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Newsletter of BirdLife Northern Queensland Volume 5 Number 4 November-December 2016

NATIONAL TWITCHATHON COURTING BOWERBIRDS

Scores* so far for Queensland This beautiful *number of bird species recorded artwork, of Twitchathon (24 hour race) courting Great Bowerbirds, was 007: Silvereye - 180 - Northern Queensland painted by Richard Bowdler Sharpe Wing Dings - 179 - Mackay (1847-1909), Gladstone Galahs - 112 - Capricornia curator of the bird collection at the Westside Warblers - 105 - Southern Queensland British Museum of Natural History. Champagne Event (12 hour race) To read about the Spare Me a Dollar Bird - 137 - Southern escapades of the Queensland ‘Courting Bowerbirds’ in the Courting Bowerbirds - 118 - Northern Twitchathon, go to Queensland page 9.

Funky Fairywrens - 105 - Southern Queensland Image courtesy of Wikipedia in Commons https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_bowerbird#/media/File:Chla The Mad Chatters - 102 - Capricornia mydera_nuchalis_by_Bowdler_Sharpe.jpg McDutton Quails - 70 - Southern Queensland Wings Over Rocky - 63 – Capricornia Contents

 Convenor’s report Birdathon (3x1 hour race)  Fossicking for Birds on the River of Gold. The Four Thick Knees – 71  Eight Birders in Search of a Quail-thrush! Courting Bowerbirds – 67  The JAMBA-CAMBA-ROKAMBA afternoon on the Golden Oldies – 61 Cairns Esplanade. Yapricadonnia Feathers – 59  Update on Cairns Esplanade.  Lama Lama Junior Rangers Bird Workshop. Millenium Falcons – 57  Springvale Station Bird Surveys The Zemeks – 55  Baillon's Crake Cassie Vogelmann – 43  The National Twitchathon Ordinary Owls – 41  Late season trip to Karumba Paxton Plovers – 17  The Australian Bird Feeding and Watering Study.  What’s in the news? Congratulations Queensland  Ecuador By November 15th Queensland members have raised over $3700 for conservation of the Yellow  Noticeboard and activities Chat and the Eungella Honeyeater. BirdLife Northern Queensland

From the Convenor

By the time you read this, we will have finished a pretty busy and exhausting pre-wet (spring) season – what with Twitchathons, crane counts, Yourka surveys, wader counts, backyard bird counts, Tully Gorge and Palmer River outings, Sticky Beaks adventures – the list goes on. And there is still time to get involved in the Torresian Imperial Pigeon (or PIP) counts, bowerbird bower searches, and more Sticky Beak ventures. And doing all these counts have just been made so much easier with the new BirdLife Birdata Your BirdLife Northern Queensland mobile app. Instead of carrying around paper/pencil, GPS, recording gear, etc. – you need only have your Committee in action. smart phone, which can do all those jobs from your pocket! As well of course of being able to check out The BirdLife Northern Queensland AGM will be held that mysterious bird call with your Morecombe or in March next year. Don’t forget to mark the date in Pizzey & Knight app. How did we ever do birding in your calendar, and consider nominating for a the old days ?!! If you haven’t tried out the new position. Birdata mobile app – have a look at it now. Just go to Committee Name Contact details Birdata –Birdata.birdlife.org.au and start counting! You will be helping BirdLife keep track of what is Convenor and Kath Shurcliff Email happening with our birds through the Index of Cape York Area [email protected] Australian Birds. Coordinator and phone: 07 4069 6595 Speaking of counting - we have been invited by the Deputy Convenor Martin Willis Email: [email protected] Queensland Department of Environment to undertake and phone: 07 40966581 bird surveys at Springvale station, which is just east of Secretary Renee Cassels Email: Lakeland. Further details are on page 8 of this [email protected] newsletter. Hope to see some of you along on these surveys to document our birds in this little known part Treasurer Wendy Cooper Email of the Cape York/Wet Tropics regions. [email protected] and phone: 07 40968272 Our waders are taking centre stage again. Cairns was host to a multi-national delegation from countries Cairns Area Tom Collis Email: [email protected] involved in the agreements on migratory shorebirds. Coordinator and mobile phone: 0401783795 As members of the BirdLife Northern Queensland Conservation Peter Valentine Email: committee, we were invited to meet these delegates Coordinator and [email protected] and and take them on a guided tour of the Cairns Tablelands Area phone: 07 40966171 Esplanade. It was a great pleasure to be able to talk Coordinator shorebird conservation with them, and to find out what they have been doing in their own countries to deal Stickybeak Golo Maurer Email: with the declines of shorebirds in our flyways. We Coordinator [email protected] were able to host a presentation by Chris Purnell of IBA Coordinator Graham Email: [email protected] BirdLife Australia to share some of their experiences Harrington and phone: 07 40965051 with our members. They are truly an inspirational group of people, and we are lucky to have such Members Sam Willis Email: [email protected] dedicated conservationists as our neighbours. Coordinator and phone: 07 40966581 The year is drawing to a close, and your committee is Crane Count Virginia retiring busily planning a calendar of events for the first part of Coordinator Simmonds next year. If you have any suggestions for outings, Website Manager Mikey Kudo Email: [email protected] and evening presentations, workshops, members’ mobile phone: 0402343610 meetings, please let one of your committee members know – their contact details are provided in this Newsletter Editor Ceri Pearce Email newsletter. and Cassowary [email protected] Coast Area m and mobile phone: Good Birding all, Coordinator 0488131581

Kath Shurcliff, Convenor

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Fossicking for Birds on the River of Gold.

