Landcaring with the locals

Bindi is Back

Spring is sprung and those pesky bindi weeds/joeys are getting ready to attack your bare feet! Prevention is better than cure. Now is the time to spray or weed your lawn and nature strip before they burst into painful and spreading seed.

Wikipedia tells us that bindi or burweed came from South America – thanks for nothing! It loves coastal NSW, where it grows low in spring with a bright green carrot or parsley-like leaf and a seed crown of thorns in the middle. Over spring the seed crown rises up and expands, pushing out the small thorns and exposing the multitude of small seeds, just waiting to be trodden on. Ouch!

This spring when lawns are fairly lush it can be hard to spot so a bindi spray on the end of a hose may be the best form of attack. If you do spot just a few, slide the tips of your fingers under the leaves and lift it, then bin it. The secret is not to press down and get spiked, though you will be pretty safe for the next couple of weeks. If you are not inclined to be brave, wear gloves.

Doing nothing guarantees it will spread year by year until your lawn or nature strip will be an unwalkable bindi-thick paradise. Do it now!

Protecting our Birdlife

Birdlife Australia is encouraging the community to contact our local council to phase out SGARs in our community! Second-generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs) are poisoning and even killing native wildlife like owls, eagles, magpies, and quolls. It’s not just wildlife, beloved family pet cats and dogs are also at risk. Many Australian councils use dangerous SGARs to control rodents in council-managed buildings and spaces, without realising the impacts this has on wildlife and pets in the community.

SGARs are already heavily regulated or banned in Europe and North America, and some proactive Australian councils are already phasing out SGARs because of the risks.

https://www.actforbirds.org/ratpoison

Looking for some social activity?

The Coal Point Landcare group was one of the first in Lake Mac and have been actively landcaring on our public reserves since 1995.

The knowledge of our local bushland within the group is extensive and the group is very willing to share it.

If you have a bushland block and are wondering what weeds are upon it, and what to do about them, the Landcare group is a local source of knowledge.

Every Thursday the group meets somewhere around Coal Point- Carey Bay and at 10am they stop for morning tea.If you’d like to chat with the group and pick their combined brains, that’s the time to do it.

If you’d like to join in and get all the benefits that a bit of physical activity and social contact provides, all are welcome to join in.

Landcaring around our community

For updates on the tasks for the day and specific locations visit the calendar

• 25/8 Gurranba Reserve
• 1/9 - West Ridge Reserve
• 8/9 - Hampton st Link
• 15/9 - West Ridge
• 22/9 - Yarul
• 25/9 - Lions Planting
• 29/9 - Threlkeld
• 6/10 -Burnage
• 13/10 - Killibinbin

Fantastic fauna face triple threat of rats, roads and removal of logs

There have been some amazing sightings lately of friendly fauna visiting our community. A spotted-tailed quoll was seen at Robey Rd, along with a Pheasant coucal, a large, long-tailed, pheasant-like cuckoo

Ecologists Chris Mclean and Gordon Patrick both assured us that they are relatively common in Lake Mac, occurring at both Glenrock SRA and the Watagans NP.This one was probably a roaming male on the lookout for a mate when he went as far east as he could.

Wildlife carer Catherine said “the fact that the quoll and pheasant coucal are down our way, shows just how important our bushland, trees and native gardens are for our wildlife that are having to extend their range to find more food and suitable habitat.”

The Threatened species website says “Quolls use hollow-bearing trees, fallen logs, other animal burrows, small caves and rock outcrops as den sites” so it’s really important to let the logs lie in our bushland reserves as they are important homes for our fauna nomads.

Quolls also eat a variety of prey including gliders, possums, small wallabies, rats, birds, bandicoots, rabbits, reptiles, insects, carrion and domestic fowl. With the current explosion of rodents this can potentially be devastating for the quoll. Second generation rodenticides can cause death beyond the target rodent by building up in the fat reserves of every animal further up the food chain, eventually killing them too.

The first generation warfarin-based rodenticides, which don’t accumulate, are less likely to impact on non-target animals like quolls and owls.

