Weekends That Were - October 2020

31.10.20

Oxley

I picked Mr D up at 6 and we were on site 15 minutes later. The recent rain had greened things up a bit and the birds were more active, although I felt the numbers were still lower in general than I would have expected.

We saw mostly the usual stuff along the track, highlights were:

A small Keelback Tropidonophis mairii at the second culvert, discreetly positioned low down beside the water.

A very nice view of a Brown Falcon leaving the powerlines and flying directly over our heads to perch up again on a pylon.

A Black Kite (still nice to see in the Brisbane area, although resident here now) at the ponds.

A Buff-banded Rail crossing the track half way back to the car in their usual confident/not confident manner.

A large movement of Caper Whites – est 500? – continually crossing the fields.

Other butterflies – Monarchs, Common Eggfly, Common Crow and a single Yellow Migrant – a site tick for me.

We headed for our usual breakfast at Café Europa in Sherwood – to find it closed and the building up for lease! We wondered was it a coronavirus casualty or simply another business unable to make it? Sad, as we did enjoy the Austrian (not German!) hospitality and disciplined breakfast. Down the main road we found another café – Plentiful – and parked our sorry asses there. Breakfast and coffee were very acceptable and I think it will become our breakfast-spot-for-Oxley in future.

25.10.20

Minnippi

Picked up Mr P and we were on site at 6. 

Not a bad morning overall, possibly stimulated by the long awaited downpour of the previous day, the place was a little more active.

A single brief flurry of calls in the reed bed beside the lake somewhere from a Pale-vented Bush Hen stopped us in our tracks momentarily – but it didn’t repeat. The M1 track was still pretty quiet and the lake was its usual self. A Latham’s Snipe on the distant part of the island the only bird worth noting. Over the lake approx 20 White-throated Needletails were my first for the season and an Oriental Dollarbird flew back and forth, potentially displaying en route. The Tawny Frogmouth nest in the carpark contained a big fluffy chick squeezed in alongside the adult.

Nothing showed at the Raptor Lookout, apart from a trio of Channel-billed Cuckoos going off overhead, and we moved on to the Airfield Track. It was pretty quiet, apart from an, invisible, calling, Eastern Yellow Robin, then, two thirds of the way along, a Peaceful Dove showed well perched up and then on the ground surrounded by 7 Double-barred Finches. This was Mr P’s first PD on site and only my second record - another ‘blocker’ removed!

A covey of 4 Brown Quail along the bicycle track on the way back to the car finished off a relatively worthwhile morning, before heading to BelesisNine Bar + Kitchen for breakfast.

18.10.20

Moggill State Forest

Mr D picked me up at 6 and we were on site at 6.30. Pretty average morning – nothing special or extraordinary. Spectacled Monarch was bird of the morning for me – not seen one for a while – other than that it was a slow, dry morning finished off with breakfast at Plum in Kenmore village.

11.10.20

Sandy Camp & Fuller

I left my car at Mr P’s and he drove – arrived on site at 6.15.

It wasn’t a bad morning, highlights - 

3 Spotless Crakes

5 Leaden Flycatchers

3 White-winged Trillers

1 Nankeen Night Heron

 

We stopped off at Fuller, highlights – 

16 Red-necked Avocets (new site tick for me, although I have seen them regularly at Lindum, 500 meters further down the road)

50 Sharp-tailed Sandpipers

1 Red-necked Stint

4 Marsh Sandpipers

1 Brown Goshawk

15 Great Egrets, 10 Intermediate Egrets, 10 Royal Spoonbills and 4 Little Egrets all tucked away together in the side channel – an unusual sight.

Fuller’s water level was very low, providing potential in the immediate future for waders before it dries up completely.

We looked at Lindum – but it was even drier and only a few White-headed Stilts were in evidence so we didn’t bother going in.

10.10.20

Oxley

Went for a walk more than anything else – nothing to write home about.

 1.10.20

Minnippi

On site at 6.15, a cool, clear, bright morning. It wasn’t too bad bird-wise, although in general numbers were low.

Highlights:

One Oriental Dollarbird on the wires.

A Spotless Crake showing quite well, if distantly, on the main lake (near the red ball close to the Swan’s old nest)

A Brush Cuckoo calling on the Airfield Track.

A female Australian Golden Whistler, also on the Airfield Track – normally not a Big Record bird, of course, but this year Whistlers have been thin in the trees and with the male Mr P and I saw in the same locality last week….

A distant Pacific Koel and a closer, but invisible, Channel-billed Cuckoo calling.

I forgot to check the Tawny Frogmouth’s nest in the car park – my mind being elsewhere – but a total of 51 bird species for the morning. An (Eastern) Water Dragon on the boardwalk beside the lake and a few Evening Browns on the tracks completed the list.

Weekends That Were - September 2020

29.9.20

Oxley

The whole area was still very dry – we need some serious rain to generate some activity – and the track respondingly quiet.

However, by dint of hard work, amazing skills, astounding sight and hearing, I managed to drag the list screaming and kicking up to 56 species for the morning.

Highlights were few, but a male Leaden Flycatcher, all 3 species of Fairy Wrens, a single Latham’s Snipe in the open, at least 20 Purple Swamphens (probably the highest number I have ever recorded at this site), 2 returned Sacred Kingfishers and a male King Parrot near the end were probably worth noting. 

