Coober Pedy

Check my birding map for specific location.  

Coober Pedy is a town I have heard of. I know it to be the centre of opal mining and that Hamish and Andy once visited it. I wasn't sure really what to expect and was quite amazed as I drove closer to the town by the thousands of mounds of earth, between 2 and 5 metres I estimated, dotting the landscape. Every now and again there were large mine operations and there was just no doubt what the main industry is here. As I drove into town, to my surprise there were more mounds and machinery in gardens

The centre of town caused me much amusement with it's underground motels. I had recently watched the Flintstones movies and the area reminded me of Bedrock! I wondered which town was based on which. I couldn't decide whether to shop for opals or visit 'The Big Winch'. I settled for the sewage farm.

There are 2 sewage farms listed on eBird, another Coober Pedy oddity perhaps. I went to the one with the most recent listings (I couldn't find the other anyway, looked like it had been turned into a sports arena) and found the dog pound. I was sensing a pattern of weirdness in Coober Pedy. Anyway, opposite the pound was a long, thin stretch of water with lots of reeds. I could see swallows swooping along it and could hear the peep peep of dotterels so I knew it was worth a look.

I first found a white-backed Australasian Magpie. I shot it because I have only seen black-backed so far on my 2022 trip. A southern Australia anomaly? On the wire above it was a female Red-capped Robin.

Australasian Magpie (Gymorhina tibicen)

Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii)

In the reeds I could hear fairywren and waited patiently for them to pop up. My luck was in as a male White-winged Fairywren sat up to sing. What an incredible bird. I had trouble processing this image because of the bright colours. I hope I have done it justice.

White-winged Fairywren (Malurus leucopterus)

The dotterels and other birds were not very co-operative so I moved on and decided against staying in town. It was just too busy. I headed south to the Hutchison Monument which also doubles as a rest area. A very good choice as there was a huge are behind the monument and I drove around half a kilometre in till I found a spot next to some bush. I put out my portable bird bath ($1.50 courtesy of KMart) and waited. There was not a lot around other than the ever present Zebra Finches but eventually a rather shy crow (Torresian I think - no pale base feathers in the wind) circled the van and eventually came in. Often dismissed by birders and civilians alike, I think they are beautiful with that glossy plumage and bright eyes. 

Torresian Crow (Corvus orru)

In the bushes were more fairywren, purple-backed this time. Again with some patience, the male came close enough to photograph. Pretty rough looking in moult but still interesting. 

Purple-backed Fairywren (Malurus assimilis)

As the day wore on into late afternoon, the Singing Honeyeaters came out and were flitting around catching bugs. I don't think their call is much of a song but people don't much like my singing either!

Singing Honeyeater (Gavicalis virescens)

All in all, a very satisfactory introduction to South Australia.

eBird Lists
https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S119124922
https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S119121137

Henbury Meteorites

 

Check my birding map for specific location.

So I am starting my journey south to Port Augusta. Now I have solar panels I am less tied to the caravan parks and I am aiming to stay at rest areas and national parks more. I usually plan and research very carefully the places I am going but I didn't for my first location on the Stuart Highway running into South Australia. I had heard that Henbury Meteorites was a possible spot for the Cinnamon Quail-thrush and that was all I needed to know. I booked through the National Parks website and set off. What I didn't realise was that to get to the site (which looks pretty close to the highway) you have to drive 15km on jarring corrugations on a gravel track. It was frustrating and painful. I definitely wouldn't have gone there if I had known (didn't get the quail-thrush either!). 

As it turned out I was glad I went to the campsite. The meteorites were mildly interesting but as usual it was the wildlife I was looking for. No romantic scenes of camel or emu on the horizon but a cracker opportunity to photograph more dragons. A Central Netted Dragon sat very obligingly for me on a rock perfectly framed by the deep orange earth. I just love this shot.

Central Netted Dragon (Ctenophorus nuchalis)

While looking for the quail-thrush and more dragons on the road, I saw a pipit. I haven't seen too many until I explored south of Alice Springs and they are so endearing that I had to stop for it. The Red Centre provided a great background again.

Australasian Pipit (Anthus australis)

Once at the campsite I immediately headed off to have a look at the craters. The ubiquitous Zebra Finch flew all around me. Always makes you smile. It was fairly quiet bird-wise at the main attraction but in the tallest tree growing out of one of the craters was a pair of nesting hobby. I have never managed to get a decent shot of one so the challenge was on. The nest was near the top of the tree and the female was sitting in it, looking slightly dwarfed by it. Close by was the male looking very serious, on guard duty. I visited them a few times and it was always the same arrangement and despite the sun ALWAYS being in the wrong place for a perfect shot, I was pretty happy with what I got. The male was very interested in me so I was as quick as I could be and left them to it. Would love to get shots of the chicks - another one for the wish list.