The other local threat for this uncommon community quoll will be the roads. Driving carefully, especially at night, will help.

Local bird surveyors Rob & Michael have also noted that the Satin Bowerbird on the West Ridge is active again - “he has moved it a bit but that’s a good sign that the hormones are flowing again” .

Adult male Satin Bowerbirds build and decorate stick bowers to attract females for mating. Females choose among males based on these complex bowers, decorations placed at these bowers, and displays consisting of vocalisations and posturing. These bowers are amazing, if you happen to come across one please stay a respectful distance, it is their home that they’ve invested a lot of time in decorating it.

Birds about and abundant - Rob Palazzi

The recent rains and cooler weather looks like producing a good flowering on the Spotted Gum (Corymbia maculata) in our reserves. This species appears to be very appealing to the nectar/pollen eaters in the bird world. The several reserves with good stands of this tree - Stansfield in particular - had high numbers of Rainbow Lorikeet and Musk Lorikeet this morning. It should be interesting to watch how these numbers develop in the next month or so.

These same weather conditions have caused a rapid increase in insect populations. These food sources have brought out some of the smaller birds. On the West Ridge there were some very busy Grey Fantail, Brown Thornbill, Spotted Pardalote, Golden Whistler, Leaden Flycatcher and a family of Variegated Fairy-wren. Worth keeping an eye (and ear) open when out walking.

On 7/4/20 Rod Mackay also noted “I have never seen so many (Musk Lorikeets) along with their cousins the Scaly- Breasted, Little and, of course, Rainbow varieties.

Also, there are a pair of Brahminy Kites hanging out on the Lake at present- they don’t normally venture this far south, but good to see them circling around and trying to stay out of the way of Whistling Kites!

While you may not be seeing the Musk Lorikeet, you have probably been hearing them. The usual contact call is a shrill metallic screech, higher than the Rainbow Lorikeet, in flight and when perched. They constantly chatter when feeding.You can listen to them on the Birds in Backyard- site.

Owl Breeding season 2020 has begun

The big hoot has begun in NSW with owls a-callin’ and action all about. Many pairs are already sitting together and owls are in and out of hollows. This has all started about a month earlier than we have seen previously, and in line with breeding activity the 2019, young are beginning to disperse. This early breeding season is not unexpected given the change in climate we have been experiencing.

Whilst the presence of Powerful owls in our community is a wonderful thing, in order to keep them here they need to feel safe and undisturbed. DO NOT walk towards a breeding hollow under the tree! Ideally you don’t want the male to see you at all. A safe viewing distance is 30-50m at all times for your safety and the owl’s comfort.

Water for our Wildlife

The current major drought, which began in 2017, is starting to be felt closer to home with water restrictions recently being put in place. Our bushland wildlife however has been on water restrictions for quite a bit longer.

Local wildlife carer, Catherine Wroe, is seeing lots of dehydrated birds coming into care as they are not getting enough moisture from the food available. If you’ve been for a walk in our bushland recently it’s obvious that there is very little moisture about, leaves and limbs are being shed, mature trees turning up their toes, the soil is dry and drifting without moisture to keep it together.

Catherine has offered up some tips on how to care for our local wildlife.

• Put out water in shallow dishes, both up high and down low and in the shade if possible. If you don’t have shallow dishes include a stick or two so smaller animals can get out if they slip in.
• Keep your cats and dogs inside, especially at night. This lets the wildlife get a drink relatively risk free.

Other tips from https://www.animalsaustralia.org/features/summer-wildlife.php include;

• Covering your pool avoids animals drowning and also reduces evaporation, saving you money
• Keeping an emergency care kit on hand; water, blanket , box and wildlife carer number...Catherine Wroe 0412 093 030

Signs of heat-stressed animals include;

• Nocturnal animals like possums out during the day
• Birds or other animals showing loss of balance, collapse, confusion or panting
• Tree dwelling animals on the ground

Birds in Our Backyard

Avian experts Rob Palazzi and Michael Paver have continued to survey the local bird community on a monthly basis since April 2018 following on from Threatened Species Last Stand project. Here are Rob’s highlights from the January survey.

