Trip report
Tasmanian bird and mammal tour17 - 23 March 2004
Tour leaders:
Philip Maher & Trisha Maher
Participants:
Doug Brodie, Ann Brodie, Nancy Burhop, Kay Morgan (USA),
Dick Jenkin, Adrian O'Neill, Jack Sharpiro, Mike Doyle, Fran Standing, Jim Standing (AUST)
Musk duck: one on a reservoir near Ouse and another on Pitt Water lagoon near Sorell
Black swan: a few seen most days
Australian shelduck: low numbers, mainly in the Sorell area
Australian wood duck: a few seen on most days of the tour, mainly on farm dams. Appears to be getting more common in Tasmania.
Pacific black duck: common
Australasian shoveller: small flocks seen along the Derwent River
Grey teal: moderately common, seen most days
Hardhead: a couple seen on a roadside swamp near Rosegarland
Hoary-headed grebe: seen on several wetlands inland and along the coast; no Australasian grebes seen
Little penguin: a few stragglers at the rookery on Bruny and one during the pelagic trip
Common diving-petrel: about 10 seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Northern giant-petrel: at least one northern identified; three seen in total; southern giant-petrel may have also been present
Great-winged petrel: about four seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
White-chinned petrel: about six seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Short-tailed shearwater: about 50 around the rookery on Bruny Island; large flocks feeding inshore in Great Taylors Bay (Bruny Island); hundreds seen during the pelagic off Eaglehawk Neck
Wandering albatross: at least two seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Black-browed albatross: one seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Shy albatross: around 30 seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Yellow-nosed albatross: at least two seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Buller's albatross: at least 20 seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
White-faced storm petrel: one seen during the pelagic trip off Eaglehawk Neck
Australian gannet: a few seen during the D'entrecasteaux Channel ferry crossing to Bruny Island and some large flocks seen off Eaglehawk Neck
Little pied cormorant: a few inland; good numbers in the Marion Bay area
Black-faced cormorant: a few seen during the D'entrecasteaux Channel ferry crossing to Bruny Island; hundreds seen on Hippolyte Rocks and around Eaglehawk Neck during the pelagic trip
Little black cormorant: a few inland and on inshore waters at Marion Bay and Eaglehawk Neck
Great cormorant: moderately common around inland water storages; a few on inshore areas
Australian pelican: a few on wetlands around Marion Bay and Sorell
White-faced heron: common and widespread; about 20 feeding together in the Marion Bay wetlands
Little egret: about seven in the Sorell/Marion Bay wetlands
Great egret: only one seen, near the Midway Point crossing
White-bellied sea-eagle: two only seena juvenile on Bruny Island and an adult on a small wetland near Rosegarland
Brown goshawk: an immature female seen on Bruny Island and another at Hamilton
Grey goshawk: one seen at Inala cabin on Bruny Island
Wedge-tailed eagle: probably the most sightings of this species AOS has recorded in Tasmania on one triptwo were seen in the northern part of Bruny, one at Orielton lagoon, and one near Hobart airport
Brown falcon: about seven seen in total on Bruny Island and in the drier areas around Hobart
Australian hobby: two sightingsone on Bruny and the other north west of Hobart
Peregrine falcon: a single bird soaring high above Derwent Bridge roadhouse
Nankeen kestrel: a single bird in dry country north west of Hobart
Dusky moorhen: one bird on the river at Hamilton
Tasmanian native-hen: common and widespread
Eurasian coot: good numbers on a wetland near Rosegarland and some on wetlands along the Derwent River near Hobart
Bar-tailed godwit: one at Orielton lagoon
Eastern curlew: one at Orielton lagoon
Red-necked stint: 100+ at Orielton lagoon
Pied oystercatcher: common and widespread around the coast
Sooty oystercatcher: good numbers on Bruny Island and in the Marion Bay/Eaglehawk Neck area
Red-capped plover: about 30 seen at Orielton lagoon
Double-banded plover: about 10 seen at Orielton lagoon
Black-fronted dotterel: a single bird seen on a dam near Marion Bay
Hooded plover: two pairs seen at the mouth of the Prosser River
Masked lapwing: common and widespread
Artic jaeger: one seen during the pelagic trip
Pacific gull: common and widespread
Kelp gull: common and widespread
Silver gull: common and widespread
Caspian tern: one seen on Bruny Island and two near Marion Bay
Crested tern: common around inshore areas
Rock dove: few flocks seen around habitation
Yellow-tailed black-cockatoo: birds seen flying over at Mt Field, Derwent Bridge (18) and Seven Mile Beach
Galah: small flocks around Midway Point, Seven Mile Beach and Hobart airport
Sulphur-crested cockatoo: common and widespread
Musk lorikeet: small groups at Hobart airport (where they are regularly sighted), and around 20 near Marion Bay
Green rosella: common and widespread
Eastern rosella: moderately common in the vicinity of Hobart
Swift parrot: at least 20 adults and immatures in wet eucalyptus forest near Derwent Bridge; a couple of immatures in flowering eucalypts near the Hobart airport
Blue-winged parrot: a few near Brady's Lake on the central plateau; and a flock of about 20 seen on a fence near Hobart airport
Orange-bellied parrot: about 10, mainly immatures near the feeding station at Melaleuca. Most of the adults had started their migration. We were informed that only about 50% of the adults and immatures return from the mainland each year.