In 1872, William Hann led a Queensland Government sponsored expedition to travel as far north as the 14th parallel to ascertain the character of the country, with a view to future settlement. They found small amounts of alluvial gold in a river he named the Palmer, but Hann dismissed it in his report as ‘unpayable’. This was scoffed at by experienced prospectors. “What do a mob of cattlemen like Hann and his mates know?” they asked each other. Thus, James Venture Mulligan and 5 chums left the Lynette and the gals having a laugh while birding Etheridge, and reached the Palmer River on 29th of You may wonder why I’m giving you this history June 1873 at what is known as Palmerville today. lesson. Well, one of our members, the colourful They found ‘payable’ gold and took back to Lynette Ensor lives at historic Byerstown and wanted Georgetown 102 ounces to report the find. The rush to show us over the Labor Day long weekend, all the was on. The Etheridge field was deserted by diggers wonderful birds she has on her local patch. Fourteen following Mulligan’s tracks north. Meanwhile the birders, keen to discover new territory, mustered at steamer Leichhardt chuffed into the Endeavour River the Palmer River Roadhouse on the Friday evening. bringing a complete set of government staff and We were instructed to meet her at the Bonny Glen police, plus its first mob of diggers who made camp at station turn off at 6.30 am the following day. This we what became known as Cook’s Town. The did. We birded all the way down to her place seeing Government engineer was responsible for finding a quite a few Bustards and displaying Pipits in the road to the diggings. The exhausted party arrived on grasslands. At Lynette’s abode overlooking a huge the 14th November 1873 after travelling about 160 dam, we met her partner and ex-prospector Chris. He miles over rough, rugged terrain and being harassed built the house from local timber 36 years ago and is by ‘cannibals’ all the way. quite content living in such isolation. All us lot The Palmer River area eventually became a living mass descending on him must have scared him somewhat, of men, and in July 1874 the HQ was moved from but he offered generous hospitality nonetheless. We Palmerville to a more central position at what is now took off for a bird stroll around the old town common known as Maytown. By the end of 1875 it is estimated and were delighted to see a good selection of bush that fifteen thousand diggers were on the field, ten birds, even though not much was in flower or fruit. thousand of these were Chinese who carefully worked We then headed back to Chris and Lynette’s tranquil the old ground Europeans had abandoned when they place for homemade pikelets at smoko. moved into the upper reaches of the Palmer, where a After refreshments, we went down into the Palmer big camp had grown up on the new, shorter track to River bed to see what was about. We added numerous the coast. This camp came to be known as Byerstown, honeyeaters to our list on the flowering trees, and after Johnny Byers opened a butcher’s shop there. In some feral Indian Peafowls that have been in the area 1877 Mulligan found a ‘payable goldfield for reefing’ on for decades. We returned to Lynette’s place, where we the Hodgkinson River, which caused a stampede relaxed over a leisurely lunch, watching numerous among the Palmer European diggers, leaving the waterbirds on the dam. We then retired back to the Chinese to occupy the deserted ground. By the end of campground at the roadhouse to escape the heat of the 1870’s the Palmer’s alluvial gold deposits had been the day. That evening we joined the locals in their worked out, leaving only a few European fossickers traditional Saturday night BBQ. Wow what a veritable and a few Chinese scratching a meagre living. It was feast and all for $10 per head! estimated that about a million ounces of gold had been recovered from the Palmer and the Chinese had Sunday morning Lynette took us all down to the Little smuggled out the same amount again. All the old Palmer River on Bonny Glen Station. We had a lovely diggers drifted away leaving only the reef miners to it, walk along its course, with a highlight being a Tawny and Mulligan bought the Mount Molloy pub where he Frogmouth viewed by all. After further refreshing met his end in a brawl whilst defending a woman’s ourselves at her abode, we returned back down into honour. the Palmer River to see if we could find the Shining Flycatcher some of us had glimpsed the day before.

