The Rainbow Bird

Volume 4 Number 3 August 2015 (Issue 83)

THE LIFE OF GANNETS

Further to Evelyn Williams' article "Point Danger Gannets" in "During the incubation period, the birds go offshore for up to the last issue of "The Rainbow Bird" The Age newspaper on four days and then when they are rearing the chicks, they June 1 had a report on further research into the Life of are away for between 12 and 15 hours," she said. Gannets. Ms Wells will present the results of the study at the World Bridie Smith, Science Editor writes: Seabird Conference in Cape Town, South Africa, in October. Researchers have attached cameras and tracking devices to the tails of Australasian Gannets to get a bird's-eye view of how they forage for their food in Victorian waters. Results of the fieldwork, carried out during the most recent breeding season in October to February, uncovered a previously undescribed hunting strategy revealing the gannets can adapt their foraging habits to suit their environment.

The findings, which also revealed difference in hunting behaviour between the sexes, are important because it shows the seabirds can change their behaviours to suit different environments. "This is significant, as it shows that these birds have a degree of plasticity and that information is important in predicting how they may respond to future changes to their environment," said Deakin University researcher Melanie Wells. She said given the waters of south-east Australia are among the fastest warming waters on the planet, predicting how species will respond was crucial to predicting how a top predator like the gannet would fare as the climate changed.

When foraging, typically Australasian Gannets use visual cues, such as dolphins or other seabirds, to locate fish in the water. However while half the Australasian Gannets living on Pope's Eye, in Port Phillip Bay, did this when they went in Contents search of food in Bass Strait, the other half studied opted to forage in the bay's shallow waters, close to the shoreline. 1. The Life of Gannets

Ms Wells said this latter group of gannets took advantage of 2. Outing to Hattah N.P. the sandbars and shallow water, where it was easier to see 3. Outing to Mallee Cliffs N.P the shadow of the prey on the seafloor. Curiously, the majority of these bay-feeders were male while the ocean- 4. A Miss Fisher Mystery feeders were evenly mixed. They were also feeding on one 5. Railing about the Rails large prey, such as red mullet or barracuda, rather than lots of smaller prey like anchovies and sardines. "This 6. The Wild Goose Chase specialisation of feeding in-shore is sex-specific and that 7. Interesting Sightings opens up all sorts of questions as to why that is," she said. 8. Facebook Groups As well as the 26 gannets studied at Pope's Eye, 23 gannets from Point Danger, near Portland, were studied. 9. Club Calendar The camera and GPS device attached to their middle tail feathers weighed 50 grams or about 2 per cent of a bird's body weight. "The camera faces forward so we really get a bird's-eye view," Ms Wells said. "We see what they see." BirdLife Mildura P. O. Box 1722, Mildura, VIC 3502 The Rainbow Bird Editor: Rae Jeffers, [email protected] The fieldwork started at end of October 2014, which was the start of the breeding season. The Rainbow Bird

OUTING TO HATTAH N.P. - MAY 9TH, 2015

We discussed Trevor Monson's talk at the last club meeting, sugars and starches. Inside is the insect nymph, which the as we surveyed the eucalypts on the Nowingi Track at insectivorous Pardalote probably sees as a nice soft centre. Hattah. He spoke of how long each species would take to Their method of foraging is to lever insects from the leaves flower after rain, and we did notice groups of bee hives had with that specialized beak, rather than catching them in the been placed in at least 3 locations in the park, and there was air. Tim Low, in his book, "Where Song Began", contends the beginning of flowering in some eucalypts. that the pardalote has that stumpy tail adaptation to protect it from having it grabbed by large aggressive honeyeaters and other birds, who want to defend lerp and nectar patches, and have been known to kill pardalotes. The insect which is a scale species will denude and destroy eucalypts, as it has done in California. It is thought that the Pardalote in particular, protects the health of our trees. It seems that overseas birds do not feed on lerp. Perhaps also, we were seeing the result of what is called, "Winter flocking" - a survival mechanism where all the extra pairs of eyes are able to search out food which has become scarcer, and watch for predators.

