Louisiade White-eye

On the return leg of our cruise to Papua New Guinea we stopped for the day on February 3 in the Conflict Islands, a chain of small islands that are part of the Louisiade Archipelego. The Louisiades extend from the south-eastern end of PNG where the Coral Sea meets the Solomon Sea. 

They have several endemic bird species and four of these (plus two future splits) occur in the Conflict Islands. We were moored off Panasesa, the largest of the Conflict group, and transferred by tender boat from the Coral Princess to an island wharf. A path from the jetty crosses the island, passing through rainforest. 

The Conflict Islands are privately owned by an Australian businessman, which seems an incongruous state of affairs for such a scenically spectacular destination. It appears that nobody is resident here and that people are brought in when a cruise ship is berthed. Native artefacts were absurdly expensive, and many passengers had been denied the opportunity to acquire much cheaper souvenirs a day earlier on Kiriwina Island to the north when the captain decided not to land there. 

Panasesa may be the largest in the group, but the island can be walked around and across within a couple of hours. I spent an enjoyable and productive morning here in lush rainforest and along beautiful beaches, scoring all 6 specialties. I had not left the jetty upon arrival when I saw my first White-chinned Myzomela (below) endemic to the Louisiades, and there were plenty of these rather drab honeyeaters about.

Next off the list was Louisiade White-eye (below) the commonest bird on the island and all over the place in noisy little flocks, often associating with the myzomelas. 

The recently split Islet Kingfisher (below) with its distinctive call could be heard easily enough but it took some tracking to eventually locate a pair.

Last of the endemics was a Louisiade Whistler, with a male showing well but briefly, with one poor image having to do. 

The distinctive subspecies of Spectacled Monarch and White-bibbed Fruit-Doves also showed nicely. 

Spectacled Monarch

White-bibbed Fruit-Dove

Other nice birds included numbers of Island (Floury) Imperial-Pigeons.

Island Imperial-Pigeon

SPECIES (* denotes lifer):

Black-naped Tern, Brown Noddy, Crested Tern, Ruddy Turnstone, Grey Plover (the last two species I didn’t see but they were photographed by Colin Palethorpe),

Lesser Frigatebird, Great Frigatebird,

Eastern Reef Heron, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, White-bibbed Fruit-Dove (subsp strophium),

Island (Floury) Imperial-Pigeon, *Islet Kingfisher,

Singing Starling, Spectacled Monarch (2 subsp melanopterus), Willie Wagtail, *Louisiade Whistler, *Louisiade White-eye, *White-chinned Myzomela.

Total 18 species (4 lifers)

Ebird list here.

Black-naped Tern

Rufous-sided Broadbill

Four years ago, I began planning a 21-day private tour of Ghana in West Africa in association with Ashanti, a highly regarded tour company based in the Ghanaian city of Cape Coast, to be held in April 2020.Then Covid-19 intervened. The trip finally happened from April 1 to April 21, 2023. We were ably assisted throughout the trip by our excellent guide Victor Owusu, his highly capable assistant guide Ibrahim Entsie, and our formidable driver Christian. A full trip report listing all participants, species lists and the like is to follow a series of blog posts.of which this is the first.  En route to Ghana I spent a couple of days in Singapore, where I indulged the shenanigans of a group of Smooth-coated Otters that have become used to people in Bishan Park.

Smooth-coated Otter in Singapore

Some of us arrived in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, a day early, so we opted for an exploratory morning session in the Accra (Legono) Botanic Gardens. A good start was the recently split Olive-naped Weaver by the pool at the hotel.

Olive-naped Weaver

The gardens were alive with birds, among them our first Senegal Thick-knee, Wattled Lapwing, Guinea Turaco, Western Plantain-eater, Woodland Kingfisher, Brown Babbler and Green Wood-Hoopoe. An African Cuckoo, a Grey-headed Bush-shrike and Northern Red-billed Hornbill were unexpected. 

Guinea Turaco

Senegal Thick-knee

Woodland Kingfisher

A group of Lesser Spot-nosed Monkeys was seen.

Lesser Spot-nosed Monkey

The first morning of the tour saw us at Winneba Lagoon west of Accra. A Brown (Mangrove) Sunbird showed well - potentially a tricky target. Good numbers of Black Herons were doing their oddball thing, using wings as canopies while fishing. Western Reef-Heron was common and muddy pools hosted a smattering of shorebirds including Kittlitz’s and Grey Plover.

Black Herons fishing

Brown Sunbird

We headed north to the Rainforest Lodge in Jukwa, our home for the next three nights. In the afternoon we had our first foray in the rainforests of southern Ghana, the haunt of numerous West African and Upper Guinea bird specialties. We visited a relatively new logging road in Abrafo Forest near Kakum National Park. One of our first birds was Yellow-footed Honeyguide, a much-wanted and difficult target.

Yellow-footed Honeyguide

The group in Abrafo Forest

Others to follow as we walked the road included Yellow-billed Turaco, Black Spinetail, African Pied Hornbill, Brown-cheeked Hornbill, Fanti Drongo, White-tailed Alethe and Yellow-spotted and Hairy-chested Barbets. An absolute stonker was a Long-tailed Hawk that showed nicely as it passed overhead.

African Pied Hornbill

Our second day was occupied by the famous canopy walk in Kakum National Park. We were there at first light and spent the morning on platforms above the rainforest canopy.

Victor on the canopy walkway

Rainforest in Kakum National Park

 A Willcocks’s Honeyguide put on a show as it landed above our heads catching what appeared to be bees from a small hive. Sunbirds included Yellow-chinned (recently split from Green), Blue-throated Brown and Olive. Other birds included Tit-Hylia, Ussher’s Flycatcher, Rufous-crowned Eremomela, West African Wattle-eye, Fanti Sawing, Sharpe’s Apalis, and Melancholy and Fire-bellied Woodpeckers.

Willcocks's Honeyguide

 Small Sun Squirrels were fairly common.

Small Sun Squirrel

We then walked a small track, finding a stunning Rufous-sided Broadbill (first image in this post). A late afternoon visit to the canopy walkway offered little more although Palmnut Vultures passed close by. 

Palmnut Vulture

As dusk fell we heard Brown Nightjar and saw a superb mammal – Pel’s Anomalure ()below).

The next morning saw us in farm bush and secondary growth in the Antikwaa area. White-spotted Flufftail was seen at a couple of sites. Red-cheeked Wattle-eye, Puvel’s Illadopsis and Kemp’s Longbills were among the specialties that showed for most of the group although a few failed to get on to these skulkers. A large flock of Rosy Bee-eaters was more co-operative.

Rosy Bee-eaters

In the heat of the day some of us ventured to the Cape Coast Castle, an historic site 30 minutes south of Jukwa. Built by the British in the 17^th Century, an estimated 3 million slaves passed through this horrendous prison, torn from their homes in shackles to be shipped as slave labour to the Americas. Half died before getting there. As many as 1000 men would be held in a cell area (image below) barely 150m long with a trough in the middle serving as a urinall they slept in their own waste. Dissidents were locked in airless cells to die of starvation. 

This barbaric practice continued for centuries, the ships departing from what is today a scenic harbour (below) adjacent to the fort. Visiting this place was a sobering experience; these things should never be forgotten.

In the afternoon we returned to the logging road we visited two days earlier. Birds included Chocolate-backed Kingfisher, Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike, White-tailed Alethe and Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher. Mixed greenbul flocks included Yellow-bearded and Western Bearded. We chased key nocturnal targets after sunset. The first to fall was Brown Nightjar, always a diffcult bird, which flew in and showed well enough, although somewhat distant. Next was an Akun Eagle-Owl which perched high in a tree, offering everyone a look if again not as close as we would have liked. Finally, a Fraser’s Eagle-Owl showed briefly for a few of a group. All three night birds were in the same area.

Akun Eagle-Owl

Brown Nightjar

Our last morning in the Kakum area – Day Five of the trip – found us back in the Abrafo Forest. We saw Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Buff-throated Sunbird, Blue-spooted Wood-Dove, Sabine’s Puffback, Dusky-blue Flycatcher, Blue-throated Roller and Black Casqued Hornbill. African Piculet was a delightful addition to the list (second image below).

Black Casqued Hornbill

African Pygmy-Goose

As everywhere with Ghana, sights along the road provided plenty of entertainment.