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No such luck, but we enjoyed our picnic lunch in a shady spot in the river bed. That evening we had pre- dinner bubbly to celebrate Pippy’s birthday. A quite jolly convivial affair after a pleasant day’s birding. Monday we all strolled down into the Palmer River adjacent to the roadhouse, and the old crossing. It was quite birdy with a few patches of water even large enough for ducks and herons. After the obligatory photo shot, we all had to reluctantly return back to our camp to pack up, have brunch and depart in our various directions. In all we saw about 80 species of birds over the weekend, caught up with old friends and made new The Fossickers in the Palmer River ones. Thanks Lynette for your hospitality and showing us your historic neck of the woods. Much appreciated!! TTFN - Davo Houghton

Eight Birders in Search of a Quail-thrush!

Yourka turned out to be a moveable feast this year but eventually eight members enjoyed themselves 29 October - 1 November. We surveyed all thirty plots AND searched a promising hillside for the ”Ravenshoe” Quail-thrush. No luck on this bird unfortunately but if you want to know more try Lloyd Neilson’s new book* (see below). Probably the most interesting bird seen was a possible Yellow-tinted Honeyeater but again Lloyd’s book describes several new morphs in this area, which make it difficult for a definite ID. Spotlighting at Cameron’s Creek produced three Greater Gliders and a small army of Brushtail Possums. One brave soul swam in The Gorge to enthusiastic applause. Leanne Hales did us proud with a scrummy meal on the Friday. Participants were Ceinwen Edwards, Yu Ota, Tony Jurgensen, Harry Cassidy and welcome newcomers Judy Chappell, Bev Fothergill & Euan Fothergill *Birds of the Wet Tropics and Great Barrier, Reef and where to find them by Lloyd Nielsen. Graham Harrington

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The JAMBA-CAMBA- ROKAMBA afternoon on the Cairns Esplanade.

Several Birdlife NQ members acted as guides for visitors on the Esplanade recently. Armed with binoculars and spotting scopes they showed visiting delegates some of the shorebirds along the Cairns Esplanade. The visitors were in Cairns for a conference called 2016 Bilateral Migratory Bird Agreement Consultative Meetings between the Governments of Australia, Japan, China and the Republic of Korea. The local Birdlife guides (Kath, Mikey, Tom, Peter, Delegates viewing waders from the Cairns Esplanade Andy and Norton) met the delegates at the Pacific boardwalk were amazed at how close the birds were. International Hotel and walked them north along the Esplanade to a suitable viewing area to see waders. Golo Maurer (Birdlife NQ) organised the Esplanade walk as one of the Conference Activities on the afternoon of the first day. This way the delegates could see some migratory shorebirds and we could talk about some local issues as well. The activity was planned for the end of the day’s proceedings and fortunately, it also coincided with a perfect tide for viewing the birds. The visitors were treated to great views of a couple of large flocks consisting mainly of Great Knot but also including Bar-tailed Godwits, Black-tailed Godwits, Curlew Sandpipers, Greater Sandplovers and Eastern Curlew. A Black fronted Dotterel also impressed visitors as it was quite close to the boardwalk. Black-tailed Godwit The incoming tide pushed the shorebirds closer to the shore and the visitors were impressed with the close proximity of the normally wary birds with humans. Eventually when the tide got too high, the shorebirds flew off to roost somewhere and right on cue a flock of a dozen or so low flying Australian Pelicans landed in their place. Later in the week, Chris Purnell from Birdlife Australia gave an interesting presentation on the ‘East Asian– Australian Flyway at the Stratford Library Meeting room. It was well supported with about 36 people attending.

JAMBA = Japan Australia Migratory Bird Agreement

CAMBA = China Australia Migratory Bird Agreement Delegates, still excitedly viewing waders from the viewing ROKAMBA = Republic of Korea Australia Migratory Bird platform as the tide came in. Agreement