Bordering the track also, were the white flowers of Club Moss Daisy (above). As well, Sharon identified the rarer Autumn flowering Snowball Bush later in the day. Sadly, although the Mallee looked green and well, there was not enough recent rain to spur the Mallee Fowl on to work the 3 nest sites which Alec checked as he led us on this part of the excursion.

During our travels we also came across the interesting pile pictured, that looked amazingly like animal droppings. I was intrigued to find which creature made it. The pile is called a, "push-up", and marks the burrow entrance of a sand boring beetle, a member of the scarab group. Columns of damp sand are pushed through the burrow entrance, "like toothpaste from a tube", the Australian Journal of Entomology" No.50, states. The columns dry, and fall over, and form the pile of sand castings. The beetles spend most of the time in their burrows eating the fruit of underground Mycorrhizal fungi, which they have dug to find, and spreading fungi spore. There is evidence that these fungi have benefits for the soil and for plants, one of them being they may help plants withstand drought. Australia has 166 Then, as happens in the Mallee, after travelling through known species of earth borer beetles, but little is known quiet country, we suddenly came upon a "good" bird spot. about them. In fact Simon, from the Melbourne Museum The large group of Striated Pardalote, plus some Spotted Discovery Centre, said that they didn't have enough Pardalote (a posse of Pardalote perhaps?), seemed fairly information on the distribution to know which beetle it may unconcerned as the 15 members on the outing watched be busily mining in Hattah. A study is being undertaken at these small indigenous birds. Much easier to see them on the West Australian Museum on their state's 100 or so sand this occasion - they are usually leaping about high in the boring beetles because of the perceived benefits to soil and trees, not as now, conveniently at eye level. No wonder agriculture. We did not see the beetle however. They they were there. Lerp for the taking , and no aggressive emerge only after heavy rain, and usually at dusk. Terry large honeyeaters in sight. Their scoop shaped, strong little Houston, Curator of insects at the Western Australian beaks were busy levering the cotton wool like material from Museum, advises that your best chance of seeing them is to Eucalypt leaves. The white fluff is actually the excrement of sit with a lantern in the bush just after dark, and after heavy the immature Psyllid insect, which hardens as it comes into rain. They are attracted to light. Some of our group also contact with the air, and which cocoons the insect. This saw an Owlet Nightjar near this area, so that beetle may crystallized honeydew is extremely nutritious, and contains need to be alert!

2 The Rainbow Bird The Rainbow Bird

Morning smoko near the intersection of the Nowingi and About 20 young people who said that they came from a Kanardan Tracks, was looked forward to, after earlier than Steiner School, and were walking from the Hattah Store to usual breakfasts. Finley searched for Striated Grasswren the Murray River, gave us a wave as we drove past. On the here, but it was not to be. track our sightings included: Emus, a conspiracy of Australian Raven, Grey Currawong, Brown Treecreeper, a chattering of White-winged Chough, Masked Lapwing, Red- rumped , Tree Martin, Wedge-tailed Eagle. A fairly cool breeze had sprung up by lunch time, so members used their cars as wind breaks, as they shook their 'cup of soup' packets into mugs and settled into chairs. Coming out of Hattah, as we were travelling along the Iraak track we noticed that the mob of Western Grey and Red Kangaroo, some with joeys, looked in very good condition. They had obviously taken advantage of what farmers refer to as a "good green pick" as a result of Chalka Creek flooding and a myriad of young trees appearing. Peter Dunstan had suggested that we might like to come to Chris's and his place down Rudds Road in the hope of seeing the Eastern Osprey, which had caused so much interest during the Easter break. We came past a now dry Bullock Swamp

