A Brief summary of the presentation at our 4th
April Meeting
On
Wednesday evening a packed meeting much enjoyed Part II of Chris Ward’s
excellent illustrated talk “Birds and Wildlife of Australia”. Chris and his wife Caroline spent 3 months
down under during (our) summer in 2016 having cleverly arranged a house and car
swap with a couple in Brisbane, who happily spent three months in Milton Keynes
for the duration!
Having
covered most of their time in Brisbane and it’s surroundings in Part I a few
months ago, we were treated first to very close views of Humpback Whales in
Hervey Bay where the females gather in the warmer water there to give birth
every winter and guide boats guarantee close sightings due to the
inquisitiveness of these whales when the boats approach.
Next the
illustrated tour moved on to Sydney, where after a brief spell in the city, they
moved out to the western edge of the Blue Mountains, staying at a couple of the
more rural sites recommended for their wildlife interest, particularly catching
up with Kangaroos, Wallabies and Wallaroos, Duck-billed Platypus and the tiny
shrew-sized marsupial the Yellow-footed Antechinus. Slides of these mammals were complimented by
lovely shots of the birds of the area, some looking a little drab in their
winter plumage, some of everything from Eagles to Honeyeaters.
The
scenery here was stunning, the amazing sandstone cliffs of the Capertee Canyon
– said to be the widest canyon in the world – framing the scenic shots of the
wilderness on the valley floor with some welcome slides throughout the talk
showing us the accommodation and surroundings in the areas where they had
enjoyed their driving and walks.
Next
we saw views and animals and birds in and around Darwin. The monsoons visit this area every year from
October to April, but in July when they were there conditions were ideal,
although that year some of the dams were on the dry side and some of the most
intimate photographs were taken of birds taking advantage of a puddle under a
standpipe in a camp site. They also
enjoyed a visit to the famous rock art sites in the Kakadu National Park
although somewhat disappointed that some of them have been so obviously
embellished in recent times.
Like
most places in the natural world, visiting water bodies is key to finding the
birds and animals – here around Pine Creek and Bird Billabong. Similarly, as in UK road accidents take their
toll too, but an Agile Wallaby that had been hit had attracted a
Dingo briefly which Chris was quick enough to snap before it retreated back
into the roadside bushes. Rare Hooded
Parrots were spied here despite having a very restricted range and the magical
Bower Birds. And like true tourists Chris and Caroline took a boat trip on the Yellow River to take shots of the Crocodiles and maybe
one of the favourite shots of the whole presentation – a beautiful pair of
White-bellied Sea Eagles flying across a perfect blue sky in tandem!
Lastly,
Chris closed this thoroughly enjoyable and informative narrative with the “must
do” shots - standing beside a 7ft giant termite mound and an iconic sunset shot
over the lagoon back at Laguna Lookout at Noosa outside Brisbane.
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