Fan-tailed cuckoo: a single bird on Bruny Island
Superb fairy-wren: common and widespread
Southern emu-wren: two groups in heathland near Derwent Bridge
Spotted pardalote: moderately common and widespread in eucalypt forest
Forty-spotted pardalote: about 10 in eucalypt woodland near Barnes Bay and a couple at Inala, all on Bruny Island
Striated pardalote: moderately common and widespread in flocks on Bruny Island
Tasmanian scrubwren: moderately common and widespread in forest with an understorey; quite variable in colour, birds in rainforest much darker than woodland birds
Scrubtit: a pair observed closely for about 10 minutes on Mt Wellington
Striated fieldwren: a pair seen well in heathland near Derwent Bridge and another at Melaleuca
Brown thornbill: common and widespread in drier eucalyptus forest
Tasmanian thornbill: common in the wetter forest types
Yellow-rumped thornbill: common on Bruny Island and north east of Hobart in dry woodland, some flocks of up to 20 individuals seen
Yellow wattlebird: a few seen about Hobart and Bruny Island; good numbers in eucalypt forest around Derwent Bridge
Little wattlebird: common in coastal scrub east of Hobart
Noisy miner: a few in dry eucalypt woodland east of Hobart
Yellow-throated honeyeater: widespread in low numbers seen on every day of the tour
Strong-billed honeyeater: some down low at Inala on Bruny Island; few at Mt Field; lots around Derwent Bridge; few around Tasman Peninsula
Black-headed honeyeater: common and widespread in dry eucalypt forest, lots of juveniles; seen on every day of the tour
Crescent honeyeater: common and widespread in the wetter forest types; seen everyday of the tour except for the day of the pelagic trip; very common in flowering banksia scrub near Derwent Bridge
New Holland honeyeater: common and widespread at lower altitudes
Eastern spinebill: widespread in low numbers in forested areas
White-fronted chat: a few in samphire at Orielton lagoon
Scarlet robin: widespread in low numbers in the drier forest and woodland
Flame robin: widespread in low numbers, more common on the central plateau
Pink robin: a couple of adult males in wet forest up Mt Wellington and one on Bruny Island
Dusky robin: a surprisingly high number of sightings on Bruny Island, Derwent Bridge and Melaleuca
Olive whistler: sightings on Mt Wellington, Bruny (juvenile being fed by adult), and Melaleuca
Golden whistler: common and widespread
Grey shrike-thrush: widespread in low numbers, the call quite different from mainland birds
Satin flycatcher: an adult male feeding a juvenile in dry eucalypt forest near Derwent Bridge
Grey fantail: common and widespread in wet and dry forest types
Black-faced cuckoo-shrike: just a couple around Derwent Bridge
Dusky woodswallow: moderately common and widespread in the drier forest types
Grey butcherbird: moderately common and widespread in the drier forest types
Australian magpie: common and widespread in open farmland
Black currawong: surprisingly, only seen on the central plateau around Derwent Bridge where they were common
Grey currawong: few about Hobart, Bruny island and about Eaglehawk Neck
Forest raven: common and widespread, seen on every day of the tour
Skylark: moderately common around Orielton lagoon
Australasian pipit: only a couple of sightings one on the central plateau and another near Orielton lagoon
House sparrow: common and widespread around habitation
Beautiful firetail: one seen well on South Bruny, another seen briefly near Derwent Bridge and one immature seen at the feeder at Melaleuca
European goldfinch: common and widespread in farmland
Welcome swallow: moderately common on around Hobart and Bruny Island
Tree marten: common and widespread
Silvereye: common and widespread
Bassian thrush: a brief sighting up Mt Wellington
Common blackbird: common and widespread
Common starling: common and widespreadMammals
Platypus: one seen swimming and climbing up rocks in the spotlight in a small creek near Ouse; another two swimming in the river at Derwent Bridge
Short-beaked echidna: a couple on Bruny Island and another on the central plateau
Eastern quoll: surprisingly, we saw mostly the dark phaseabout nine on Bruny Island, one near Ouse and about four near Derwent Bridge
Tasmanian devil: one seen briefly crossing a road near Ouse and two very cute juveniles, less than one month old, seen near Derwent Bridge
South brown bandicoot: one seen during the day at the motel at Seven Mile Beach
Common wombat: one spotlighted near Derwent Bridge
Common ringtail possum: about six along Ridgeway Road near Hobart
Common brushtail possum: lots seen in a variety of colour phases, seemingly not as common on Bruny Island as previously
Tasmanian bettong: one seen very well on a forest road near Ouse
Red-necked wallaby: common and widespread at least 50 seen in a night near Derwent Bridge
Tasmanian pademelon: common and widespread, 40+ seen over two night's spotlighting near Ouse and Derwent Bridge
Australian fur seal: about ten including a baby on the Hippolyte Rocks, another at sea near the rocks
Whale sp: three very large whales seen during the pelagic trip that we couldn't get close enough to identify
Species conspicuous by their absence:
Swamp harrier: presumedly all had migrated to the mainland
Bronzewing spp.: not a single bronzewing of either species seen
Cuckoo spp.: very scarce, only a single fantail seen
Night birds: not a single boobook or frogmouth seen despite much spotlighting
European greenfinch