Our group huddled beneath the sandstone rock ledge of a cave deep in the rainforest, hoping to indulge one of nature’s great ornithological experiences: viewing the pre-dusk arrival of the beautiful White-necked (or Yellow-headed as it was formerly called) Picathartes, also known as Rockfowl. This remarkable bird, its bright yellow head bare of feathers, returns to the cave where it builds mud nests late each afternoon to roost. Its humped back and long legs and neck add to its bizarre appearance. We had walked 30 minutes from the nearby village of Bonkro in central Ghana through the Nyamebe Bepo Forest Reserve to reach the cave. It was Day 10 of our 21-day Ghana tour.

The picathartes cave

I’d had the “rockfowl experience” before: in Cameroon in 2007, with the only other species in this family - the Grey-necked Picathartes, But our Ghana encounter was to be no less memorable. We had waited an hour, full of anticipation, when the first birds were spotted, feeding on the ground in rainforest below the cave.

Then three or four picathartes came from all directions to the cave. Within metres of us, they were hopping from branch to rock, bouncing off cave walls, sometimes pausing to check us out. 

When we left 30 minutes later, two birds were ensconced in their mud nests for the night. It was an encounter to remember.

The White-necked Picathartes is regarded now as a centrepiece of Ghana’s fast-growing ecotourism industry. Tourists flock to Bonkro for the picathartes experience, and many are not birders, although the species is top of the wishlists of the many birding tours to Ghana. 

Our guide Victor Owusu at the entrance to the Bonkfro forest

The highly regarded Ghanaian tour company Ashanti African Tours uses the proceeds of visits to the forest to fund its Picathartes Education & Conservation for Knowledge (PECK) project to boost living standards in local villages. Guides are employed from the local population; 24 community forest committee members are sponsored; and an eight-classroom kindergarten and primary school has been built, providing education to more than 300 local children. Ashanti has provided chalets for a new lodge and a restaurant is planned. A local NGO, Rainforest Rescue Ghana, has been established to manage these plans.

Children at the village school

Yet a cloud hangs over all of this. In recent years, according to a submission by Ashanti to the Forestry Commission of Ghana last January, illegal chainsaw operations have been stopped in the reserve as a result of intervention by the forest committee members and the local community. However, legal logging concessions remain over the reserve. During our visit, seemingly every large tree had a number engraved at its base, signalling the intention of concession holders to log the trees. 

Tree marked for removal

This would destroy the forest and the picathartes population. As a result of intervention by Ashanti and its founder Mark Williams, the Ghana Forestry Commission ordered a halt to the tree removal plan and cancelled timber concessions in parts of the forest last February, just before logging was to begin. However, concessions remain over other parts of the bird’s restricted habitat, and the threat of illegal logging is ever present.

A Bonkro village home

The Bonkro area is the last stronghold for the species, which has been wiped out of its former haunts elsewhere in Ghana by illegal logging, legal timber concessions, and mining. As Ashanti says in its submission: “The presence of ecotourism attracted by the White-necked Picathartes is proving of great benefit for the local economy and community, providing a shining example of sustainable development. The profile of this bird is such that it is ensuring ongoing high-value tourism to Ghana, making it West Africa’s principal ecotourism destination. These benefits can only be maintained and developed with the protection of the closed canopy forest that is required by the White-necked Picathartes and a host of other wildlife.” Anyone wishing to assist Ashanti financially with its conservation and community assistance programs is invited to contactthe organisation.

The Bonkro lodge

White-bellied Pangolin

Following our successful encounter with the White-necked Picathartes (following post) our minds turned to another creature well-known from rainforests in the vicinity of Bonkro in central Ghana: the White-bellied Pangolin.Pangolin sits high on the wishlists of many critter lovers. The only mammal to be wholly covered in scales, the survival of several species is in the balance as pangolins are slaughtered in their tens of thousands. Pangolin scales are considered to have considerable value as traditional medicines in east Asia, especially China and Vietnam, but there is no evidence supporting this. Shy and harmless, the pangolin is believed to be the world’s most heavily trafficked mammal. As pangolin populations in Asia disappear, the trade increasingly has shifted to Africa, where the four pangolin species are now absent or rare throughout their ranges.

Before our tour, the group agreed with my suggestion for a $US50 reward for anyone in the villages around Bonkro who found us a pangolin, the stipulation being that we had to be taken to the pangolin and not the other way around. A man with tracking experience came forward and one of our Ashanti guides, Ibrahim Entsie, also had past form in finding pangolins. With these two guys, our group set out at sunset on Day 11 of our trip to find a pangolin. This was not going to be easy. We followed the trackers up and down ridges, along creeks, through regrowth and primary rainforest - often in rough terrain with no paths.

Following the trackers

We spotlighted a sleeping African Pygmy Kingfisher and located a delightful Beecroft’s Anomalure, a kind of flying squirrel.

African Pygmy Kingfisher

Beecroft's Anomalure

Three hours later, the trackers froze when they detected a rustling in the undergrowth: a pangolin feeding on the ground. As soon as the animal realised we were on to it, it rapidly climbed a densely foliaged tree. The pangolin was hard to keep track of as it crashed through the branches but we all managed good looks, although the foliage and its constant movements made photography challenging, as these images demonstrate. The first image in this post is of an animal jumping between branches. In the second image below, it is clinging to the side of the tree, its head visible.

Jeff Skevington had more success with his images below.

We were one very contented group following this encounter.

Later, Ibrahim Entsie explained his personal history with pangolins. His family lived in an impoverished village near the city of Cape Coast, eking out a living from farming palm nuts. He hunted pangolins and other game for bushmeat to sell for several years to raise money to help him finish his school education. The meat was much sought after and the scales were disposed of. Today, a dead pangolin fetches about $US20 on the black market, he says: “It is the Chinese traders who are buying them now for the scales and they might become extinct if it keeps going on.”

Ibrahim Entsie

The pangolin was not the last of the goodies at Bonkro. We had two nights at Ashanti’s new lodge. In and around the picathartes forest we found two wanted specialties: Tessmann’s Flycatcher and Yellow-throated Cuckoo.

Tessmann's Flycatcher

Other birds included a White-crested Hornbill (below) showing nicely in the early morning light.

In the afternoon we visited a logging road in the nearby Kwebene Sam Forest. Here we saw Red-headed Malimbe, Western Bronze-naped Pigeon, Tiny Sunbird, Cassin’s Honeybird and Red-shouldered Cuckoo-shrike. We were back at the logging road the next morning, seeing the distinctive western race of Yellow-billed Barbet, more Red-billed Helmetshrikes, Western Nicator, Violet-backed Hyliota and large numbers of Red-fronted Parrots.

Red-headed Malimbe

After checking into Royal Basin Hotel in Kusami, Ghana’s second biggest city, we visited the nearby Bobiri Butterfly Sanctuary in the late afternoon. The highlight here was a Black Dwarf Hornbill feeding its young at the nest.

Black Dwarf Hornbill

The next morning – Day 13 of our tour - saw us depart Kumasi to head north on the highway that extends from the coast in southern Ghana north to the Burkino Faso border. Two hours north of Kumasi we stopped at a forest remnant called Opra, a key site for the scarce Fiery-breasted Bush-shrike. Some of the group managed brief views of the elusive bird. Other birds included Brown-crowned Tchagra, Red-cheeked Wattle-eye, Grey Tit-Flycatcher and Bearded Barbet.

Brown-crowned Tchagra

We arrived at our next destination, Mole National Park, in the late afternoon after stopping to rescue a Graceful Chameleon (below) by removing it from the busy highway.

Forbes's Plover

We arrived at Mole Motel in Mole National Park in the northern savanna belt of Ghana late in the afternoon of Day 13 of our tour of the country for a four-night stay. Our rooms overlooked the surrounding savanna and a large waterhole. The first bird I saw from my room was an Abyssinian Ground Hornbill near the waterhole. Our first full day at Mole saw us in the morning along the Brugbani Road in sparse woodland that had not long been burned.

Mole Motel

View from the room

On the way we encountered a party of Patas Monkeys, a Striped Ground-Squirrel and a sole bull African Elephant feeding.

Strriped Ground-Squirrel

One of the star birds of trip was encountered in the woodlands early in the day in the form of a group of 4 Forbes’s Plovers (below).

A few other sometimes difficult specialties followed soon after. Rufous-rumped Lark(below) is an unpredictable migrant but a single bird showed well. Sun Larks were seen soon after.

A few White-fronted Black Chats perched atop stunted trees. Gambaga Flycatcher and Denham’s Bustard were welcome additions to the list.

Denham's Bustard

White-fronted Black Chat

We returned to the lodge for the heat of the day to find a family group of African Elephants in the pool below the motel. They spent several hours in the water, the younger animals clearly enjoying themselves. The elephants were back in the water the next day.

