Peter and June Gotham warmly welcomed 17 COG members to their property near Chiltern in northern Victoria. Thanks to their planting of thousands of trees to supplement the 35 established trees that were there when they bought the property in 2001, and their stunning house, garden and water features, we were able to enjoy great birding within metres of our camp. Southern Whiteface were just outside our tents and a Diamond Firetail sat above us displaying with a seed stalk on two afternoons. Jacky Winter, Red-capped Robin and Speckled Warbler lurked around the farm gate.
June and Peter had put together a very comprehensive programme for us covering a variety of locations and habitats in the Chiltern-Mt Pilot National Park and very kindly led us to these along the maze of roads on both sides of the Hume Highway. Highlights were Painted Honeyeater, Turquoise Parrots (seen by only two people) and Regent Honeyeater (seen by only one who made a brief stop at Cyanide Dam on her way to the property). Despite the prolonged drought in this part of the country, we recorded 115 different bird species, but we also learnt a lot about butterflies, reptiles and mammals, thanks to our resident expert, Steve Holliday. One night’s spotlighting yielded two Koala, a Brush-tailed Possum with a baby on its back, a Ring-tailed Possum and a Squirrel Glider, as well as calling Australian Owlet-nightjars. Very special thanks go to Peter and June for their hospitality, the wonderful facilities they made available to us and their generosity in giving up their Easter weekend to show us “their patch.”
Sue Lashko