On a wet and windy day seven hardy souls arrived at the Scrymgeour’s property ‘Timbarra’ to camp for a weekend of bird watching. Leaving Canberra most of the group possibly wondered where and why they were going down the coast to camp. It turned to be a most enjoyable weekend both bird and weather wise. Six of the group camped while one took the hosts’ offer of a room with a double bed in the ‘shed’. Another couple stayed at Merimbula and joined us for some of the walks.
The campers were entertained by the Spangled Drongo which was in residence at the hosts’ farm and also the tame Little Wattlebird which flew down and landed on your shoulder when least expected. The male Satin Bowerbird, plus the Crimson Rosellas, King Parrots and other avian visitors, were a delight to watch.
On Saturday morning the group combined with the Far South Coast Birdwatchers and spent the morning on a property (Watery Fowls) at Wallagoot Lake that had a variety of habitat including lake frontage. The drive to the site included views of Superb Lyrebirds running across the road. Here the group saw 55 species with the highlight being some of the closest and best views of a male Mistletoebird many had had. There was much discussion when one of the group announced that over the lake there were about 20 Chestnut Teal and various Cormorants. There was also a group of what appeared to be Bar-tailed Godwits. Some of the group thought that the birds were indeed only foam and much lamenting was done on no one having a telescope. After lunch, a further walk that ended at the beach produced an Olive -backed Oriole, Australian Gannets, White-bellied Sea-eagles and some smaller sea birds that were not identified.
On Sunday morning we drove to Wyndrock on New Buildings Road, Wyndham where the walk along the road netted 28 species, with good views of Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters and Golden Whistlers. The birds were a bit slow to move because of the cold and indeed it was after 1000hrs that they came to life. We then moved on to a travelling stock reserve at Rocky Hall where there were many birds with good views of more Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters, as well as Scarlet Robins. with the highlight being a Azure Kingfisher that sat in the sun for all to view its stunning colours.
After lunch we all met at the Panboola Wetlands with its mixture of lagoon, trees, grasslands and salt pan. This project is a huge one that will take much effort and community involvement for it to grow and succeed but will provide an accessible area to view a variety of avian fauna. In the afternoon the group visited the Merimbula boardwalk. This was a dry and windless area where there were many sightings among which was a Striated Heron.
The final morning was spent walking through part of the South East Forests National Park where there were views of Wonga Pigeons and some of the group saw Brown Gerygones. Two of the group then walked home and were rewarded by good views of a Rose Robin.
This was a weekend enjoyed by everyone who attended. The accommodation was superb, the weather was better than that in Canberra and further up the coast and the birding and company was excellent. The nights at the campsite were a delight with the hosts providing a sheltered meeting place with a heater where the group ate and socialised together.
We would all like to thank Lyn and Alan for their hospitality and for showing us some excellent birding spots over the weekend.
John Cummings