White-faced Whistling Ducks were abundant around this and other pools in the park. We were surprised to find a pair of Pied-winged Swallows feeding below the rooms with Wire-tailed Swallows.

Whire-faced Whistling-Duck

In the afternoon we visited pools and woodland below Zina Lodge. Here we had good looks at a pair of Stone Partridges. Senegal and Spotted Thick-knees were in close proximity to each other. Bruce’s Green Pigeon was common. As dusk fell, African Scops-Owl was tracked down and Red-necked (which should be way out of range here) and Long-tailed Nightjars both showed. 

Stone Partridge

A Spotted Hyena silently watched us distantly from the road; we encountered this species on two other occasions in the park. On the way back we saw the first of many Greyish Eagle-Owls to be encountered in the park.

Spotted Hyaena

Throughout our stay, raptors were much in evidence and included Bataleur, African White-backed and White-headed Vultures, Wahlberg’s and African Hawk Eagle, Gabar Goshawk and Grasshopper Buzzard.

Bataleur

Other birds seen during this and following days included Rose-throated and Swallow-tailed Bee-eaters, Beautiful and Western Violet-backed Sunbirds, Greater Honeyguide, African Grey Woodpecker, Abyssinian Roller, African Blue Flycatcher, Lesser Honeyguide, Senegal Batis, Northern Black Flycatcher, Violet Turaco, Red-chested Cuckoo, Blackcap Babbler, Little Weaver and Yellow-crowned Gonolek (we had seen the gonolek several times during the trip but it showed particularly well here). Black-faced and Black-bellied Firefinches were among the seedeaters seen but these were relatively sparse due to an abundance of water in the park from recent rains.

Abyssinian Roller

Beautiful Sunbird

African Grey Woodpecker

Little Weaver

Red-chested Cuckoo

Rose-throated Bee-eater

Senegal Batis

Yellow-crowned Gonolek

The morning of our second day in Mole had us in scrub by the Magnori River in the morning. Western Square-tailed Drongo was a key target here and the bird obliged. An eclipse plumage paradise-wydah was likely an Exclamatory Paradise-Wydah but birds in this plumage can not be distinguished from Togo Paradise-Wydah. Other more common dry country birds included Sulphur-breasted Bush-shrike, Pearl-spotted Owlet, Brubru and Yellow-breasted Apalis. We heard Thick-billed Cuckoo.

Birding the savanna in Mole

Pearl-spotted Owlet

He had good looks at a roosting Long-tailed Nightjar and less satisfactory views of a flushed Plain Nightjar.

Long-tailed Nightjar

In the late afternoon we scoured the grasslands near the airstrip where we tracked down a sometimes tricky cisticola pair: Rufous Cisticola and Dorst’s Cisticola. A pair of White-throated Francolins were unusually visible as sunset approached.

White-throated Francolin

With the fall of darkness came the finding of a superb male Standard-winged Nightjar in full plumage on the now disused airstrip that once serviced the park. A female Standard-winged Nightjar was found road-killed nearby.

Standard-winged Nightjar

Our third day in Mole National Park took us to the Samole Loop and fine looks at a family of two adult and two well-fledged Four-banded Sandgrouse, another much-wanted target. Late in the afternoon we were back below Zina Lodge, where Rock-loving Cisticola and Violet-backed Starling were among the birds that showed nicely.

Four-banded Sandgrouse

Other mammals in the park included Olive Baboon, Patas and Green Monkeys, Kintampo Rope Squirrel, Common Warthog, Oribi, Central Bushbuck, Buffon’s (Western) Kob and Western Hartebeest.

Central Bushbuck

Western Kob

Western Obiri

Olive Baboon

Common Warthog

Yellow-winged Bats and and smaller bats, probably Gambian Slit-faced Bat, were roosting in creekside thickets.

Probably Gambian Slit-faced Bat

Egyptian Plover

Following our visit to Mole National Park in northern Ghana (following post) we headed north, passing many traditional villages, before reaching the town of Daboya on the White Volta River.

A Western Banded Snake-Eagle (below) was seen along the way.

Daboya is a known site for Egyptian Plover and it wasn’t long before two birds showed. Previously it was necessary to travel further north to the Burkino Faso border area for this one but Daboya is a good deal more convenient. I’d seen the bird before in Cameroon and Ethiopia but it’s difficult to tire of this stunner.

Egyptian Plover

Less expected was a group of African Quailfinch flushed in short grass by the river. Small numbers of Black-backed Cisticola, a species that’s widespread but difficult to nail in Africa, showed well. We saw Pied-winged Swallows again here after seeing them in Mole.

Black-backed Cisticola

Heading back south we stopped at the roadside Fufulsa-Damongo dam where African Painted-Snipe was an unexpected addition to the list. Black-rumped Waxbill was seen. Further south, Beaudouin’s Snake-Eagle perched atop a powerline tower by the road was another welcome addition to the list. We continued on for another overnight stay in Kumasi, visiting Bobiri Butterfly Sanctuary again the next morning.

The group birding Bolbiri

Olive-bellied, Little Green and other sunbirds were active in the gardens around the sanctuary headquarters, while Dwarf Black Hornbill and Rufous-thighed Sparrowhawk were seen.

Olive-bellied Sunbird

We then headed to the town of New Tafo for a two-night stay, staying at the Nelshan Palace Hotel. The morning of Day 19 of our tour saw us hiking the steep road up the Atewa Range, where Little Green Woodpecker was a welcome addition to the list.

Little Green Woodpecker

Much of the day was spent on the track along the Atewa ridge where unfortunately we heard but did not see the range-restricted Nimba Flycatcher. Crowned Eagle and Ayres's Hawk-Eagle were among the raptors to show.

Ayres's Hawk-Eagle

Other birds seen and heard on the track up and along the ridge included Kemp’s Longbill, Sharpe’s Apalis, White-tailed Alethe, Ussher’s Flycatcher, Forest Robin and Melancholy Woodpecker.

Ussher's Flycatcher

The following morning we were in farmbush in the Atewa area, seeing Black-belled Seedcracker, Black-winged Bishop in breeding plumage and Vanga (Black-and-white) Flycatcher, before returning to the start of the road to the ridge, where Puvel’s Illadopsis and Finsch’s Flycatcher-Thrush were vocal.

Black-winged Bishop

We continued south, descending the Askwepin Range and enjoying the sweeping views of the southern Ghanaian plains (below).

Shai Hills Reserve was our next destination. Here we saw White-crowned Cliff-Chat and heard the distinctive race of African Barred Owlet (etchecopari, or Chestnut Owlet). We had excellent views of a Dwarf Bittern while leaving the reserve.

Dwarf Bittern

Purple Glossy Starling (below) was common.

We visited Sakamona Lagoon on the final morning of our tour. Brief sightings of Black Coucal and Little Bittern for some were highlights. Collared Pratincoles and quite a few shorebirds were present. We were chased from the wetland by a group of aggressive men in robes having some kind of ceremony – our only unpleasant encounter with local people during our 21-day tour of Ghana. The silver lining to that cloud were several West African Crested Terns that we saw from the railway line above the beach after fleeing the robed ones. 

We drove around to the western side of the lagoon, where Double-toothed Barbet (above) and Green Wood-hoopoe (below) showed nicely.

Our final get together at the Erata Hotel in Accra was a fun night.

Arabian Oryx

Following a visit to Ghana (the next six posts on this blog), Bill Watson and I had two days in the United Arab Emirates to break the journey home – 23-24 April, 2023. We stayed in the Ibis One Central Hotel in Dubai. On the first day I headed south to Kite Beach and Al Sufouh Beaches to look unsuccessfully for Socrota Cormorant, but had to make do with some interesting sights as an introduction to the UAE.

We hired South African-born local businessman and wildlife enthusiast Gary Burns for a full-on outing for our second day, crossing the country twice in search of a handful of target birds and mammals, and to see more of the UAE. We highly recommend Gary’s services for anyone considering something similar in this country: contact him here.

Gary Burns

We left early in the morning, heading east from Dubai on the road to Kalba, driving about 1.5 hours to reach our first destination, Wadi Alrawasi. This is a classic desert wadi, a kind of low sandy area, much of it dry creek bed, wedged between rocky crags. One of the first birds we saw was Arabian Babbler, a flock of 4 and one of the targets. Another target, the recently split Arabian Green Bee-eater, put in an appearance. 

Arabian Babbler

Desert Larks were common.

Soon after I spotted a Sand Partridge racing up a scree and two birds flushed. We were impressed with how Gary’s formidable 4WD, specially fitted out to accommodate the tough desert conditions, negotiated the rugged terrain in the wadi. 

