Saturday 30 September

In the early morning the Gilbert's Whistler which had been singing on and near my property was active again. We left around 6am to go up to the Flinders Ranges and within 5 minutes after arrival at Stokes Hill we heard a few Short-tailed Grasswrens. Shortly afterwards, at 10:10am, we had excellent views of one perched on a stone. After a coffee at the National Park shop we took a scenic route through the Flinders Ranges and saw Elegant Parrot, Sacred Kingfisher, 3 Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby and some Euros. We arrived at the Lyndhurst pub, gateway to the Strezelecki track through the barren outback, in time for sundowners.

Sunday 1 October

And early morning search of Mt Lyndhurst station produced within 1.5 hours all target species including two groups of Chestnut-breasted Whitefaces (10+4), Thick-billed Grasswren (4), Cinnamon Quail-thrush (1) and many Rufous Heathwrens. We then set off on the Strzelecki track along which we found Pied Honeyeater, Gibberbird (4), Chirruping Wedgebill and few more common species. A 45 min search of the Montecollina Bore area in 35C heat resulted in 3 Eyrean Grasswren. We had lunch here, accompanied by hundreds of bush flies. A hundred km's or so further up the Strzelecki track we turned right heading to Cameron Corner, and crossing one of the big red sand dunes at Merty Merty station I had to slam on the brakes to avoid driving over an Eyrean Grasswren crossing the track. A search of the sand dune was aborted as the temperature had risen to 37C. We stopped in at Cameron Corner, where NSW, Qld and SA meet, and as it was still only mid-afternoon we decided to move on to Tibooburra. While driving to Tibooburra we came across a flock of 22 Inland Dotterels and another Gibberbird. A pair of Bourke's Parrots flew across the road.

Monday 2 October

We left Tibooburra early (again) on our way to Adelaide Gate, in the hope of following up on Grey Grasswrens sightings by others earlier in the month. We had no precise location but soon we entered suitable habitat and had no trouble finding at least two Grey Grasswrens. At 8:10am, this was our 4th species of Grasswren in 46 hours! Also here were ~ 20 Orange Chats and a Gibberbird. We headed back to Tibooburra, and at the local waterhole we found 2 Bourke's Parrots, 2 Blue Bonnets, 10 Chrimsons Chats, 2 Red-backed Kingfisher and a flock of Native Hens. We drove to Broken Hill and with all target species found and not much else to do along the way, decided to return to Waikerie, where we arrived at 19:45 after 3 days and almost 2300 km (almost 1/2 of which on dirt roads).

Wednesday 27 September

In the evening I went looking for mammals with guests from Holland, an old friend of mine, Justin Jansen and his girlfriend. At Blanchetown we found an Echidna, a species high on the wish list of the guests. Nearby we quickly located a Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat suffering from mange, a disease that is ravaging the population. In total we recorded five wombats as well as a few Western Grey and Red Kangaroos (including young ones).


Thursday 28 September

We woke up early and set off to Gluepot Reserve. We focused on Justin's target species which included Scarlet-chested Parrot. These are extremely rare and while a spate of sightings occurred during Autumn, they hadn't been seen for over 3 months and of course we didn't find any. We had no trouble locating a flock of Black-eared Miners and no less than 20 Striated Grasswrens at different locations. It seemed like every suitable patch of Spinifex had some birds! We also found Shy Heathwren, Southern Scrub Robin, Chestnut Quail-Thrush, White-browed Treecreeper and many more common birds like Hooded Robin, Mulga Parrot, Crested Bellbird, Horsfield’s Bronze Cuckoo, White-fronted Honeyeater, Mallee Ringneck, Chestnut-crowned and White-browed Babbler, Brown Treecreeper, Brown-headed Honeyeater, Chestnut-rumped Thornbill, Southern Whiteface, Apostlebird and Australian Raven. Mammals recorded were Euro, Red Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo.

One of my first trips of the spring season to Gluepot Reserve, with clients from South Africa. We set off early, around 5:20am to arrive at the Reserve just after sunrise. First bird of the morning was a Spotted Nightjar on the track, a tick for them, with good views in the headlights of the car. A few Red and Western Grey Kangaroos along the way created a typical Australian atmosphere for the visitors. Despite the very dry conditions (it's been the driest winter on record with now no decent rainfall for exactly 2 months) bird activity was excellent. The ticks were rolling in hard & fast with Chestnut Quail-thrush, Gilbert's Whistler, Black-eared Miner, Brown Goshawk, Striated Grasswren, Shy Heathwren, Mallee Ringneck, Mulga Parrot, Crested Bellbird, Southern Scrubrobin, Brown and White-browed Treecreeper, Inland and Chestnut-rumped Thornbill, and a spate of Honeyeaters (Brown-headed, Striped, Yellow-plumed, White-eared, Spiny-cheeked, White-fronted and Red Wattlebird) all showing up almost on cue.