Article and images by Cairns Area Coordinator – Tom Collis

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behind the natural beach. Every time it rains the water rushing down the pipes picks up sand and relocates it over the mud flat. If the pipes were delivering their water load beyond the beach then the water would simply flow over the mudflats and no sand would be involved. One solution would be to simply extend each of the pipes. We remain hopeful that the full report will be released by Council (no reason why not) and also that Council will reveal its plans for the mudflats, beaches and sand movement including relocating or additions, at the proposed meeting in November. Paul is chairing a small working party to advance this matter and I represent Birdlife on the group. I will keep everyone Can you spot the Godwit? Image by Tom Collis. posted. It is hoped that Cairns Regional Council will release the Nott Report for the meeting and that Queensland and Commonwealth Environment Departments may send Update on Cairns representatives. The purpose of the meeting is to better understand what the CRC want to do and to Esplanade. allow a program of recovery and better protection of the wader habitat to be instigated. It is interesting that a meeting of countries involved An active program led by Birdlife NQ member Paul Fisk with wader related bilateral agreements (Japan, China, is continuing the process of clarification and solutions Korea and Australia) recently met in Cairns for to the problem of sand deposits on the Esplanade mud discussions and as part of the exercise members of flats. Recently we had a meeting at CAFNEC to hear Birdlife NQ (led by Tom Collis) helped show the visitors from Professor Jon Nott about his recent study for the some of our mudflat waders. This was much Cairns Council. It is clear from Jon's study (already appreciated by the participants and helped delivered to the Council) that there is much demonstrate the high international awareness of this misinformation about the esplanade mud flats. A small amazing asset. Even so, the sand accumulation at the working party will be trying to arrange a public southern end is enabling children and dogs access to meeting (with CRC involvement) in November and in the shoreline and in the process disturbing feeding and the lead up to that meeting to generate more public roosting waders. It is this recent development that awareness about the issues. needs reversing. In a nutshell, Professor Nott pointed out that the Report by Peter Valentine, Conservation Officer and embayment processes reflect a typical low energy Tablelands Area Coordinator tropical coast. There is very limited onshore-offshore mobility and the processes are tide dominated. Sand movement (at least for the southern end) is principally from north to south with sand being relocated towards the southern end. The natural beach is confined to the inshore strip (very narrow) and abruptly adjacent to the mud flat. Claims that the "mudflat" was originally sand are erroneous - for at least 100 years the mudflat has been a mudflat so there is no "original sandy beach" scenario that accords with the facts. It is true that the plain behind is a sand ridge plain (created by tidal and wave action, not wind action) with ridges developed periodically due to cyclone activity leading to overtopping and redistribution of sand in a landward direction. But this is infrequent and the remaining periods are strictly tide controlled.

How has sand become dispersed seaward from the Bar-tailed Godwit. Image courtesy of Tom Collis. natural beach? Professor Nott said that this is a result of the many drainage pipes that drain water from the land to the sea being too short with their openings

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Lama Lama Junior Rangers Bird Workshop.

Kath got word that the Lama Lama people on Cape York wanted to run a bird workshop for their junior rangers. They were looking for a BirdLife person to facilitate it at short notice because their regular ‘birdman’ was unavailable. Kath answered the clarion call and volunteered her services and learned that the event was to be hosted by Sue and Gary at the Lotusbird Lodge near Musgrave. We already knew that the Lama Lama peoples country incorporated Silver Plains (Maramba), Port Stewart (Yintjingga) and Marina Plains (Rindoparr). Quite a diverse range of habitats and home to the endangered Red Goshawk and Little Terns. Saturday morning, 22nd October we got introduced to 14 shy young rangers, ranging in age from 5 to 11 years old and their co-ordinator Alison Liddy with two lovely elders to take care of their charges. Most wore their colourful team shirts, which depicted a Little Tern on the back and a Sea Eagle on the sleeve. Kath led a They had a quiet confidence in themselves and showed discussion on what makes birds so special and how strong pride in their culture. They had a lot of and where to find them. They asked some really enthusiasm for the birds - it should auger well for interesting questions as kids do, and it was apparent looking after their country in years to come! that they already knew a lot about birds. We are so fortunate to have the opportunity to assist They were all issued with binoculars and we took off these young rangers, and we also learned as much for a bird walk. Gary found two Papuan Frogmouths to from them as they did from us. enthral the youngsters as they took turns to view them Dave Houghton and Kath Shurcliff through the scope. We also saw a Figbird in a ‘see- through’ nest and a Black-backed Butcherbird on its more well-constructed nest. In the afternoon the young rangers split up into small groups, each group having an iPad, where they recorded all the bird species on the lagoon, for inclusion on the Lama Lama country database. The lagoon birds included Brolga, Magpie Geese, Green- Birds are backed Pygmy Geese, Wandering Whistle-ducks, Radjah Shelducks, Pacific Black Ducks, Comb-crested in our Jacanas, Royal Spoonbills, Greater, Intermediate and Cattle Egrets, Darter, etc. etc. And the young rangers nature took photos of the birds and the habitats. all of which are now included in their country database. Like so many youngsters these days, they are very ‘tech- savvy’ and eagerly completed their records. They then reported back to us telling us very succinctly and professionally what they had recorded.

We were impressed by the way they conducted themselves - such a bright, well-mannered, polite bunch of youngsters you could ever wish to meet.