Bill & Greg

Wadi Alrawasi

Other birds showed nicely including the tail-wagging Eastern Olivaceous Wartbler and Rufous-tailed Scrub-Robin.

Rufous-tailed Scrub-Robin

We moved on to a nearby second wadi, Wadi Tuwa. where we located a small covey of Sand Patridges that offered better views. 

Sand Partridge

Distractions included an Indian Roller eating a substantial lizard and a dazzling Purple Sunbird.

Purple Sunbird

We located another target, Humes’s Wheatear, on the scree slopes, and found two more wheatears on roadside wires as we left the wadi. Scrub Warbler and Rufous-tailed Rock-thrush were among the birds here.

Humes's Wheatear

We continued eastwards to the Indian Ocean at the port of Dibba on the border with Oman, having crossed the country. Here we scrutinised various inlets and bays in search of Socrota Cormorant, finally connecting with a sub-adult on rocks at the entrance to the fishing harbour. Unfortunately the bird was in a military zone and we were not allowed to photograph it.

Dibba

We drove west and then south to the Al Marmoon Reserve in the Al Qudra Desert. Soon another target showed in the form Black-crowned Sparrowlark, of which there were plenty among the white sand dunes.

Black-crowned Sparrowlawk (f)

Black-crowned Sparrowlark (m)

We went for quite a wild and spectacular drive through the dunes, assured that Gary knew what he was doing.

Al Qudra

We found a gorgeous Pharoah’s Eagle-Owl, a bird I’d seen previously in Morocco and one of the more impressive owl species. 

Pharoah's Eagle-Owl_

We also saw our first Sand Gazelles and Arabian Desert Gazelles, along with the impressive Egyptian Spine-tailed Lizard (below).

We moved to another section of the desert as the afternoon wore on, this time in an area where red sand dunes prevailed. An artificial wetland had a few waterbirds including good numbers of Greater Flamingo. 

Greater Flamingo

Greater Hoopoe-Lark (below) was looking good here.

We headed further into the Al Qudra, getting much better view of both Sand Gazelle and Arabian Desert Gazelle, which were about in good numbers. 

Arabian Desert Gazelle

Sand Gazelle

We then enountered a single Arabian Oryx, by any standard an impressive beast, and later watched a small herd of these endangered animals. The species was once declared extinct in the wild but it has been successfully reintroduced to some of its former strongholds , including the Qudra Desert.

Arabian Oryx

Less spectacular but still cute was the distinctive arabicus race of the Cape Hare (below). 

We returned to our hotel in the late afternoon, where we celebrated by downing a few horrendously expensive beers in this alcohol-adverse country. It was a great day out!

Masked Owl

We spent a couple of weeks visiting four national parks in north-east NSW for three nights each that we’d missed in the past. First off was the Cypress Pine Campground in Boonoo Boonoo National Park (below), just across the Queensland border. The park adjoins Queensland’s Girraween National Park.

Much better facilities here (generally the case with NSW versus Queensland parks) and nice big camp sites. Platypus was seen frequently in the creek below the camp but the only image was the poor effort below of one swimming past a Little Pied Cormorant.

We had lousy weather here with a couple of days of rain. A pair of Scarlet Robins (below) around the camp lifted spirits.

We also had large numbers of big moths coming into our lights at night, notwithstanding the appalling weather. We wondered if they might be the celebrated Bogong Moths on their return migration from further south.

We did a day trip to the nearby Basket Swamp National Park and found 3 Spotted Quail-thrush – a pair (below)  and a single male – in different spots. We visited the hideout of the famous bushranger Captain Thunderbolt during a quick visit to Tenterfield.

We moved on to Cathedral Rock National Park where the Native Dog Campground was our home for 3 freezing nights: at 1250m the temperature dropped to -5. Nice scenery, but this was one of many areas hit badly by the 2019-20 bushfires. It was disturbing not to find any mammals despite some serious looking with the thermal imager; not even a Common Brushtail about the camp. Just a single Superb Lyrebird was heard when they should have been calling all over the place.

Birds were making a comeback, however. Honeyeaters were in good numbers, with White-eared and Brown-headed showing nicely.

Brown-headed Honeyeater

White-eared Honeyeater

Red-browed Treecreeper (below) appeared to be surprisingly common and was found feeding with White-throated Treecreeper in a couple of spots.

Other showy offerings included Striated Thornbill and Crimson Rosella.

Crimson Rosella

Striated Thornbill

Forest Raven and Bassian Thrush were present in good numbers.

Forest Raven

Bassian Thrush

Next stop was Nymboi-Binderay National Park near Dorrigo where we camped at Platypus Flat campground (below). A beautiful spot overlooking the river, handicapped somewhat by the absence of walking tracks.

A male Masked Owl feeding in the picnic ground was the stand-out here.

It had plenty to feed on. Bush Rat (below) was abundant, both in the scrub and open campground areas. Although this area was hit by the fires, they were limited to about 4m above ground so large trees were largely unscathed, and pockets of ground cover appeared to have escaped the flames.

I was surprised to find both Northern Short-nosed and Southern Long-nosed Bandicoots feeding in the campground.

Southern Long-nosed Bandicoot

Northern Short-nosed Bandicoot

Paradise Riflebird and Red-bellied Black Snake were among other critters about.

Paradise Riflebird

Red-bellied Black Snake

We moved on to Moonee Beach for a couple of days at one of our favourite coastal destinations. Of interest here was a pair of Beach Stone-Curlews (below). A few days later I saw another pair of Beach Stone-Curlews flying around at dusk further north at Pottsville. The following day I found 3 Beach Stone-Curlews 4km away at Hastings Point on Cudgera Creek: 3 sightings at 3 sites of this supposedly rare species in NSW within a few days.

Our final national park was Rummery Park Campground in Whian Whian State Conservation Area (below). Here our high expectations of NSW national parks suffered a setback: it was horribly overcrowded on the Saturday night we were there, though okay on other nights.

 A pair of Marbled Frogmouths were near the camp, while up the road were a couple of Tawny Frogmouths, including a brown phase bird.

Marbled Frogmouth

Tawny Frogmouth

Pale-yellow Robin was a constant present around our caravan. Three Albert’s Lyrebirds were heard at different spots. An Australian Logrunner was found at its night roost.

Australian Logrunner

Pale-yellow Robin

We finished up with a couple of nights at Pottsville. Other than the above-mentioned Beach Stone-Curlews, Bush Stone-Curlew (below) appeared to be all over the place, which was something of a surprise.

Platypus in Petrie Creek

The Platypus is enjoying something of a population boom around Queensland’s Sunshine Coast following three years of above-average rainfall. However, the Queensland Government is under pressure to follow the rest of the country by banning a type of yabby trap that is needlessly slaughtering Platypus and other aquatic wildlife, posing a local extinction threat in times ahead.

Patypus in Petrie Creek

During drought conditions the monotreme population drops sharply, with survivors sometimes being confined to isolated pools – for instance in Booloumba and Little Yabba creeks - or making hazardous journeys overland in search of better habitat. Right now, however, the animals are being seen locally in watercourses where they’ve long been infrequent or absent;

Rakali (Water Rat)

This is likely to be the case elsewhere within the east Australian range of the species. Those Sunshine Coast sites include Petrie Creek in Nambour, a short way down the road from my home, where upwards of eight Platypus have been recorded over a couple of kilometres close to the bustling Central Business District. The animal photographed here is frequently seen right next to a bridge over busy Arundell Avenue. The species has long been known to frequent Petrie Creek but the current frequency of sightings is pretty much unprecedented.

Petrie Creek

A Facebook page, Platypus and Echidna Watch Friends Sunshine Coast, is showcasing almost daily photographs and videos of Platypus from Petrie Creek and across many sites on the coast and in the hinterland. The species was found for the first time recently in the South Maroochy River. Also doing well are other aquatic animals including the Water Dragon, various turtles, and the Rakali (Water Rat). The regional Platypus population has stared down threats to its survival in the past. I recall that as a journalist in 2005, I covered protests against plans to construct a Woolworths supermarket adjacent to Platypus habitat in Obi Obi Creek in Maleny. Protesters sobbed and declared that all the Platypus were doomed. Luckily they weren’t. They are often seen in the creek below the supermarket these days and Maleny is one of the region’s top Platypus-watching hotspots.

Yabby Opera House Trap advertised online

Nonetheless, Platypus and other aquatic wildlife face a grave threat in the form of the so-called Yabby Opera House Trap, which traps and kills the animals. Enticed by captured yabbies, a favoured food item, they enter the trap and cannot escape, drowning in a few minutes. More environmentally friendly alternative traps are available.