Australian Hobby (Falco longipennis)

On the way out of the campsite I found a small dam and stopped to check it out. More finches and some Grey Teal were present and noisy but an obvious honeyeater in a far off tree caught my eye. As soon as I looked through the lens I knew it was a White-fronted Honeyeater. Another Lifer. I got an ID shot and moved on, cursing that bloody road. 

White-fronted Honeyeater (Phylidonyris albifrons)

Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

eBird Lists

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S119002830

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S119002814

Santa Teresa Road

 

Check my birding map for specific location.

Santa Teresa Road runs past the airport south-east of Alice Springs. The seal runs out and the track becomes a little rough but passable. It is a nondescript place that even the local residents don't really visit unless they are travelling to the settlement of Santa Teresa itself about 75km from Alice Springs itself. 

For a birder though, the place is fantastic. Flat grasslands (with red sand underneath as seen in the Google Earth image above) run to the horizon with occasional slopes and lots and lots of rocks. The first thing you notice is large flocks of Budgerigars. The biggest I saw was around 500 birds. Something very special about that.

I stopped in places where I saw bird activity and parked my van up to explore. It was very cold on the morning I was there so I wasn't surprised to not see anyone else around. The birds were still quite skittish and it was challenging to get close to them. There were also birds I didn't recognise and birds I had never seen before at all. Worth braving the cold for. 

The first bird I saw was a Chiming Wedgebill. It disappeared as soon as I got out the van although I did hear the fabulous call for a while. Then Mulga Parrots landed next to me and were feeding on the ground. I sat, watched and shot. Difficult conditions in the cold and gloomy light but I didn't care too much.

Female and Male Mulga Parrot (Psephotus varius)

I could hear the Crested Bellbird from behind me and when the parrots left, I looked for it. These birds should be photogenic but always seem to look a little grubby. There were several birds calling to each other and it was great to film one. Their call is just wonderful.

Crested Bellbird (Oreoica gurruralis)

As I drove along the road I saw small birds with a flash on their tails flying along and across the roads. It took me sometime to figure out they were Crimson Chats and Southern Whiteface. It took even longer for me to get close enough to photograph them and then I only got a good shot of the chat.

Crimson Chat (Epithianura tricolor)

As I sat in the van having a cup of tea I could hear a call I didn't know which is always exciting. It was a sort of double electronic buzz and I raced out to find the owner. Turned out to be a Red-capped Robin. I found several females and while the male is more attractive, I thought these girls were super cute.

Female Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii)

The birds that made the most noise were the varied Sittella. I have seen grey morphs before but these black and white birds were stunning. They were very shy and I only managed to get shots of them when they flew in to a tree close to me rather than me approaching them.

Varied Sittella (Daphoenositta chrysoptera)

It really was the morning for small bush birds as I heard thornbills and fairywrens calling close by. I saw the White-winged Fairywren but wasn't able to photograph them. Not too shabby to settle for this Splendid Fairywren.

Splendid Fairywren (Malurus spendens)

The other bird flitting about was the Inland Thornbill. They may look like rather dull, grey birds but I think if you can get close to them and look really carefully they are beautiful and interesting.

Inland Thornbill (Acanthiza apicalis)

I returned to Santa Teresa Road a few days later with the lovely Tanya who had escorted me to the Treatment Plant earlier in my stay here at Alice Springs. She had and idea where we might find Banded Whiteface and so we set off to look for a semi-circular track off the main road. We were both unsure we would spot it but we did and immediately on pulling in, we saw small birds on the ground. 1, 2, 3 were Zebra Finch but there as well was a single Banded Whiteface. It looked marked different to the Southern Whiteface but I am still unsure as to exactly why. Not to worry, it was another lifer and a very attractive bird. 

Banded Whiteface (Aphelocephala nigricincta)

Further down the road we stopped at the famous Tyre in the Pole area and wandered in amongst the grasses. We heard a quiet but distinctive double beep and immediately started searching for the Spinifexbird. We played the song on my phone and it popped straight up, posing beautifully for us. As we got close it moved off and we tried once more with the app and got it again, legs splayed between grasses. Not prone to torturing birds with recorded songs, we let it go about its business.

Spinifexbird (Poodytes carteri)

On the way back to the car, Tanya spotted a Central Netted Dragon. We stopped and watched it for a while as it tried to decide how dangerous we were. It was right in front of its burrow which made for some great photos and very kindly it climbed some grass for us instead of diving into it. 