to the boat ramp at the river, where they had sighted the However he was able to photograph a Long-billed Osprey on more than one occasion. Not today though! We (above) later in the day. We did see a variety of birds on did see a White-bellied Sea-Eagle's nest there, as well as a our travels to Lake Mournpall, Di's list included : Grey Caspian Tern, a large group of Little Corellas, (a screech of Fantail, Pied Butcherbird, Mallee Ringneck Parrot, Grey Corellas perhaps?), and a raft of Wood Duck. Then on down Shrike-thrush, Noisy Miners, Kookaburra, Australian Magpie Dunstan's Track we went, to wander about their lovely and Crested Pigeon, with Colin leading us on this part of the tranquil garden, complete with Sturt Desert Pea, Australian outing. Not many birds however on the plentiful water at Wood Ducks, a Black-shouldered Kite, and a pair of Black Lake Mournpall. An Australasian Darter, 2 Australian Swans. And so it was farewell at this point and thank you to Pelican, 2 , a Whistling Kite, 3 Sulphur-crested our leaders for a very pleasant day. and a Pied Cormorant were spotted. Bitterang was less full, and we saw quite a few birds on the way in. Evelyn Williams

Sightings: 63 species Emu Spotted Harrier Weebill Australian Magpie Black Swan Wedge-tailed Eagle Spotted Pardalote Grey Currawong Australian Wood Duck Masked Lapwing Striated Pardalote Grey Fantail Rock Dove Caspian Tern White-eared Honeyeater Willie Wagtail Crested Pigeon Galah Yellow-plumed Honeyeater Australian Raven Australian Owlet-nightjar Long-billed Corella White-plumed Honeyeater Little Raven Australasian Darter Noisy Miner Magpie-lark Great Cormorant Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Yellow-throated Miner White-winged Chough Pied Cormorant Regent Parrot Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater Jacky Winter Australian Pelican Crimson Rosella Red Wattlebird Hooded Robin White-faced Heron Australian Ringneck Striped Honeyeater Welcome Swallow Australian White Ibis Blue Bonnet White-browed Babbler Tree Martin Straw-necked Ibis Red-rumped Parrot Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike Common Blackbird Black-shouldered Kite Mulga Parrot Grey Shrike-thrush Common Starling Whistling Kite Laughing Kookaburra Grey Butcherbird House Sparrow Collared Sparrowhawk Brown Treecreeper Pied Butcherbird

Fairy-wren photos: Alan Taylor

August 2015 3 The Rainbow Bird

OUTING TO MALLEE CLIFFS N.P. - JUNE 7TH, 2015

Sunday dawned coolish, 4°C, when eight met at the Bike Hub to go on to meet the remainder of participants, including leader Barrie MacMillan, at Gol Gol. By the time we were all together there were 18 of us in a convoy that travelled east along the Sturt Highway before turning left into Danson's Road. There didn't seem to be many birds, apart from Emu and Red-rumped , as we went along stopping at various places for about 10 minutes to wander around in the peaceful surroundings as the day gradually warmed. We stopped at Pick's Road for morning smoko then headed towards West Boundary Firetrail, Belah and Central Firetrail. We saw Yellow-throated Miners, Yellow-rumped Thornbills, and Chestnut-crowned Babblers along this section and Banded Plovers were heard. After stopping at the salinity basin interception site where we spotted White-fronted Honeyeater, we moved on and noted both male and female The meat hut is still standing. Brian told stories of their Hooded Robin. We came across some Merbein people growing up "in the bush". Barrie thanked the Abletts then replacing the bottom part of a fence line. It was along here we had 15 minutes to wander around the area. We noticed that we saw Chestnut Quail-thrush and White-eared a Wedge-tail Eagle soaring above us as we walked around. Honeyeater amongst others. We were climbing over a few low fences when we saw a male and female Red-capped Robin sitting on a low branch. On the Belah Firetrail Red-capped Robin and Yellow-rumped It was a lovely sight which had the photographers clicking. Thornbill were recorded. The Centre Firetrail brought us to the Mallee Cliffs Homestead where we met Brian and Joyce Ablett at the "old meathouse".