An enjoyable hour was spent in a birdhide overlooking a watering trough, which provided good photo opportunities.

Today we drove back slowly to Adelaide stopping only at Mt Remarkable and Port Gawler.

At Mt Remarkable we quickly found Adelaide Rosella, depending on which list you follow, either a full species or regional form of the Crimson Rosella. At Pt Gawler we tried once more to look for Slender-billed Thornbill. This time the weather was fine and before long we had located a bird, which seemed to be attending a nest site. Then on to Adelaide, and almost 700 km after we'd left Lyndhurst I dropped Mike off at the YHA in the city centre, and set off for the last stretch of 175 km home, completing a very successful reconnaisance trip. (Now I just have to get the car repaired!)

We arrived at the other km 26 spot on the right hand side this morning between the two gates at around 7:15 am deciding, after our previous grasswren experience, that too early meant too cold and therefore little activity. We were to be proved correct as soon we were hearing the tell-tale high pitched calls this time of Thick-billed Grasswren, which turned out to be much easier to get good views of than Short-tailed Grasswren. Content that we had found this species so quickly we decided to go across the road to a GPS site that I had for Chestnut-breasted Whiteface. However this proved unnecessary as on the way to the road we spied 3 birds and got good views of the diagnostic chestnut patches on the breast. Only one species to go, the Cinnamon Quail Thrush. We crossed over to the rusty car and within 2 minutes we saw a pair of this beautifully marked species foraging on the ground. Another pair was then located nearby.

8:30 and all the special birds located we decided to head north. Having not planned to go as far north as Merty-Merty we set our limit to 220km north of Lyndhurst, Montecollina Bore a waterhole in the middle of sand-dunes from where a recent sighting of Eyrean Grasswren had been reported. On the way north long expanses of nothing much other than red, stony ground rolled past …but the road was in such good condition that we made good time. We saw little on the way up but what was lacked in quantity we made up for in quality as at km 135 two Ground Cuckoo-Shrikes flew up from their eponymous habitat flashing their white rumps; at km 159 a lone Gibberbird caught our attention at the side of the road and on inspecting this rather greener patch of habitat we turned up a pair of Pied Honeyeater. After seeing nothing much more than White-backed Swallows, one of the more beautiful swallow species, at km 173 the habitat began to change rather quickly at around km 210 to sand dunes covered with dead-looking vegetation and at around midday we had reached Montecollina Bore.

We had some vague directions about where the grasswren had been seen but it took a fair amount of searching what appeared to be a lot of dead patches of vegetation before we finally heard high pitched calling. A scurrying shape running between dunes alerted us to our target and soon we were treated to outstanding views of Eyrean Grasswren!. Elated we had a leisurely lunch and returned back to Lyndhurst finishing off this extraordinary day with a lone Square-tailed Kite at Yerilina Creek some 75km from Lyndhurst.

We set off in the freezing early morning to Stokes Hill, a reliable site for Short-tailed Grasswren, a generally accepted, but not yet formal, split from Striated Grasswren. Much more so than Striated Grasswren, this species seems to specialise in hide and seek. The thin ventriloquial calls leading one up the spinifex path as shadowy forms turned this into something of a ghost hunt. Finally, perhaps as the sun began to warm things up a bit, one bird perched up onto a spinifex bush and hey presto we had short but highly tickable views. It was obviously different to Striated Grasswren who are much more active, less shy, noisier, and of course have a longer tail. There were few other birds were around but we did see several Elegant Parrots and disturbed two roosting Tawny Frogmouths. Having found our most wanted we sped off to Arkaroo Rock to look for Grey–fronted Honeyeater, another specialty of this area. We never did catch up with this species but did see more Elegant Parrots and heard a Black-eared Cuckoo, but could not locate it. Our last foray in this area before we began the long drive up to Lyndhurst was on the Wilpena Pound Track where we quickly found our main target a fine singing Redthroat having been treated to a Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, unusual for this site, and a calling Fan-tailed Cuckoo.

After a scenic drive through the geologically interesting Flinders Ranges, then on the long straight road north, we arrived at Lyndhurst some 5 hours later. We checked into the local pub (the only accommodation) and drove the surprisingly good condition Strzelecki track to the legendary km 26, the Chestnut-breasted Whiteface site, for a late afternoon recce. We found little at the rusty car site, on the left hand side of the track going north; one of the local known spots for this rare species. Despite finding Rufous Fieldwren fairly easily we located little else of real interest and retired to the pub for early drinks.

