Morus serrator.

I have been watching the Gannets diving off the rocks at Forster for a couple of days but the weather has been rainy and dark. So this morning the sun was out and so was my camera. I had been wanting to get some shots of the Gannets diving. One of the most difficult things to photograph in my humble opinion.

juvenile Australasian Gannet (Morus serrator)

The first few dives I tried to follow focus with the back-focus button held in but that did not seem to work. Mainly because there was a lot of background crap such as buildings and hills and breakwaters. Eventually I just followed with the focus until they dived and then let my finger off the focus button and hoped that I was in the general depth-of-field.

Australasian Gannet Going into the dive

Australasian Gannet adjusting in dive

plop! into the water

Back into flight

Newcastle to Great Lakes.

I could not work out what this next bird was. I have no experience in identifying pelagic birds, plus these birds were a fair way away so I could not get a good look at them close up. Could be Black Petrel or Sooty Shearwater at a very rough guess.

Petrel or Shearwater ?

The Kookaburras stole one of my sandwiches again at the lake at Pacific Palms again! I had my eye on two of them up on a branch then a third one snuck behind me and grabbed my Nutella and jam sandwich right out of my hand.

One of the culprits.

Thieving Kookaburra eating my lunch.

The crows came along later and cleaned up the leftovers.

Australian Raven

Burning Mountain Nature Reserve.

Burning Mountain Nature Reserve conserves one of the only Australian examples of an underground naturally burning coal seam. It is currently burning approximately 30 meters below ground, moving in a southerly direction at just over one meter per year.

Burnt-out section of bush

Kangaroo Thorn (Acacia paradoxa). This shrubby wattle bites the unwary with its modified spiny leaves which produce typical golden wattle blossoms from August to October.

Kangaroo Thorn (Acacia paradoxa).

male Spotted Pardalote (Pardalotus punctatus)

White-eared Honeyeater (Lichenostomus leucotis)

Travelling Stock Route.

This is the second chapter of the Borah Creek saga because I just took too many photos! I will keep this one brief because I did not take any notes and the last couple of days are a blur.

Kangaroo

I have no idea what type of kangaroo this is. It might be a wallaroo.

Brown Treecreeper

Red-winged Parrot (Aprosmictus erthropterus)

Big ole jet air-liner

Skink ?

Travelling Stock Route.

Travelling along the Borah Road, I screech to a halt to photograph a lizard on the road. I go close and it still does not move. It must have really low batteries and is recharging on the hot bitumen.

lizard

I stop at Adams Reserve. There are mushrooms everywhere after the wet weather. I think of Dawnie and take a few photos of the mushrooms for her. There is not much there except a few honeyeaters and some Double-barred Finches.

Common Bronzewing (Phaps chalcoptera)

I arrive at the Borah Creek Reserve and set up camp, avoiding under the trees. There are branches dropping everywhere. These old trees are dangerous.

Red-winged Parrot (Aprosmictus erthropterus)

I go for a walk up the creek about four in the afternoon but it is pretty quiet. A few Black-fronted Dotterel are on the gravel bars. There is lots more water in the creek than usual. There has been lots of rain and everything is green. I come back and pitch the tent. It is nice sleeping in a tent. I leave the flaps open, there is plenty of room to stretch out and watch the stars and moon.

Turquoise Parrot (Neophema pulchella)

Next morning I get up and head up the hill towards the sun. There are a few surprises – Turquoise Parrot and Red-winged Parrot. Later on, I come across a mob of birds – Superb Fairy-wrens, Double-barred Finches, Red-browed Finches , Diamond Firetails, Yellow-rumped Thornbills, Sitellas and Willy wagtails. They all seem to hang together and move on with each other.

Varied Sitella (Daphoenositta chrysoptera

In the afternoon there are not many birds around. I wash my clothes and have a bath in the creek. The water is nice and cold. It is still pretty hot in the middle of the day.

Jacky Winter

I cook some toast and soak some dried peas for dinner. I might have cous cous and curried peas for dinner tonight.

Diamond Firetail (Stagonopleura guttata)

There are no raptors at all. I have not seen one yet. It is very unusual. I think I heard an owl up the hill during the night. (On the way out I saw a few Nankeen Kestrels and Wedge-tailed Eagles).

Double-barred Finch (Taeniopygia bichenovii)

Borah Creek bird list, April 2014.

Grey Teal
White-faced Heron
Black-fronted Dotterel
Common Bronzewing (Phaps chalcoptera)
Peaceful Dove
Crested Pigeon
Galah
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
Red-rumped Parrot
Australian King-Parrot
Red-winged Parrot (Aprosmictus erythropterus)
Turquoise Parrot (Neophem pulchella)
Eastern Rosella
Laughing Kookaburra
Varied Sitella (Daphoenositta chrysoptera)
Brown Treecreeper
Superb Fairy-wren
Speckled Warbler (Pyrrholaemus sagittatus)
Yellow-rumped Thornbill
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Noisy Miner
White-plumed Honeyeater
Eastern Yellow Robin
Jacky Winter (Microcea fascinans)
Rufous Whistler
Grey Fantail
Willy Wagtail
Magpie-lark
Pied Butcherbird
Australian Magpie
Pied Currawong
White-winged Chough
Welcome Swallow
Common Starling
Double-barred Finch (Taeniopygia bichenovii)
Red-browed Finch
Diamond Firetail (Stagonopleura guttata)
Mistletoebird
Australian Raven
Nankeen Kestrel
Wedge-tailed Eagle

Namoi River.

