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Australia: Best of the West with Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures

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Australia: Best of the West with Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures Australia: Best of the West With Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures September 8 – 22, 2017 866.900.1146 800.426.7781 520.558.1146 [email protected] www.naturalistjourneys.com or find us on Facebook at Naturalist Journeys, LLC Naturalist Journeys, LLC / Caligo Ventures PO Box 16545 Portal, AZ 85632 PH: 520.558.1146 / 800.426.7781 Fax 650.471.7667www.naturalistjourneys.com / www.caligo.com [email protected] / [email protected] Australia: Best of the West With Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures All of Australia is incredibly unique, but few have explored its western side. Whether it’s your first trip to see iconic kangaroos and wallabies, or a return to see the other half of the continent, this trip is a winner. We spend our tour looking for birds and mammals in varied and spectacular landscapes as spring emerges. Our journey with local birding and nature experts and guide Greg Smith starts in Australia’s Top End at tropical Darwin, centrally located on Australia’s northern coast. Explore monsoon woodlands and mangrove forests to see the first of many Australian endemics. Indeed, almost half of Australia’s plants and animals are found nowhere else on Earth! Close by is spectacular Kakadu National Park, prized for its contrast of desert and lush wetlands, as well as Aboriginal culture. See the dramatic Arnhem Land Escarpment and discover the flora, fauna, and endemic birds of the region. Witness the return of thousands of Asian shorebirds to Broome, the shorebird capital of Australia. Experience the unique plants and wildlife of the Southwest’s heath scrub and tall eucalyptus forests, including several notable endemics. Join us for an optional post-tour extension to Adelaide’s wine country and museums, followed by a visit to Kangaroo Island to find penguins, numerous nature reserves, and stunning coastal rock formations! If you’re interested in extending (pre- or post-tour) to other areas of Australia, Tasmania, or Daintree for example, we are happy to set that on an independent basis, with lodges and guiding. Tour Highlights • Enjoy a relaxing harbor cruise and onboard lunch accompanied by great birding in tropical Darwin • Explore ancient Aboriginal rock art galleries that are centuries old in Kakadu National Park • Spend four days exploring the remote Kimberley’s rugged landscapes and fascinating wildlife • Take a two-hour flight over the awesome Bungle-Bungles • Immerse yourself in the spectacle of thousands of shorebirds in Broome • Discover the unique habitats of Perth and Australia’s scenic South Coast, ranging from dry scrub to lush Eucalyptus forests; find Jarrah and Karri trees, the tallest flowering plants on Earth • Observe Thrombalites: “rock” formations actually made of colonies of micro-organisms, the oldest living life-form in the world Tour Summary 14-Night / 15-Day Australian Birding & Natural History Tour with Greg Smith & Local Experts $6350 (includes internal flights), from Darwin, departing Perth Arrival Airport is Darwin International (DRW), Departure Airport is Perth International (PER) Naturalist Journeys, LLC / Caligo Ventures PO Box 16545 Portal, AZ 85632 PH: 520.558.1146 / 800.426.7781 Fax 650.471.7667www.naturalistjourneys.com / www.caligo.com [email protected] / [email protected] Australia: Best of the West With Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures Itinerary Fri., Sept. 8 Arrival in Darwin, Australia Today is arrival day! Plan to arrive in Darwin, the capital city of Australia’s Northern Territory, by mid-day. Our recommended flight route is through Melbourne, — a flight that lands at dawn, then connects to an 8:00 AM flight to Darwin, arriving at 11:00 AM. However, if you wish to arrive in Australia early to explore Sydney or other areas, it is easy to get a flight to Darwin to join the group by mid-day. To help us stay awake and change our clocks around, we enjoy a relaxing welcome lunch aboard a Darwin Harbor cruise while catching our first looks at Whiskered Tern, Brown Booby, and White-bellied Sea-Eagle. We then have the remainder of the day to rest up and explore this small, tropical city, where we see our first Australian land birds. The outdoor market in the suburb of Parap is a fascinating mix of a typical Aussie market infused with a heavy dose of Southeast Asian influence. As many are tired from travel and just want a quick bite before bed, dinner is at your leisure at the hotel tonight — room service may be just right! Accommodations: Palms Resort (L) Sat., Sept. 9 Darwin Area We get an early start birding around tropical Darwin and its monsoonal and mangrove forests, but first, a quick check for seabirds from East Point. Then we are off to the nearby mangrove-lined sections of the bay in Charles Darwin National Park. The park has over thirty species of mangrove and is home to one of