Birding Wonthaggi Heathlands - of Emu and Emu-wren

I had my second visit to Wonthaggi Heathlands last weekend. I have enjoyed the birding on both occasions. One bird on the target list for this location is Southern emu-wren. I certainly was not expecting to see its oversized namesake but there you go ....!

First tick of the afternoon: Emu Dromaius novaehollandiae 6 Sept 2014
One of a pair seen on pastoral land looking west from the car park at Wonthaggi Heathlands

Grey fantail were also active along the car park fence line

Two circuit walks leave from the car park which is at the end of Chisolm Rd just southwest of Wonthaggi (find Cameron Street then head west along Campbell Street - at its navigable end is a dog leg and you are then in Chisolm Rd which becomes gravel - follow this south until you reach the car park - google maps does not recognise Chisolm Rd). One finds oneself unexpectedly close to the sea and also the local windfarm. On this occasion I only had time for a late afternoon walk around the shorter loop.

I am increasingly impressed and consider myself very lucky to be able to travel relatively short distances from home to encounter different honeyeater strongholds. The calls of White-eared, Yellow-faced and New Holland honeyeaters as well as Red wattlebird told me which honeyeater gangs were active here!

Yellow-faced honeyeater, Wonthaggi heathlands

New Holland honeyeater 

Nicely focussed on the dead branch with "scribbly gum" effect! White-faced honeyeater

The next two pictures were taken at my previous visit which was in November 2013. As you can see it was quite wet! Things were much dryer this time.

A section of heathland on the Short Loop trail, Wonthaggi Heathlands

Australasian pipit, Wonthaggi Heathlands

 This next series of photos follows (what I eventually worked out to be) a young male Golden whistler having a drink and a bath in a drying out puddle. I have not seen whistlers at ground level before - they must have brief visits.

Golden whistler, immature male, Wonthaggi Heathlands 

Now behaving a little more whistler-like

Superb fairy-wren were abundant but not cooperative today!

Red-browed finch

So as the sun started to get low I realised I was going to dip on Southern emu-wren on this occasion. 

But I did see an emu!

Looking south-west from the Short loop trail, Wonthaggi Heathlands. Note the thin sliver of sea on the horizon.

Bird on!

Eastern whipbird

Eastern whipbird, Psophodes olivaceus, Sherbrooke Forest, Dandenong Ranges

Many Australians know the sound of this bird's call but would not know what the Eastern whipbird looked like. The resonating whip-crack call can emanate from a patch of bush right in front of you but the bird(s) may never appear. I "out waited" this bird in the Sherbrooke section of the Dandenongs recently and finally got a photo - it took a good 20 minutes!! The dim light added to the difficulty and even with a clear view through my monopod-perched camera I still only managed one photo with which I was happy.

I do enjoy field guide quotes when well-written. Here is a selection relating to the Eastern whipbird:

Pizzey: Noisy but secretive (!)
Morcombe: Loud ringing whip-crack call of this species is one of the most common, widely recognised eastern bird calls. From male, a long whistle building up to an explosive whip-crack; instantly answered with sharp "tchew-tchew" from female.
Australian Bird Names (Fraser & Gray): Psophodes olivaceus (Latham 1802) so-FOH-dehz o-li-VA-se-us "olive-green noisy-bird"

Near Sherbrooke Falls, Dandenong Ranges, Vic

While this audio piece by "Wild Ambience" doesn't really do the explosive whip-crack justice (compared to hearing it at close range in the forest) it is a beautifully presented narration which demonstrates the male-female interaction well. Four minutes well spent!

Bird on!

Yellow wattlebirds - What's with the wattle?!

Yellow wattlebird, Evandale, Tasmania (April 2014)

One of Tasmania's endemic bird species, the Yellow wattlebird is the largest of Australia's wattlebirds and also our largest honeyeater. It also has the largest and most ungainly looking wattles of the four wattlebird species. The wattles are the pendulous, yellow-orange bits of fleshy tissue hanging from the neck.

A close encounter with one in the township of Evandale's Pioneer Park got me curious about these structures! If what I read is true then having an impressive wattle is more likely to get you a mate. Females and males are alike.

Yellow wattlebird posing obligingly among the autumn colours of an exotic Silver birch

Anatomically wattles are lumped together with other caruncles such as dewlaps and snoods! I feel that these words are underused - rarely seen or heard in literature, music or general conversation. This travesty makes one's wattles stand on end!

The other striking feature of the Yellow wattlebird is that impressively long tail

Sharing with Wild Bird Wednesday makes me all snoody

Bird on!