Australian Good Birding Guide: Northern Queensland. Ted Wnorowski
roosting under a small bush. Other birds on the beach included Little Terns, Caspian Terns, Little Egrets, Striated Herons and two Eastern Reef Egrets.
Far Eastern Curlew
In the park by the carpark, White-browed Robins and Wonga Pigeons were calling constantly the whole morning. The pigeons had a flimsy nest in a casuarina near the beach. Tawny Frogmouths were roosting low in a tree by the toilet block.
In the mangroves near the boat ramp, there were plenty of Dusky Honeyeaters, Brown Honeyeaters and Varied Trillers. Black Bittern flushed from the mangroves and disappeared on the opposite side of the creek. Bushland along the beach produced White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike, Rainbow Bee-eater, Leaden Flycatcher, Helmeted Friarbird, Little Shrike-thrush and Tawny Frogmouth.
On the opposite end of Carmila Beach, scrub along the camping grounds allowed us good views of Orange-footed Scrubfowl. At night, Large-tailed Nightjars were calling. Other birds here included Yellow Honeyeater, Oriental Dollarbird, Rufous Fantail, Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo, Pale-headed Rosella, Blue-winged Kookaburra and Australasian Pipit. Radjah Shelducks are frequent visitors in the campsite.
When travelling on Bruce Hwy, Flaggy Rocks Café 8km south of Carmila is a compulsory stop. They are famous for their fantastic smoothies and friendliness towards the birdwatchers. Two lagoons are located behind the café. On their banks, Plumed Whistling-Ducks are typically piled up densely. Magpie Geese are also with them. Buff-banded Rails come up to the café tables. In the surrounding trees, look for Yellow Honeyeater, Helmeted Friarbird, Channel-billed Cuckoo and Spangled Drongo.
Hay Point
Hay Point is located 40km south of Mackay. It is best known for the largest coal-lading port facility in the world. This site is good for the waders and waterbirds. The waders often roost on the breakwater wall or feed on the Salonika Beach. Waterbirds congregate at Lake Barfield near the Salonika Beach.
To get there, turn east into Hay Point Rd from Bruce Hwy (A1) and after reaching the coast take High Water Islet Dr leading to the Esplanade that will take you to the breakwater wall to see the waders. If you want to reach Lake Barfield, turn south into McCarthy St from the Esplanade. This road later changes name to Pacific Dr and runs along the lake. There are no designated carparks or defined observation areas, just find any useful vantage points on your way. There are no facilities in the area.
Over 100 bird species have been recorded at Hay Point. Key species are Radjah Shelduck, Magpie Goose, Cotton Pygmy-goose, Great Crested Grebe, Orange-footed Scrubfowl and Bar-breasted Honeyeater. Other birds of interest include waders, Torresian Imperial-Pigeon, Little Bronze-cuckoo, Yellow Honeyeater, Spectacled Monarch and White-browed Robin.
Radjah Shelduck
You’ll see white birds such as Little Egrets, Plumed Egrets, Great Egrets, Royal Spoonbills and Pied Stilts scattered on the Lake Barfield shores. The most common waterbirds here are Black Swan, Wandering Whistling-Duck, Plumed Whistling-Duck and Magpie Goose. Comb-crested Jacanas can be seen on nearly every patch of water lilies. When the lake is drying up, Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, Black-fronted Dotterels and Red-kneed Dotterels appear in large numbers to forage on the exposed mud. Rarer species around the lake include Nankeen Night-Heron, Radjah Shelduck and Buff-banded Rail.
Common bush birds around the lake and in the coastal scrub include Olive-backed Sunbird, Leaden Flycatcher, Yellow Honeyeater, Little Bronze-cuckoo, Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo and Black-faced Monarch. Look for Orange-footed Scrubfowl and Bush Stone-curlew under the trees.
The breakwater wall is often covered with Little Black Cormorants, Little Pied Cormorants, Great Pied Cormorants and Crested Terns. At high tide, Grey-tailed Tattlers and Pacific Golden Plovers roost there.
