Muckleford bird outing
Posted on 8 February, 2016 by Tanya Loos
Beginner birdwatchers and experienced mentors alike joined together to explore the Muckleford forests on Sunday 7 February, 2016.
The morning was warm and still, and the bush seemed washed clean after the recent downpours to grace the area. We concentrated on a few sites along Mia Mia Track near Newstead, and then finished at the “Quince Tree” site, along Pullans Rd towards Maldon. The group was rather large, at twenty people, but we saw some great birds, and learnt a lot from one another, too.
Part of the group scans the bush for woodland birds at the Quince tree site
Geoff Park has been featuring the Mia Mia track on Natural Newstead lately, and he kindly provided some local “intel” on some good spots.
As we stood around introducing ourselves at our first stop, we heard the distinctive call of the Crested Bellbird way off in the distance, and we also saw and heard a Peaceful Dove.
We saw a female Hooded Robin and searched for the male Hooded Robin without success, but a male Rufous Whistler resplendent in his russet-coloured plumage gave everyone excellent views. We also saw plenty of honeyeaters, such as Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters. Another highlight was very good views of a juvenile Rufous Whistler, with a streaked breast.
And then, all at once, there was a small flock of Varied Sittella working the bark on the trees, an adult male Scarlet Robin with a juvenile Scarlet Robin, a Speckled Warbler hopping along the ground, and some Buff-rumped Thornbills. Not everyone got to see every bird – but most people saw the Sittellas which I am very glad for, as they are a special little bird, almost like tiny treecreepers.
As it was getting hot, we moved to the Quince Tree site a little earlier in the hope of seeing a few more birds. We also carried out our second “2 hectare 20 minute” survey of the day. This method is the gold standard of bird surveying – moving slowly along an area of two hectares, recording all birds seen and heard for exactly twenty minutes. Some of the participants have set up survey sites on their properties, while others are surveying the many group sites we have dotted about the Mount Alexander region. Practicing the method in a group is always worthwhile! For more on bird surveying and group sites – see HERE.
‘Quince Tree’ is the unofficial local name for a public bushland reserve near the eastern end of Pullans Rd in Gowar. It is named for the group of old Quince trees near the site entrance, and it has been a renowned site for Victorian birdwatchers for decades. The drought hit the birds of Muckleford forest hard, and while the site is not as amazing as its glory days in the eighties, it still has a consistently good number of special woodland birds. This site is actually one of Connecting Country’s official bird monitoring sites and over 60 species have been observed here since 2010 – including Painted Button-quail, White-browed Woodswallow, White-winged Triller, Black-chinned Honeyeater and Little Lorikeet.
As we did the survey, we had some unusual views of White-browed Babblers high in the canopy in a couple of large Mistletoe clumps. Babblers are usually on the ground or in shrubs! We also caught glimpses of the dozens of Fuscous Honeyeaters in the area, and also Brown Treecreepers. As often happens on bird outings, the highlight was back where the cars were parked.
The babblers emerged from a stand of silver wattles, and one flew very close to our group with feathers in its bill, and then entered a nest in the Quince trees! We were surprised to note that breeding was occurring at this time of year, however, I have since discovered that babblers actually maintain their nests year round as a permanent roosting or sleeping site for the babbler family! The Birds in Backyards profile on White-browed Babblers also states that while most breeding is from June to November, these sociable birds will breed at any time of year – see this link for more information: [Birds in Backyards]. So we do not know whether the birds are lining their nests for the coming of another brood, or just keeping the roosting nests nice and comfy with a feather lining!
To register your interest for upcoming bird walks, please send me an email or give me a call. Tanya Loos, Woodland Birds Project Coordinator, 5472 1594, or tanya@connectingcountry.org.au
Thanks, Chris for that kind feedback. I would love you to re-blog the post on your great Muckleford Forest blog. : )
Great report Tanya – can I reblog it across to the Muckleford Forest blog?