The BLSH flyer Volume 6 Number 1, February 2017 Silvereye by Erna Llenore Silvereye by Erna Llenore Contents From the President ................................................................................. Page 2 Conservation Officers Report ................................................................... Page 3 Belanglo State Forest Outing ................................................................... Page 3 Thirlmere Lakes National Park Walk .......................................................... Page 4 Liaison Officers Report ............................................................................ Page 5 Latham Snipe Habitat Survey Report ........................................................ Page 6 Exploring SE Alaska ........................................................................... Pages 7-9 Birdwatching at Buxton ......................................................................... Page 10 24 Hour Bird Count Challenge Report ................................................ Pages 11-13 Cape York-October 2016 ................................................................. Pages 14-16 Cascades Walk, Macquarie N.P. ............................................................. Page 17 Dawn Chorus ....................................................................................... Page 18 New Members ..................................................................................... Page 18 Worth watching .................................................................................... Page 19 Photo Acknowledgement ....................................................................... Page 20 Budderoo Plateau ................................................................................. Page 20 Shorebirds ........................................................................................... Page 21 Brainy bird stories wanted ..................................................................... Page 22 Photo/Information Archives ................................................................... Page 22 Members Photography ...................................................................... Pages 23-5 From the President T he new Birding year has begun and we are off to a flying start with our Latham’s Snipe expert, Richard Chamberlain addressing our meeting on January 31st. I hope that you have all found time to come to that meeting and learn more about the Snipe. Our end of year Barbeque was well attended by approximately 25 members. Once again, the loca- tion proved to be ideal and Tony took over the responsibility of cooking the sausages, which he does with great aplomb. The delicious array of salads and sweet treats provided by the members was a real feast to the eyes and to the stomachs. Thank you to all who contributed so generously to make this day a memorable one. A very special thank you to our member Sarah Wallace who generously provided this beautifully decorated Christmas cake for us all to enjoy. Sarah & Bob cutting the cake. By Christine Kelly by Helen Erskine The day drew to a nice conclusion after several rounds of Bocce, supplied by Jennie Wiles. A very nice touch, thanks Jennie. January has found club members enjoying 3 outings to date. Thanks to Val Cooper who always man- ages to encourage support for her January locations. The dawn chorus, at the home of David Sampson Fitzroy Falls, (see report later in newsletter) was attended by 6 members and enjoyed by all. We have 20 scheduled outings for the group this year and we are more than happy to receive sug- gestions from our members on their ideal locations for future outings. Please contact the Program Officer, Peter Madvig. The AGM was successfully held on Tuesday 31st January and the following were duly elected unop- posed: President Christine Kelly Administration Officer Erna Llorne Treasurer John Desmond Liaison Officer Col Kohlhagen Conservation Officer Simon Robinson Program Officer Peter Madvig Records & Research Officer Graham Olde Web/Newsletter Editor Jennie Wiles Support Officer Val Cooper Claudia Chambers Archivist Helen Erskine Congratulations to all those members who have volunteered to assist in the running of the group. I look forward to working with you all. Special thanks to Sandy Berry who has retired from the posi- tion of Administration Officer after several invaluable years of volunteer service to our group. August 2016 2 Conservation Officers Report T wo important developments have taken place in the group’s conservation activities. Firstly, the Wall to Wollondilly (W2W) project, that had stalled, has been revived and is starting up this calendar year. The project is managed by Greening Australia and funded by NSW Department of Environment and Heritage. Our part in it is to give some presentations to assist land owners and others