Back to the Manilla River Walk. This is very simple to describe. Just go along the river from one bridge to the other. I started at the road bridge and walked to the old rail bridge near the show grounds. First thing I spotted near the bridge was pack of magpies harrassing a Brown Goshawk. Unfortunately he was too far away and only got a badly focused photo.

Flying Fox in flight.

I had been very inspired by an American kid who had got a photo of a bat in flight, so I was very happy to get this shot and a few others. Not as focussed as I would like but it is very difficult to get a photo of them in flight.

Brown Quail (Coturnix ypsilophora)

I was very surprised to see a pair of Brown Quail along the track.

Yellow-rumped Thornbill (Acanthiza chrysorrha)

The next morning a mob of Yellow-rumped Thornbills interrupted my breakfast.

Red-browed Finch (Neochmia temporalis)

These beautiful birds are always a delight to photograph.

White-winged Chough

I have no idea what this White-winged Chough has got in its mouth but it is very interesting.

Little Corella (Cacatua sanguinea)

I thought these were Sulphur-crested Cockatoo until I had a good look.

Crested Pigeon

I like the chiaroscuro of this shot. ha ha It’s art!

Manilla bird list

Brown Goshawk (Accipiter fasciatus)
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike
Noisy Miner
Red-rumped Parrot
Pacific Black Duck
Swamp Harrier
White-plumed Honeyeater
Welcome Swallow
Pied Butcherbird
White-winged Chough
Brown Quail
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
Little Corella (Cacatua sanguinea)
Galah
Yellow-rumped Thornbill (Acanthiza chrysorrha)
Crested Pigeon
Peaceful Dove
Rock Dove
Australian White Ibis
Pied Cormorant
Dusky Moorhen
White-faced Heron
Eastern Rosella
Red-rumped Parrot
Common Myna
Common Starling
Black Drongo
Red-browed Finch (Neochmia temporalis)
Willy Wagtail
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Pied Currawong
Australian Magpie
Magpie-lark
Superb Fairy-wren

Flying Fox

Great Dividing Range.

Wallabadah is up on the Great Dividing Range, about fifty kilometers east of Tamworth. The cemetery is a favourite spot of mine, which I visit when I go past here on the way up the mountains.

Straw-necked Ibis (Threskiornis spinicollis)

There were about four immature Australian King-parrot at the cemetery in the morning after the torrential rain of the night before. I am pretty sure this is an immature female.

immature female Australian King-Parrot (Alisterus scapularis)

And I think this is an immature male because of the patchy red on the chest. Sorry about the blown-out background. doh!

immature male Australian King-Parrot (Alisterus scapularis)

Crimson Rosella (Platycercus elegans)

Eastern Rosella
Crimson Rosella
Australian King-Parrot
Welcome Swallow
Australian Magpie
Magpie-lark
Yellow-rumped Thornbill
Straw-necked Ibis

South Coast, New South Wales.

I stopped in again at Shoalhaven Heads and this time it was not raining. There were a few Bar-tailed Godwits feeding on the shores. They were in breeding plumage, getting all fatted up before their mammoth trek to the Northern Hemisphere.

Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica)

One in flight showing the distinctive barring on the tail.

Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica)

And quite a few New Holland Honeyeaters in the bushes around the estuary.

New Holland Honeyeater (Phylidonyris novaehollandiae)

At Boat Harbour, near Gerringong, there were a pair of White-bellied Sea-eagles soaring above the cliffs looking for a feed. There was a mature male and an immature female.

White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster)

South Coast, NSW.

Lake Burrill is just south of Ulladulla on the New South Wales south coast.

Bar-tailed Godwit

Royal Spoonbill

Red Wattlebird

Little Wattlebird

Royal Spoonbill

Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo

The entrance to the lake looking towards Dolphin Point.

Lake Burrill entrance

Shoalhaven Heads and Nowra Creek

Shoalhaven Heads is at the entrance to the sea for the Shoalhaven River. Most of the time it was raining so not much chance for taking photographs.

Shoalhaven Heads

Moving on up the river to Nowra, I wandered along the Nowra Creek track. There were more birds up the top along the edges of the showground.

Crimson Rosellas

This bridge spans the creek at the bottom of the track.

Suspension Bridge

Lots of Lewin’s Honeyeaters but not much more. A few Superb Fairy-wrens, Silvereyes.

Lewin’s Honeyeater

This is the track going up the hill to the showground where it passes between some big boulders.

Nowra Creek Track