Sunday, August 7, 2022

Cloncurry


Check my birding map for specific location.

Cloncurry is another rural town relying heavily on the main roads running through it. Seemingly thriving, I found it a pleasant place to be. I stayed at the caravan park opposite the Mary Kathleen park and was immediately delighted to be greeted by Apostlebirds and Grey-crowned Babblers. Quite a noisy welcome at that but it was great to relax in my camper and watch the babblers collecting nesting material. The Apostlebirds just seemed to be squabbling with no purpose as usual. 



Grey-crowned Babbler (pomatostomus temporalis)

At the park over the road I encountered Varied Lorikeets for the first time and was thrilled at their antics as they fed on the flowering gum trees. It seems a bit unjust that their cousins are labelled 'rainbows' whereas they are just 'varied'. Their plumage is stunning and I am reminded of a Picasso painting. Considerably smaller than the Rainbow Lorikeet, they are equally as noisy so easy to find when they are close by. 


Varied Lorikeet (psitteuteles veriscolor)

At the back of the park was a rough area of ground surrounded by fencing and private property on one side and the hill up to the lookout on the other. At the back of that space I found a conveniently placed set of bushes with a broken water pipe in front of them. The pooling water attracted several different birds and I sat (in roo poo) and watched Diamond Doves, Budgerigars (my first good look at wild ones), Zebra Finches and Woodswallows as they came down to drink in the hot afternoon. 

Budgerigar (meloppsittacus undulatus)

Diamond Dove (geopelia cuneata)

Black-faced Woodswallow (artamus cinereus)

I didn't have a lot of time in Cloncurry and I had to spend a good deal of that time processing previous photos. Lesson learned. I will stay longer next time.

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