Central Netted Dragon (Ctenophorus nuchalis)

After a fruitless search for Rufous-crowned Emu-wren, we drove back and along the way passed numerous (we estimate between 10 and 15) Bearded Dragons. Usually, as we screeched to halt, reversed or turned around, they would disappear but a couple of times we were able to get closer. The dragon below was in a small, dead tree and caught my eye as it was bright orange. We managed to get out of the car before it scarpered and started to approach it. Before our very eyes it changed colour. First to a brown and then darker to almost black. All in less than a minute. It was remarkable. I have never seen anything like it. We got to within touching distance of it, but of course we didn't. We continued to see more dragons in the road, the verge and on rocks soaking up the sun. It is definitely getting warmer in Alice Springs.  

Central Bearded Dragon (Pogona vitticeps)

This is the same animal, photographs taken less than 1 minute apart.

eBird lists

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S118053573

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S118053578

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S118471847

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S118471882

Ormiston Gorge

Check my birding map for specific location.

What a gem of a place this campground is. Set in the stunning Ormiston Gorge and Waterhole, it is a private campsite with facilities and even a kiosk/cafe. I was laid low with a heavy cold so didn't go too far along any of the tracks but just staying with my van or walking around the social areas was rewarding enough. 

The short walk to the waterhole saw lots of Yellow-throated Miner, Pied Butcherbirds, Zebra Finches and Port Lincoln Ringnecks. Up to 3 Whistling Kites circled the area and I did see a Collared Sparrowhawk flyover. At the waterhole at dawn and dusk were 5 Pacific Heron and a couple of Australasian Grebes. 

Port Lincoln Ringneck Parrot (Barnardius zonarius zonarius)

Pacific or White-necked Heron (Ardea pacifica)

Behind the campsite was a steep hill and each morning the Spinifex Pigeons would come running down in through the bush and then dart under the vehicles, all the while making their delicious coo-ing call. They are so attractive and entertaining and to see them so close was wonderful. 

Spinifex Pigeon (Geophaps plumifera)

I regularly heard a Horsfield's Cuckoo calling. It wasn't listed on eBird so I had to chase it around a bit until I scrabbled up the hill and managed to photograph it. This was the first of my 2022 trip and I was even more pleased to be able to identify it by the call alone. I have been trying to learn the bird calls this year and it has been challenging to say the least.  

Horsfield's Bronze Cuckoo (Chrysoccyx basalis)  

At the back of my van was a very small patch of open dirt before the scrub and everyday I got different visitors. The first day was the Hooded Robin as they hunted amongst the small trees. They looked at little unkempt, in moult I think. I have seen these robins in several places but have yet to hear them calling. Weird. 

Hooded Robin (Melanodryas cucullata)

Next day was a succession of doves and pigeons. Diamond and Peaceful Doves wandered past and a Spinifex Pigeon sat helpfully on a split log for me. 

The third day a Western Bowerbird sat in a nearby tree and I waited with baited breath. I had still to get a shot of one out in the open. They are usually shy of people so I stayed very still in the back of the van until it decided to explore the ground around me, including sitting on the log and showing its pink crest. Magic. 

Western Bowerbird (Chlamydera guttata)

Near the visitor's centre there were flowering trees which attracted the honeyeaters. Brown and White-plumed Honeyeater were most common but at times there were numbers of Spiny-cheeked and the occasional Singing. I loved watching the Spiny-cheeked in particular as they interacted.

Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater (Acanthagenys rufigularis)

eBird Lists

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117832862

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117832852

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117832844

Stuart Highway Rest Areas South of Alice Springs

 

Check my birding map for specific location. 

The rest areas alongside the main north-south road between South Australia and Alice Springs (Stuart Highway) are a lot nicer than those coming from Tennant Creek. They are more expansive with areas to walk and park away from the road. I stopped at 3 recently and was surprised by how pleasant they were and the quality of the birds in the locale. On the drive south I was thrilled to see a Bourke's Parrot fly across the van and then alongside it. However, by the time I had wound the window down to ask it to pose for a photo, it had gone. Beautiful grey, pink and blue bird and I never fail to be amazed to see such incredible birds as I just drive down the road.

First off was Redbank Waterhole which is about 7km from the road along and unsealed, rough road. It was traversable by the my van although we did bump quite a lot. The waterhole was quiet in terms of people but busier for birds. I parked up above the water and spent a quiet afternoon and very cold night there.

Redbank Waterhole early morning

On my way out in the morning, having to drive very slowly was an advantage and I saw lots of Zebra Finches and honeyeaters. A group of Red-tailed Black Cockatoo caught my attention as they tried to force a raptor away from them. Luckily, that raptor landed and I then crept towards it. The bird was remarkably tolerant but it did help having a long lens as I didn't have to get too close to get my shots. The owl-like face indicated it was a Spotted Harrier. The poor cockatoos had to turn their attention to a hobby which took up the chase.

