Great Birding Moments # 16 Cockatoo Valley
Keith Pitman's garden in Cockatoo Valley
We have driven through Cockatoo Valley dozens of times over the years but we have never stopped to have a look around. This small but growing community is near Gawler north of Adelaide. Last Saturday we rectified that; we were invited to visit a private garden just off the main road.
Callistemon flower (Bottlebrush)
This private garden is a massive three acres in size, almost like a small botanic garden or arboretum. We have known Keith, the owner, for some years through our mutual interest in Australian native plants. Keith planted up this garden some 18 years ago and he grew many Australian native plants for the cut flower trade. He no longer does this, having retired several years ago, but he still maintains this magnificent garden.
Banksia flower
Honeyeaters everywhere
With so many flowering plants in the garden the bird life is also wonderful. There seemed to be New Holland Honeyeaters everywhere and they far outnumbered the White Plumed Honeyeaters. The irritatingly noisy Little Wattlebirds keep up a constant barrage of their gratingly harsh “cocky-cock” and “yekkop, yekkop” calls all afternoon. Keith informed me that he rarely saw Red Wattlebirds in his garden which I found interesting.
Peaceful calls
We had barely sat down to have a cuppa in the garden when we heard the soft and soothing “doodle-doo” call of a Peaceful Dove nearby. House Sparrows frequently visited the fish pond near where we sat, but the Diamond Firetail finches did not make an appearance today. Pity. Such beautiful birds.
Babblers
The clownish White Browed Babblers played all around the bushes and where we had parked the car, their miaowing calls coming from a half dozen different bushes. Overhead the recently arrived Rainbow Bee-eaters swooped and glided on the air currents looking for insects. As we were having a final cuppa I spied a very quiet Horsfield’s Bronze Cuckoo feeding in a nearby eucalypt tree, but he flew on before I managed to get a photo.
Musk Lorikeet
Where are the Cockatoos in Cockatoo Valley?
All afternoon I had been seeing and hearing various parrots. I managed some lovely shots of the Musk Lorikeet as shown in the photo above. Rainbow Lorikeets often flew overhead as did small flocks of Galahs. I never saw a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo that afternoon even though they are common in the area. As for cockatoos in Cockatoo Valley I had a settle for eight Little Corellas that flew overhead just as we were about to leave.
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And a few miles down the road – Sulphur Crested Cockatoos in Williamstown where we had a picnic tea!
Cromer Conservation Park
3 Comments »21st October, 2006; Category: Wrens
Cromer Conservation Park
Last Saturday my wife attended a workshop at Mt Pleasant in the Adelaide Hills. The workshop was to help her to identify some of our native grasses, a particularly challenging task. To read about what she learned click here.
While she was at the workshop I drove a few kilometres up the road to Cromer Conservation Park. I’d never been there before so I was keen to explore this small park. It is only about 50 hectares in area but it certainly packs a great deal into its pocket size. As soon as I left the car at the start of the walking trail my attention was drawn to the numerous flowers everywhere. In fact, I was so distracted taking flower photos that I temporarily forgot about the birds.
Burchardia umbellata (",milk maids",)
Eventually my attention drifted back to the birds and to the walking track through the park. This was formerly a two wheel track but over the years it has grown over with plants, leaving a single walking track for the most part. The area is open eucalypt woodland with a significant understory of ground covers, small to medium bushes. Many were in flower. The park is surrounded on two sides by farming land, while Mt Crawford Forest (Radiata pine) is situated on the the other two sides.
Xanthorrhoea semiplana
The bird life is varied and interesting, though only having about two hours to observe, my list is far from complete. A Laughing Kookaburra flew across the road as I arrived, along with several Australian Magpies. Adelaide Rosellas flew through the trees landing occasionally but never in a spot allowing a good photo. Striated Pardalotes were present in good numbers, their calls a constant backdrop sound. Tree Martins swooped for insects just above the treetops.
