Galah (Eolophus roseicapilla)

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Tara

One of the birds you are most likely to see in Australia is also one of the most beautiful. The galah Eolophus roseicapilla, also known as the rose-breasted cockatoo, galah cockatoo, roseate cockatoo or pink and grey, is one of the most common and widespread cockatoos, and it can be found in open country in almost all parts of mainland Australia.

Notice how this first Galah’s crest (Nallan Station) is pinker than the other ones?

Galahs are known for their silly, playful nature. If an Aussie calls you a “galah”, they usually don’t mean it as a compliment!

You won’t have to try to hard to find them as they are pretty much all over Australia. I’ve seen them around Perth, Nallan Station, Stirling Range, Tasmania, Melbourne, Brisbane, Bowra Station, Coolmunda, Karara, Girraween just to name a few. They frequent the park a couple blocks from my house and I can usually hear them as they fly overhead in the morning to forage for breakfast.

LEARN MORE ABOUT GALAHS

VIDEOS

Wild Galahs in action – playing and foraging.

Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen)

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Tara

The Australian magpie (Cracticus tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white passerine bird native to Australia and southern New Guinea. It’s virtually impossible to visit Australia and NOT see a magpie or “Maggie” as we call them. They are literally everywhere, especially in the major cities. They await you at picnic sites hoping to steal your food. They will swoop on you in breeding season if they think you are a threat to their chicks. They can be annoying if you are trying to photograph other birds and the maggies are scaring them off. But they do have a beautiful melodious warbling sound, it’s one of the first sounds I hear when I wake up in the morning though it is not loud enough to actually WAKE me up!

Don’t worry about trying to find Australian Magpies. In most places in Australia, they will find you!

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS BIRD

Wikipedia

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

ABC – Good info on why they swoop!

Magpie Alert – good map showing swooping hotspots! I can see reports in a few streets near me – mostly attacking cyclists. My husband says he was swooped once while on a walk.

State of Queensland (Department of Environment and Heritage Protection)

VIDEOS

Trust me, this is only a small bit of their song, it really is beautiful!

Amazing footage of a swoop on a cyclist from the cyclist himself!

He later appeared on the local news.

And here is a swoop from a spectator point of view, the guy’s Mom really freaks out!

This maggie clearly doesn’t like the postman, maybe he got too many bills that day?

Maybe it’s better to make friends with them!

I don’t approve of allowing cats outdoors where they can kill wild birds. Magpies are extremely clever and seem well in control of this situation but other small song birds wouldn’t have been so lucky.

And I’ll leave you with this adorable clip of a juvenile maggie singing to some rainbow lorikeets!

Last Chance Birding Near Hobart International Airport

Posted on November 20, 2014 by Tara

Sadly our exciting birding adventure in Tasmania had come to an end. We had seen all the parrots which are found on the island, some seen up close and easily photographed. Others like the Blue-winged Parrots only flew overhead without warning or chance to grab a photo. Our flight was around noon so that gave one last chance to go birding. We left Customs House right after breakfast and drove out to the airport where I knew several parrots species would be easily seen. I had been hoping the elusive Blue-winged Parrots would come closer but they didn’t. This map shows the general area to look for birds.

We started at the patch between the Travelodge and the caravan park where we had seen Galahs and Eastern Rosellas before. They did not disappoint!

I wanted to see birds but not badly enough to pay a $5000 fine!

Musk Lorikeets were everywhere! And that concludes my birding report on Tasmania, hope you enjoyed it as much as I did and are inspired to plan your own trip! If you want to find all the posts in this series, simply click here.

Birding The Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Tara

Trees and plants attract birds so it was a good choice to go birding at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens in Hobart, Tasmania. It is a short drive from the hotel we spent the night at – the Customs House in Salamanca area of Hobart.

Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens map

The gardens themselves were beautiful as one might expect.

There is a really cool hide overlooking the garden with stunning views over the river and city.

Our visit was in the late afternoon and found that birds were more easily seen up near the entrance of the gardens. Eastern Rosellas, Musk Lorikeets and Sulphur-crested Cockatoos were easily seen.

Spotted Doves IMG_8102a - Copy

Eastern Rosella (Platycercus eximius)

Posted on November 14, 2014 by Tara

The Eastern Rosella was named by George Shaw in 1792 and in my opinion is one of Australia’s most beautiful birds.

Three subspecies of Eastern Rosella are recognised:

P. e. eximius, Victoria and southern New South Wales. Black feathers on the back have green margins. Rump is pale green.
P. e. elecica, northeast New South Wales and southeast Queensland. In the male the black feathers on the back have golden-yellow margins, and greenish-yellow in the female. The rump is bluish-green. This subspecies is also called the Golden-mantled Rosella.
P. e. diemenensis, eastern Tasmania. White cheek patches are larger and the red on the head is darker.