The most recent survey noted the presence of the Dollarbirds - they turn up in the Spring/Summer and then disappear as it cools. There were lots this year, particularly down the Threlkeld end. They tend to establish a spot/perch and chase food on the wing from there, so I'm pretty confident the records show all different individuals. They migrate down here from PNG/Indonesia to breed, using tree hollows. They are related to the Rollers of elsewhere in the world.

There are some 'trends' in numbers: Carey Bay wetlands are showing a slow increase in both species present and numbers of individuals. The Noisy Miners peaked in number about September and have dropped right off in the last months (maybe the heat). Also we have very low numbers of Common Myna in the reserves - this may contrast with observations among the houses.

July Events

Winter Bird Survey

The Winter Bird Survey is planned for Monday 10th July 7am-11am. Wandering through the local reserves with Tom Clarke’s avian expertise available adds another level of appreciation to our local bushland. Every visit turns up a birding treat. If you’d like to come along meet at the Scout Hall by 7am, wear suitable clothing for walking and the weather, BYO water, snack, binoculars and camera.

Native Trees are Tremendous

The Lake Macquarie Landcare Volunteers Network will be hosting a Super Saturday Session on Native Trees at Progress Hall on Saturday 15th July 9:30am-12:30, including lunch. A variety of speakers will share information on Native Trees endemic to our area, how to protect and enhance Native Trees, backyard Native Trees and the effects of fire on Native Trees. Bookings can be made with the Landcare Resource Centre 4921 0392.

Triennial Bird Survey Summary

Following is a snippet from the 17 page Triennial Bird Survey Report produced by avian aficionado, Tom Clarke. The fullreport can be viewed online.

It is well regarded that birds are wonderful indicators of environmental health and observed changes in birdlife (species mix, population sizes, breeding behaviours etc) can mark the changes to those ecosystems that support the birds.

The bird monitoring effort for Coal Point aims to support the various on-ground restoration works (regeneration, revegetation) as well as add to the knowledge and skills of the local community. Over time the benefits of monitoring long-term changes in habitat and the effect of these changes on the birds will help us understand the nature of the area as well as improving the way we restore and care for the land.

Two years ago a preliminary report was written to satisfy a requirement of the project funding. That report included discussion on the first three rounds of surveys and offered some direction for future investigation. This report now confirms several aspects of the nature of Coal Point and argues for various priorities with regards the ongoing restoration of the natural areas.

The first official survey (Summer Survey) was carried out 15th January 2013 over the 7 established survey sites and a subsequent 11 rounds of seasonal surveys have followed.

Common at all Sites

The species seen frequently at all sites are Rainbow Lorikeet, Noisy Miner, Grey Butcherbird and Australian Magpie; this was quickly established at the beginning of the surveys and has on every occasion since been confirmed. Next on the list of most frequently reported are Laughing Kookaburra and Australian Raven that appear at all but one site each followed by Pied Currawong that misses from regular sightings at only two sites.

Common at Southern Tip

Four of the commonly recorded species are mostly encountered at the southern tip of Coal Point in Stansfield and Threlkeld Reserves. The Little Pied Cormorant is regularly sighted along the shoreline of the lake, a feature not seen at any of the other project sites. Three hollow nesting types, Sulphur- crested Cockatoo, Eastern Rosella and Dollarbird appear to prefer this area over the others. Note that Eastern Rosella does also occur commonly at isolated Norumba Reserve.

Common around Carey Bay

Naturally there are several common birds that prefer the wetland habitat of Carey Bay; White-faced Heron, Superb Fairy-wren, Yellow Thornbill, Willie Wagtail, Magpie Lark and Welcome Swallows are regularly encountered here. The Satin Bowerbird that keeps its bower here is a permanent fixture but does well dining out on the fruit trees in neighbouring back yards.