Shortly after farewelling the Abletts we had another 15 minute walk around and saw Blue Bonnet, Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater, Nankeen Kestrel and Brown Treecreeper. On Brian is the son of the original manager of the station and the North Boundary Road we passed plantings of wheat and he also managed it. We lunched here and were shown the vetch and noted Yellow-plumed Honeyeater, Crested Bellbird remains of the old house, sheep dip and shearing quarters. and Grey Butcherbird. The sheep dip is quite steep and narrow with a ridged slope for the sheep to climb up after being immersed. All said their goodbyes when the convoy reached the highway. It had been an enjoyable day.

Photos: Di Stewart Susan Fisher Sightings: 37 species Emu Yellow Thornbill Blue-faced Honeyeater Australian Raven Common Bronzewing Yellow-rumped Thornbill Striped Honeyeater Magpie-lark Crested Pigeon Striated Pardalote Chestnut-crowned Babbler Jacky Winter Wedge-tailed Eagle Singing Honeyeater Chestnut Quail-thrush Red-capped Robin Brown Falcon White-eared Honeyeater Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike Hooded Robin Banded Lapwing Yellow-plumed Honeyeater Crested Bellbird Australasian Pipit Australian Ringneck White-fronted Honeyeater Grey Butcherbird Blue Bonnet Noisy Miner Pied Butcherbird Red-rumped Parrot Yellow-throated Miner Australian Magpie Brown Treecreeper Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater Willie Wagtail

4 The Rainbow Bird The Rainbow Bird

A MISS FISHER MYSTERY

Sunday, 26th June, Susan Fisher (not Miss Phryne Fisher) was sitting in her lounge room when she was surprised by a "thud". The cat also reacted to the sound. Susan rose and looked out the open back door to see what had made the noise. Sitting on the armchair was a large, dark brown bird looking at her. After a brief time of gazing at each other Susan turned to get her camera and the bird flew off, under the clothesline, along the corridor between the fence and the units to a large tree at the end of the yard. Susan grabbed her binoculars and ran to the tree but the bird was not to be seen.

Having seen the bird so close up, taking in the colouring, feathers, eyes and talons Susan is sure it was a Black Falcon.

The mystery? What was it doing there? What had caused it to drop in? Could it have been a different bird of prey? Miss Phryne Fisher (ABC TV) Was it contemplating murder, if so, of what? Another problem to solve for Miss Fisher!

RAILING ABOUT THE RAILS

My friend Susanna Warner (once a Grayling, for anyone local who knows her) sent the following illustrated bird story after a recent Queensland holiday. Not your everyday level of Buff-banded Rail sociability - or opportunism, anyway. Visiting Green Island 26/6/15 - Susanna Warner As we arrived in Green island, I noticed a cute little bird cross my path. How sweet, I thought, not realising that they were in plague proportions. This was the touristy part of the island. As I was waiting for John to purchase our lunch, I noticed how cheeky the birds were. Hopping up on the tables and pinching the food from under people's noses and then taking off like a rugby player trying for a goal with the others in hot pursuit. So, I asked if we could go into the buffet section with our takeaway food (usually reserved for those who have paid a suitable price for the privilege). So, there we were, sitting in the cage with the birds roaming free! - except, one found its way in anyway.... Oh, and they're officially called Buff-banded Rails, although I'm sure they're also called many other names!

Adele & Bob Palmer

Birds free - humans in cage!

August 2015 5 The Rainbow Bird

THE WILD GOOSE CHASE LINDSAY CUPPER 1998 I had a particularly busy time filming in the years 1996 to 1998. This was when the BBC was producing David Attenborough's "The Life of Birds" series, for which I filmed most of the Australian content. At that time there was also plenty of work from the ABC, and a couple of independent productions as well. This is a poem I wrote, principally about one particular assignment, but encompassing other events at that time. The job was to film nesting Magpie Geese. Magpie Geese often breed in trios.... one male will mate with two females. This is thought to give them an advantage in defending their brood against predators. I called this poem... 'The Wild Goose Chase'

