March 4 bird survey
Broadly speaking, surprisingly sparse results for seemingly reasonable morning weather. There were low numbers of Welcome Swallows and Silver Gulls, but on the other hand satisfying observations of a group of six Brown Thornbills, a similar-sized mob of Red-browed Finches, plus a young Collared…
February 5 bird survey
Despite the poor weather conditions, the species tally is high. The female Musk Duck may be the same bird that took residence for some months in 2023, and sightings of a Bronzewing Pigeon and an Australian Spotted Crake are of great interest. Of the…
January 15 bird survey
With such a prolonged series of heavy downpours over the last several weeks, the water bodies in the park are all very full. Indeed, as waterbirds in south-east Australia have a wide variety of current habitat choices, our numbers are fairly low. It was…
December 4 bird survey
Continuing rains keep the park’s main water bodies nearly full. The sighting of one Baillons Crake along the shoreline of the main island in the freshwater lake has been especially gratifying. These small attractive birds can be elusive and cryptic. Similarly solitary was the…
November 4 bird survey
Apologies for the late delivery of this report, which, thanks especially to the remarkable efforts of Ursula Dutkiewicz, clearly indicates the continuing range of interesting and sometimes unexpected birds visiting Westgate Park. Water levels remain high, attracting more Grey Teal than usual. Stilts have…
October 2 bird survey
Despite the park still looking in very good condition, the weather on the day was not so favourable for birds as reflected by the results. On the other hand, a combination of observations over the last month on eBird and those by our photographer…
September 4 bird survey
Water levels have risen, with the overall species number obviously high from the survey today and the efforts of several other observers reporting on eBird over the last month. We are monitoring Noisy Miner numbers within the park. Numbers are low on today’s count,…
August 7 bird survey
This survey yielded a higher numerical tally than usual. The several highlights were the return of Black-winged Stilts; a hunting Black-Shouldered Kite watching from one of bridge light standards that killed and devoured a mouse as we watched; two groups of Red-Browed Finches; two…
July 3 bird survey
The count is low because the day was unpromising, and the top guns in terms of bird identification were unavailable. Moreover, water levels are very high. Accordingly, the range of waterbirds is low. Surprisingly no teal or Black Swans were seen today. What is…