Including its two satellite reserves, Norumba and Burnage, the remnants of Carey Bay are all completely surrounded by a built environment. The borders of these three reserves are made up of roads, housing and parkland. Taking advantage of this situation we find Spotted Dove, Crested Pigeon, Galah and Little Corella being regularly recorded at these sites. It should be noted that a revegetation exercise (native plantings) that eventually will provide a link between Carey Bay Wetland, Norumba Reserve and the remnant at the end of Hampton Street is a planned component of the project.

Common along West Ridge

In keeping with the healthy bushland found along West Ridge, small bush birds such as Spotted Pardalote, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Golden Whistler and Grey Fantail are most frequently recorded here. The original view that these sites had the most species rich vegetation and strongest ecosystems is confirmed by this aspect. Also in its favour for diversity of avian fauna is the depth and low edge to area ratio of the West Ridge central parts. This core area is less frequented by Noisy Miners that patrol the edges of the forest throughout the study area and constantly drive smaller and less aggressive birds away.

Conclusion

Over the course of three years, these bird surveys have produced a strong data set that when analysed tell many stories. This report is based on several of these stories selected for their relevance to the project and our general understanding of the Coal Point environment.

Spring Bird Survey

The 2015 Spring seasonal bird survey was also recently conducted and the report can be viewed on TheAnimals in our Bigger Backyard page of the CPPA website

Winter Bird Survey

Birds of Coal Point – July 2015 Trip Report by Tom Clarke

A full round of winter surveys was carried out in typical wintery conditions; as was the case last year! Under an overcast sky and an icy breeze, the last thing we could wish for was some rain; so who wished for it, I would like to know. A period of more persistent shower activity caused a temporary halt in proceedings before carrying on with the Burnage Reserve survey but otherwise things went to plan. Of course, the sun came out when all was done (and dusted? perhaps not) and we were well on our way back home.

The newly discovered Bower

Highlights

The discovery of a second bower at Carey Bay Wetland had us wondering if it had been previously overlooked. This “new” bower was found located about 15m away from the known established bower and in the direction of the creek. Both bowers appeared to be active with the new one completely well-built but containing only a few decorations. At least one male Bowerbird was sighted and possibly two female birds. Further investigation will be needed to confirm the owner(s) of these two bowers. 


The occurrence of a Common Blackbird at Carey Bay Wetland is a rare experience in deed. Despite the name, these birds are fairly uncommon in the Lower Hunter and completely rare on the coastal fringe. Hardly any records exist of birds east of Sugarloaf Range although a sighting was made near Morisset in August 2011 (HBOC Annual Bird Report Number 19). These birds do enjoy cold conditions (reminds them of Europe) and it certainly was the case that day; perhaps this bird had travelled here on the strong breeze that was prevailing at the time. 


The uncommon Blackbird

Another rare sighting was that of a pair of Pied Oystercatchers loafing on a reef just off-shore near Threlkeld Reserve. This species is listed as Endangered under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act. Despite having a few breeding pairs around Newcastle and large numbers of non-breeding birds hanging out in Port Stephens, it is not that common in west Lake Macquarie. Three pairs are known to local birdwatchers in east Lake Macquarie and can be seen regularly at Swan Bay, Coon Island sandbank and Black Ned’s Bay.

Our third only sighting of an Olive-backed Oriole was a brief look at a single bird at Burnage Reserve. This poor bird didn’t hang around for too long as it was hunted from the area by a couple of the local Noisy Miners. Previously we have recorded this species at Stansfield Reserve where an adult Olive-backed Oriole with a dependent but fledged juvenile was found in January 2015.

The full report can be read on the blog

Neighbours Noticing Nature

Long term Chronicle sponsor Rod Mackay Yacht Brokerage is also a birding enthusiast…”Logged a positive audible sighting of a Powerful Owl in the vicinity of the reservoir on Coal Point Ridge on Tuesday (30/4/15) night about 6.30pm. Was calling for about 20 minutes, then stopped. Wish they would come down the hill a bit and call in my back yard!”

