The remaining outings for 2016 are scheduled for Thursday 13 October and Thursday 10 November.
Kathy has been away during August however she will be back for the next outing which will be to Chesney Vale on Thursday 8th September. Kathy will undoubtedly be in contact with group members by email before the outing.
The remaining outings for 2016 are scheduled for Thursday 13 October and Thursday 10 November.
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![]() Ten members of the group visited a sheep property 5km west of Benalla on Thursday 9 June. After days of wet weather, we were lucky the rain held off for our morning walk. As we drove in, there were two White-necked Herons and a White-faced Heron in a nearby paddock. In the garden we saw an Eastern Spinebill, a few Superb Fairy-wrens, and a small flock of Red-browed Finches which flew into a shrub beside the driveway. A short walk took us to a high point on the banks of the Broken River, with a sandy beach below and great views along the river. We continued our stroll through some massive River Red Gums, looking at White-plumed Honeyeaters, Eastern Rosellas, White-browed Scrubwren and a Grey Shrike-thrush on the way. In the distance we identified two Australian Shelduck (used to be called Mountain Duck) and a large flock of Little Ravens in the paddocks. A flock of about 70 Galahs flew into the River Red Gums as we made our way back to the house for a late morning tea under the carport. Some of us had close views of a female Scarlet Robin along the driveway as our cars left the property, making a total of 25 species for the morning. Thanks Carole and Godfrey for organising our visit. It was a great spot to finish the birdwatching program for the semester. A detailed list of birds recorded at each outing is available for download below. Please ring Kathy Costello if you would like a printed copy. What’s happening in Semester 2?
There will only be three monthly outings, on Thursday 8 September, Thursday 13 October and Thursday 10 November, as Kathy is unavailable in July and August. More details will be provided in later newsletters. Owlet Nightjar, photographed by Stan Bellingham at Mollyullah in Feb 2016. It is a nocturnal bird, rarely seen in the daytime. White Goshawk photographed by Alec Adkins in his Benalla backyard on 10 April 2016. It is a rare bird for this area.
Kathy Eleven members of the group visited Reef Hill State Park, 5km south of Benalla, on Thursday morning 9 June. Rain threatened but we stayed dry while doing several walks from the picnic area on Reef Hills Road. Birding was pretty quiet. A few Grey Shrike-thrushes flew into the trees above us, and a White-throated Treecreeper landed nearby. It took some time, but most of the group finally got a look at a male Scarlet Robin. We also had distant views of 2 large groups of White-winged Choughs.
At our next meeting we will visit a property on the Broken River 5 km out of Benalla on the Shepparton Road. Thanks to Carole and Godfrey, whose son and daughter-in-law own the property, and who have arranged our visit to this lovely spot. Thursday 9 June - Meet at the Barkly St car park at 10am…..and please bring your ideas for semester 2. Kathy Costello Our next outing is on Thursday 9 June. We will visit a property on the Broken River 5 km out of Benalla on the Shepparton Road. Please meet at the Barkly St car park at 10am. Thanks to Carole and Godfrey, whose son and daughter-in-law own the property, and who have arranged our visit to this lovely spot. Please bring your ideas for semester 2.
Kathy The list of birds we recorded at Winton Wetlands can be viewed on EBird, http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S29320267
Our next outing will be to Reef Hills State Park, 5km south of Benalla next Thursday 12 May. We will turn right into the park from the Midland Highway, about 500 metres past the freeway entrance. Please meet at the car park in Barkly Street behind Aldi at 10am, so we can organise a car pool. The roads in Reef Hills may be a bit muddy after the predicted rain for Sunday and Monday. Bring morning tea and a chair. We should finish about 12 noon. Please note there are no toilet facilities at Reef Hills. The group made a morning visit to Winton Wetlands, with 21 staying on to enjoy lunch at the Mokoan Hub café. Our first stop was a woodland area beside Lake Mokoan Road, about 1 km further on from the hub.