2 Pheasant Coucals were seen well on the way out and, on return, the male was sitting out in the open calling while the female snuck around in the grass beside the track.

Pheasant Coucal video:

                                                           

https://youtu.be/YJ_mfrdoeOc

25.9.20

Minnippi @ night

Mr D picked me up and we collected Mr P and headed to Minnippi for a spotlighting expedition.

Cutting a long story short – it was almost a complete waste of time. 

The only night bird we saw was a Tawny Frogmouth sitting on the already known nest in the car park, apart from that a few roosting Noisy Miners and Grey Butcherbird. No mammals at all.

At the lake a lifer in the form of calling Eastern Sedge Frogs Litoria fallax with several calling males, out of sight, but loud enough to be taped.

That was it – disappointing, but enlightening, sort of…

23.9.20

Minnippi

A very slow morning altogether. I don’t know if it was the fact I wasn’t on site until 6.45 or whether it was the weather – heavy, dull, cloudy – but the birds were thin on the ground.

The lake was almost empty of birds. A few nodding Eurasian Coots, a quartet of Pacific Black Ducks and a couple of Little Pied Cormorants along with 2 Comb-crested Jacanas and that was it.

The M1 track was dead as. The only notable things – 2 Oriental Dollarbirds back from their winter holidays, a calling Sacred Kingfisher, a few Rainbow Lorikeets and 5 Evening Browns – and, again, that was IT.

I did have a Swamp Wallaby on the cross track back to the pond and a distant calling Channel-billed Cuckoo was my first on site of the season, but it could have been as far away as Carindale. I found the Tawny Frogmouth’s nest in the carpark with an adult sitting – thanks Mr P.

The Raptor Lookout was already occupied so I veered off and headed back to the car – didn’t do the Airfield Track or even check the airfield.

20.9.20

Oxley

Mr P picked me up at 6.15 and we were on site 10 minutes later. Average day, quite birdy – 50 species – but numbers generally low. It had rained or there was a heavy mist/dew which made it pleasant enough first thing, but once it started to warm up became a bit humid.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Breakfast afterwards at 9 Bar ( ex-Belesis) with Mr P joined by Mr D to bring us all up to date on our recent respective trips.

12.9.20

Minnippi

Alone again, at Minnippi at 6.15. A nice, clear, calm morning, cool without being cold, a typical Queensland spring morning.

At first it seemed pretty quiet, but turned into quite a birdy morning with 60 species recorded. 

At the lake, from the pylons, the water was pretty empty, but right at the far end along the edge of the swamp grass a small movement and a pair of bright red legs attached to a small black body identified a pair of Spotless Crakes briefly. It was a shit view and they were gone as quickly as they appeared. 

The M! track was very quiet, again, despite last weekend’s flurry of activity. 

The Avenue was dead, but as I crossed the grassland towards the lake a covey of 5 Brown Quail put in an appearance in the middle of the track.

On the lake the usual stuff with a Latham’s Snipe right at the point of the island closest to the ‘mainland’. No sign of the Magpie Geese of last week, but the Black Swans still had 4 live cygnets – almost fully mature now.

A short stay at the lookout produced nothing and I decided to do the Airfield Track for want of anything better.

Overall it was quiet too, but I added a few species to my morning list when a Tawny Grassbird sang/called and attracted the attention of a pair of Red-browed Finches, a Rufous Fantail, a Rufous Whistler, a pair of Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, a pair of White-browed Scrub-wrens and a pair of Silvereyes. It was strange – having a TGB do the playback for me. I’m not sure if it was actually singing or alarming – it wasn’t its usual call that even I am familiar with - but it certainly attracted all the birds in the area to whatever it was going on about.

That was about it. A good list, but nothing overly exciting.

8.9.20

Oxley

On site at 6.15 – a slight chill in the air, but not cold, a low mist hanging over the near fields burned off within 15 minutes.

The track was very dry and the birds consequently, low in number. There were a load of Lewin’s Honeyeaters – I estimate about 25 in total – strung along the first half of the track, chasing and being very obvious. Obviously something in the air for them. Other than them the usual dominant bird, unfortunately, Noisy Miners were constantly in view.

Overall it was a quiet morning with little of great interest. 9 Double-barred Finches on the pond track and a pair of Pale-headed Rosellas showed well on the return walk, but that was about it.

 6.9.20

Minnippi

Mr P drove from his place and we were on site at 6.15. It turned out to be quite a birdy morning.

The lake was much as always, but the M1 track had more birds on it than we had seen for some time, including a Varied Triller and fly over Little Lorikeets.

The Avenue was quiet and the return to the lake largely uneventful.

After a sit at the Lookout, during which a pigeon flew past which only I saw and was tending to call a Common Bronzewing, however, it would be a site first and my view was very brief and not 100%, so I let it go – we did the Airfield Track.

Overall it wasn’t busy but we did have a second Varied Triller – unusual to get two on the same day at Minnippi – and a male Australian Golden Whistler. Golden Whistlers have been thin on the ground at Minnippi this winter and a male is much less common here, than the usual females.

The rest of the walk was quiet, but we ended up with a 60 species list for the morning and a Water Dragon on the creek and an Evening Brown in the M1 track completed the reptile and butterfly contingent.