In nineteen-ninety-six came a call from the BBC, "Be here on April 20," that's what one expert said. They were filming "The Life of Birds" and asked if I was free. The Producer thought that I should go five days before instead. "Not quite free," was what I thought, "but near-e-bloody-nough, My wife was pleased this Easter, I wouldn't be away, I ought to put my rates up, as things are pretty tough." The kids were coming home, and some friends would come to stay. They wanted me to drive up north and camp near Kakadu, But then there came a message - "the eggs are hatching now" And film the nesting Magpie Geese, and the trials that they go through. "You'd best be here tomorrow, or the next day anyhow". Then drive north west to the Kimberley coast, to film the waders there, I phoned a mate and asked if he, would come and watch my back, And find some Gouldian Finches, and film a breeding pair. For there would be a danger of a Crocodile attack. "There's six weeks work for you", they said, "six weeks or maybe more." I had to take a lot of gear, I had to go by road, It sounded pretty good to me, but I'd heard it all before. My four-wheel-drive and trailer had to bear a heavy load. Still I had some other jobs booked up, on Dingoes, Roos and Ducks, I'd done this trip alone before, in less than two whole days, So I went and bought myself a lens, for twenty thousand bucks. We should do that easy, if we shared the drive two ways. This commitment had just been made, when the word came out: We drove one thousand miles at least, on our first days drive, "It's been a funny year up north and things are arse-about. But that was 18 non-stop hours, not just nine-to-five. I couldn't film, the magpie geese, and the waders had shot through. We slept beside our car that night, till flies woke us at dawn, "You can film them next year though," they said, "and the finches too". By breakfast time in Alice, we were feeling pretty worn. "Still," I thought, "the Dingo job is worth some sixty grand, We downed a few ice coffees, and an egg and bacon roll, And my four-wheel-drive is buggered, I'll buy one second-hand." And when we hit the road again, felt not bad on the whole. So I signed up for this vital deal for half the Dingo fee, But a hot head-wind blew up, and to drive hard was no use, And found out then that film was off, there'd be no work for me. If we cooked our bloody motor, we'd have really cooked our goose. Eventually the B.B.C. got me on the job. We ate no buns that Friday but we were a hot, cross pair, I started filming birds at last, and make myself a bob. And knowing we were running late, was a heavy cross to bear. I filmed Bustards, Bellbirds, Buzzards, and Rainbow Pittas too, 500 miles from Darwin, we camped Good Friday night, And I was feeling pretty good, when that first year was through. Then reached the Mary River in the next day’s fading light. By Easter '97 it was time to film the Geese, We'd been told to hire an airboat, to reach our filming spot, So I bought new tyres for my car at 200 bucks apiece. But "possibly on Tuesday" was the best response we got. But El Nino was upon the land, meaning stuff-all rain, We had a sinking feeling that we were far too late, The Magpie Geese had failed to breed, the job was off again. But there was nothing we could do but hang around and wait. The Gouldian Finches could be filmed, but was it worth the miles? We boated down the river where they said the Geese were found, To split the costs I booked a job, filming Crocodiles. (And I caught a Barramundi, weighing over twenty pound.) Despite a lot of problems, the Finch footage was OK, We saw Crocodiles and Eagles, and lots of Kites as well, But when a Croc tooth scratched my lens, I gave that job away. But I hadn't seen one Gosling by the time that evening fell. I tried to film some Archer Fish, shooting down a bug, We were bloody tired and sunburnt, we really found it tough, But for five days straight they didn’t spit, so I pulled the plug. And the track back to our campsite, seemed twice as bloody rough. I went back south to film more birds, I really worked like hell. The heat was most oppressive, it was a pestilential place. Parrots, Pigeons, Pelicans, and Apostlebirds as well. Chasing after Magpie Geese seemed like a Wild Goose Chase. Early 1998 was quieter than I’d planned, Next day I hired a chopper just to see what I could find, But by April things got busy, and I was in demand. And saw some Geese, still with eggs, which gave some peace of mind. In Tasmania there were drunken pigs, up north a Jabiru. It was early Tuesday morning, before our airboat came at last, And snakes to film in the south of France, which job should I do? It was costing us a fortune, so we loaded up real fast. But Magpie Geese were still required, and things were looking good, We roared across the flooded plains, in that great machine, The floods were right, and the Geese were doing what they should. Only a trail of flattened grass showed where we had been. They were nesting in their thousands, a good year it would seem, We reached the place where the expert said, that predators abound, And on hatching all the Goslings would make their way upstream. I found it disconcerting, for there was no dry ground. They'd be escorted by their parents, to their feeding grounds, I thought there’d be a river bank, and some trees for shade, But they had to run the gauntlet, like hares before the hounds. My enthusiasm for this job, fast began to fade. For the predators would gather to get an easy feed. It certainly was not, the sort of place that I would choose, And to film this awful carnage, I had readily agreed. But we waded in the shallows, pushing poles into the ooze.

