At Easter, COG returned to the property of Alan and Lynn Scrymgeour at Timbarra, inland from Merimbula near Myrtle Mountain on the south coast. The group saw 103 species in the four-day visit. We had fine weather, the nights being mildly chilly with clear views of the stars. Some preferred the magnificent 'shed' to sleep in but others just camped.
The Scrymgeours had organised a marvellous program that allowed for birding on both private and public land. Although significant areas are protected, Alan and Lynn are part of a group fighting to preserve another area that needs to be saved. The battles for the forest and its creatures are not over yet.
On two of the nights we went spotlighting, looking for the various creatures that inhabit the South East Forests National Park and its surrounds. On the first night we heard a Southern Boobook chorus, a Powerful Owl and what was probably a Masked Owl, apart having to listen to Yellow-bellied gliders, so near, yet so far. The second night's sightings included a Common Ringtail Possum and a number of Greater Gliders. On that night we returned to find a Tawny Frogmouth guarding the entrance to the 'shed'. On the third night during the meal the local Common Ringtail Possum emerging from its lair and clambering through the foliage entertained us.
Species included the Great, Intermediate and Little Egrets, Eastern Yellow Robin, Crested Tern, Eastern Curlew, Bassian Thrush, Bell Miner, White-fronted Chat and on the last day a Superb Lyrebird scuttling across a track. This mixture reflects the huge variety of habitats that we traversed during the four days, from eucalypt woodland through forest to various forms of lagoon or swamp to the seashore.
Our thanks are extended to Alan and Lynn for a superb weekend.
Alan Ford
(photo - Intrepid glider hunters by Kathy Walter)