The BLSH Flyer

The BLSH flyer Volume 6 Number 3, August 2017 Silvereye by Erna Llenore Hybrid Musk Lorikeet taken at Yowie Bay NSW Photo by Anthony Katon. Contents From the President ..................................................................................................Page 2 Lake Alexandra Reserve Walk ..................................................................................Page 3 Liaison Officer’s Report ....................................................................................... Pages 4-6 Kell’s Creek/Box Vale Track Outing ............................................................................Page 7 Picton Weir Outing ...................................................................................................Page 8 Visit to North Thailand ...................................................................................... Pages 9-13 Charleston Dam Outing .......................................................................................... Page 14 A Little Help Needed .............................................................................................. Page 14 Bungonia National Park Outing ................................................................................ Page 15 Trip to the Farne Islands ........................................................................................ Page 16 Research Abstract ................................................................................................. Page 16 Worth Viewing ...................................................................................................... Page 17 Lake Nerrigorang Outing ........................................................................................ Page 18 Members Photography .....................................................................................Pages 19-21 August 2017 From the President Christine Kelly S ome winter treasures have been sighted by our keen members who have been out and about during this most recent spell of cold weather. In this newsletter, we will again be entertained by the interesting reports of the recent club outings. Even in the cold and windy Highlands our fearless members are out and about looking for elusive wintering birds. Thank you to all the leaders who have contributed to this edition. Whilst out looking during the cooler months it is increasingly difficult to find even the most common of the smaller species. In fact, a very well received theory is that many of our endemic species “fly north for the winter”. This is not always correct. Most of the local birds are still able to be found in the local birding area but they are slightly more difficult to identify as they tend not to call as much and are often not as active while the weather is cold, only becoming more active and vocal as the weather begins to improve. In the Highlands during the cooler months members have reported seeing White Headed Pigeons, Straw-necked Ibis in large numbers, along with large flocks of Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos. Our Li- ason Officer, Col, appreciates all reports of unusual sightings in and around the Highlands. Please contact him on [email protected] to report your sightings. Many of us already provide a suitable, protected habitat for our native species. By ensuring that there are native plantings and regular fresh water for the birds that visit our gardens we are already con- tributing to a safe habitat but is there more that we could be doing? On 23 May Ms Jenny Schabel addressed our members about her work with the Local Land Services providing Hollows for Habitat. Simply put, this means instead of removing trees that appear to be dead and worthless from many public areas, including parks, we can, with the help of experienced people, modify these trees to provide a protected habitat for birds and mammals. The success of the Swift parrot project in Tasmania is a testament to this idea. Jenny illustrated her talk with slides of arborists using a variety of techniques to provide nesting places for our native species. In some cases, the arborists attached purpose built boxes to trees in local parks. In other cases, they were able to skilfully, using chainsaws, prepare nesting places which replicated hollows that could be found in trees. All of these nesting spots were then able to be monitored to gauge their success. Many of these techniques can be replicated in suburban back yards to provide refuge for birds and animals. There are many plans available on the internet for building boxes suitable for a variety of local birds and mammals. These can be built by any handy person. http:// www.birdsinbackyards.net/Nest-Box-Plans The week following our meeting with Jenny, Wingecarribee Council held a nesting box workshop at Mansfield Park. Some of our members were able to attend that workshop. Nesting boxes have been installed in the park area to be monitored by Council staff and volunteers. Nest- ing boxes have also been installed on trees along the Bong Bong Cycle path which can easily been seen as you walk along the pathway. Our special thanks to Jenny for sharing her time and expertise with our group. A special welcome to all the new members since our last newsletter. I have had the pleasure of meeting some of you at a recent outing and I look forward to meeting all new members soon. Jenny Schabel speaking to members and guests By Erna Llenore August 2017 2 Lake Alexandra Reserve Walk, behind the Mit- tagong Pool and Recreation Centre Walk organiser Helen Erskine reports 19 February 2017. Three intrepid, early morning walkers – Linda, Louise and Christine - joined me after the hailstorms of the previous day and the threat of more rain. A wet walk became increasingly unlikely, fortunately for us! “We few, we happy few!” Once we had all gathered, we headed down the path toward the northwest. There were Kookabur- ras, Grey Butcherbirds and Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos all calling. We also heard some Noisy Min- ers as we left. Along the walk, we saw Magpies, Grey and Rufous Fantails, King Parrots, White-throated and Red- browed Treecreepers, as well as White-eared and Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, Brown and Striated Thornbills. The White-eared honeyeater was first described by From the left: Louise, Helen and Christine trying to English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 as Turdus identify the call. Photo by Linda Hoelle leucotis. It has been reclassified several times. Photo by Helen Erskine Spotted Pardalotes, Eastern Yellow Robins and White-browed Scrubwrens were on the way, which wandered above the creek. There were some sounds we could not identify, but when the sun came out, many birds moved about the sun- ny patch – including Grey Fantails, Rufous Fan- tails, Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, Corellas, a Grey Shrike-thrush and a small group of White- eared Honeyeaters. We stood, enjoying the fren- zy of activity here, until it was time to return to the carpark. 20 species were noted and a Pied Currawong saw us leaving the area. Species list: Laughing Kookaburra, Grey Butcherbird, Noisy Miner, Australian Magpies, Brown Thornbills, East- Eastern Spinebill by Helen Erskine ern Spinebills, Crimson Rosella, White-eared Honeyeaters, Spotted Pardalote, White-throated Treecreeper, Eastern Yellow Robin, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Striated Thornbill, King Parrots, Sul- phur-crested Cockatoos, Rufous Fantails, Grey Fantails, Little Corellas, White-browed Scrubwren, Golden Whistler young, Pied Currawong. (Apologies to Helen. This trip report was overlooked for the last newsletter—Editor) August 2017 3 Liaison Officer’s Report Col Kohlhagen BirdLife Logos and Badges At the 2017 BirdLife Australia Branch Forum, held in Melbourne during the last week of May, the Na- tional Executive devoted a considerable amount of time to stressing the importance of Branches making sure the organisation was “visible” in the community. The profile of BirdLife Southern Highlands has been raised over the years and our branch logo now appears on signage around the area. E.g. interpretative signs at Cecil Hoskins and at the Boardman Road Drainage Ponds. However, individual members can do much by wearing the logo with pride as they are out and about: Bill Plastic Name Badges Smith Embroidered Logo Sew-on Cloth Badges Branch T-Shirts with Branch Logo These are available from Highlands Work Wear at 115 Lackey Road, Mittagong. The Branch adopted Navy Blue, Royal Blue and Green in the Biz Collection as their official style. Embroidered Logos Highlands Work Wear will also embroider the Branch Logo directly onto other items such as shirts, jumpers and spray jackets, provided either by Highlands Work Wear, or pre-purchased from other outlets by the member. This costs about $8.00. Sew-on Cloth Badges For difficult to embroider items such as back packs, binocular cases, the Branch has a supply of cloth badges which can be sewn on my hand or glued in place. They are usually available at Member and Guest Speaker Nights and cost $5.00 Plastic Name Badges August 2017 4 BLSH Bird List One of the earliest publications produced by this group was a bird list for the local area which was put together when we were still operating as a Bird Observation and Conservation Australia [BOCA] branch. Peter Dewey, one of our founding members, compiled a list of potential sightings based on the Bird Atlas of Australia’s one degree grid which took in most of the Wingecarribee Shire and adjoining areas. The Bird Atlas of Australia was first produced in the 1980s and updated by Birds Australia [BA]

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