One of the real delightful sightings was of a number of Eastern Spinebills, a species of honeyeater. I tried to get close enough for a photo but they are restless little critters. They also have a great skill in getting a bunch of leaves, a few twigs or and branch between themselves and my lens. Another day, perhaps. I also had good views of several Buff Rumped Thornbills, not a species I have seen very often.
Superb Blue Wren
I spent about fifteen minutes waiting for several Superb Blue Wrens to come into good photographic view, including a male in full colour breeding splendour. Eventually he did come into view – sort of. The above photo show him peeping nervously through the leaves of a bush. If you click on the photo you will get a better view of this beautiful creature. Again – someday one will come up in clear view, full sunlight and right in focus.
Do I need CDs featuring bird calls?
This is #17 in a series called frequently asked questions about birding.
Do I need to buy a set of CDs featuring bird calls?
- No – but they are an excellent learning resource especially if you are just beginning in birding.
- Another use for them, even for experienced birders, is to get to recognise species by call alone. I can do that with probably about 50 species found near our home. When I move to the Adelaide Hills only 60 kilometres away some species are not as well known to me and I flounder with my identification.
- I know I am really out of my zone of experience when I go birding in Sydney, for example.
- Queensland and the Northern Territory are like going to another country. I can recognise them when I see them, but it is useful to also be able to ID a bird by call alone.
Do I need a GPS Unit when I go Birding?
This is part #16 in a series of frequently asked questions about birding.
What is a GPS and how do I use it in birding?
- GPS stands for Global Positioning System and relies on signals from satellites to give an exact fix as to where you are on the Earth, often accurate to within a metre or so.
- A GPS unit looks a bit like an older mobile phone or a remote control unit. They can be quite expensive with base models starting at about A$400.
- A GPS is useful when doing surveys that require latitude and longitude coordinates. When I was sending in reports for the Atlas of Australian birds this was a requirement and I also add this information to the database on my computer.
- A GPS is not essential unless one is doing some serious research or survey work – or you are a statistical
freaktragic like me.
- They can also be useful if you get lost – if you remember to take a reading of where you left the car!
- Happy birding – and don’t get lost – or misplace your car!
Babies, the Birds and the Bees
New Holland Honeyeater in nest
It must be spring here in Murray Bridge, South Australia. So many baby birds all around us, including the baby New Holland Honeyeater in the photo above – just about to leave the nest. This one did leave the nest a few hours after this photo was taken and its sibling just a short time before the photo. At lunch time today we saw another New Holland Honeyeater making a new nest only a few metres away from this one.
The New Holland Honeyeaters are not the only ones breeding. Here is a list of birds I have observed nesting, feeding young in the nest or feeding newly fledged young in the last few weeks. It only includes birds observed in our garden, on our five acre block of land or on the roads bordering our property (on two sides).
Breeding Birds September – October 2006
- White Winged Choughs – feeding young.
- Little Raven – feeding young.
- Red Wattlebird – feeding young in nest.
- Australian Magpie – feeding young.
- Yellow Rumped Thornbill – feeding young in nest.
- House Sparrow – feeding young.
- Common Starling – feeding young.
- Common Blackbird – eggs in nest fell out (when the plant pot it was in fell over).
- Spotted Turtledove – mating behaviour but nest not found.
- Crested Pigeon – mating behaviour but nest not found. [Update: I found the nest a day after posting this article]
- Grey Shrike Thrush – feeding young.
- White Plumed Honeyeater – feeding young.
Noteable Exception:
- Willie Wagtail – usually nest quite near the house but not observed nesting this year. This is noteworthy as it is probably the first time in over twenty years. It’s not too late, of course.
And the Bees??
The bees in the title of this article refer to several hives of bees – possibly feral bees – that have taken up residence in tree hollows. This prevents the native birds ever using that hollow again. We are trying to deal with the one nearest the house; two others are a little high in the trees to tackle.
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