Cont....

6 The Rainbow Bird The Rainbow Bird

We made a little platform on which to place my hide, We could hire ourselves a houseboat, and anchor it on site, Then our driver had to go, so we thanked him for the ride. Then I could keep on filming, from morning through 'til night. He said he'd come and pick us up, and get us home by dark, So at dawn on Friday morning, by boat I made my way, Till then t'was just the Crocs and us, this was quite a lark. While my mate would bring the houseboat, later in the day. We got the hide erected, though the leeches took their toll, I had a busy morning, as lots of Geese passed by, But losing no more blood than that, seemed like a worthwhile goal. But by early afternoon, storm clouds blacked the sky. I sat there for two hours, and no Geese nor Goslings came, A fierce storm swept the floodplain, and buffeted the hide, And though I didn't see a Croc, I was wary just the same. So I zipped up all the windows, and stayed fairly dry inside. Finally three Magpie Geese, emerged from in the sedge, It poured down for an hour, then eased a little bit, And led their seven Goslings, down to the waters' edge. By five o'clock the rain was light, and I'd had enough of it. They crossed the water safely, and disappeared from view. The boat was full of water, so I tipped it on its side, Another family followed, and they made it safely too. And stood upon a Python, that'd chosen there to hide. But a pair that tried to cross, with a brood of four in tow, I headed up the river, wondering where my mate had gone, Had to fight against a Crocodile attacking from below. And just around the first bend, I met the houseboat coming on. And as they fought with valour, to keep their brood alive, The strong winds had played havoc with the shallow-draughted craft, An Eagle swooped upon them, in a really awesome dive. And despite full throttle forward, the boat had drifted aft ... This time the Geese were lucky, they crossed the creek okay, And had been forced into the mangroves, there to wait the calm. But I saw several Goslings taken, during that first day. Luckily both boat and driver, had suffered no real harm. It was late that afternoon, when the airboat reappeared, We anchored near our filming site, we reckoned this was grand, And back across the flooded plains, we once again careered. However as it turned out, things didn't go as planned. The driver of our airboat was a very helpful chap, When the rain stopped and the wind dropped, shortly after dark, He showed us our position on a very detailed map. We discovered that this houseboat life, wasn't such a lark. He said we should shift our camp, round to the western side, Indoors was like a sauna, and mosquitoes made us curse. And things would be much simpler, it would halve the airboat ride. Though out-doors was cooler, the insects were much worse. We moved around next morning, and got a nice surprise, The houseboat proved to be worthwhile, no daylight hours were lost, We wouldn't need the airboat, my dinghy would suffice. But the nights were such a torment, was it worth the cost? So we paid off our good driver, he didn't seem to care, I had hoped to film at dawn and dusk, with Geese in golden light, After all we'd just found out, he's a multi millionaire! But now the sky was only clear, when the sun was at its height. My boat was at the filming site, so I hired one for the day, We stuck it out four days and nights, and I really shot a heap, It was a 40 minute boat ride, flat-out all the way. Then went back to our former digs, to get a good night’s sleep. I filmed some more predations, till the light began to wane, The Geese were now much scarcer, and predations were quite rare, Then lashed both boats together, and headed home again. So we worked a few more days, then cleared off out of there. My mate had been to Darwin, finding film stock gone astray, I worked up north for another month, expenses to defray, And doing other errands, he'd had a busy day. So by the time I got back home I'd been six weeks away. Two thousand dollars worth of film, was missing for a week, Though she welcomed me with open arms and kind and loving words, It was lucky that he found it, or we’d be "up the creek." My missus really reckons, my life is "for the birds." Next day we both went out, and set up another hide, For predations were not frequent, and scattered far and wide. We had to really maximise, our chances every day, And now that Easter time has passed, we found the perfect way. APRIL / MAY 1998

