The February bird walk achieved the greatest turnout ever of people and birds – 15 people and 43 birds. Blazing Saddles was alive with birds in three different environments: woodland, grassland and water, the last being the Painkalac Creek, and the temporary lake on the paddocks. Margaret Lacey showed us many of the places where she took photos for her book Birds of Aireys Inlet.
Three members of the group used iPhones to provide information about birds and their calls. This innovation was a wonderful aid in identifying less familiar birds, such as Satin Flycatchers.
Highlights were the scores of Dusky Wood Swallows, a recently used nest, and close up views of newly fledged young. We also saw a superb, neat, little, Willy Wagtail nest, with both parents taking turns to sit on two very large nestlings. After morning tea at Distillery Creek, five of us did the Nature Walk, hoping to see a Powerful Owl. We saw a few different species, but no owl.
Below are all the birds identified on this walk:
- Australian Wood Duck
- Australian Shelduck
- Black Duck
- Grey Teal
- White-faced Heron
- Masked Lapwing
- Common Bronzewing
- Gang-gang Cockatoo
- Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
- Australian King-Parrot
- Crimson Rosella
- Eastern Rosella
- Fan-tailed Cuckoo
- Horsefield’s Bronze-Cuckoo
- Laughing Kookaburra
- White-throated Treecreeper
- Superb Fairy-wren
- Striated Pardalote
- White-browed Scrubwren
- Brown Thornbill
- Red Wattlebird
- White-eared Honeyeater
- White-plumed Honeyeater
- Brown-headed Honeyeater
- White-naped Honeyeater
- New Holland Honeyeater
- Yellow Robin
- Crested Shrike-tit
- Golden Whistler
- Rufous Whistler
- Grey Shrike-thrush
- Satin Flycatcher
- Willy Wagtail and nest with babies
- Grey Fantail
- Dusky Woodswallow
- Magpie-lark
- Australian Magpie
- Pied Currawong
- Little Raven
- Red-browed Finch
- Welcome Swallow
- Tree Martin
- Common Starling