Note the change from Bungendore area.
Meet at Kambah Village at 8.30am for carpooling. We will drive to the old Orroral Tracking Station site stopping at least twice along the way with the aim of seeing a range of grassland, bush and water birds. Bring morning tea.
Contact Michael Robbins mrobbins@home.netspeed.com.au if you need further information.
Four COG members and a guest braved the sub zero temperatures for the trip to Orroral Valley. Our first planned stop was just after the turn-off to the Apollo Road, at the Gudgenby River bridge. We were greeted by a large flock of small birds which turned out to be Double-barred Finches. So a good start, especially as we also had good views of a Grey Butcherbird, a large flock of Yellow-rumped Thornbills and Scarlet Robin, female and male. However, the highlight at this stop was the Brown Treecreepers on the side of the hill north of the river. The views were so good because the birds were being rockcreepers, and hence posed well for the photographers.
Our second stop at the Orroral Campground was quiet and so we moved fairly quickly to our third stop at the Nursery Swamp carpark. Just up the hill we had an excellent, although brief, view of a Crescent Honeyeater. It was posed beautifully, high in a dead tree, rather than hidden while feeding in the flowering Banksia marginata. The photographers also had excellent opportunities to get good pictures of Eastern Yellow Robin, but not of the Striated Thornbill, nor the White-eared Honeyeater, and the Superb Lyrebird was heard, not seen. Below us in the grassland two Masked Lapwing were visible and calling.
Our last stop was at the old tracking station area where the highlights were a pair of very dark Wedge-tailed Eagles flapping until they caught a thermal and then circling in opposite directions as they gained height. Our views of the other predator were not nearly as good. However, I’m convinced it was a Brown Falcon based on the wing dihedral which was very obvious as it flew away from me, although as it had started to thermal the end of its wings looked quite rounded. The other highlight, maybe low light, of this stop were good views of five European Goldfinch; oh, and the ice on the Orroral River at noon!!!