identify and monitor the birds on their land as improvements are made. We are being paid for this, which will contribute to the group’s funds – but most exciting, we have received a substantial grant to purchase a number of binoculars to loan to the property owners and school groups as part of the program. The binoculars will be owned by the group and can be used in numerous activities in the future. I understand that ‘the cheque’s in the mail’ and hope it’s not the tra- ditional brush-off! Secondly, in conjunction with Wingecarribee Shire Council, the Mittagong Creek restoration project has moved to a new era! Col Kohlhagen outlines more about this in his Liaison Officers Report. Amongst other events since the last newsletter we have conducted more suc- cessful Latham’s snipes counts, contributing useful data to the overall project that Richard Chamberlain spoke about after the AGM. Richard Chamberlain speaking to Birdlife Southern Highlands Belanglo State Forest Outing Participant Jennie Wiles reports A most enjoyable morning walk led by Janine and Stan Jones on Saturday 29 October, 2016. Alt- hough the birds were reluctant to show them- selves, Linda Hoelle commented “the flowers sure put on a colourful display!” The group enjoyed the birding, the company and the freshly baked treats supplied by Janine for morning tea. Sacred Kingfisher by Erna Llenore By Jennie Wiles Kunzea by Linda Hoelle Birds list: Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoo, Yellow-rumped Thornbill, Grey Fantail, Australian Raven, Sa- cred Kingfisher, Little Corella, Galah, Laughing Kookaburra, Australian Magpie, Crimson Rosella, East- ern Rosella, Eastern Yellow Robin, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Eastern Spinebill, Pied Currawong, Grey Shrike-thrush, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike, Brown Thornbill, Red Wattlebird, Superb Fairy- wren, Shining Bronze-Cuckoo (heard) (supplied by Val Cooper) August 2016 3 Thirlmere Lakes National Park Walk 2/11/16 Col Kohlhagen reports T his outing became somewhat of an endurance test as we originally had 14 participants booked in but through the pressure of unforeseen circumstances this was reduced to eight. First to fall by the wayside was the leader, Simon Robinson, so I came off the reserves bench to fill his position. By Jennie Wiles Crested Shrike-tit (aka Punk Bird) by Linda Hoelle The five members and three visitors who made it to the starting line were favoured with a glorious spring day and the birds responded appropriately, especially the chorus of “bush canaries” aka Rufous Fantails, that provided non-stop background music for the entire morning. First cabs off the rank were the resident Rockwarblers, seen happily feeding around the picnic tables. Largely because of their choice of nesting site in the toilet block, this pair of enterprising avian parents has attracted some media attention as well as several “nick names” not all of which would pass the polite society test. By the end of a most enjoyable walk we had logged 30 species, including a Leaden Flycatcher, a pair of Crested Shrike-Tits and an entertaining duet provided by Olive–backed Orioles. A few on the list were “heard only” but their calls were quickly and confidently recognised. Eastern Yellow Robin by Linda Hoelle Rufous Whistler Olive–backed Oriole by Jennie Wiles Birds list:- Wonga Pigeon, Shining Bronze-Cuckoo, Little Pied Cormorant, Swamp Harrier, Dollarbird, Sacred Kingfisher, Laughing Kookaburra, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Crimson Rosella, Eastern Rosella, White-throated Treecreeper, Variegated Fairy-wren, Superb Fairy-wren, New Holland Honeyeater, Eastern Spinebill, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Spotted Pardalote, White-throated Gerygone, Rock- warbler, White-browed Scrubwren, Striated Thornbill, Brown Thornbill, Rufous Whistler, Grey Shrike- thrush, Crested Shrike-tit, Olive-backed Oriole, Pied Currawong, Grey Fantail, Leaden Flycatcher and Eastern Yellow Robin . August 2016 4 Liaison Officers Report Mittagong Creek Surveys Update February, 2017 The Mittagong Creek survey project has entered a new and exciting phase. Since 2013, a small team of BLSH Members has been conducting monthly surveys at five sites along Mittagong Creek between Mansfield Reserve and the Channel Deviation near the Bowral Brickworks. These surveys were set up in partnership with the Wingecarribee Shire Council Natural Resources Staff to help establish baseline bird numbers before, during and after Council’s Riparian Regeneration Project along Mittagong Creek. Over 100 species have been recorded across the five sites along the creek since the surveys commenced. The results of these surveys have also been logged onto Birdata as Bird Atlas fixed-route surveys. The updated Birdata Portal, introduced in mid-2016, presented