The beautiful Purple-crowned Fairy-wren (Malurus coronatus) is a species of bird in the Maluridae family. I couldn’t get a decent shot at Victoria River so here’s a couple from Wikipedia, you can see the difference between male and female.
The Rose-crowned Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus regina) is also known as Pink-capped Fruit Dove or Swainson’s Fruit Dove. Their delicate beauty and bright pink caps make them a real treat to see!
The Red-tailed Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus banksii) also known as Banksian- or Banks’ Black Cockatoo, is a large black cockatoo native to Australia.
Five subspecies are recognised.
C. b. banksii is found in Queensland and, rarely, in far northern New South Wales C. b. graptogyne, (Endangered) known as the south-eastern red-tailed black cockatoo, is found in southwestern Victoria and southeastern South Australia in an area bordered by Mount Gambier to the west, Portland to the south, Horsham to the northeast and Bordertown to the north C. b. macrorhynchus, given the name great-billed cockatoo by Mathews; is found across northern Australia.
C. b. naso (Near Threatened) is known as the forest red-tailed black cockatoo and is found in the southwest corner of Western Australia between Perth and Albany.
C. b. samueli exists in four scattered populations: in central coastal Western Australia from the Pilbara south to the northern Wheatbelt in the vicinity of Northam, and inland river courses in Central Australia, southwestern Queensland and the upper Darling River system in Western New South Wales. Birds of this subspecies are generally smaller with smaller bills than the nominate banksii.
This looks like an amazing trip and I really wish I could go but I already booked our travel for 2016. Maybe next time!
By day, trek across the red plains of The Kimberley and spot Gouldian finches, White-quilled Rock-pigeons, honeyeaters, Northern Fantail and Leaden Flycatchers. By night, fall asleep to the sounds of wildlife, knowing that your support is helping BirdLife Australia create a brighter future for Australia’s birds.
You can get to Kununurra with airline miles! If you are coming to Australia from overseas using a OneWorld partner’s miles program, the closest you can get is Broome or Darwin, then you need a short Air North flight to Kununurra. Starting in Australia, your best bet is Virgin Australia who offers connections to Kununurra via Perth from all over Australia. Here is an example from Brisbane, you are better off using the points plus cash for the tax option. Please note that Kununurra is not served daily so you can either fly in early or spend a couple days in Perth.
King’s Park in Perth is easily accessed by free CAT buses from downtown. Once you are there, have a look for a nice variety of bird species. Full bird list can be found here. You can also download a nice brochure with bird pics to help you identify them.
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Although it looks close to the city, be aware that the park is on top of a hill.
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We were there late in the afternoon but still managed to see Carnaby’s Cockatoos, Rainbow Lorikeets, Ravens and more!
You can also enjoy wonderful views overlooking the city.
Neil Hawkins Park in Joondalup is less than half hour’s drive from Perth and offers excellent birding!
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There’s something for everyone, whether you are interested in water birds frolicking on beautiful Lake Joondalup……………………………….
………………………………Pigeons & Kookaburras in the trees…………………………
…………………………..or a chance to see parrot species that aren’t native to Western Australia yet managed to end up here and flourish. Rainbow Lorikeets are native to east coast Australia and Long-billed Corellas are native to the south & eastern coasts of Australia. If you aren’t planning a visit to these areas it’s nice to still be able to enjy these beautiful birds in the wild!
I really enjoyed watching the Corellas foraging in the grass and they weren’t afraid to let us come close!
Nothing beats staying in a National Park such as Yanchep to have the best access to early morning birding. It’s so easily reached from Perth too!
Be greeted by the official welcoming committee of Western Grey Kangaroos!
The reception area and adjacent restaurant have a warm safari lodge feel to them. You can get budget priced meal-of-the-day or order from a nice selection on the menu at higher prices.
Cars can be parked reasonably close to the units so you don’t have to carry your bags far.
This was our room, we could see lots of birds just sitting on the patio like Carnaby’s Cockatoos flying overhead and Splendid Fairy-wrens hopping around the bushes.
Everything you need is here including a toaster and mini-fridge. Not fancy but with all the wildlife around you won’t be spending much time in your room.Fancier rooms with spa bath and lake views are available if you are after a romantic getaway with a side dish of nature!
The Lakeview rooms are the newest addition to our accommodation. All rooms contain King Size beds, are air-conditioned, contain a television, bar fridge and large bathrooms. The Ensuites are fitted with a walk in Shower in the Standards or a Bath with Spa jets in our Spa rooms. All Lakeview rooms have either a Balcony or Veranda overlooking the Kangaroos and Loch McNess.
Whatever you choose, try to spend a couple days here to take in all the birds and just relax. Rooms are easily booked online.
In my last post, I talked about Yanchep as a destination. The nice thing about Yanchep is you can be as active or as lazy as you want and you will STILL see lots of birds! I’m in the lazy camp. I did do one hike around the small lake opposite Yanchep Inn but mostly I just kicked back at a picnic table or my room’s porch. Eremaea has a good bird list to give you an idea what to expect. Here’s some of the birds I saw.
Lots of Waterbirds
Cheeky Galahs
Carnaby’s Cockatoos
Black Swans
Australian Ringnecks
Laughing Kookaburras (they will try to steal your food!)
Purple Swamphens
Scarlet Robins
Brown Honeyeater
Splendid Fairy-wrens (vivid males and duller females)
There are so many things to love about Yanchep National Park in Western Australia! The scenery is stunning, it’s easily accessible from Perth, accommodation is reasonable and of course there are lots of beautiful birds to watch!
At less than an hour’s drive from Perth, there is no reason even business travelers can’t sneak in a day trip to commune with nature but if you have time it’s well worth spending a couple days here.
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Fees apply though these appear to be built into the room rates if you are staying at Yanchep Inn.
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You can download a full brochure here but I will point out a few of the highlights. It’s a small park and easily walkable.
On the left side of the map, you can see the hiking trail that circumnavigates the lake. It takes about half an hour but you will want to take it slower than that to keep an eye out for birds. It’s a well-marked trail with bridges and planks to keep you safe. Really active people may want to hike all the way to the Crystal Caves (right side of map).
The Koala Park is right next to the Yanchep Inn and park volunteers give very interesting talks at certain times of day and are happy to answer any questions.
There’s a nice gift shop with a good variety of nature-themed and Aussie-made souvenirs. even if you don’t like shopping the display is worth a look. It doubles as a visitor centre and the staff are happy to offer advice on what to do and see in the park.Just near the gift shop is a small cafe for coffee, snacks and ice cream.
Since we stayed two nights at the Yanchep Inn, I will review it on a separate post.
The Mistletoebird (Dicaeum hirundinaceum) is a species of flowerpecker native to most of Australia (though absent from Tasmania and the driest desert areas), and also to the eastern Maluku Islands of Indonesia in the Arafura Sea between Australia and New Guinea. They also must live where there are trees and shrubs, so that they can build their nests. The bird eats a variety of different foods such as berries and assorted types of insects.
They are widespread throughout Australia so odds are you will happen upon one sooner or later. I first saw this one in the Murchison River Reserve near Kalbarri, Western Australia. Later, I saw one at Oxley Creek Common in Brisbane.
