I had been looking for the first opportunity to visit Newhaven ever since a colleague and I used to drool over the flyer that accompanied the appeal for donations on our work noticeboard,. And the 14 other COG members who joined me were not disappointed. Despite the very dry conditions, with no surface apparent water on the station except for the small pools at the bore overflows, we recorded approximately 75 species, with a total of over 100 if we add those seen only at Alice Springs before/after visiting Newhaven. This list was aided considerably by Richard Jordan's knowledge and ability of where and how to find the local birds. A special thanks goes to Richard and his partner Roz, as well as to Janet Hunt, for looking after us so well and for making it such an enjoyable trip.
The Grey Honeyeater, the elusive bird that seemingly is bringing everyone to Newhaven, proved surprisingly easy to find and by the end of the first morning all participants had obtained good views of at least several birds actively feeding in the mulga. In fact when we turned our attention to trying to identify the three very similar species of thornbills with chestnut rumps that occur at Newhaven, these turned out several times to be Grey Honeyeaters! Rufous-crowned Emu-wrens were also very obliging on the first morning, with most observers getting excellent views, supplementing those obtained from a special trip made at Alice Springs. By the end of the week all of the above species had been observed within 0.5 km of the camp site, and most participants had had good views of the thornbills, including the rarer Slaty-backed Thornbill.
Other "special" species seen by all participants included 16 Inland Dotterel feeding on a dry lake bed, unperturbed by the gathered admirers, a single Australian Bustard moving with typically haughty head through a recently (less than one week) burnt area and a number of Banded Whiteface. These were mostly seen in regenerating burnt patches, with the first obligingly refusing to move from a low perch while everyone had a good look. Up to 10 Orange Chats were also on the dry lake, but were mostly in immature/female plumage, with few people seeing the brilliantly coloured male. Likewise only the lucky or persistent has good views of the Dusky Grasswren and Spinifexbird as they emerged briefly from the spinifex, as well as Little Button-quail and a single Ground Cuckoo-shrike. In spite of much searching we no luck with finding the Painted Finches seen the week before. Perhaps fittingly, I was the only one to see the Western Bowerbird, a species not on the provisional Newhaven list, but for which sightings had been posted on the board earlier in the week.
One of the surprises was that in spite of the dry conditions there was a variety of species flowering that attracted honeyeaters. In one patch of flowering red mallee on the edge of a dry salt lake, eight species were seen, including good numbers of Black- and Grey-fronted Honeyeaters, and with most people managing to see the more cryptic White-fronted Honeyeater. A similar suite of species was later discovered in a patch of flowering eremophila, with a lucky few also recording the male Pied Honeyeater. Likewise flowering mistletoe at the lunch stop just outside of Newhaven on our way back to Alice Springs revealed a variety of honeyeaters feeding on nectar.
Despite there often seeming to be relatively little bird life around the campsite, over 35 species were recorded within 0.5 km. The biggest surprise was the almost complete lack of early morning calls and the limited activity both early and late. In fact the highest activity seemed to be around lunchtime, with lots of raptors overhead, and by the end of the week over 40 black kites which had been attracted to the nearby recently burnt area. On several days while eating our lunch we had armchair views of the Golden-backed race of the Black-chinned Honeyeater, with Grey-headed Honeyeater also feeding in the bloodwood or flowering hakea in the camp site. On one occasion all had great views of about 6 of the black-headed form of the Varied Sittella gleaning away in the bark. During the heat of the day up to 25 Diamond Doves were seen coming in to drink at the overflow puddle at the nearby bore, the only time this species was seen.
Despite the dry conditions a number of species were very common, in particular the Hooded Robin which was often seen from the bus as we were driving along, and was present in numbers at every bore we stopped at, confirming my view that this species likes the open relatively degraded areas around stockyards. The Black-faced Woodswallow was also very common, particularly in the more open areas recovering from fire, as was the crested bellbird. Zebra Finches were plentiful, at one bore where we stopped for lunch over 1000 were radiating in from all directions to drink, and then flying out again in smallish flocks. On a number of occasions flocks were seen moving rapidly well away from water, appearing to be heading to some distant unknown water source.
The above is only a brief (and personal) account of a very successful week and a very enjoyable trip. I missed out again on some species including the Black Falcon, Black-breasted Buzzard and Ground Cuckoo-shrike, for which only brief or distant views were obtained. However, this gives more reason to continue my love affair with Australia's arid zone and its flora and fauna, including its birds, perhaps visiting somewhere else next time. At the week's end of the I was somewhat perturbed by the number of people already visiting Newhaven, the single focus for many of them seeming to be those special birds for their life list. Newhaven offers much more than just a place to get your megaticks, and will need to be managed very carefully and sensitively by Birds Australia.
Jack Holland