My photos above are the Tasmanian subspecies. We saw them easily around Hobart in the Botanical Gardens and near the Travelodge Airport Hotel. I have also seen the 2nd subspecies around the Girraween area in South-east Queensland.

LEARN MORE ABOUT EASTERN ROSELLAS

Tasmanian Parks & Wildlife

VIDEO

Don’t be fooled, these are wild birds who set up housekeeping in someone’s backyard!

Hotel Review – Customs House Waterfront Hotel

Posted on November 12, 2014 by Tara

Location and history make the Customs House Waterfront Hotel a unique experience in Hobart. Built on Hobart’s waterfront for Charles Gaylor and licenced in 1846 it derived its name from the fact that the then Custom House (now Parliament House) is opposite. Mr. Gaylor was one of Hobart’s early settlers and his name is cut deep in the front coping stone of the building. When I was planning this trip, I chose this hotel for its proximity to birding areas such as the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens and the history. I was very happy with it but if you prefer modern luxury this won’t suit your needs. Look for deals on Pointshound or Rocketmiles to earn miles for your stay. Aussies can also get Virgin Velocity points for staying here.

Old and new architecture side by side in Hobart.

Rooms are clean, simply furnished and come with a delicious pub breakfast. There is a pub downstairs so it could get noisy on the weekends. We stayed on a Thursday night and were not disturbed.

The hotel is just a short stroll from the popular shopping and nightlife district of Salamanca. Unfortunately we arrived after all the shops were closed.

Shopping to support Orange-bellied Parrots! I wish this store would have been open!

There was some kind of street festival going on (early March 2014) so we stopped in for dinner and to listen to the music.

Lodge Review: BIG4 Iluka Freycinet Holiday Park

Posted on November 7, 2014 by Tara

BIG4 Iluka on Freycinet sits opposite Muirs Beach at Coles Bay on the beautiful East Coast of Tasmania. It’s an ideal location from which to explore world renowned Freycinet National Park and Wineglass Bay. The area is rich in stunning natural beauty, great walks and history. Birds are all over the area but by the time we got there we only got a few fly-bys as they headed back to their roosting grounds.

I thought the cabin was great, just a short walk from a small hill where I could see various birds flying past but too far away to identify. Blowing up the photos, I couldn’t see any colour. The cabin can hold up to 4 people in the usual double room and bunk bedded room. You can either cook in the well-equipped kitchen or walk to a cafe nearby.

Freycinet National Park

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Tara

Sticking out into the sea on Tasmania’s mild east coast is the rugged and beautiful Freycinet Peninsula. Freycinet National Park consists of knuckles of granite mountains all but surrounded by azure bays and white sand beaches. The dramatic peaks of the Hazards welcome you as you enter the park. The main town in Freycinet, Coles Bay is easily reached from Hobart or Cradle Mountain. If you are coming from Cradle Mountain, be careful as some of the roads can be dodgy.

Only a small part of Freycinet is accessible by car. This is a walker’s paradise and you will get the most out of a visit by spending several days here and doing some of the walks. Even if you only have one day (as we did), there are still a lot of birds to see in the driveable part of the park and in the Coles Bay area. Details of walks, fees and facilities are on their website.

ACCOMMODATION

Pitch a tent or stay in one of Australia’s greatest luxury resorts – the Saffire, it’s all here in Freycinet! Coles Bay is the closest town to the park entrance. Although Swansea looks close, since there is a strip of water leading into a lagoon Bicheno is actually closer if you can’t get Coles Bay. We stayed at Iluka Holiday Park, review is here. It’s easy to comapre your options on Wotif.

I’ll cover birding highlights on the next post.

Green Rosella (Platycercus caledonicus)

Posted on November 4, 2014 by Tara

The Green Rosella or Tasmanian Rosella (Platycercus caledonicus) is endemic to Tasmania and Bass Strait islands. At 37 cm (14.5 in) long it is the largest species of the rosella genus, Platycercus. Its diet is composed of seeds, fruit, berries and flowers, as well as insects and insect larvae.

Green Rosellas are endemic to Tasmania and are commonly seen throught the island. I saw them best on Bruny Island and Freycinet National Park.

LEARN MORE ABOUT GREEN ROSELLAS

Tasmania Parks & Wildlife

VIDEO

Mike Grant has some nice close up footage on YouTube.

Birding Freycinet National Park

Posted on November 3, 2014 by Tara

Freycinet has a pretty decent bird list which includes Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos, Green Rosellas and Yellow Wattlebirds. Unfortunately most of my photos were out of focus. I got decent shots of the Yellow Wattlebird, some female Superb Fairy-wrens, Green Rosellas in flight.