Macs Truck Stop Wetland
This is a small wetland on Bruce Hwy (A1) about 20km south of Mackay. If coming from Mackay, the site is located 5.6km south of the Sandy Creek bridge. It is hidden behind a large BP service station with a truck stop area. GPS coordinates are 21o17’54’’S and 149o10’15’’E. Drive onto Macs Truck Stop Service Rd, stop behind the service station and walk along the fence in the easterly direction. The wetland will be on your right. Alternatively, take the next unnamed service road further south and drive east about 500m. The wetland is readily viewable from this point.
Over 80 bird species have been recorded here. Key species are Magpie Goose, Brolga, Glossy Ibis, Whiskered Tern and Bar-breasted Honeyeater. Other birds of interest include Plumed Whistling-Duck, Wandering Whistling-Duck, Comb-crested Jacana, Yellow-billed Spoonbill, Red-kneed Dotterel, Chestnut-breasted Mannikin and Swamp Harrier. Rarities at this site include White-browed Crake, Black-necked Stork, Red-necked Avocet and Australasian Shoveler.
When water levels in the wetland are low, the area is completely overgrown by vegetation (grasses and sedges) so the site is indistinguishable from the surrounding farmland. The giveaway sign are Magpie Geese that hang around in their hundreds to feed on the tubers. We counted about 400 geese. A pair of Brolgas were sticking out their necks from the long grass. The swamp was full of Plumed Whistling-Ducks and Wandering Whistling-Ducks with their ducklings. We also added Glossy Ibis, Royal Spoonbill, Great Egret, Plumed Egret and Comb-crested Jacana to our list. On a small solitary tree in the middle swamp, Australasian Darters had a nest with two large fat chicks.
The grasses near the swamp yielded Brown Quail, Australasian Pipit, Golden Headed Cisticola (plenty), Chestnut-breasted Mannikin and Pheasant Coucal.
We checked two small, fenced off settling ponds behind the truck stop and found a White-browed Crake feeding in the cumbungi.
A colony of Welcome Swallows is established in the BP service station. Their nests are interspersed with the nests of House Sparrows.
Bar-breasted Honeyeater has been reported to breed in a row of paperbark trees and bottlebrushes behind the service station. Also, Lemon-bellied Flycatcher was recorded at this site in 2016.
Bar-breasted Honeyeater
Mcewens Beach
This small coastal settlement is located 15km south of Mackay. It is surrounded by swamps and woodlands of Bakers Creek Conservation Park that are recognised as nationally important wetlands. The mudflats and mangroves serve as feeding and roosting grounds for large numbers of waders.
To get there, approximately 10km south of Mackay turn east into Mcewens Beach Rd and drive 6km to the village. Facilities are located in the foreshore parkland and include picnic tables and toilets.
Over 130 bird species have been recorded in this area. Key species are the waders, Black-necked Stork, Brolga, Glossy Ibis, Radjah Shelduck, White-browed Robin, Yellow Honeyeater and Little Bronze-cuckoo. Other birds of interest include Latham’s Snipe, Magpie Goose, Mangrove Gerygone, Fairy Gerygone, Torresian Imperial-Pigeon, Common Cicadabird and Bar-breasted Honeyeater. Among the rarities are White-browed Crake, Oriental Plover, Beach Stone-curlew, Australian Bustard, Mangrove Golden Whistler, Lemon-bellied Flycatcher and Mangrove Robin.
At the outskirts of the village, 1-2 km before the dwellings begin, an extensive swampy area spreads out along Mcewens Beach Rd. GPS coordinates are 21o14’23’’S and 149o11’40’’E. Shallow wetlands with mangroves and dead trees standing in the flooded grounds are a good habitat for waders, in particular Marsh Sandpiper and Common Greenshank. Regularly 20-30 birds of each species are counted each summer. Pied Stilts breed here. Other waders in the area include Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper, Red-kneed Dotterel and Black-fronted Dotterel. Large flocks