November-December2016 7 BirdLife Northern Queensland

Springvale Station Bird Surveys

You may have read that earlier this year, the Queensland government purchased Springvale Station just east of Lakeland, in an attempt to deal with the erosion that was ending up on the Great Barrier Reef. The property is now being managed by the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection, and they have approached us, BirdLife Northern Queensland, to undertake bird surveys there. They would like to document the biodiversity of the property, as currently there is limited information available on it. The property is at the junction of the Cape York, Wet Tropics and Einasleigh Uplands Baillon's Crake bioregions, and has more than 50 regional ecosystems. The West and East Normanby Rivers run through it as well. I thought I would send these shots of a Baillon's Our task will be to find out what birds are there, and Crake, which I took in Mount Isa, a couple of days ago. we will make a special effort to search for Red The unusual part, is of the Crake, perching on the Goshawks, as well as some other Cape York barbed wire fence, which I didn't think they would do. specialties. We will be using the BirdLife standard I got quite a few shots of it, in its natural environment. methods of 2ha, 20 minute surveys, and 500m Then I must have disturbed it, as it flew from the searches, and we will provide training in how to use wetland, onto the fence. I was fortunate to get a few these methods. The first surveys will be undertaken shots of it on the fence also. I wonder, if others have 15-20 November, before the rains start. We will be seen them fence sitting. At least, one can get a good camping away from the homestead for this first survey view of their feet here. period. We will also endeavour to complete more Article and images courtesy of Rex Whitehead. surveys before the end of this year, and early next year, rain dependent. If you are interested in participating during November, or at some later point, please contact Kath Shurcliff at email:[email protected], or phone: 4069 6595, mobile: 0478 64 1987, for further details.

One of the Cape York specialties we will be searching for on Springvale – Black-backed Butcherbird

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- and a celebratory glass of champagne. It was a fun The National day and Val agreed she would try again next year. We managed 118 species in the day which is an easy Twitchathon target to try and beat next time! Luckily we managed to see a pair of Sarus Crane and a pair of Brolga at odd sites in the day - that might have been an There were a few north Queensland teams involved embarrassing dip. with the National Twitchathon and we all helped We also decided to enter the Birdathon. This was the Queensland raise funds for bird conservation projects. race requiring not more than three hours spread This year the targets are the Yellow Chat and the through the day. North Queensland had a few entries Eungella Honeyeater. including Cassie Vogelmann team with Golo Maurer Options for the event included a 24 hour race; the and the Four Thicknees team from Innisfail. We made Champagne 12 hour race and then the Birdathon that our challenge slightly complicated by embedding this required 3 separate hours within a 24 hour period. A event within the 12 hour event. The rules allow it but it north Queensland team (007 Silvereye) has taken out meant keeping careful records so we could note birds the best Queensland effort with 180 species in the 24 for both events during the three hours we chose. We hour race. Well done although only one bird ahead of uses the first hour (6-7 am) then we used our wader the Wing Dings. time also (10-11 am) and finally the last hour (5-6 pm). We ended up with 67 species for the Birdathon. In the Champagne event (popular amongst hedonistas) the winner was southern Queensland’s Best prize for team name has to go to the Four Thick Sheena Gillman and her team of Spare me a Dollar Knees - Ceri and Sandra from Innisfail. Bird. They did brilliantly to score 137 species in the 12 The total funds raised is not yet clear but members hours but are likely to be pipped in the National can still donate if they wish. I would like to thank our competition. The Courting Bowerbirds team of Val and sponsors very much and we look forward to next year I competed in this event (as novices) and had a great for another event. We felt that we failed to create a time but fell short of aspirations. We recorded a total sufficiently strategic plan for the day and we made a of 118 species but because we missed so many few silly mistakes. Next time I think we need fewer relatively easy species we should have done much “dead” driving time and more time on the ground better. We started at home (in Malanda) where the birding. There were a lot of birds we should have seen. familiar dawn chorus got us many rainforest species Well worth others having a go next year. without a lot of travel - but dipped on Bridled Honeyeater for some reason and no scrubwrens. Our Peter and Val Valentine (AKA the Courting Bowerbirds). plan took us down the range to pick up waders at the Esplanade (via Lake Eacham for Great Crested Grebe to give us 36 species in the first hour). On the way, we ticked a Pacific Golden Plover at France Road turf farm (just one). Bad timing for the tide (it was too full) meant we had to fill in time at Centennial Lakes (Radjah Shelduck central) and risk sandfly bites for Mangrove Robins at the north end of the Esplanade. We finally had enough mudflat exposure to get most of the easy waders but dipped on Eastern Curlew and Common Greenshank. We were now behind time so missed Cattana Wetlands and had a relatively dead period driving north. A few incidentals helped and as we had missed Metallic Starling in Cairns we picked them up in Mossman at the nest site on the highway. The Courting Bowerbirds in action. Then up the range and having to cancel Mt Lewis because of time had lunch at Abattoir Swamp with lots of honeyeaters. Mt Molloy gave us reliable Great Bowerbird and Red-winged Parrot and then we stocked up on wetland species at Lake Mitchell, including Black Contact us: BirdLife Northern Swan and Green Pygmy Goose. More driving took us to Queensland Committee Springvale Road for Herberton Honeyeaters and a few Email: [email protected] others but not as many as usual. Hasties Swamp had www.birdlifenq.org been very limited so the end of the day left us well short of our target. Our final bird was enjoyed back at our home with the local Large-billed Scrubwren family

November-December2016 9 BirdLife Northern Queensland

Late season trip to Karumba

On the 16th September, Doug Herrington and I left on a trip to Karumba. At Warruma swamp near Mt.Garnett there were a few Cotton Pygmy Geese and a fair mix of water birds. A pair of Sea Eagles had a fledgling in a nest on the far side. The creeks were looking dry and this proved to be the norm all the way to and including Karumba.