Seven platypus found dead in yabby trap in Victoria's Werribee River

Maleny wildlife enthusiast Neil Andison recently wrote to the Queensland Premier and government MPs, pointing out that the traps have been banned in other states and the ACT. However, they remain easily accessible online, where no warnings are displayed about their impact or the ban in most states. A single trap has been known to kill as many as eight Platypus.

One of five platypus drowned in a yabby trap

When dry conditions inevitably return, and Platypus numbers again plummet, the traps will pose a threat to the survival of regional populations.

A pair of platypus drowned in the Gold Coast hinterland.

In his letter, Neil refers to Queensland’s “disgraceful” refusal to ban the traps, which are responsible for the “needless death of all manner of air-breathing creatures that call our creeks and rivers home”. 

Two rikalis (water rats) drowned in a Queensland trap

The Platypus is regarded as one of the most remarkable mammals in the world. We can do better.

Platypus at Amamoor, Sunshine Coast hinterland

Letter-winged Kite

Following our travels through Longreach, Winton and Mt Isa (following post) we headed south from Mt Isa to Boulia, with rain dashing hopes for further stops for Kalkadoon Grasswren. It had eased by the time we got to Boulia. Continuing south to Bedourie, the Mitchell grass and gibber plains were a sight to behold: a glorious mosaic of wildflowers, vivid greenery, extensive pools of water and lush vegetation in every direction. The bothersome rains that were reshaping our travel plans had a silver lining.

Not long after Bedourie we located a Letter-winged Kite colony that had been reported earlier. These rare birds, under threat from feral cats, are pure pleasure. We had about 12 adults and immatures soaring high and sometimes low above us, mixing with Black Kites and other raptors. In a line of trees along a small watercourse, a pair of Letter-winged Kites held vigil over a nest containing two well-fledged youngsters. Several nests were present in other trees.

A little further south we had a good-sized grouping of Flock Bronzewings (below) feeding by the roadside. We had encountered this species in singles, pairs and smaller flocks on several occasions earlier - a much higher score rate than is usual in these parts. We were to see quite a few more further south and on our return home.

As we drove south, Australian Pratincoles were everywhere, often sitting on the road. Again, we had seen fair numbers earlier and sightings overall were well above the norm for this species. A few Banded Lapwings were about.

Banded Lapwing

Australian Pratincole

Australian Pratincole

Brolga and Australian Bustard were also in good numbers.

We headed south from Bedourie after an overnight stay to Cuttaburra Crossing. We searched the extensive areas of lignum here for Grey Grasswren, locating at least 6 birds. Although everyone managed a glimpse, no images were captured. The going was tough, with water and mud in abundance through the lignum.

Australian Spotted Crake and Black-tailed Native-hen were common in the lignum, and several Long-haired Rats were scurrying about in broad daylight.

Black-tailed Native-hen

Australian Spotted Crake

The number of waterbirds overall was staggering. At a river crossing not far south of Bedourie, about 300 Nankeen Night-Herons (below) were feeding and roosting. An estimated 90 per cent were immatures. None of us had seen the species in anywhere near those numbers previously.

At Cuttaburra Crossing, waterbirds were in large numbers all over the place. A very rough estimate of 2500 Whiskered Terns in various plumage stages was a sight to behold. 

Whiskered Tern

Australian (Gull-billed) Terns, Glossy Ibis and Grey Teal were among the species that were present in their hundreds or thousands. Strangely absent were Pink-eared and Freckled Ducks.

Glossy Ibis

Yellow-billed Spoonbill

One odd-looking bird had us wondering if we were watching a White-faced Heron-Little Egret hybrid (bird on the right below) but most likely it was a leucistic juvenile White-faced Heron.

Hazel Grouse

Our trip to Europe was more about culture and aesthetics than chasing critters, as there aren’t too many in Europe that I’ve not seen. A few though remained sought after, with Wolverine and Ural Owl welcome additions to my lists (see following post). Another add-on was Taiga Bean Goose, a flock of which was spotted in fields from the train en route to Joensuu in central Finland. Finnish birders have established that this species and the recently split Tundra Bean Goose have different and well-defined migration routes across the country. Whooper Swan and Black-throated Diver were about but not as common as I expected.

Whooper Swan

We visited the delightful Patvinshon National Park (below) en route to the wolverine hides. 

Apart from usual fare such as Great Spotted Woodpecker (above) a female Black Grouse was seen here.

 After visiting the hides and heading north later, I came across a lek of about 8 male Black Grouse displaying in dense vegetation, but none offered a photograph.

We had three delightful days at a beautifully positioned lodge, Jongunjoen Matkailu Oy (above) overlooking a lake. Fieldfare, Redwing, Common Chiffchaff and Bluethroat were among birds that were active in scrub around the lodge. 

Common Chiffchaff

Fieldfare

I hoped that numerous bushes choked with red berries offered a chance for Bohemian Waxwing, and this came good on the last day with a flock of 20 waxwings appearing (below), followed an hour later by a second flock of 55 birds. Clearly they were on a migration run. Conditions generally were relatively warm still in mid-September so most palearctic migrants had yet to head south.

After returning to Helsinki, local birder David Radnell (with me below) kindly offered to take me birding in the Espoo area, west of the capital.. David picked out a female Smew at the Matalajarvi wetland on the far shore; a pair had been present there for several weeks. This small migratory duck had long been on my wishlist.

Large flocks of migratory Barnacle Goose were about along with good numbers of local waterfowl including Eurasian Teal, Goldeneye and Common Pochard.

David had been tipped off that Hazel Grouse were seen recently in Espoo Central Park. I’d looked hard for this species in central Finland without success so hopes were not high as we entered the forest. It was very pleasing to spot a grouse within a few minutes of us getting to the park and a male bird subsequently performed nicely. Later at the University Aalto wetland, birds included Western Marsh Harrier and decent numbers of Ruff and Dunlin.

Hazel Grouse

We also scored a Common (European) Toad.

From Finland it was on to Scotland and after a pleasant few days in Edinburgh, to the village of Boat of Garten in the Scottish Highlands in the Strathspey region. We stayed in the pleasantly positioned Fraoch Lodge, where the proprietor was unfortunately as unhelpful as she was financially dodgy. Plenty of nice birds were about in the Caledonian Forests, including large numbers coming in to feeders. 

Chaffinch & Eurasian Blue Tit

European Robin

The target though was Scottish Crossbill, endemic to these forests and the only bird species restricted to the United Kingdom. I spotted a likely candidate in the garden of Fraoch Lodge before encountering several small flocks in the nearby forest reserve. Common Crossbill was also present and easily distinguished by voice. A bigger identification challenge is posed by the Parrot Crossbill, with a call more like that of a Scottish Crossbill. After checking my recordings of alarm and other calls, it seemed to be the case that Scottish Crossbill was the most common species in the forest area I explored. However, the future taxonomic status of this bird is surely under a cloud.

Scottish Crossbill

We moved on to the Isle of Skye and the fabulous scenery of north-west coastal Scotland, hiring a “tiny house” in the hamlet of Flodigarry. From the house it was possible to watch seabirds close to the coastal cliffs below. While in bed I scored another tick as a Great Skua sailed past.

The following day we took a return ferry from the town of Uig to Lockmaddy. European Storm-Petrel was one of only two species of bird that I had seen dead (this one in Ireland) but not alive. That needed to be fixed. I saw about eight storm-petrels without difficulty on the return leg. I also had better views of another Great Skua.

Great Skua

Birds that were common included Northern Gannet, Manx Shearwater, Common Murre and Black-legged Kittiwake. A couple of Northern Fulmars were spotted. 

Common Murre

Northern Gannet

Mammals put on a good show with Harbour Porpoise, Grey Seal and Long-finned Pilot-Whale all offering decent views.

Grey Seal

Golden Eagle was seen a couple of times while driving around the beautiful Isle of Skye.

White-headed Duck

Following our visit to Scotland (following post) we checked out the English town of Liverpool before flying to Porto in Portugal. A few days sight-seeing here before hopping on to the train to Lisbon. One bird on my wishlist was Iberian Chiffchaff but I thought with the time of our visit (early October) the birds would have headed south on migration. This was a particularly warm autumn, however, so plenty of migrants were still about. I found an Iberian Chiffchaff recorded on ebird while I was in Lisbon at a city park, Jardin do Cobeca, a known hotspot for the species. I went there and eventually located a dark-legged bird giving the characteristic call of the species among a tumble of Willow Warblers. I believe but am not entirely sure that this is the bird in the image below. Later I located another calling Iberian Chiffchaff in another Lisbon park, Jardin Afonse de Albuquerque.

