The purpose of Birdline Australia is to publish records of national interest, and to provide a site to post reports for regions not otherwise covered by a birdline or similar service.

Birdline Australia is sponsored by Birds Australia, co-ordinated and hosted by Eremaea Birds and moderated by Denise Goodfellow, Dezmond Wells, Keith & Lindsay Fisher, Kurtis Lindsay, Simon Blanchflower and Tim Dolby. Register for weekly summary emails, species notifications and the ability to enter full lists.

Recent Sightings

September 2010

Wed 8	Scarlet-chested Parrot 25deg 04.059'S 129deg 55.790'E, Northern Territory After having spent two unsuccessful days searching at some of Ian Mays sites for Scarlet-chested Parrots, James and Alexander Watson gave up the search and were on their way home when they stopped the car to look at a Thorny Devil. Sheer luck because right there were five SCP's! The spot was at 25deg 04.059'S 129deg 55.790'E, 81.9 km west down the Docker River Road from its junction with the road to the Olgas. The habitat was burnt mulga and mallee. The permit to travel that road is easy to get at the Yulara visitors centre. James and Alexander Watson 8/9 #14598
Mon 6	Ringed/Semipalmated Plover and Semipalmated Plover Broome , Western Australia Hi All, A few minutes ago Adrian Boyle found a Ringed/Semipalmated Plover roosting with other shorebirds in Roebuck Bay near Broome WA. George Swann (Kimberley Birdwatching) has just checked the Broome Sewage Ponds and the long staying Semipalmated Plover is there so this is definitely a second individual. ID is still pending given somewhat distant views. Habitat might suggest Ringed over Semipalmated Plover - but then both the recent Tuross Heads (NSW) and Corner Inlet (Vic) Semipalmated Plovers were in estuarine habitat. Adrian Boyle and George Swann per Rohan Clarke 6/9 #14575
Sat 4	Ground Cuckoo-shrike 30km's east of Nyapari Community, APY Lands, South Australia Two birds sighted flying in distinct G.C.S. fashion close to Nyapari and another pair sighted close to Mulga Park Homestead, north of Amata (same day, same trip). Keith & Shirley Johnson (via David Hartland) 7/9 #14582
	Spinifexbird Deering Hills, S. Kanpi, APY Lands, South Australia Single bird spotted at 11:30am foraging quietly on side of large, rocky hill covered with large hummocks of spinifex after previous day/evening of heavy rain). Have been searching this site for Rufous-crowned Emu Wren (w/out luck) but regular sightings at same site of Dusky Grasswrens - however, my first sighting of this species at site, despite numerous visits over a few years. The bird did not call at all during 10-15 mins. of following closely to confirm i.d. It fanned its tail occasionally whilst searching low cover for insects (is this usual?). No evidence of nesting or possible partner during sighting. No luck seeing it the following day (same time) with Keith & Shirley Johnson helping in the search. Wil return to site to try and photograph bird in coming days. David Hartland 7/9 #14581