Camp was in Georgetown that night and under a full moon, a Pied Butcher bird serenaded from 11pm until Double-barred Finch 5am. Image courtesy of Ceri Pearce

There were a few Black-throated Finch at the Racecourse in the morning. Also Chestnut-breasted Mannikin and Double barred Finch. We only saw Black- The Australian Bird faced Wood Swallows and one Singing Bush-Lark. Between Normanton and Karumba, there were 100's of Feeding and Watering Brolgas and a few Sarus Crane on the plain. As I said, the wetlands around Karumba were few and far Study. between. The boat trip yielded Red-headed Honeyeater, White- This is a citizen science initiative being undertaken by breasted Whistler (both male and female displaying), researchers at Deakin University and Griffith University Mangrove Fantail, Mangrove Gerygone, Yellow White- Little is known about which bird species are attracted eye and 12 Terek sandpipers in a flock on the bank. to bird baths and why people like to feed birds. The At the Airport area, there were a few Waders, just in researchers aim to investigate which species use bird one spot on the beach but all the Mangroves there feeders and baths and how our behaviours and garden were dead. habits may impact or influence the birds that visit. They are also interested in the motivations, There were many Rufous-throated Honeyeaters and a perceptions and actions of people who provide food few White-throated Greygones, plus Variegated Fairy and water for birds and hope to understand more Wrens on the flowering mangroves on the cross town about this important human-wildlife connection. walk. A Hobby buzzed by. Are you interested in participating? On the return trip, a Black-breasted Buzzard was aloft before Cumberland Dam which was the nights camp. Summer 2017 Survey Dates are: Spotlighting only revealed one flying Barn Owl in an  Survey Week 1: Monday 30th Jan - Sunday 5th hours drive. February In the morning there were a few Masked Finch nest  Survey Week 2: Monday 6th - Sunday 12th February building in low grass tussocks. I will be checking the wetland levels on any future trips but we still enjoyed  Survey Week 3: Monday 13th - Sunday 19th February it.  Survey Week 4: Monday 20th - Sunday 26th February Graham Snell Go to https://csdb.org.au/feedingbirds/home.aspx to register BIRD LISTS Research papers produced: Avian Assemblages at Bird Baths: A Comparison of Urban and Rural Bird Baths in Australia at Did you know BirdLife Northern Queensland has http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2 produced birding guides for a variety of locations in Fjournal.pone.0150899 Northern Queensland. You can download them and print them for personal use. Keeping it clean: bird bath hygiene in urban and rural areas at Go to: http://birdlifenq.org/brochures.htm http://jue.oxfordjournals.org/content/2/1/juw005

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Beyond borders. Why we need global What’s in the news? action to protect migratory birds.  Habitat loss, invasive species, pollution and CHECK OUT THESE WEBSITES FOR collisions with buildings and other structures are taking heavy tolls on many species. THE DETAILS Everything we learn about how widely migratory birds range around the globe underlines the need for coordinated Birds, bees and bugs:- Your garden is an international action to protect birds across ecosystem and it needs looking after. borders.  Ecologically, a garden is another jigsaw piece in  https://theconversation.com/beyond-borders- the landscape. How does yours shape up? why-we-need-global-action-to-protect- migratory-birds-62070  https://theconversation.com/birds-bees-and- bugs-your-garden-is-an-ecosystem-and-it- Cracked it! A 30-year cold case involving needs-looking-after-65226 an egg and the mysterious Night Parrot Bath bullies, bacteria and battlegrounds:-  It’s an ex-parrot egg now! Woops, have I blown the secret world of bird baths. the punch line.  Bird baths are a familiar sight in Australian  https://theconversation.com/cracked-it-a-30- gardens but surprisingly little is known about year-cold-case-involving-an-egg-and-the- the precise role they play in the lives of birds. mysterious-night-parrot-66846 The Bathing bird’s study is filling in the knowledge gaps. The world’s biggest cuckoos once roamed the Nullarbor Plain  https://theconversation.com/bath-bullies- bacteria-and-battlegrounds-the-secret-world-  Imagine a Coucal-like bird, half a metre tall from of-bird-baths-65629 the Pleistocene epoch, 2.5 million to 11,700 years ago! How song birds island hopped their way from Australia to colonise the world!  https://theconversation.com/the-worlds-biggest- cuckoos-once-roamed-the-nullarbor-plain-  The songbirds that are common in gardens all 54050 across the world have a surprisingly distant

origin. They all evolved from a common ancestor that emerged from what is now Australia around 24 million years ago.  https://theconversation.com/how-songbirds- island-hopped-their-way-from-australia-to- colonise-the-world-64616 Bird-brained and brilliant. Australian avians are smarter than you think.  Australian birds are arguably among the Join us on Facebook smartest in the world. Some display complex behaviours such as problem solving, learning and tool use comparable to behaviours observed in great apes.  https://theconversation.com/bird-brained-and- brilliant-australias-avians-are-smarter-than- you-think-51475

