Speewah Campground was my first foray into the world of campervanning (well in Australia anyway). I had left the safety of the caravan park and struck out on my own. Speewah is the nearest cheap campsite to Cairns and even then it is the other side of Kuranda so quite a distance. Once there it almost looks like there is nothing to do. The area cleared for camping is in the middle of rainforest and there is a shower, toilet and BBQ area and grass. There was a walk into the rainforest but the terrain looked a little rough and I didn't want to go too far on my own.
As it was, we were still experiencing unseasonably high temperatures (and this is for tropical Queensland!). The mercury was hitting 40 degrees every day and I was still struggling (I'd left New Zealand in single digits). I stayed at Speewah several times and my routine was the same each time. Early morning would be birding. The edges of the rainforest were very productive every time. After that, when it got too hot, I would sit in the shade and try to stay cool, drinking lots of water and eating watermelon. At the end of the day, I would have a cold shower. I remember the first time in that incredibly hot weather. The water felt like an electric shock on my skin!
My very first stay at Speewah was very productive with birds zooming about and calling from all directions. They obviously were not feeling the heat. Right next to my pitch I found a Victoria's Riflebird. This female was running up and down branches looking for bugs and I loved her acrobatics.
Victoria's Riflebird (Ptiloris victoriae)
At the top end of the site I found a juvenile Yellow-breasted Boatbill. No bird needed for this unusual looking bird. I loved how fluffy it was in the transition to adult plumage.
I also heard a Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfisher calling. And then another from the other side of the forest. I waited as they came closer to each other and eventually spotted one in the gloom. Not the best shot but I was just pleased to see it.
I was a couple of days in before I realised I was sharing my site with the local thick-knees. There were so still and cryptic that I hadn't even seen. Some birder I am! There were 2 adults and a large chick and it was only when they had a domestic that I noticed them. Such strange looking birds. I went out of my way not to disturb them once I realised which bit they called home.
Bush Stone Curlew (Burhinus grallarius)
I often heard the high pitched call of a gerygone above and around my van and it took me a while to track down the owners and identify them. It was a group of Fairy Gerygone. I loved these guys as they had a range of plumage variations, my favourite being the black bearded ones. I took many shots before I got anything with clarity in it but it was such fun watching them.
Fairy Gerygone (Gerygone palpebrosa)
I had been warned about an adult male Southern Cassowary being in the area so I was very hopeful I would get a glimpse of him. Realistically though, I thought no chance. Then one afternoon I was just sitting in the shade and he just appeared silently from the forest. I had never been close to one before and was just in awe of how large and beautiful he was. He wandered around the side of my van giving me an opportunity to grab my camera and sneak around the back. I got a couple of shots and I love this first one. He visited again a couple of times and I got whole body shots of him. Quite remarkable.
Southern Cassowary (Casuarius casuarius)
Nothing was as remarkable, however, as the day I was sitting in my van processing my photos and a Great Bowerbird flew in. I was shocked and thrilled at the same time. The noise these birds make is a mix of hissing and growling. Nota pleasant noise and as they sound aggressive, you think they actually are. This was obviously a youngster and he was so endearing. He would gently bite my fingers and sit on my shoulder. A thrill for me but not really behaviour you would expect. I got him out of the van and he flew back in, I shut the doors and he howled at the windows. Thrill now became concern. The bird was obviously imprinted on humans.
Great Bowerbird (Chlamydera nuchalis)
Long story short was that a local person was in the habit of 'rescuing' young birds, rearing them to fledgling age and then just letting them go. A rescue volunteer came and got the young bowerbird and was hoping to de-humanise it (mainly by hitting it with his hat which did not fill me with joy) and then release it within a local population. I loved engaging with this bird but I felt very saddened by it's prospects.
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