Check my birding map for specific location.
I liked Port Augusta. I should qualify that as I only went between the caravan park and the Arid Lands Botanic Gardens (via the supermarket on occasion). But I liked both places and the rest of Port Augusta looked ok too. I had to pass the gardens on my way to the caravan park and so stopped there first. I was really impressed with the layout, the construction and the plants within it. And then there were the birds. Lots of birds, particularly in the Eremophila Garden, which seemed stuffed full of plants to attract nectar feeders. I was very used to seeing Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters by this point and I thought the ones here looked enormous. Then I heard them call and realised they were Red Wattlebirds. Gorgeous huge honeyeaters with pale red wattles and a yellow belly. I tried over several visits to get a decent portrait of one and I did eventually.
Once around the gardens and I headed to the visitor's centre, should have a map really! I heard squabbling noises and saw the back end of a pale bird flying out of sight hotly pursued by a smaller, angry bird. I wondered what a Barn Owl was doing it and promptly dismissed the thought as wishful thinking (still bristling from Agnes Creek). The commotion continued, however, and I skipped the visitor's centre to see what was going on. Lo and behold, there was a Barn Owl sitting in a tree being mobbed by very unhappy resident birds. There was no listing on eBird of the owl in the gardens, nor was it on their official list. Triumph. All I had to do now was get a decent photo. The smaller birds were persistent and it was forced to move several times with me in hot pursuit. Eventually it settled and despite the best efforts of the other birds, refused to move for a while. Got it. I photographed it several times over the next hour, even getting it sitting out in reasonable light. It was magic.
I saw the bird again a couple of days later so maybe it was trying to establish itself in the gardens. Good luck to it.
Regularly in the garden you will run into babblers, fussing around on the ground. Smaller and not as vocal as the Grey-crowned species, these White-browed Babblers are still as endearing. Tricky to photograph as they are so low down and they never sit still, I really enjoyed watching them interact.
In the gardens there are 2 well constructed bird hides, fenced off from the resident marsupials and full of attractive plants and trees. One is on the sandier area of the garden and the other on the heath-like scrub area. Although both were quiet when I visited I could see the potential and enjoyed going to them both. My highlight was a silly display by an awkward Galah that just couldn't get its footing.
On the heathy area surrounding the main garden there were Red Kangaroo. It was my first time seeing them and I couldn't get over how big they were. They eyed my warily from a distance while I photographed them. I felt like calling out to reassure them that I had no desire to get closer. It was only on my last visit that I saw some animals that looked really red. It was quite startling how vivid the shade of their fur was. The others I had seen only had a tinge of red. Not this guy!
I also came across some Wallaroo which actually came into the gardens and I saw them when I was there very early in the morning. This youngster was with an older female and must be the cutest marsupial I have seen this trip.
One of my target birds was the Chirruping Wedgebill, having got the Chiming Wedgebill in Glendambo on the way down. It wasn't long before I heard them and they were present and vocal on each of my trips. It took a little longer to get close enough to them to get some photographs but with perseverance, I did.
https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S119305901
https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S119367679
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