I had planned a reconnaisance trip to the Flinders Ranges & Strzelecki track, to prepare for bookings I have for later in the year. Mike Catsis, an English birder joined me on a cost-share basis. I picked him up at Adelaide airport. Our evening destination was to be Wilpena Pound, a tourist resort in the Flinders Ranges, about 500 km or so away.

On the way up there we stopped to bird a few spots; St Kilda, Port Gawler and Port Augusta; all sites located north of Adelaide along the Gulf.

St Kilda delaide produced large numbers of Pacific Black Duck amongst which were a few Pink-eared Duck, Chestnut and Grey Teal, Black Swans, wading birds such as Royal Spoonbill and White Ibis, some early wader returns Red-necked Stint and Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and the a pair of Sooty Oystercatchers .

Further north rain stopped play at Pt Gawler, a reliable spot for Slender-billed Thornbill which we picked up on the way back down on 21st August .

One of the species we had been searching for at the previous two sites was Banded Stilt, somewhat of a specialty in this region. We did not find any until I decided at the last minute to turn into a parking space next to a large lagoon coming into Port Augusta and the first birds we saw were a flock of some 30 individuals. A wonderful sighting of a very beautiful and unusual species. On the other side of town is the newly created Desert Botanical Gardens, a fascinating reserve, which can produce some interesting species such as Black Honeyeater at the right time of year. We were a bit early for this species, which usually turns up around October for the flowering Eremophila bushes, however we did turn up Chirruping Wedgebill, White-fronted Chat and White-winged Fairy Wren of which we were treated to a simply stunning adult male.

After this we still had quite a way to go until Wilpena where we arrived after dark, our journey having been punctuated by an unfortunate collision with a kangaroo, felling the beast and damaging my bumper.

It was a glorious weekend in the SA Riverland with 20C on Sunday. Foggy mornings soon gave way to clear skies with plenty of sunshine, which was not too harsh as there was sufficient moisture in the air. A distant, barely noticable haze caused by fruitgrowers burning bulldozed trees created a nice aroma. It reminded me of the glorious days I spent in India 10 years ago. The smells in the air were made more complex as a result of wattle trees starting to flowers.

A Pallid Cuckoo was calling non-stop, all-day long, reminding me of the 'brainfever bird' of India. What's with this India theme? I think I might have curry tonight. On our property, Horsfield's Bronze-cuckoo was singing, as was Grey Shrike-thrush and Peaceful Dove. Marcel (2 1/2) can now distinguish 2 species of pigeon: one that “does hoo – hoo” (bronzewing) and one that “does plook – plook – plook” (peaceful dove). He'll be a twitcher before long! The Gilbert's Whistler I discovered a few weeks ago in our patch of mallee has also been busy singing. The nights still get quite cold though, and a Southern Boobook calls most evenings. All very enjoyable while it lasts! I'm sure we'll return to wind and rain some time soon.

I got up at 4:15am and was on the road at 4:30. This way I figured I'd beat the traffic jams to the airport. And indeed I got there, after re-fuelling, about 5:45. I waited for a quarter of an hour for the rental car desk to open & returned the car. On the way through security to the boarding gate my boots set off the alarm as usual. I bought a soft furry orange-and-white Nemo-fish for Marcel. I landed in Adelaide at 8:35 and after getting lost trying to get out of the new airport, buying flowers for my wife and cafeine-rich drinks to keep me going for the last 170 km, I arrived back home at 11:30. I got on the net and posted a message on birding-aus to tell the world that after my maddest twitch ever, I, too, had added the Grey-headed Lapwing to my list.

Thursday morning. I got up at 5am, and was on the road at 5:30. Thick fog and already busy traffic plagued the Pacific Highway. It lifted closer to Newcastle, I then turned inland. Traffic was slow on the mainly single-lane roads, it was cloudy, dark & depressing weather. After 2 hrs and 15 mins I took a break and was not impressed with my progress. At this rate I wouldn't get to Burren Junction until mid-day and I'd hoped to be there around 10:30-11ish.