August 2015 7 The Rainbow Bird

INTERESTING SIGHTINGS 02/03/2015 Emu (5) Between Pooncarie & Ellerslie. On the road C MacGillivray 05/03/2015 Brown Quail (1) Brickworks B'bong - Merbein Common. L & R Jeffers 05/03/2015 White-backed Swallow (2) Merbein Common. L & R Jeffers 12/03/2015 Wedge-tailed Eagle (1) Lake Ranfurly. Flying over L & R Jeffers 22/03/2015 Mallee Emu-wren (7) Hattah-Kulkyne NP. F Japp/A Taylor 23/03/2015 Grey Fantail (1) Merbein Common. Near Catfish Lagoon G Caldecott 31/03/2015 White-backed Swallow (1) Etiwanda Wetlands. Drinking F Japp 02/04/2015 Eastern Osprey (1) Rudds Rd Nangiloc. See photo D Eyles 03/04/2015 Little Eagle (1) Iraak. S Fisher 05/04/2015 Wedge-tailed Eagle (1) Dareton. G Caldecott 05/04/2015 Eastern Barn Owl (1) At home, Mildura. In Lemon-scented gum 11:30am R Lonsdale 06/04/2015 Collared Sparrowhawk (1) At home, Mildura. In bird bath - still coming back G Kerridge 12/04/2015 Yellow-billed Spoonbill (1) Bob Corbould Wetland. Looking for food in water C MacGillivray 19/04/2015 Mistletoebird (2) At home, Yelta. R Jeffers 22/04/2015 Little Eagle (1) Merbein Cemetery. Circling overhead L Jeffers 23/04/2015 Brown Falcon (1) Merbein Cemetery. Flying over L & R Jeffers 27/04/2015 Eastern Osprey (1) Iraak. Sitting in tree P Dunstan 30/04/2015 Restless Flycatcher (1) At home, Mildura. In back yard J Petschel 03/05/2015 Eastern Osprey (1) Apex Park. Circling overhead C MacGillivray 03/05/2015 Golden-headed Cisticola (2) Koorlong State Forest. Calling F Japp 05/05/2015 Olive-backed Oriole (1) Kings Billabong walk. On the levee wall D Eyles 08/05/2015 Black-shouldered Kite (1) Yelta. Sitting on power line L & R Jeffers 08/05/2015 Brown-headed Honeyeater (4) At home, Yelta. Flying through trees L & R Jeffers 17/05/2015 Mistletoebird (2) At home, Yelta. L & R Jeffers 17/05/2015 Striped Honeyeater (2) At home, Yelta. In trees near house L & R Jeffers 21/05/2015 Black-shouldered Kite (1) Yelta. Sitting on power line L & R Jeffers 21/05/2015 Pallid Cuckoo (1) Cowanna Billabong - Merbein Common. Calling L & R Jeffers 23/05/2015 Australian Hobby (2) Meridian Road. Two separate sightings F Japp/A Taylor 23/05/2015 Black-faced Woodswallow (10) Meridian Road. Displaying and mating F Japp/A Taylor 23/05/2015 (30) Meridian Road Swamps. Feeding F Japp/A Taylor 24/05/2015 Black-tailed Native-hen (4) Koorlong State Forest. F Japp 24/05/2015 Golden-headed Cisticola (1) Koorlong State Forest. Calling F Japp 28/05/2015 Caspian Tern (2) Pomona. In irrigated paddock D Foley 28/05/2015 Black Falcon (2) Meridian Road. Soaring K Job 30/05/2015 Black-shouldered Kite (1) Yelta. Flying over P Follett/S Fisher 02/06/2015 Little Raven (300) Pomona. Flocking D Foley 09/06/2015 Grey Fantail (2) At home, Yelta. In young trees L & R Jeffers 10/06/2015 Dusky Woodswallow (2) Merbein Common. R Jeffers 11/06/2015 Little Raven (100) At home, Meringur. Around the house H Schilling 11/06/2015 Black Kite (12) Yelta. Flying high West to East L & R Jeffers 13/06/2015 Musk Lorikeet (20) Morgan S.A.. Feeding in eucalypt A Campbell 14/06/2015 Red-necked Avocet (10) Hart Lagoon, Waikerie. Feeding with Black-winged Stilts A Campbell 14/06/2015 Australian Pelican (100) At home, Mildura. Flying East Bill Greatz 19/06/2015 Little Black Cormorant (350) Yelta. Flying over following river L & R Jeffers 19/06/2015 Southern Whiteface (30) Merbein. L & R Jeffers 20/06/2015 Australian Hobby (1) At home, Irymple. In company with Pied Butcherbirds A & S Hawtin 20/06/2015 Blue-faced Honeyeater (1) At home, Irymple. Flying over A & S Hawtin 20/06/2015 Brown Songlark (1) Gairns Rd. A & S Hawtin 21/06/2015 Southern Boobook (1) At home, Yelta. Calling in back yard L & R Jeffers 04/07/2015 Olive-backed Oriole (1) Near Dareton. Sitting in tree D Foley/C & D Stewart 04/07/2015 Eastern Osprey (1) Carwarp Creek. P & C Dunstan 05/07/2015 Black Falcon (1) At home, Mildura. Dropped onto chair in back garden S Fisher 07/07/2015 Black Kite (1) Irymple. Flying over A & S Hawtin 07/07/2015 Monk Parrot (1) At home, Mildura. In garden bird bath G & L Kerridge

