17 Members participated in a walk along Lake Road on a mild, still, initially cloudy Sunday morning. The walk concentrated on that part of the road where the bottom of the escarpment runs close to the road. This area features many very old large trees full of nesting hollows. In wetter times the shoreline of Lake George would be nearby, but, alas, that is currently just a memory. 44 species were observed, none of which were water birds! Among the raptors a Little Eagle put in an appearance along with several Wedge-tailed Eagles riding the thermals at the top of the scarp. A group of four Nankeen Kestrels were seen flying together. A Pallid Cuckoo was seen and a Fan-tailed Cuckoo heard. A highlight of the walk was the sighting of two female and one male Rose Robin. Several Speckled Warbler were seen in a paddock along with Red-browed Finch and domestic chickens! Among Honeyeaters, large numbers of Yellow-faced were present along with smaller numbers of White-naped, White-eared and Brown-headed, as well as Eastern Spinebill and Red Wattlebird. An interesting impact of the drought was the extensive die-back of the plentiful mistletoe in both eucalypts and wattles. The party was amused by the ‘rites of spring’ as practised by what could only be described as an orgy of Striated Thornbills rolling about in the grass and on the road. Extra birds kept coming right to the last with Silvereyes and a European Goldfinch added to the list at the spot where we parked our cars.
David Rees