Nature Watch in June

Look out for…

• Winter Solstice 22nd 
• Pixie Cap & Greenhood Orchids appearing
• Snakes hibernating
• Fungi abundant
• Acacia myrtifolia in flower

Autumn Bird Survey- by Tom Clarke

A full round of autumn surveys was carried out on Thursday 23rd April in mostly fine conditions. The skies were overcast to begin with but cleared to sunny as the day warmed up. What a contrast to that of earlier in the week when gale-force winds and buckets of rain smashed the region.

Evidence of the storm’s ferocity was everywhere with plenty of large trees fallen over and the ground strewn with branches in the bushland (see Figure 1). Most trees that may have had blossom had been blown clean and checking the ground debris significant amounts of bud had been torn down still attached to their branchlets. The likelihood of scarce nectar supply, especially for small transient birds may prove to be a factor in low recording rates of these birds for several weeks.

Highlights

• Despite the paucity of small birds (thinking that a giant leaf-blower had cleaned them all up) it was great to hear Eastern Whipbirds calling from their usual haunts. The gully above the road from Burnage Reserve and both sides of the West Ridge site evidently weathered the storm and continue to provide shelter for these ground-foraging birds. 
 
• A flock of Australian Wood Duck were taking advantage of the flooded nature of the Carey Bay Wetland complex which mostly resembled a lake on this occasion. 
 
• Mixed foraging flocks were restricted to the pairing–up of Golden Whistler and Grey Fantail. These duos were encountered only in the three West Ridge sites. 
 

The full report can be viewed on the Blog

Special Sightings of Summer Birds

The Summer Bird Survey around Coal Point has been conducted and the highlights included

Olive-Backed Oriole

The raptor alarm, provided by the local Noisy Miner gang, went up at Carey Bay Wetlands and just in time to see an Australian Hobby dash overhead. These birds will race over the canopy hoping to ambush some small bush bird. The Noisy Miner alarm call is well known throughout the bird community and serves them well. 

A second time observation of White-browed Scrubwren (2 individuals) at Norumba Reserve is exciting. 

Whipbird calls were confined to the bottom of Burnage Reserve this time around. A probable female bird appears to have returned to this site after nearly two years of wandering elsewhere. 

Channel-Billed Cuckoo

A wonderful close encounter with a Variegated Fairy-wren family at West Ridge was an absolute delight. Both parents plus two recently fledged youngsters were discovered within some grass and other low vegetation. The youngsters were fully-feathered, however tail development was not very advanced. 

Another sighting of a Brown Goshawk as it was harassed by the local Noisy Miners on West Ridge. 

An adult Olive-backed Oriole with a dependent but fledged juvenile was found at Stansfield Reserve. 

Sitting quietly and calling softly in a shrub at Threlkeld Reserve was an apparently abandoned juvenile Channel-billed Cuckoo.

The full report can be read on the Progress Blog.

A bird in the Hand

The inaugural Great Aussie Backyard Bird Count occurred recently and if you missed it don’t fret it will be on again next year. You may even like to get a head start and commence birdscaping your block for the local flock.

The  Aussie Birdcount website has some great planting advice along with some plant focused resources from Trees In Newcastle’s Habitat Garden page

• Plant for vertical and horizontal structure-variety is the spice of life
• Plant for shelter by creating dense protective thickets or rambling climbers amongst trees
• Plant for food.  Nectar and seeds are both important and mulch is great for insects
• Plant local plants that provide the right food and shelter
• Create diversity- small birds love variety
• Plant below trees- Noisy Miners find dense plantings less attractive
• Planting for seasonality means food will be available all year round
• Remove exotic species that produce berries and replace with local natives
• Reduce lawn area by planting native grasses for the seed eaters
• Use small gardens effectively by planting fewer species in greater numbers
• Provide fresh water

Grey Butcherbird Nest at Stansfield Reserve

As part of Threatened Species project a full round of Spring Bird surveys were carried out on 15/10/14 around Coal Point-Carey Bay under overcast skies and “wintery” cold conditions. In spite of the weather the highlights were 

• White-browed Scrubwren and Eastern Whipbird at Burnage Reserve, 
• Superb Fairy-wren, Brown Thornbill and Yellow-faced Honeyeater at West Ridge and
• Nesting Grey Butcherbirds at Stansfield reserve.

