My Top Thirty Bird Sightings Of 2014

Posted on December 31, 2014 by Tara

Most other years this would be a top ten, but with 3 major birding trips this year I am struggling to make it a top thirty! If you want to see last year’s birds click here. There is no way I could single out one top bird with so many to choose from so they are being presented in chronological order. I haven’t finished blogging the Queensland road trip or the African Adventure so I have to cheat a bit with the photos. They are my photos but just pasted in.

1. Carnaby’s Cockatoo – seen at several places in Western Australia, Feb 2014.

2. Western Rosella – seen at Dryandra and Stirling Range in Western Australia, Feb 2014

3. Purple-crowned Lorikeet – seen near Fitzgerald National Park, Western Australia, Feb 2014

4. Western Bowerbird – seen at Nallan Station, Western Australia, Feb 2014

5. Splendid Fairy-wren – seen at Yanchep, Western Australia, Feb 2014

6. Orange-bellied Parrot – seen at Melaleuca, Tasmania, March 2014

7. Eastern Ground Parrot – seen at Melaleuca, Tasmania, March 2014

8. Swift Parrot – seen on Bruny Island, Tasmania, March 2014

9. Major Mitchell Cockatoo – seen at Bowra Station, QLD, March 2014

10. Cockatiels – seen at Bowra Station, QLD, March 2014

11. Satin Bowerbird – seen at Girraween, QLD, March 2014

12. Ultramarine Lorikeet – seen on Ua Huka, Marquesas, French Polynesia, June 2014

13. Rimatara Lorikeet – seen on Rimatara, French Polynesia, June 2014

14. Cape Parrot – seen in King William’s Town and Magoebaskloof, South Africa, Nov 2014

15. Lilac-breasted Roller – seen in Kruger Park, South Africa, Nov 2014

16. Echo Parakeet – seen at Black River Gorges, Mauritius, Nov 2014

17. Vasa Parrots – seen at Ankarafantsika, Madagascar, Nov 2014

18. Schlegel’s Asity – seen at Ankarafantsika, Madagascar, Nov 2014

19. Hoopoe – seen at Ankarafantsika, Madagascar, Nov 2014

20. Paradise Flycatcher – seen in Kakum National Park, Ghana Nov 2014

21. Red Malimbe – seen in Kakum National Park, Ghana Nov 2014

22. African Grey Parrot – seen (fleeting glimpse) in Kakum National Park, Ghana Nov 2014

Didn’t click fast enough!

23. Senegal Parrot – seen in Shai Hills, Ghana Nov 2014

24. Tacazze Sunbird – seen at Addis Ababa Hilton, Ethiopia, Nov 2014

25. African Red-bellied Parrot – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

26. Cordon Bleu Waxbill – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

27. Meyer’s Parrot (Brown Parrot) – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

28. Red-and-yellow Barbet – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

29. Superb Starling – seen all over Tanzania, Nov 2014

30. Lovebirds – seen in Madagascar (Grey-headed), Tarangire (Yellow-collared) and Ndutu (Fischer’s). Just couldn’t choose between them! Nov 2014

These aren’t necessarily the rarest birds but they were birds that made a major impression on me. Maybe for their rarity, maybe for their beauty or maybe for their behaviour! Apologies for not having profiles up on about half the birds but I still have a lot more to blog about!

Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis)

Posted on April 6, 2014 by Tara

The Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis) less commonly known as the Stanley Rosella, Earl of Derby’s parakeet or Yellow-cheeked parakeet, is the smallest species of rosella and is found in the South West of Australia in Eucalypt forests and timbered areas. I took the first 2 photos at Dryandra Woodland and the last one at Stirling Range Retreat.

And here’s a close up from Wikipedia as my shots don’t do this beautiful bird justice!

Although Western Rosellas can theoretically be found anywhere in South Western Australia, they are sadly becoming harder to find. I was really happy to have 2 sightings during my trip in Feb 2014 – Dryandra Woodland & Stirling Range Retreat.

LEARN MORE ABOUT WESTERN ROSELLAS

VIDEOS

Everyone loves a picnic!

This is on my other post but it’s worth watching again, especially if you really care about these beautiful birds.

Dryandra Woodland, Western Australia

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Tara

Dryandra Woodland offers amazing birding only a couple hours drive from Perth! Use your miles to get here and then hire a car so you can explore this beautiful park on your own.

Although you could visit Dryandra Woodland as a day trip from Perth, I highly recommend staying a night or two here so you can visit all the water holes and birding areas. You can stay either in the park or in Narrogin, about a half hour’s drive from Dryandra.

The Lion’s Dryandra Village has the advantage of being right inside the park so no commuting and you can easily do the night tour at Barna Mia. You do need to be completely self-sufficient and bring your own food and bed linens.

Otherwise you can stay in the closest town of Narrogin where there are several options such as Bella’s Country Place (where we stayed-my review), Albert Facey Motel & Narrogin Motel.

The official park website has a brochure you can download. I have marked some prime birding location in yellow on the screenshot below. The Old Mill Dam was the best place, I personally saw several Western Rosellas, Australian Ringnecks, Rainbow Bee-eaters and more (see bird list links below).

Dryandra birding spots

The bird list is very impressive and Frank O’Connor’s website has some great location details complete with co-ordinates for your GPS. Eremaea also has a bird list for Dryandra Woodland.

Here are some photos I took at Dryandra Woodlands.

Australian Ringneck

Common Bronzewing

Scarlet Robin wants a bath

Some New Holland Honey-eaters join in.

TBD

Western Rosellas wait for the chance to drink. I was really happy to see them after I saw a video that they were disappearing.

Although this Ringneck didn’t approach too close to the Rosellas, they still flew off when he was joined by others. It’s clear the Ringneck is the dominating species.