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Westgate Park Bird Count |
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By: Rob Youl, Lyn Griffen , Lindsay Doig, John McRae, Euan Moore |
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Weather:
Fine cool, partly cloudy, light breeze |
Date: 06/05/2019 |
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Coverage: Entire survey route |
Time start: 08:50 |
Time finish:
13:20 |
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Species |
Number seen |
Species |
Number seen |
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Black Swan |
2+2d |
Rock Dove |
9 |
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Pink-eared Duck |
2 |
Spotted
Turtle-Dove |
12 |
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Grey Teal |
12 |
Crested Pigeon |
15 |
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Chestnut Teal |
24 |
Galah |
|
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Pacific Black
Duck |
24 |
Rainbow
Lorikeet |
65 + 1* |
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Hardhead |
7 |
Musk Lorikeet |
4 |
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Australasian
Grebe |
7 |
Eastern Rosella |
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Hoary-headed
Grebe |
5 |
HorsfieldÕs Bronze-Cuckoo |
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Darter |
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Fan-tailed
Cuckoo |
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Little Pied
Cormorant |
7* |
Superb Fairy-wren |
56 + 1B |
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Great Cormorant |
1* |
White-browed Scrubwren |
13 |
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Little Black
Cormorant |
1* |
Spotted
Pardalote |
11 |
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Pied Cormorant |
2* |
White-plumed Honeyeater |
90 +6* |
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Australian
Pelican |
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Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater |
3 |
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Eastern Great
Egret |
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Little
Wattlebird |
12 + 3* |
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White-faced
Heron |
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Red Wattlebird |
55 + 5* |
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Australian
White Ibis |
1 |
New Holland Honeyeater |
60 + 14* |
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Straw-necked
Ibis |
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White-naped Honeyeater |
1 |
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Royal Spoonbill |
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Black-faced Cuckooshrike |
1 |
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Black-shouldered
Kite |
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Australian
Magpie |
1 |
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Nankeen Kestrel |
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Grey
Butcherbird |
1 |
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Brown Falcon |
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Pied Currawong |
1 |
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Australian
Hobby |
1 |
Grey fantail |
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Peregrine
Falcon |
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Willie Wagtail |
9 |
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Purple Swamphen |
7 |
Little Raven |
17 |
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Buff-banded
Rail |
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Magpie-lark |
12 |
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Dusky Moorhen |
19 |
Flame Robin |
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Eurasian Coot |
125 |
Little
Grassbird |
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Black-winged
Stilt |
10 |
Silvereye |
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Black-fronted
Dotterel |
10 |
Welcome Swallow |
80 |
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Red-kneed
Dotterel |
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Common
Blackbird |
16 |
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Masked Lapwing |
2 + 2* |
Common Starling |
27 |
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Crested Tern |
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Common Myna |
18 |
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Pacific Gull |
4 |
Red-browed
Finch |
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Silver Gull |
60 + 125* |
House Sparrow |
17 |
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European
Greenfinch |
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European
Goldfinch |
7 |
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Number of Bird Species - Wetland dependent & RaptorsÉ22... Land based É27.É.Total |
É49.É Species |
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*
Recorded along the river. |
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Red – Unusual sightings |
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Note: For species seen in large numbers, or for which accurate counting was difficult the number seen is rounded off to the nearest of tens or fives.
Opportunistic Sightings
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Opportunistic Sightings – Interesting or unusual sightings reported
between surveys |
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Date |
Species |
Number seen |
Observer |
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29 March 2019 |
Red-kneed
Dotterel |
1 |
Lindsay
Doig |
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29 March 2019 |
White-faced
Heron |
1 |
Lindsay
Doig |
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4 April 2019 |
Nankeen
Night-heron |
1 |
George
Fotheringham |
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5 April 2019 |
Rufous
Fantail |
1 |
George
Fotheringham |
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7 April 2019 |
Yellow-billed
Spoonbill |
3 |
Ursula
Dutkiewicz |
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7 April 2019 |
Royal
Spoonbill |
2 |
Ursula
Dutkiewicz |
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7 April 2019 |
Australian
Pelican |
1 |
Ursula
Dutkiewicz |
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8 April 2019 |
Brown
Falcon |
1 |
George
Fotheringham |
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10 April 2019 |
Black-faced
Cuckooshrike |
1 |
Amy
Odell |
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13 April 2019 |
Nankeen
Night-heron |
3 |
George
Fotheringham |
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21 April 2019 |
Flame
Robin ♂ & ♀ |
2 |
George
Fotheringham |
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29 April 2019 |
Black-faced
Cuckooshrike |
1 |
George
Fotheringham |
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29 April 2019 |
Painted
Buttonquail platelets |
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Ruth
& Malcolm Cooke |
Habitat The impacts of the drought are continuing to
be felt across the reserve. The
park received very little of the rain that occurred at
the end of April and start of May. All lakes are very low. The main islands in the freshwater lake
are connected to the shore by exposed mud.
The freshwater dam has almost completely dried out. Freshwater wetlands near the compound and
along the HWT fence line and in the new section of the park south of the bridge
still contain water which appears to be of reasonable
quality. The salt lake has an
intense pink algal bloom while the algal bloom in some of the smaller salt
lakes is still developing. There
were no water or shore birds using the salt lakes.
Another impact of
the drought has been the loss of many trees and shrubs including some large Eucalypts,
Banksias and Goodenias. The large
number of people visiting the park to view the pink salt lake is also having an
impact with unofficial paths forming through use and some vegetation around the
salt lake being trampled.
Interesting/notable
sightings.
- The Australian Hobby seen perching on a
communications tower near Todd Rd is a rare visitor to the park.
- This is only the eighth occurrence of
White-naped Honeyeater in the park with six of the eight records being in
the last two years. Only one
bird was seen near the wetland along the HWT fence but given the social
nature of this species it is probable that there were other individuals in
the area.
- Painted Button-quail platelets were reported
from the south-eastern corner of the park. These distinctive circles are made
when the birds are searching for food. Painted Button-quail
are occasionally seen in the park.
- Both Royal and Yellow-billed Spoonbills were
reported in the park during the month (photo)
- Four Pacific Gulls including one 1st
year bird were seen along the river.
Royal Spoonbill (Janet Bolitho) Yellow-billed and Royal Spoonbills (Ursula Dutkiewicz)
Yellow-billed Spoonbills (Ursula Dutkiewicz)
Yellow-billed Spoonbills (Ursula Dutkiewicz)
Red-kneed Dotterel (Lindsay Doig)
White-faced Heron (Lindsay Doig)
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