Darwin’s most sought-after birds, the large Chestnut Rail, a mangrove specialist that can be very elusive. There are several other mangrove inhabitants we search for, including Mangrove Robin, Mangrove Grey Fantail, Broad- billed and Shining Flycatchers, and Mangrove Golden-whistler. After lunch we drive to the Darwin Botanic Gardens to explore the fascinating plants that are found in this far north section of the country, many of which are endemic. Birds that we may see are probably new to most of our group and include: Yellow (Australasian) Figbird, Yellow Oriole, Silver-crowned Friarbird, Little Friarbird, Orange-footed Scrubfowl, Red-tailed Black Cockatoo, Rainbow (Red-collared) Lorikeet, Blue-winged Naturalist Journeys, LLC / Caligo Ventures PO Box 16545 Portal, AZ 85632 PH: 520.558.1146 / 800.426.7781 Fax 650.471.7667www.naturalistjourneys.com / www.caligo.com [email protected] / [email protected] Australia: Best of the West With Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures Kookaburra, Red-backed Fairy Wren, Rainbow Bee-eater, Red-headed Honeyeater, and Double-barred Finch. Black Flying Foxes have a colony in the gardens and we look for this interesting fruit eating bat. Accommodations: Palms Resort (B,L,D) Sun., Sept. 10 Kakadu National Park — Fogg Dam / Mamukala Billabong / East Alligator Area After breakfast, we start our drive to the south east and Kakadu National Park! Fogg Dam is one of the top 100 birding locations in Australia and boasts over 230 species. With two trails/boardwalks and two viewing platforms, we get stunning looks at some of the area’s tropical waders. Today also includes a stop at the world-class Mamukala Billabong (wetlands)! The short walk to the bird hide (blind) gives us an opportunity to find and view Red-backed Fairywren, Paperbark Flycatcher, Lemon-bellied Flyrobin, and groups of Agile Wallaby. From the shade-covered hide, water birds such as the Comb-crested Jacana, Magpie Goose, two species of whistling-ducks and Radjah Shelduck should be easy to view. With so many different areas to bird in the East Alligator area, our next stops are your guide’s choice (based on interactions with local wildlife specialists). This could include the Rainforest Walk looking for Rainbow Pitta and Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, or maybe the Baradiliji Track (through sandstone formations), an area that Black Wallaroo, Mornbil (Torres Strait Pigeon), and Ngalarrangailarra (Short-beaked Echidna) call home. There are numerous other locations here to explore and view Jabiru, look for the endemic Brown-quilled Pigeon, and the ever-present Australian Crocodile! Our final stop for the day is at Ubirr, one of the two major Aboriginal rock art sites in Kakadu. The wildlife paintings are just stunning, and we take a look for Short-eared Rock Wallabies, but our other goal is to experience the tropical sunset over the Arnhem Land Escarpment from Nadab Lookout. This view is well documented by photographers around the world and is a wonderful place to finish our day. Accommodations: Jabiru Crocodile Hotel (B,L,D) Mon., Sept. 11 Kakadu National Park / Aboriginal Rock Art / Nourlangie / Yellow Water Billabong We just can’t be this close to the Mamukala Billabong without one more stop to see if anything new dropped in since our last visit, so a short walk back out to the hide should give us a look at any newcomers. Naturalist Journeys, LLC / Caligo Ventures PO Box 16545 Portal, AZ 85632 PH: 520.558.1146 / 800.426.7781 Fax 650.471.7667www.naturalistjourneys.com / www.caligo.com [email protected] / [email protected] Australia: Best of the West With Naturalist Journeys & Caligo Ventures Burrunggui (Nourlangie Rock) is on the edge of the Arnhem Land Escarpment and is well-known for its Aboriginal rock art. Short hikes get us into these sites, all while we look for Badbong (Short-eared Rock Wallaby), Black Wallaroo, White- lined Honeyeater, Banded Fruit-Dove, and the tightly endemic Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon. Afterwards we walk into the nearby Anbangbang Billabong to search for Bush-Stone- curlew, Green Pygmy-goose, and Royal Spoonbill, among many other water birds. We continue to bird this area until we head off towards Cooinda and the Warradjan Cultural Center. Warradjan (named after the Pig-nosed Turtle) Aboriginal Cultural Center is where we can pull together the traditions, rock art, cultural, and natural history from our experiences over the past three days. An important learning center, we take some time to explore the exhibits, then head south to Cooinda. Cooinda, where we overnight, is in the South Alligator drainage and home to the Yellow Water Billabong. We spend the late afternoon on a boat tour of the billabong, the top- rated birding site in Kakadu National Park. With many Australian Saltwater Crocodiles present, it is amazing just how abundant the different water bird species are. As we watch the sunset, we should see Black Bittern, Plumed Whistling Duck, Yellow-billed Spoonbill, Azure and Little Kingfishers, and more during this two-hour cruise.
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