November-December2016 11 BirdLife Northern Queensland

Situated 1½ hrs north of Cairns in Tropical North Queensland we offer accommodation in self- contained units – – single or two bedroom – and bunkhouse rooms. The property is a rainforest wildlife sanctuary catering for birdwatchers and naturalists. We are central to a variety of habitats and provide

bird species lists, area maps and Wi-Fi internet access. Guiding is available by arrangement. We offer packages for individuals and small groups. Carol and Andrew Iles

RN6, Mt. Kooyong Road

Julatten QLD 4871

Ph: (07) 4094 1263 Email: [email protected]

www.birdwatchers.com.au

12 Contact Call. Volume 5 Number 4 BirdLife Northern Queensland

Ecuador

Ecuador has over 1620 bird species, excluding the Galapagos Islands, in an area that is a sixth the size of Queensland. Mind boggling! Is birding in Ecuador on your bucket list? Well it was certainly a dream destination on mine. I never expected that I would actually go there,and yet I did, last month. Life is full of surprises!

I have never been to South America before! The bird I White-necked Jacobin most wanted to see was a hummingbird. It only took me a day or so to realise that many Ecuadorian bird species and their names are extremely different to ours, and identification was going to be very difficult for a novice. With little time for preplanning, and less than a week for birding, the following is what I managed during my short visit. I stayed for 5 days at Casa Divina Lodge at Mindo, which I highly recommend. The lodge arranged to pick me up from my hotel in Quito, and dropped me off at the airport for my long journey home. The lodge is an internationally certified sustainable business, run by Efrain Toapanta and his partner Molly, Bay-headed Tanager who promote economically and environmentally progressive tourism across the Mindo region. The accommodation is up market. My spacious and stylish room, with ensuite, was upstairs in a large cabin, with a private veranda overlooking the rainforest. The bed was very comfy which was perfect after a long day birding. Excellent meals are provided in a shared dining room overlooking bird feeders in the rainforest, or as hearty packed breakfasts and/or lunches. Which is just as well as we started at 5am most days. The lodge organises bird guides. To pack in as much birding as I could in my limited time, I chose the Choco Birdwatching Package: 5 days/4 nights of guided birdwatching for dedicated bird watchers. Tour Sapphire-vented Puffleg costs included pick up and drop off in Quito, all transport, guide, and the accommodation and meals at Casa Divina (mindocasadivina.com or mindosabinatour.com). My guide was Alex Luna. He spoke excellent English, certainly knew his birds and could get a telescope onto a bird often faster than I could find it in binoculars. He was also very patient. On day one, from Quito, we went to Mindo via Yanococha Reserve. At 3700m, the birds here were different to those I would see at lower elevations during the rest of the tour. We were clouded in, so visibility was challenging. Hummingbird feeders were a feature in the main rest areas. I saw my first hummingbirds and tanagers here, as well as other high Golden-headed Quetzal altitude specialists. November-December2016 13 BirdLife Northern Queensland

Day two was spent birding around the lodge and the local Mindo area. I saw four different kinds of Toucans (Choco Toucan, Chestnut-billed Toucan, Collared or Pale-mandibled Aracari and Crimson-rumped Toucanette) from the deck above the dining room of the lodge! This deck proved to be a wonderful place to relax and just have the birds come to you, especially to photograph. I saw my first Golden-headed Quetzals here feeding in a giant fruiting rainforest tree with the

Toucans. We hiked for most of the morning just along Collared or Pale-mandibled Aracari local roads, from 1400m to around 1200m elevation sighting many more species. Had a fantastic view of a Barred Hawk. Spotlighting that night proved challenging, but persistence by Efrain paid off, with one Black and White Owl seen. On day three we drove to Rio Silanche Reserve, about 90 mins from Mindo. The 40Ha site of remanent rainforest is a private reserve with a canopy tower. The idea is to get there early and watch the bird waves come through, which we did. Chogon Trogon would Ochre-breasted Antpitta have to be my bird of the day, though the list of colourful and iridescent tanagers also seen dramatically increased. I swear, in my limited experience, no country does colourful and iridescent birds like Ecuador. Paz de Las Aves Reserve was the early morning destination on day four, to see a Cock-of-the-Rock lek, as well as Giant, Yellow-breasted, Ochre-breasted, Moustached and Chestnut-crowned Antpittas. After a late brunch watching more hummingbirds of course, we drove to Oilbird Cave to see Oilbirds, which are rather weird looking frogmouth-like, rufous-brown birds, which used to be hunted for their oil. Giant Antpitta Finally, day five came too soon. Another very early start to drive to Umbrella Bird Reserve, to see Long Wattled Umbrella Birds-which have the longest wattles I have ever seen, up to 45 cm long. Jaw dropping! All up, I managed to see 209 new species while on the tour, including 27 species of hummingbirds, 26 species of tanagers, 6 types of woodpeckers, 3 species of guan and so the list goes on. I still cannot believe how many hummingbirds I actually did see.