The full report produced by Tom Clarke on the 2014 Spring Survey can be viewed here.

What birds are about?

Tom Clarke recently conducted a winter bird survey along Coal Point. Highlights of this visit were the discoveries of mixed foraging flocks moving through the shrub layer at the Carey Bay and West Ridge Central sites. At Carey Bay the flock consisted of Grey Fantail, four Yellow Thornbill (they love the casuarinas), Eastern Spinebill and three Golden Whistlers. This is the second winter record of mixed foraging flocks at this site so Carey Bay is showing some consistency in this regard. At West Ridge Central the flock was dominated by Silvereyes but also included three Golden Whistlers, Grey Fantail and three Brown Thornbills.

Another highlight was the discovery of a pair of Spotted Pardalote carrying out nest-building activities on West Ridge. These birds were stripping the fibre from a nearby Stringybark and carrying the nest materials to a burrow hidden beneath the base of a fallen tree. Given that nesting for these birds is usually in spring we are left wondering what may have triggered this behaviour.

Tom’s full report can be read online Birds of Coal Point Winter Survey.

There was more excitement in the world of birds… the Pacific Baza was about.

Below is an extract from a message from Liz Crawford dated Wednesday 16th July;

Nine Pacific Baza flew along the Coal Point ridge today, stopping to forage with wing-spread plunges into eucalypt foliage. Amongst the detailed information in HANZAB (Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds), there are notes that Bazas are

• "regular in gardens and orchards in urban areas, mainly in winter."
• "Wintering groups of 10-12 birds also noted in SE Queensland."
• "Hunt co-operatively , in pairs or groups of up to ten."
• "In eastern Australia, some birds appear to disperse during non-breeding season: in NSW recorded to 34-35⁰S in winter, 33⁰S in summer."

We have seen 2 and 3 Pacific Bazas flying past our house in the last couple of weeks, but today's big group was exceptional - although, as noted by HANZAB, such groups have been seen before!

Another Coal Point local, Rod Mackay spotted spotted a small flock (about 6) of Pacific Bazas on top of a large gum tree here at Skye Pt Rd. They flew off to the north just as I was hooking my camera up…A new tick is a great way to start a cold July day!

Image credit https://www.flickr.com/photos/
httpwwwflickrcomphotostopend/

Did you see them?

Following is a description from Birds in Backyards

The Pacific Baza is a medium-sized, long-tailed hawk with a prominent crest. It is slim-bodied, with a narrow head and neck. The wings are paddle-shaped, well-rounded and deeply 'fingered'. The head, neck and breast are grey and the underparts are white with bold dark banding. The legs are short with weak toes.

The Pacific Baza's favourite prey is large insects, particularly stick insects and mantids, and frogs. They sometimes eat fruit as well. Bazas will move through the canopy, or perch and watch, then make short dives, with feet extended, to snatch prey from the foliage or from the air.

Forest Owls, Fungi-mapping & fossils

Lake Macquarie Landcare’s Super Saturday Session on July 12^th at the Landcare Resource Centre has something for everyone. Starting at 9.30am a presentation about the Forest Owls in our area will be given followed by a call to action to record the distribution of 100 of the more common fungi in the area via the fungi-mapping project. A break for lunch and then it will be off fossicking for fossils in the Tingirra Heights Insect Fossil beds, pondering the preservation of rare winged insects of the past. RSVP is essential to the Landcare Resource Centre on 4921 0392

Who gives a Hoot?

Powerful Owl

You can join the Powerful Owl Project on Sunday 13 April, 10am to 1pm at Coal point at Progress Hall, 197 Skye Point Rd

Come along to hear about the owl’s habitat and threats, the results of the Powerful Owl research project and receive training to become an owl observer.

Bookings essential to Council on 4921 0333.