Iberian Chiffchaff

In these parks and elsewhere, plenty of migratory passerines were gathering for an expected exodus southward, possible awaiting a cool change in the still hot weather. These included European Pied and Spotted flycatchers and numerous warblers of various species.

European Pied Flycatcher

We picked up a car hire and headed through southern Portugal, spending a few days in the pleasant village of Redondo and surrounding towns before crossing the border into Spain and a spell of sight-seeing in Seville. We continued south to connect with a much-wanted White-headed Duck, a bird I had repeatedly dipped on. A single female was present in Laguna de Camino and another female in the adjoining Laguna de Bonanza.

White-headed Duck female

Small numbers of Marbled Teal were in the lagoons.

Marbled Teal

Continuing south, I saw small numbers of Scopoli’s Shearwaters in the Strait of Gibralter from several points on the southern Spanish coast, all heading westwards in migration. One bird showed very well at close quarters at Tarifa. Later I saw more Scopoli’s Shearwaters further east off the coast near Malaga. The British outpost of Gibralter was visited, where a dark phase Eleanora’s Falcon and Barbary Macaque showed well.

Barbary Macaque

Good numbers of Greater Flamingo were present at Malaga’s Parque del Guadalhorce. Spotless Starling was common here.

Greater Flamingo

Spotless Starling

We had several days in the extensive forest reserves of Sierra de Andujar, staying at Villa Matilde which I’m afraid to say seems to have gone downhill somewhat and may not be the best accommodation option. This was the place I expected to see Iberian Lynx but searching over five days failed to come up with the goods. Over that time I was regularly in touch with local and overseas wildlife enthusiasts in the area; none of us saw a lynx, though collectively we learned of a total of 4 sightings by others. Visitor numbers to the area have risen greatly, in part because of the lynx’s fame, and observers fear this is impacting the animal’s presence in areas which had been reliable for sightings. Compensation in some form came with the splendid scenery.

And raptors. Spanish Eagle was on my wishlist and several were seen, mostly on the first day in windy and wet conditions. The only one to offer a picture was a bedraggled three or four-year-old bird that passed reasonably close.

Spanish Eagle

Griffon and Black (Cinereous) Vultures were common.

Black Vulture

Griffon Vulture

Iberian Green Woodpecker was another on the target list and several obliged, with none offering a photographic opportunity. Azure-winged Magpie and Red-legged Partridge were more obliging.

Azure-winged Magpie

Red-leggedPartridge

Other mammals performed a little better. Red and Fallow Deer were common.

Red Deer

A single Mouflon was seen along with a distant male Iberian Ibex.

Iberian Ibex

In the tunnel at Jindula Dam I found three species of bat – Myotis daubentonii (Daubenton’s Bat), Myotis myotis (Greater Mouse-eared Bat) and Miniopterus schreibersii (Schreiber’s Bat).

Daubenton's Bat

Greater Mouse-eared Bat

We overnighted in Alcazar de San Juan, visiting the splendid wetland of Laguna de Veguilla. About 25 White-headed Duck were present including several lovely males.

We moved on to the town of Cascante, north-east of Madrid, to look for larks in the Ablitas area around the Ebro Valley. This a go-to site for Dupont’s Lark, another species high on my wishlist that I missed in Morroco and on a previous visit to Spain. Although it’s a bad time of year to see this cryptic species, thanks to help from Dani Lopez and Jose Ardaiz, I managed to see a Dupont’s Lark at close quarters and heard a total of 4-5 giving their characteristic call before sunrise.

Ebro Valley - Dupont's Lark site

Also of interest was a Eurasian Eagle-Owl calling outside our hotel in Cascante before dawn. Three more owls were seen later in the morning in flight. The Dupont’s could not be photographed so I settled for an image of a singing Greater Short-toed Lark. Our trip ended with a few days of sight-seeing in the pleasant Spanish capital of Madrid.

Greater Short-toed Lark

Sociable Lapwing

After a lengthy tour of five European countries (Italy, Finland, United Kingdom, Portugal and Spain: see following posts) we had a few days in Muscat, Oman, on our way home. Our hotel was close to a beach used by local fishing boats so we checked it out just as a boat was offloading a catch.

Caspian Gull

Large numbers of gulls were present including Caspian, Common, Slender-billed, Lesser Black-backed (fuscus fuscus Baltic) and Sooty.

Slender-billed Gull

Sooty Gull

Offshore were a few Common Terns and large flocks of Red-necked Phalaropes.

Red-necked Phalaropes

Crested Tern and Lesser Crested Tern (the latter scarce in Oman) were present on the beach with the gulls.

Crested Tern (middle) & Lesser Crested Terns

The following day I had hired a local driver, Nabeel, to pick me up at the hotel at 5.30am for a day in the field. We drove just over an hour to reach a wadi near Nakhal where Arabian Partridge had been reported.

Nakhal wadi & Nabeel

We found none but the scenery was superb and a few birds were about including Indian Silverbill, Green Sandpiper and Pale Crag-Martin. Then a bird showed which puzzled me until I worked out after I got home that it had to be a Pale Rockfinch.

Green Sandpiper

Indian Silverbill

We then headed north-west to Sawadi Beach where I had arranged to hire a young man to take us out to the delightful Daymaniyat Islands (below) offshore.

We circled several islands, enjoying fabulously close views of Socrota Cormorant (3 on one island and 1 on a second island), a species I’d seen just once previously, and then poorly, in the neighbouring United Arab Emirates. Great Cormorants and Western Reef-Egrets were present.

Socrota Cormorant

Around the outermost islands we found a nice flock of Persian Shearwaters (below) a lifer for me, offering similarly close views.

With them was a single Red-necked Phalarope (below).

Circling one island we had an immature Sooty Falcon (below) fly overhead.

We landed on the main island, Jazirat Jabal, and did the steep climb to an ancient lookout post at the summit. Others had reported Egyptian Nightjar roosting here but we failed to score. A few passerines present included Black Redstart (below) and Red-tailed (Persian) Wheatear.

Our next stop was eastwards to the fields and cultivated flatlands of the Barka area. There were several reports of Sociable Lapwing from this area last year and records in recent years suggested this may be an important wintering ground for this endangered shorebird, which had long been high on my target list. We searched sites where birds were seen most recently and were about to give up when we decided to give one area near the Al Nahda Resort a final lookover. This was fortuitous because I spotted two lapwings in a field that we’d overlooked earlier. Further searching found 11 more: 13 in all. This was a trip highlight and I’m thankful to Dr S.S. Suresh for guidance with both this site and the Daymaniyat Islands.

Of surprise was a large flock of about 80 mixed Pin-tailed and Common Snipe (some in the image below) roosting under bushes on a dry paddock with no water in site.

Arabian Green Bee-eaters added a colourful touch to the landscape.

Ringed Plover

Birder Scott Fox did well to spot a small plover on the far side of a rapidly shrinking freshwater pool midway between Bundaberg and Bargara in south-east Queensland on November 24. Observations by Scott and other observers leave little doubt that this is a Common Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) and not the similar Semipalmated Plover (C. semipalmatus). Both species are known from a handful of records in Australia scattered across various states.

Ringed Plover

I turned up at the pool late in the afternoon of November 30. A tightly bunched flock of Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, evidently spooked by a raptor, were flying around the pool, and with them was a small plover with an obvious white wing bar (a feature which rules out Little Ringed Plover C. dubius). Others noted that although the bird had been seen late in the late afternoon, it was much more regular early in the morning, especially the first hour of daylight, after which it evidently flew away to unknown sites, returning later to the pool.

Ringed Plover

Early on the morning of December 1, I met up with Chris Barnes, Andy Jensen and Jane Hall at the site. Andy picked up the plover on the far shore. This is not an easy bird to log. Lighting conditions were dreadful. It stuck to the opposite bank - too far for decent images. Usually it fed in the interface between dying hyacinth and living hyacinth and was difficult to spot; if resting or its back was turned, it was not visible. However, observers agree that the salient features favour its identification as Common Ringed Plover: a more pointed, longer bill; a conspicuously broad breast band that is broken; an equally conspicuous supercilium; no white extending above the gape; no indication of an eye ring; no evidence of webbing between the toes noted in the field or in sharper shots that Chris managed in better light conditions (though this feature requires confirmation). I’ve included a couple of Chris’s images in this post. At the time of writing (December 3) the bird has been seen daily since November 24, although it was not seen this morning, possibly due to heavy rain overnight, it was seen in the afternoon. The bird was generally feeding alone, although associating loosely with Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and Black-fronted Dotterels.