Facebook Groups The facebook groups that Peter Dunstan spoke about at our July meeting are called 'Birds in Action' and 'Bird Photography in OZ'. There are a lot of other groups available as well. Have a look. Contact Peter if you need help. Email: [email protected]

8 The Rainbow Bird The Rainbow Bird

CLUB CALENDAR

Tues 4th Club Meeting at Carnegie Centre, 74 Deakin Ave, Mildura at 7:30pm Aug Outing - Settlement Rd. and Mallanbool Flora & Fauna Reserve Sun 9th Meet at Bike Hub Pine Ave. at 8:30am - Leader: Allan Taylor

Tues 1st Club Meeting at Carnegie Centre, 74 Deakin Ave, Mildura at 7:30pm Sept Outing - Nowingi Sat 5th Meet at Bike Hub Pine Ave. at 8:30am

Tues 6th Club Meeting at Carnegie Centre, 74 Deakin Ave, Mildura at 7:30pm

Tues 13th Ned’s Corner survey combined with Riverland Field Naturalists Oct Thurs 29th Committee Meeting

Sat 31st /Sun 1st Shorebirds 2020 Workshop with Dan Weller

Tues 3rd Club Meeting at Carnegie Centre, 74 Deakin Ave, Mildura at 7:30pm

Outing - Kelso Block Nov Sat 7th Meet at Bike Hub Pine Ave. at 8:30am

Sat 28th / Sun 29th Challenge Bird Count

Tues 1st Club Meeting at Carnegie Centre, 74 Deakin Ave, Mildura at 7:30pm Dec Sun 6th Outing - Christmas Get-together at Lake Hawthorn - Regina Ave. picnic area from 6:00pm

Eastern Osprey at Rudds Road Nangiloc Photos: Dan Eyles

August 2015 9