Barking owl - crowd pleaser!

This Barking owl turned up at the amenities block at Home Valley Station caravan park while we were there in August. My daughter Hannah wrote in her journal:

Last night during dinner we saw a large bird fly into a tree. It turned out to be a barking owl! It was amazing. We attracted a lot of attention. It was quite weird to be standing there surrounded by people right next to a bathroom. The owl was reddish-brown with a brown striped chest and the underside of its tail. It has white flecked wings. Its head is rather flat with yellow eyes.

Black kite, Home Valley Station, WA

Other hunting and scavenging birds were frequent including Whistling kite and Black kite. At the other end of the food chain it was good for me to finally compare Diamond dove and Peaceful dove "face to face" (I keep getting the names mixed up)!

Diamond dove (foreground) and Peaceful dove (rear)

Bar-shouldered dove not far away as well

Although not in the prolific numbers reported in parts of Australia recently it's always nice to have a budgerigar experience!

And it's always fun meeting new friends!

A somewhat shy Bar-breasted honeyeater, HomeValley Station

 Bird on!

Birding Banka Banka, NT

Via this blog I continue to enjoy re-living the recent family road trip through the NT and Kimberley! This post relates to the stop-over at Banka Banka Station on the Stuart Highway, Northern Territory. This old cattle station also serves as a basic but friendly camping ground. There is the opportunity for walking a nature trail to nearby Cudjenbra Waterhole 2-3km north either via a small ridge or along the arid plains.

Views from the small ridge just west of the campground on the Stuart Highway

Cudjenbra Waterhole, Banka Banka Station

There is a creek crossing on the plains walk to the waterhole. This provided excellent habitat for honeyeaters, trillers, finch, dove (everything really!)

Pied honeyeater - crappy photo but a great sighting for me!

Grey-headed honeyeater - common I know but another lifer for me!
Below - Brown honeyeater 

The honeyeaters were all seen in the creek habitat pictured above. Also shot here were the trillers, dove and zebra finch just visible below.

White-winged triller (male eclipse)
Below - Peaceful dove, zebra finch

I also remember the morning's walk for twice being freaked by airborne surprises.

Firstly while alone about a kilometre from the campground in pre-sunrise gloom I was approached by a single black kite. This was followed by about 10 kites circling around me 5-10 metres up. The whole scene was in total silence and with the shock and tricky light I was totally unable to take any shots that could capture the moment!

Black kite #1 

The second experience was while on the ridge. Unaware of anything approaching I suddenly heard a strange wind rapidly approaching from behind. Heard for just a second before it was atop me the noise was the rush of 100 tiny wings from a flock of budgies again only 3-4 metres above and around me! My first budgie experience in the outback!

A small part of the buderigar flock now circling more distantly.

Pied butcherbird calling from this tree on the highest point of the ridge (you can see him at the left of the tree). He let me get quite close but wouldn't move that annoying twig out of the way! 

Pied butcherbird

It's a pretty short Eremaea list but all in all, quite a memorable 16 hours (arrived at 5pm, out at 9am!). Thank-you Banka Banka.

Bird On!

Birds of Katherine town

We have arrived at Katherine, Northern Territory. These are a few of the birds that greeted us. I particularly enjoyed watching this group of Grey-crowned babblers as they fussed over nesting material.

Black kites seem to be everywhere, apparently constantly on the wing, looking for a potential feed. They seemed to be number up to 20 birds at times if there are "good pickings".

These tiny birds are were easily photographed on arrival at Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park.

Peaceful dove