Wednesday Jan 6 : Birding with Tina

After breakfasting on muesli at 6.30 - we turned down everything else - Tina drove us for a day’s birding. We’d been really looking forward to this. At first we drove some local unmade roads, lined with a grassy verge and pasture scattered with many dead trees. The birds were numerous and, there was a good variety, most enjoyable. We were able to add several birds to our trip list, including Golden-headed Cisticola. The end destination was Burnett Heads Boat Ramp and Park. As the sun came out, the temperature rose,as did the humidity, making it very uncomfortable walking. Seeing good birds helped, as always. A small mixed flock of waders,


Striated Herons, Mistletoe Bird - one of my favourites-


Mangrove Gerygone and Honeyeater to name a few. We walked to the lighthouse as a Brown Booby patrolled the reef, ending with a flock of Sparrows before escaping to Tina’s comfortable air conditioned car - a Subaru Woodlander.
Someone had seen a Native Hen at Smiths Crossing, worth investigating. The old wooden bridge across the Burrum river had been damaged last year and not repaired. The parking area was largely under water, the river a torrent after all the rain. A Brown Cuckoo-Dove rose from the ground into a tree as we started walking. I stayed in the area whilst Pam and Tina walked into the bush. I was so hot and sweaty and listless, my back hurting too, definitely No 3 in the stickability list to-day. When I’m this hot I lose all will to even bird. A Little Cuckoo-shrike was a bonus.
After lunching at the Botanical Gardens, - and cooling off - we drove to Baldwins Swamp. Again a lot of water and, by now, very few birds. Pam voiced all our feelings, time to give in. We returned to Dahl’s road to photograph the Lorikeet feeding and have a welcome nap.
An early supper of Pumpkin Soup, roll and cheese, fruit before leaving at 6.15 for Mon Repos Turtle beach. What a surprise - for Tina as well !! Dozens of cars, the car park was full, and a queue reaching back to the car park. We queued from 6.45 until 7.20 before an announcement stating that we would be allocated groups according to order of booking (hurrah) and there would be five groups of sixty !! The waiting wasn’t helped by a group of four adults and six children immediately behind us. And they were in the same group, Group 1 fortunately.

We were haunted by them all evening. The youngest, named Noah, was under 2 and they were all noisy and like lemmings.
By 7.20 we were through to the covered waiting area, sitting on a bench in the open until rain drove us in - after a dry day. Noah et all sat nearby.
Called to the amphitheatre we arrived too late for seats, I sat on the concrete steps. Guess who sat below us........
We then had a Ranger talk about Loggerhead Turtles, followed by a film telling us how to behave and then a DVD with more of the same. Very repetitive but interesting.

We’d been told that being called to the beach was dependant upon turtles arriving which could be any time from dusk until dawn. Some nights all the groups were on the beach by 7.50, some nights no turtles arived and on others it could be gone midnight. Phew.
Group 1 was called at 9.10 to make our way along a dark boardwalk, following a female ranger onto the beach. Stumbling along in the dark - no torches allowed - in a balmy light breeze, the sea creaming in, in long rollers onto the beach, a few stars appearing overhead. Magical. We didn’t have to walk far but had to stand for forty minutes before the children were called first to climb the dune and sit in a circle around the laying turtle. We’re not allowed near until she starts to lay and ours was awkward. She was facing down the beach and had dug up a previous nest so that there were damaged eggs lying about her. Group 2 were at their nest 20 minutes before us....That’s the way it goes. The enormous beast, about a metre long and a foot and a half across, wallowed in its pit whilst they tried to prevent her back flipper - covering in by now - uncovering any more eggs. Two of them heaved her to one side before the measuring, tag reading etc was carried out. Only one short photography opportunity during the forty five minutes we stood watching, mesmerised, - and we were at the tail end. The promised rotation did not happen......


We watched her heave back down the beach in a rather laborious and angled line whilst one ranger dug a new pit into which all the newly laid eggs were re- positioned, a decision made earlier. The children were called back up the beach to help carry the eggs, what a treat for them. I’d have liked to have done that. Instead of waiting, as we should, we decided it was late enough and returned to the Centre and the car. In by 11.30 and straight to bed.
A wonderful experience despite all the hanging about. Thanks to Tina for organising it all.