I got to the top of the great dividing range and right at that point the dark clouds disappeared. The great Australian interior lay ahead of me. The roads flattened out, traffic was light, and the sun was shining. This was more like it. I saw a Black Falcon just south of Gunnedah, and Cockatiels started appearing. I would set myself a target – something like the next town, and would count down the kilometers. Upon reaching it, I would set a new target. Every few hours I had a short break. I saw a Koala in a tree. In Narrabri I stopped for fuel and food. Only 90 kms to go, I couldn't get myself to hang around for very long. The closer I got, the faster I drove. 50 kms to Wee Waa. Avg speed 120 km/hr. How many others had gone before me down this road…!  42 kms to Burren Junction. The road was empty and wide. I sat on 140 most of the way. The silos loomed in the distance… I started to get nervous. Then a sign: Burren Junction. It was 11:45. The place had taken on an almost mythical appearance in my mind. But it was a messy dump. They must have had lots of rain here – there was water laying everywhere, and where there was no water, there was mud. Mud in front of the main pub. Mud in front of the petrol station. Mud on the edges of the road near the silo, where the GHL was supposed to be. I had a list of all the sites where it had been seen, but didn't need it…I had read the list that many times. I slowed right down and checked the grassy fields and roadside drains near the silos. Nothing. I drove past the silo. Nothing. I checked the picnic table area. Nothing. I checked the drains and the field behind the railway line. Nothing. I told myself that I was too nervous and therefore not looking properly. I drove back to the first site and started again. After an hour of nothing I started to wonder. Would I be the first one to dip on this bird? It wouldn't surprise me – in fact, I was half-expecting it. 

I spotted a campervan near the picknick tables and a lady standing near the railway with a camera. The only bird present was a Masked Lapwing on top of the railway line, and the lady was busy taking photos of it. I asked her if she was looking for the GHL, and she pointed to the Masked Lapwing and replied: “That's it there!” She was told by the locals, that the GHL was by itself, and figured that this one being the only lonely lapwing in the area, must be it! She couldn't have been too keen a birder as she didn't seem very disappointed when I enlightened her. They searched around for a bit longer but then left.

I was starting to feel hollow inside – not from lack of food, but from a growing feeling that I'd missed the bird. I came across some birders in front of the pub. One of the guys had contacted me earlier that week, he was a freelance film maker and was shooting a documentary about the lapwing. He wanted to interview me later that day. The good thing was, that the bird had been seen that morning until about 10:30. If I hadn't been stuck in traffic…..if I had got out of my lazy bed a bit earlier…. He said that the bird was last seen sleeping under a bush, and that it usually came out again later in the afternoon.

So I spent a half-hour searching the area where the guy had pointed me to. Nothing. I then thought maybe it had moved on. I widened my search. Nothing.

I went to the servo (mud) and bought a bacon-and-egg roll. For some reason this has become the standard food amongst birders visiting BJ, and indeed wasn't bad. I went to the picknick tables and tried to have a sleep in my car. I couldn't sleep but at least had a rest for about 45 mins. There were huge flocks of Galahs and Cockatiels and these were constantly stirred up by a Black Falcon swooping on them. So I enjoyed myself taking photos of that phenomenon for a while. A pond behind the silos contained hundreds of Plumed Whistling-ducks.

Mid-afternoon I re-commenced my search. After a little while I came across Shane, the film-maker again. We agreed to do the interview then, reasoning that the GHL would turn up later in the afternoon.

I had been interviewed for our local TV station back home quite a number of times so wasn't uncomfortable. However it took a lot longer than I expected. We finished at 15:45. During the interview it had become clear to Shane just how tight my timetable was, and he agreed to take me to the site where the lapwing was last seen. I had no confidence that it would be still there and started to think that I might have to change my early-morning flight the next morning. What would my wife say…We walked down the railway embankment and into an area with low, shrubby bushes. I thought that Shane seemed to spend an awful lot of time searching for someone who's supposed to know where the bird was. It was around 16:00 now. Another hour and it would start getting dark. All of a sudden he said “There it is!” I still couldn't see it. At the same moment the bird flew up and I locked my binos onto it. I got it!!!!!!!! It gave me such a thrill that my neck hairs stood up by themselves. The bird flew across the railway line and road into a paddock opposite the car. I watched it until it landed, out of view. I shook Shane's hand, and hoped his wife had filmed my excitement. 

We walked back to the road, and I proceeded to where the bird had landed. I soon found it sitting in the grassy field. I started taking photos from a distance and walked in a large circle around the bird, to get the sun behind me, slowly getting closer. I had good views (but not as close as some others) for about 10 mins, after which it few back to where it first had come from. I managed to shoot some pix of it flying. It had a large growth on its leg (bumblefoot).

I said goodbye to Shane and his wife and 16:26 I was on the road again. I drove the 550 kms to Gosford in exactly 6 hrs this time, about 15 mins faster than the way there. I stayed at the same motel and went to sleep around 23:30, after 1100 kms and one new bird.