Do you see what I see?

Eastern Spinebill

by Catherine Wroe- Local Wildlife Carer 24/3/14

I keep an close eye on the bird life on the West Ridge and wanted to let you know that today I have a Masked Owl roosting in a tree near my aviaries, unfortunately being harassed by all the local birds. I also saw a Powerful Owl a few weeks ago and a couple of Spangled Drongos - which is pretty unusual to get here, lots of Rufous Fantails, Eastern Spinebills and other small birds.... The Goshawks are gone so the birds are coming back, and the small bird population seems to be growing.

It's been lovely seeing all of the small birds and I've never seen so many Rufous Fantails with their young - I usually only see one or two. Now I'm lucky enough to be getting a family of Eastern Spinebills , Scrubwrens, Variegated Fairy-wrens, Easter whipbirds, Golden Whistlers and other small birds coming into my garden - the bushy plants I've planted have grown enough to entice them down and I'm stoked... Another area with lots of small birds, especially honeyeaters at the moment, is some bush next to the clay pigeon shooting site along the road going towards the Awaba garbage dump, great for any bird watcher.

Masked Owl

Goshawk

Spangled Drongo

Birds of Coal Point (and Turtles)

An important part of the TSLS project has been the monitoring of the birdlife in the local area. Birds are being used as indicators of the bushland health and to guide the bush regeneration strategies over the life of the project…and beyond.

Tom Clarke reported the Spring Survey highlights…” It was great to see the migrant birds (Sacred Kingfisher, Dollarbird, Channel-billed Cuckoo and Eastern Koel) back in the area again and busying themselves in re-establishment. A pair of Dollarbirds was encountered at Carey Bay and was suffering the attentions of Magpie Lark; we wait with interest to see if they can secure the advantage of the dead trees within the wetland. 

Another sign of spring was the widely encountered behaviour of nest hollow inspection. Laughing Kookaburra were checking out and/or excavating nest hollows in various arboreal termite mounds at Noorumba Reserve, Burnage Reserve and West Ridge South while Rainbow Lorikeet were inspecting tree hollows at West Ridge Central and West Ridge South.”

The spring, summer, autumn and winter seasonal bird surveys and the 1^st annual report are now available for viewing.

Additionally BirdLife Australia, through the Powerful Owl project has shown that there was a local chick hatched. This was the first year this project has extended beyond Sydney. An interesting observation noted in the report is that “Powerful Owls have been seen eating a higher number of birds this year along with the usual diet of possums, including Rainbow Lorikeet, Currawong, Kookaburra, Magpie, Channel-billed Cuckoo and even a Noisy Miner. 

P.S The Hunter Central-Rivers CMA has recently produced a movie about marine turtles and with the warmer weather about you may be lucky enough to see some bobbing about.

On the prowl for the Powerful Owl

Several locals have heeded the call of Birdlife Australia and gone on the prowl for the Powerful Owl in the Toronto Area. 

The first couple of expeditions did not provide a sighting but recently a successful viewing occurred off Centennial Parkway. With the support of a local landowner nice clear whitewash (bird droppings) were seen, with a very furry pellet in the middle of it, so real evidence of local presence. The owl prowlers watched a Powerful Owl pull apart something furry then fly overhead to another perch and heard a Powerful Owl call several times. A glimpse was had of what was thought to be a female flying past then the calls came from further away so hopefully some chicks will be heard in the near future. 

Powerful Owls are the largest owls in Australia with possums, especially Ringtails being a favourite food. They will also take roosting birds and swoop on they prey grabbing them with their feet. 

The Powerful Owl mates for life, often 30 years,  and the pair defends its territory all year long. Their home includes an area that has open forests, woodlands, sheltered gullies with a watercourse and large vertical tree hollow for the nest. You can see why the Toronto area has been chosen by this local pair.

If you would like more information about the Powerful Owl project  contact David Bain  from Birdlife Australia david.bain@birdlife.org.au
M 0421 337 545 | T 02 9647 1875

A local Powerful Owl range being surveyed