Australian Hobby, Black-fronted Plover, and a Southern Boobook calling at night. Some 50 Sulphur-crested Cockatoos came in to roost at night - fortunately not over our tents. Flame Robins and Little Ravens were fairly numerous in the more open areas.
Thanks to Steve and Helen Stephinson and Charles Buer, and to Jack Holland who put in a lot of time in pre-organising and preparing maps.
Jenny Bounds