The Challenge Begins!

This year I'm going to attempt Jen's 2019 5MR Challenge. That is, to try to find as many birds as I can in my 5-mile radius during the year.

To kick off my challenge, I decided to get out early to the Royal Botanic Gardens. I've only birded here once before, and figured there'd be less people around on New Year's morning than on a weekend when I'd probably usually go.

mmm... look at all that lush greenery through the gate!

I got there just after the gates opened at 7.30am and straight away there was a lot of small bird action. A Grey Fantail appeared, there were some White-browed Scrubwrens in the undergrowth and I noticed a couple of Spotted Pardalotes high up in a tall gum. A whole bunch of Silvereyes also flew in and got some little fruit snacks on one of the bushes.

a sweet little Silvereye

I started around the Ornamental Lake where I found some ducks snoozing on the small landing that the punts leave from.

Pacific Black Duck

Australian Wood Duck

A Wagtail for Christmas

The day before Christmas, an Eastern Yellow Wagtail was reported at Balbirooroo Wetlands in Balnarring on the Mornington Peninsula. Very good news. This was a species I had unfinished business with.

Technically I'd seen an EYW twice before. Once in 2013 at Bremer Bay in WA which turned out to be a major birding fail that has been haunting me ever since and which I'd rather not talk about. I also had an unsatisfyingly brief glimpse of one flying over our group on a BBO course in Broome. I had been hoping I'd get another chance to see one - properly!

Unfortunately though I saw the post on the Australian Twitchers Facebook group too late on Christmas Eve to make it down to Balnarring that day. Luckily though the bird, which had been initially spotted on the 23rd, seemed to be hanging around with many birders seeing it on the 24th and again on Christmas morning. My mum and I hatched a plan for a Christmas afternoon twitch!

Welcome to Balbirooroo!

Balbirooroo Wetlands is actually one of my favourite birding spots on the Mornington Peninsula. There is some bushland around small wetland, and there are also two dams on the adjoining private property where most of the waterbird action usually is. And this is where the Eastern Yellow Wagtail was hanging out.

the Balbirooroo wetland

and the view over the fence

We arrived at about 4.50pm, followed the short bush track down to the wetlands and at the first break in the vegetation started scanning the muddy banks of the dams. Almost straight away a different-looking bird caught my eye. I quickly set up the scope to check and yes, the wagtail! My mum and I both got good views of the bird preening before it moved off and walked about bobbing its tail - very cute! We felt very lucky to have go onto it so quickly as other birders had waited for a few hours before seeing it.

Eastern Yellow Wagtail - phonescoped from a distance!

Platypus!

It had been a while between platypus so last Saturday night I headed over to Finns Reserve in Templestowe. The footbridge over the Yarra here is a very reliable place to see these little monotreme friends.

the view upstream

I knew the river would be pumping after the crazy rain we'd had so wondered if this might decrease our chances of seeing any platypus. It did not.

Hello!

We'd only been on the bridge for about five minutes when I spotted the first one, and watching over the next 45 minutes determined that there were definitely two and very likely a third.

one of three?

Billabong Birding

A few weekends ago I set out for some local birding at a few of the billabongs along the Yarra River.

the first stop

I started at Burke Road Billabong Reserve, which is tucked in between the Yarra and the Eastern Freeway on the western side of Burke Road. A lot of work has been done in the reserve by volunteers to get rid of weeds and revegetate the area. It's looking pretty nice!

human visitors are catered for with a shelter and table; bats and other friends get nesting boxes

pretty native flowers thanks to the reveg works 

many have labels with info about the species, but I forgot to check these ones, oops!

I'd only just got out of the car and got my eBird list going when I thought I heard the sound of a new 5MR bird. And yep, a male Mistletoebird flew straight over and landed in the tree just in front of me. A female flew in to join him too. Yay!

male Mistletoebird

From Smiths Gully to St Andrews

Not last weekend but the one before I did a little bit of birding along the Smiths Gully-St Andrews Heritage Trail. It was my third visit there and the birdiest yet with a nice round total of 30 species.

It starts (or finishes) at Peter Frank Reserve off Smiths Gully Road in Smiths Gully and finishes (or starts) on the unsealed Proctor Street in St Andrews.

there's a creek crossing at the Smiths Gully end

and it's well signed with info either way you start - yay maps!

After lunch with Superb Fairywrens, Brown Thornbills and Grey Fantails in the picnic area at Peter Frank Reserve, I headed across the creek and accidentally flushed a White-faced Heron - oops!

Along the start of the walk there were quite a few more small birds like White-browed Scrubwrens, Striated Thornbills and more Superb Fairywrens.

a not-white-browed White-browed Scrubwren

Wild Bird Wednesday: Tree Martins

I have a few leftover photos from my recent WTP adventures so I'm joining in Wild Bird Wednesday this week with... Tree Martins!

like this one

and this one 

Phone + Scope + WTP

I made quite a few visits to the WTP over winter. As per usual, there were crazy amounts of birds - and so lots of opportunities for phonescoping practice!

a distant Blue-winged Parrot at Kirk Point

One morning cruising along the coast road inside Gate 8 the tide was just right and a little collection of birds had gathered in the shallow water.

preening Black Swan and some teals

There were quite a few Australian Pied Oystercatchers in this bunch and five of them obviously had some oystercatcher business to sort out.