August 2010

Tue 31	Scarlet-chested Parrot Kaltukatjara, Northern Territory On a recent trip to Central Australia, Pat and I discovered a local irruption of Scarlet-chested Parrot near Kaltukatjara, Northern Territory. Further information Pat and Ian May 2/9 #14533
Mon 30	Red-necked Phalarope Lake Baghdad, Western Australia Red-necked Phalarope on Lake Baghdad, one of the salt lakes on Rottnest Island off Perth. Bill Rutherford per John Graff 2/9 #14532
Sat 28	Spotted Whistling-Duck Pine River, Cape York, Queensland Ben Bright reports the presence of c. 50 Spotted Whistling Ducks on the Pine River ~15 km upstream of the mouth. Ben Bright per Mike Carter 4/9 #14551
Wed 18	Probably House Crow Wyndham, Western Australia Just heard from Adrian Boyle that there is a probable House Crow in Wyndham, NW WA. The bird has been there for a 'while' and has been seen around a cafe. (Adrian has not seen it and there no photos etc to confirm ID as yet). WA Department of Agriculture are apparently also looking for it - so if it is a House Crow it may not be around for much longer! Adrian Boyle per Rohan Clarke 18/8 #14371
Fri 13	Eastern Reef Egret Walkerville, Victoria Single bird (dark morph) seen on beach just south of kiosk. We were speaking to David Farrar of Parks Vic the next day and he informed us that a single bird has been in the area for about 5 months, particularly around Bear Gully, east of Cape Liptrap. Carl & Knud Hansen 18/8 #14369
	Princess Parrot Update Mereenie - Mt Winter area, Northern Territory The Central Land Council has just received detailed advice from traditional owners of the Mereenie - Mt Winter area. All permits for birdwatching for this area will be refused. Traditional owners have requested that police question all people visiting this region and determine if they have a valid permit. It is an offence under the land rights act to be on Aboriginal land without a valid permit. Hefty fines apply. A map of the restricted area can be found at http://www.clc.org.au/Permits/Map.pdf Further information Tim Dolby 13/8 #14327
	Orange-bellied Parrot Western Treatment Plant, Victoria 3 adult Orange-bellied Parrots (1 male + 2 females) were seen this afternoon by the Melbourne Water Biodiversity Conservation Advisory Committee during an inspection of conservation works at the Western Treatment Plant. [Note: precise location will not publicized so as to avoid possible disturbance to the birds. TD] Melbourne Water Biodiversity Conservation Advisory Committee per John Barkla 13/8 #14325
Mon 9	Princess Parrot Permits Western NT, Northern Territory I have just had a request from the Central Land Council to inform birders that the locations in which the Princess Parrots have been sighted is primarily on Aboriginal freehold land. To visit such areas without a special purpose permit is illegal under the Land Rights Act and incurs a hefty fine. The Central Land Council notes that at least 8 separate birding parties are currently heading to the Mt Winter area in the Haasts Bluff Aboriginal Land Trust and none have applied for a permit to do so. It should be noted that Aboriginal land is privately owned. Like other landowners in Australia , Aboriginal people have the legal right to grant or refuse permission to people wishing to enter or travel through their land. There are also areas that contains numerous sacred sites, including places that have gender-specific access restrictions. To apply for permits you should visit http://www.clc.org.au/Permits/permits.html Applications for a special purpose permit usually take several weeks or more to process and are not automatically granted. This is because the traditional owners for particular sites need to be identified and contacted as to their wishes. They may reside across a number of geographically distant communities. Further information Tim Dolby 9/8 #14306
Sun 8	Kerguelen Petrel Perth Pelagic, Western Australia A fly by Kerguelen seen briefly by a few observers. Distinctive body shape, bulky head, silvery underside to primaries and strange flight. The photo isn't great! Rob Morris 9/8 #14301
	Soft-plumaged Petrel Perth Pelagic, Western Australia Good numbers including an unusual intermediate phase bird (see photo) Rob Morris et al. on the Perth Pelagic out of Hilarys 9/8 #14300
Fri 6	Princess Parrot Western NT, Northern Territory We have located many hundreds, of Princess Parrots at various locations. From the observations so far, most birds are concentrated mainly within 4 or 5 areas however it is likely to be many more because our searching was somewhat restricted by difficult access. It is likely that there are many hundreds, probably thousands of birds spread over a much greater area than we could cover. When we return to Price SA next week I will post a complete report including coordinates and details of all our sightings. For those interested to have a look, two reasonably accessible areas offer high probability of locating birds if visited over a period of at least a day or two. Remember the hot weather will arrive soon and the current ideal conditions will almost certainly deteriorate quickly Please note; The following information refers to Map datum WGS 84. Coordinates are in Deg, min, sec. Time is Australian Central Standard The first location is the most south eastern population we encountered. First birds only approx. 17 km from the Meereenie Loop road at 23 56 04S, 131 22 28 E More than 100 birds scattered at various locations adjacent to and off the track for about 15 km traversing west to 23 59 01S, 131 14 08E. Approximately 65 km from Kings Canyon Resort. The birds can be found dispersed singly, in pairs and in small flocks of up to 20 frequenting open tall forest areas of Desert Oak and Eucalyptus (Bloodwood?). Many are found while feeding between dawn to about 11.00 and again from about 1500 until dusk At these times birds usually flush from the ground and fly about calling loudly often circling and settling again in nearby desert oaks. The other location offering reasonable access is approximately 60 km south west of Mt Liebig and 23 km WSW of Browns bore. Birds were scattered in pairs and flocks up to 20 birds encountered along about 7 km of track from 23 39 22S, 131 03 48E to 23 41 46S, 131 00 46E. Ian and Pat May per Tim Dolby 6/8 #14279
Tue 3	Black-breasted Buttonquail Flinders Peak Conservation Park, Ipswich, Queensland Three male-plumaged individuals were foraging together in vine-scrub regrowth along the Mt Blaine track. Chris Wiley 3/8 #14261

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