Australian Hobby (falco longipennis)

Spotted Harrier (circus assimilis)

Next up was the Finke River Rest Area where I stopped for morning tea. The area had lots of potential but I didn't stay long. There is a area out the back which had nice parking and a gate allowed access to the river. With only a few patches of water, the only customer was a Willie Wagtail. 

I spent the night at the Desert Oaks Rest Area which had a nice walk out the back and I immediately saw parrots. Eventually they settled and I saw they were a pair of Mulga Parrots. I had seen them in the aviaries at Desert Park but in the wild they were so brighter and more vivid. A lifer for me so I was pleased to get adequate shots of them.

eBird Lists

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117570333

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117570339

https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117510883

Alice Springs Sewage Ponds

 

Check my birding map for specific location. 

The Alice Springs treatment plant is unique. It is recognised as one of the best birding areas in Australia and it is most unusual in that you can access it. With some safety formalities and a volunteer guide, you can walk around the ponds at your leisure. Contrary to the impressions of non-bird watcher civilians, it doesn't smell, it is very beautiful and very interesting. My guide Tanya was so knowledgeable and helpful - it made all the difference. The night before had been very cold and it was lovely to walk around the ponds chatting about birds and photography with the rising sun on our backs. It was a huge bonus and surprise to get 4 lifers here. I didn't get too many photos but sometimes the experience is what is important. 

The first birds we saw and heard were the Little Crow. Distinguishing between the Little and Torresian Crow is proving to be a challenge for me and even though we saw the littles, I could not explain why it was so. Anyway, here it is.

Little Crow (corvus bennetti)

As we hit the ponds we started to see waders. Most common was the Black-fronted Dotterel and they took flight as soon as we got close. Then Tanya spotted a Wood Sandpiper which was great and it let us get close enough to photograph it. I rattled off dozens of photographs and laughed when I processed them. The bird was so still that every photo was exactly the same. Some birds are just more active than others I guess.

Wood Sandpiper (tringa glareola)

As we moved to the first corner which was overgrown, we could hear the Little Grassbird and fairywrens. During the morning we saw all 3 local species of fairywren, the Splendid, Purple-backed and White-winged. The females are all plainer than the more shy males.

Little Grassbird (poodytes gramineus)

Female Splendid Fairywren (malurus spendens)

The highlight of the visit was seeing the shy Australian Spotted Crake. Amazingly, it not only came out into the open but the sun was actually in the right place. We ended up seeing 2 birds out in the open in different places which was just magic for my first sighting.

Australian Spotted Crake (porzana fluminea)

eBird List
https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117363572

Desert Park

 

Check my birding map for specific location. 

Desert Park in Alice Springs is probably the best wildlife park that I have ever been to and that is somewhat of a surprise in the middle of the desert. A combination of excellent planning, well maintained exhibits and incredibly interesting local animals makes it a place you can spend a lot of time at! I was there for a full day. I had tried to leave at lunchtime and visit somewhere else but there seemed no point when the area was just buzzing with birds. Some that I include here are from aviaries but there was also plenty to see walking around the park itself. 

The fairywrens were such a bird with the Splendid and Purple-backed calling in lots of places. This was the first sighting in 2022 for me of the former so I stalked them until I found the glorious male.

Splendid Fairywren (malurus splendens)

And now a contrast of colours. The rather plain looking thornbill family are small songbirds with a pale eye. This is the Chestnut-rumped Thornbill and I really enjoyed watching it sitting up and calling.

Chestnut-rumped Thornbill (acanthiza uropygialis)

It's neighbour was a rather more brightly coloured Red-capped Robin and it too was in calling mood. My camera struggled with the vibrance of the red.

Red-capped Robin (petroica goodenovii)

In one of the aviaries I could hear a reed warbler calling and stood patiently until it appeared. These birds give everything when they are calling, their whole body shakes. It is quite a sight.

Australian Reed Warbler (acrocephalus australis)

The surprising highlights of the exhibits were the incredible numbats. I'd never seen them before and I watched them for a while as they dug in the ground and chatted to each other. They are marsupials that feed on termites (hence the long nose I suppose). I really hope I get to see animals like this in the wild.

Numbat (myrmecobius fasciatus)

I have saved the best for last though. I have been on the road in Australia for 6 months now and I am always looking for buttonquail. Having visited lots of places where they have been seen and frequently thinking about where they might be, I had just about given up that they really existed. As ever, while wandering the park I had an eye out for them when, to my shock, I saw one scrabbling around in the dirt right next to the path I was on. It was tiny, cryptic and shy. Luckily there weren't other people around so I could watch it for a while. Difficult to photograph in the dark and as it moved around so fast, I was so pleased to get a couple of sharp(ish) shots.

Little Buttonquail (turnix velox)

Desert Park was an incredible birding location, no doubt!

eBird List
https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S117303160