Ringed Plover (Chris Barnes)

Ringed Plover with Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Chris Barnes)

This is the second record of Ringed Plover for Queensland. I also twitched the first, at Boonooroo in 1983; that bird frequented a tidal shorebird roost. There are two records also of Semipalmated Plover from Queensland: 1 bird has been present the last two summers at Geoff Skinner Reserve near Brisbane; the other was spotted by Chris Barnes near Bundaberg in 2012.

Semipalmated Plover at Geoff Skinner Reserve

Also at the Bundaberg pond on the first afternoon was an adult female Black-necked Stork accompanied by an immature bird.

Black-necked Stork

Away from the pond, I was pleased to catch up with an Oriental Cuckoo in woodland along a walking track behind Bargara Caravan Park, where we were staying.

Oriental Cuckoo

Strong south-easterly winds offshore brought large flocks of terns inshore: they were mostly noddies, both Black Noddy and Brown Noddy in what looked to be about equal numbers (though birds were distant) in mixed flocks. Among them were 20+ Bridled Terns, which were even further out to sea.

Black Noddy & Brown Noddy offshore (distant)

In the camping ground, a fine Frill-necked Lizard entertained us for a couple of days, feeding on the short grass until well after sunset, when it appeared to be catching numerous ground insects at dusk.

Frill-necked Lizard

A pair of Radjah Shelduck were spotted flying over the camping ground and located later in a nearby tidal creek. This species is becoming increasingly regular in south-east Queensland in recent years.

Radjah Shelduck

Red-backed Fairywren

Eastern Koel and Red-backed Fairywren were among the more common fare on offer.

Eastern Koel

West Coolum Wetland

In a new win for the environment on the Sunshine Coast, an additional 120ha of wetland and grassland has been acquired by the Sunshine Coast Council for protection as environmental reserve. This brings the total area of wetland and associated habitats in the heart of Australia’s tenth largest city to be protected to 1,700ha.

West Coolum Wetland (foreground) with newly acquired area above (Sunshine Coast Council pic)

The new area adjoins the Sunshine Coast Motorway behind Coolum and as with other acquisitions in recent years, it is former sugar cane land. The wetlands were created by the inundated of tidal waters following the collapse of floodgates after much of the region’s cane farming ended with the closure of the Nambour sugar mill two decades ago. Although human-modified, the wetlands are not dissimilar to those which occurred naturally around the Maroochy River floodplain prior to the development of cane farms a century ago.

West Coolum Wetland

The latest acquisition more than doubles the size of what I have dubbed the West Coolum Wetland, a 90ha site acquired by the council in 2011 but not made a reserve until 2020. These acquisitions effectively expand the 190ha Yandina Creek Wetland, purchased by Unitywater in 2016 as part of the corporation's nutrient offsets program following a lengthy campaign to save the area from development. These and other acquisitions, along with the Coolum Creek Environment Reserve, are the backbone of the Blue Heart project - a joint endeavour by the council, the Queensland Government and Unitywater to protect and restore Maroochy River floodplain wetlands.

Royal Spoonbill

Sunshine Coast councillor Maria Suarez said of the latest land purchase: “This is another example of what’s exciting about Blue Heart: benefits for biodiversity; creating nature-based recreation opportunities; and increasing opportunities for Council’s ongoing Blue Carbon investigations and trials.” The $6 million land purchase was secured through the SEQ City Deal, a long-term partnership between the Australian Government, Queensland Government and Council of Mayors (SEQ) that allocated $35.3 million to Blue Heart.

West Coolum Wetland

The West Coolum Wetland provides habitat for a range of wetland and grassland wildlife species. During a brief visit this week I found good numbers of Little Grassbird and Spotless Crake, both relatively uncommon in South-East Queensland. Egrets, cormorants, spoonbills and herons were among the waterbirds present. Dollarbirds and an Australian Hobby perched on nearby overhead wires.

Dollarbird

Australian Hobby

The news is not all good, however. The council has given property development giant Stockland preliminary approval to build a 450-lot housing estate on the Maroochy River floodplain at Twin Waters. The development will result in the destruction of a fine swathe of grassland and a much-needed green space in the midst of a rapidly expanding urban footprint in the area. To say nothing of yet more housing developments in flood-prone sites. It says something that Stockland is required to provide an evacuation centre for residents to escape to in the event of flooding.

Spotless Crake

Across the motorway from Stockland’s project on Godfreys Road is the council’s next important test. Another area of excellent grassland there provides habitat for several rare species including the Eastern Grass Owl. (More on the owls here.) The council is presently determining whether to convert the grassland to sporting facilities or protect it as a reserve.

Eastern Grass Owl

The following is the transcript of my news feature in The Weekend Australian of 10-11 February, 2024.

Coxen's Fig-Parrot

A 17-year-old mystery surrounding the identity of a tiny parrot is having unforeseen consequences for the welfare of endangered Australian wildlife. Self-promotion by high profile individuals and poor decision-making by Queensland Government authorities have combined to threaten rare and mysterious species, and deep divisions within the natural history community are laid bare.

Just one variety of bird, the paradise parrot, is confirmed as having become extinct on the Australian mainland since European settlement; it was last seen in the 1930s in south-east Queensland. Now, the fate of three more birds – the Coxen’s fig-parrot, night parrot and buff-breasted buttonquail - hangs in the balance. Two of the three are possibly extinct, contrary to confused government advice, with the third teetering precariously on the brink.

Buff-breasted Buttonquail

The celebrated naturalist Steve Irwin died in September 2006 when he was struck in the heart by a stingray barb on the Great Barrier Reef. Soon after, as a journalist working for The Australian, I was phoned by Tom Biggs, a Brisbane medical specialist who was providing commercial advice to controversial north Queensland naturalist John Young and his company, John Young Enterprises. Biggs asked if I was interested in breaking a “really big” story for this masthead concerning Young and a parrot; no further details were offered.

Biggs and Young were aware I had publicly suggested the Coxen’s fig-parrot might be extinct. The brightly coloured parrot once frequented the rainforests of south-east Queensland and north-east New South Wales but there had been no confirmed records of the bird for three decades at the time. Young claimed in the 1990s to have photographed the fig-parrot in NSW but did not produce convincing images. Young also asserted in the 1970s that he found a population of paradise parrots in north Queensland, but no evidence was forthcoming. Assuming Young was again claiming to have rediscovered the Coxen’s fig-parrot or paradise parrot, I politely declined Biggs’s offer.

Night Parrot

A few days later, in November 2006, Brisbane’s The Courier Mail newspaper splashed the story across its front and inside pages. It was not about those two birds but something more eye-catching: Young had supposedly discovered a species of parrot unknown to science - the blue-browed fig-parrot. The “discovery” was announced amid much fanfare at a function at O’Reillys Guesthouse in the Gold Coast hinterland by Queensland Environment Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr. Scientists from the state government’s threatened species unit hailed the discovery as ground-breaking and pledged to work with Young on publishing scientific papers.

But it wasn’t true. Investigations by The Australian, aided by Melbourne ornithologists Jeff Davis and Andrew Isles, indicated that Young’s image was an altered photograph of a much more common species – the double-eyed fig-parrot from north Queensland. Gale Spring, a leading forensic photographic expert, concluded there was little doubt the image was altered. Ornithological experts from a range of disciplines were unanimous in dismissing the claim. The Queensland Government withdrew its support for Young.

John Young

Young’s large number of supporters in the wider natural history community were furious. Fellow North Queensland naturalist and author Lloyd Nielsen declared on the online platform birding-aus that articles in The Australian were “despicable”, insisting Young’s claim was genuine: “This special bird really does exist as depicted in the published photograph.”

Now it is possible to throw further light on the matter. Nielsen relates how the day after the O’Reilly’s announcement, he and others were led by Young on a long hike through Lamington National Park to be shown a “blue-browed fig-parrot nest”. Young pointed to a small hole at the top of a tall tree and said it was the nest entrance. When no birds appeared after a short time, the group headed back. Nobody saw the bird, including government scientists who had endorsed Young’s claims.

Young pledged on his website in February 2007 to produce a "body of evidence, including photographs of multiple birds, recordings and biological material together with a nest site" at some future date. The evidence has failed to materialise 17 years on, but many nature enthusiasts continue to believe Young’s new parrot is out there. The big unanswered question: “Why would a claim like this be manufactured?”