A short stay in Guayaguil added a further 19 bird Oilbird species to my Ecuador list.My head still spins with the diversity, the colours and shapes, but mostly from their weird names, from grassquits to saltators and becards to motmots! There are still many more bird species for me to see in the Mindo Ecuadorian Andean Choco Corridor alone, not to mention the rest of Ecuador and beyond. I will have to be content with daydreaming again, until the next opportunity suddenly and unexpectedly presents itself. Special thanks to Molly, Efrain and Leslie at Casa Divina for their exceptional hospitality and Alex Luna for simply great days out bird watching.

Article and images by Ceri Pearce. My suite was upstairs in this cabin at Casa Divina Lodge

14 Contact Call. Volume 5 Number 4 BirdLife Northern Queensland

Noticeboard Activities

Check out the BirdLife Northern Queensland activities From the Editor lined up for the rest of 2016 in the event calendar. Please do come and join us. You do not have to be a A VERY BIG thank you to all our contributors to this BirdLife member or an expert birder. Most of us are issue of Contact Call, and for your continued support still learning and keen to share the fun. Everybody is throughout the year. welcome. Please email 2017s images, articles, observations, For more information about an event, contact the activity and trip reports and reviews to leader listed or check the website or details: [email protected] http://birdlifenq.org/, or join us on Facebook Newsletter deadlines for 2017

 January 15th for the March Edition

 April 10th for the May/June Edition  July 10th for the September Edition  October 10th for the December Edition

Please note, if you have requested to receive printed newsletters from BirdLife Australia, these are usually posted out with the Australian BirdLife Magazine. The electronic version of Contact Call is available earlier, via email or on our web site, usually in February, May, Join us on Facebook August and November/December each year.

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November-December2016 15 BirdLife Northern Queensland

What is on in FNQ in the rest of 2016?

Date Time Locality Meeting place and other information Contact the leader

2016 Synchronised PIP Count If you cannot participate on November 19th, Saturday Julia Hazel Any coastal don’t despair, you can do a PIP count on any 19th 4-6pm [email protected] or area afternoon November to January, and the more November text/phone: 0407 431 382 you can do, the better. Counts repeated at the same place each year are also valuable. Thursday, PIP count Meet at northern end Walker Bay car Kath at Walker Bay, 24th 3.30pm park We will count PIPs until 6pm and then have [email protected] or Cooktown November BBQ at Kath and Dave’s place afterwards. phone 4069 6595 for details Meet at https://www.facebook.com/gro Kuranda BirdLife Australia Sticky Beaks Family Group Saturday ups/362094987191145/events/ 7:30 hrs - Envirocare Tree-planting with Kuranda Envirocare 26th RSVP to Golo : Mobile 0467 444 9:30 hrs Nursery 284 Bring sturdy shoes long pants, water and a hat, November 114 or Email Myola Rd, Morning Tea provided.+ [email protected] Kuranda Talk by Julia Hazel: "Pied Imperial Pigeons: What happens when island specialist birds become urban pioneers?" The evening will start with the short documentary “Coming of the White Birds” about 50 years of conservation effort to protect Torres Strait Pigeons after breeding colonies were decimated Cominos by intensive shooting. Then Julia Hazel will talk House, 27 about ongoing studies of these birds, now known Saturday Greenslopes as Torresian/Pied Imperial Pigeons, including a Tom Collis 0401 783 795 or 26th 7.30pm St, Edge study of the unprecedented dense nesting [email protected] November Hill, Cairns aggregations in Cairns over recent years. She will share the unexpected results, the efforts to discover what might have prompted these birds to experiment with urban living, and what was happening concurrently at island breeding colonies. There will be time for discussion, especially seeking feedback from Birdlife members and friends about future directions for research. PIP count Meet at Weary Bay windy-loo car Kath Shurcliff Email: Tuesday Weary Bay, park Last year we counted over 10,000 birds [email protected] 29th 3.30pm Ayton travelling back to Hope Islands, so we need some and phone: 07 4069 6595 November /Bloomfield more counters for what will be a busy evening! http://BirdLife.org.au/get- 3–4th All areas Challenge Count involved/whats-on/challenge- December count/ Birdlife NQ Members Christmas Party (Please note that the date has been changed) RSVP essential Thursday 8th RSVP by 1/12/16 to 129 Figtree Close - Malanda (Sam and Martin December 4.30pm Malanda [email protected] or Willis’s House - plenty of birds to see). 40966581 BYO Drinks and a plate to share/ BBQ facilities available Look forward to seeing you all there.

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