Lloyd Nielsen

Young has told me and others in recent years that the bird he photographed was in fact a Coxen’s fig-parrot. He admitted that his claims of a new species were bogus. Young showed me a photograph of a dead bird in a nest hollow that resembled a Coxen’s fig-parrot - a species that has never been photographed. Nielsen told me he was also aware the new species claim was false, even when he was publicly asserting the opposite. Nielsen remains unsure if Young photographed a Coxen’s fig-parrot or if he “coloured in” a double-eyed fig-parrot image. Colours aside, parrot experts point to descriptive features, such as the bill shape in the pictured bird, indicating a double-eyed fig-parrot.

Young and Nielsen say Young succumbed to pressure to make his false claim. There were discussions about him emerging as the “new Steve Irwin” after the naturalist’s death and that a natural history discovery of epic proportions was needed to boost his profile. Something sexier than a Coxen’s fig-parrot. Young told me his “commercial backers” hatched the idea that he discovered a new species. Nielsen agrees, insisting he and Young did not want to go along with the ruse.

Coxedn's Fig-Parrot specimens (Neil Hart)

Tom Biggs rejects the suggestion that he urged Young to manufacture the parrot claim. Biggs tells Inquirer: “I am far from an expert. I don’t have 100th the experience that John has, and I am disinclined to think it was my suggestion. I have no recollection of suggesting it was a new species. I doubt that I would have suggested that on the basis of John’s claim, based on a photograph, that it was a different species from Coxen’s.” Biggs adds: “To the extent that he photo-shopped or deliberately manipulated colours, I wouldn’t know. It’s easily done these days.”

Young and Nielsen are among many naturalists who insist the Coxen’s fig-parrot is doing well in the wild. That view resounds with officialdom: Queensland Government threatened species experts – the same ones who believed in Young’s blue-browed fig-parrot - insist there are scores of reliable records of the species in recent decades. In 2018, the state took the extraordinary step of downgrading the status of the fig-parrot from Critically Endangered on the basis that its estimated population of between 50 and 250 had not changed for many years. The estimate was and remains misguided; not one of the reports has been confirmed by a photograph, sound recording or other evidence. The downgrading was executed at a time when many experts believe Coxen’s fig-parrot was likely to be extinct.

Young’s focus of attention shifted soon after the blue-browed fig-parrot debacle when The Australian revealed in February 2007 that a dead night parrot was found in Diamantina National Park in north-west Queensland by Robert “Shorty” Cupitt, a bulldozer operator. The bird was decapitated by flying into a barbed wire fence. Other than another dead bird found in 1990, also in north-west Queensland, the night parrot had not been reliably recorded for a century. At the time, it was considered more rare and mysterious that the Coxen’s fig-parrot.

John Young at the site where he photographed the Night Parrot in 2013

The Queensland Government had suppressed news of this remarkable discovery for several months, and would have continued to do so indefinitely, while failing to make meaningful efforts to find and protect populations of birds in the wake of Cupitt’s find.

The discovery was potentially a golden opportunity for Young to restore his bruised reputation by tracking down this enigmatic species - one of just two nocturnal parrots in the world and apart from Coxen’s fig-parrot, the only parrot never to be photographed. Young located parrots by call in the Diamantina area and eventually photographed a night parrot in 2013 - a remarkable feat that attracted international recognition. The site where the parrots live was acquired by Bush Heritage Australia and called the Pullen Pullen Reserve. BHA and the Australian Wildlife Conservancy are Australia’s two big organisations devoted to acquiring properties for wildlife conservation.

Young’s initial close working relationship with BHA was short-lived and he was hired by AWC to search for night parrots. Young quit the AWC in 2018 when an inquiry commissioned by the organisation expressed doubts about photographs he claimed to be of night parrot nests and eggs. The inquiry doubted Young’s claims to have discovered the parrot in South Australia. The AWC ditched two years’ worth of material that Young had gathered. Nielsen again came to his defence, saying at the time: “It's shameful that all that work was discarded.” Young continues to claim new night parrot records: in a blog post last April, he said he had discovered birds at 11 additional sites in outback Queensland since his 2013 photographs.

Fence at Pullen Pullen where a Night Parrot was killed

Parrot experts believe Young and his backers have set back the cause of night parrot conservation with unsubstantiated claims of finding them at multiple sites. “Young’s data was being used to inform decisions about funding and planning for night parrot conservation,” Australian National University researcher Penny Olsen told the ANU Reporter last March. “The bird might feel mythical but it lives in the real world, and the consequences of misrepresenting its population size and distribution are serious.” Young and Nielsen declined to respond to requests to comment.

At Pullen Pullen, the outlook is bleak: the total parrot population was estimated in 2022 to be between 10 and 20. Numbers have not increased since the 2013 photographs, and surveys have failed to locate additional populations in Queensland. BHA refuses to say what the population is now, or to comment on whether a recent explosion of feral cat numbers on and around Pullen Pullen has had adverse consequences for the tiny population.

In 2019, another night parrot was killed after flying into a barbed wire fence on Pullen Pullen; the fatality may have constituted between 10 and 20 percent of the population. Barbed wire fences on the property separate night parrot roosts from each other and from surrounding feeding grounds. Fences are located within a few hundred metres of parrot roosts. BHA built a new barbed wire fence along Pullen Pullen’s western boundary in 2017.

Entrance to Pullen Pullen

Useful data was provided when researches in the reserve put transmitters on two night parrots which were tracked, one in 2015 and one in 2016. That work revealed parrots fly long distances at night from day roosts to feeding grounds. Pullen Pullen researchers travelled to Western Australia to do the same with a third bird at a newly discovered site in 2018. As lead researcher Nick Leseberg told podcast host Thomas Doerig in 2022: “We went over there, put the tag on it and never saw it again. It flew away and disappeared.” Extensive searches failed to find the bird and it was not heard calling again at its roost.

BHA has now thrown a veil of secrecy over its Pullen Pullen operations. The organisation will not say if other parrots have died on barbed wire fences or been lost after being fitted with transmitters. “Unfortunately none of our staff are available to help with this story,” said BHA spokeswoman Coco McGrath. BHA has in the past declared that its operations are “utterly transparent”, but the secrecy surrounding the night parrot that kicked off with Cupitt’s find continues. BHA has the back of the Queensland Government, which introduced a $353,400 fine or two-year jail sentence for entering the 56,000ha Pullen Pullen Reserve without permission.

Double-eyed Fig-Parrot

John Young had been through the windmill with the Coxen’s fig-parrot and night parrot controversies. Next he set his sights on the third critically endangered species in this saga – the buff-breasted buttonquail. Young and Nielsen claimed to have had multiple encounters with the small ground bird since the early-1990s in a large area of woodland north of the Atherton Tableland in north Queensland. Those reports set the birding world on fire. Hundreds of bird enthusiasts from around the world claimed to have spotted the buttonquail after travelling to the area.

It was seemingly a mirage. Again, not a single record was supported by a photograph or other evidence. University of Queensland researcher Patrick Webster undertook extensive surveys of the area and found no evidence of the bird’s presence, instead repeatedly seeing a closely related and much more common species - the painted buttonquail. Webster and his colleagues conclude that none of the reports are likely to be genuine.

Painted Buttonquail

This made no difference to Queensland Government authorities which, largely on the basis of records from Young and Nielsen, refused over many years to upgrade the status of the species to Critically Endangered. The last confirmed record of the bird was in 1922, when specimens were collected near Coen on Cape York. The government’s faith in the integrity of claims by the two naturalists was unaffected by the fig-parrot and night parrot rows.

In the face of Webster’s research, Young and Nielsen doubled down on their buttonquail records. Like the night parrot until 2013 and the Coxen’s fig-parrot, the buttonquail had never been photographed. But Young said he had photographs of the nest and eggs of a buff-breasted buttonquail as well as multiple images of the bird itself, which he shared with Nielsen. In July 2022 Inquirer called into question a published image of what Young described as a buff-breasted buttonquail nest that proved to be the nest of a painted buttonquail.

The nest that John Young claims to be that of a Buff-breasted Buttonquail

I later published one of his images of the bird on my blog, sunshinecoastbirds. Experts agreed it was likely a painted buttonquail. Nielsen again responding angrily, saying on Facebook he was “thoroughly disgusted” at what he described as “gutter journalism”. However, following these revelations, the Queensland Government was finally motivated to intervene and upgrade the status of the buff-breasted buttonquail to Critically Endangered, in November 2022. At the same time, it reversed its 2018 decision to downgrade the status of Coxen’s fig-parrot, restoring it to Critically Endangered. It may be too late, however, for all three special birds.