Conditions are very dry everywhere at present, so the birds were hard to find. We recorded Grey Butcherbird, Blue-faced Honeyeater, a flock of nine Brown-headed Honeyeaters and several groups of Red-rumped Parrots. We then continued on the Green’s Hill, off Boggy Bridge Rd. There were even fewer birds here, but it still provided an impressive 360 degree panorama of the region, especially for those who had not been there before. Some people did a short walk while others enjoyed morning tea in the picnic shelter. We then drove on to look at the portraits recently painted on a large water tank at the corner of Boggy Bridge Rd and Winton North Road. Birds viewed along the road included three Brown Falcons, a Whistling Kite and a Nankeen Kestrel. The last carload back to the café found two White-browed Babblers in the car park. A total of 24 bird species was recorded. Thanks to fellow Birdlife Australia member Christine Holmes for helping me lead the walks. Our next outing will be to Reef Hills State Park, 5km off the Midland Highway south of Benalla on Thurs 12th May 2016. Please meet at the car park in Barkly Street behind Aldi at 10am. Bring morning tea and a chair. We should finish about 12 noon. Please note there are no toilet facilities at Reef Hills. Kathy Costello The group met near the Weary Dunlop Learning Centre for a walk around the red gum woodland section of the lake walking track. Because we have a large number of participants, we split into two groups, taking off in opposite directions.
Bird numbers were reasonable for a warm, humid morning given that we’ve had almost no rain since January, and a recent heatwave. One group had views of an Australian Darter, a Sacred Kingfisher and several Blue-faced Honeyeaters, while the other group saw a flock of Red-browed Firetails and 5 Black-faced Cuckoo-shrikes. A large flock of King Parrots was also seen flying through the area. A total of 37 bird species was recorded by the two groups. For those with internet access, the species list has been entered on the Ebird website. To view the bird list, press CTRL + Click on this link http://ebird.org/ebird/australia/view/checklist?subID=S28073941 Thanks to Val La May, Convenor of the Seymour U3A Bird group who helped lead the walk and entered the bird list on Ebird. Thanks also to Christine Pollard who provided the photos for the newsletter and website (see below). Christine’s photos have also been added to the list on Ebird. Next activity 14 April 2016 Our next activity will be a morning visit to Winton Wetlands on Thursday 14 April. Please meet at the Barkly Street car park in front of the school (behind Aldi) at 9.40am. We plan to visit 2 or 3 locations at the wetlands, with short walks at each location. For those who want morning tea, please bring your own and a folding chair or stool if you have one. Some participants may want to stay on for lunch at the Mokoan Hub. We will car pool for the drive there and back, taking into account people who want to return straight back to Benalla and those staying for lunch. If you want to lunch at The Hub, please ring or email Kathy Costello (5762 5755 or [email protected]) by Thurs 7 April, so that a booking can be made. As I’ll be away for a few days, Margaret Walshe (5762 3906, [email protected]) will also take bookings. Acknowledgement: Christine Pollard. Thank you, Chris!
There was an excellent response from members to the new U3A Birdwatching program. Over 20 people attended the first meeting, and were introduced to printed field guides for Australian birds, several smartphone apps, websites, and instruction on how to adjust binoculars for your individual eyesight. Bev Lee has kindly put this information on the Birdwatching page on the U3A website.
We spent some time discussing the unexpected appearance of an Eastern Koel in Benalla before Christmas. It is a large cuckoo with a very loud, persistent call, and it woke one of our participants at 3am one morning. After morning tea, most of the group reconvened at Lake Benalla for a short walk to practise their new binocular skills. We had good views of 20 native bird species, including both Brown and White-throated Treecreepers, a Restless Flycatcher and a pair of Sacred Kingfishers, not far from the library car park. Next meeting Thursday 10 March 10am – 12 noon. Meet at Lake Benalla at 10am, beside the walking track behind the library, for a gentle stroll through the red gum woodland. Bring binoculars if you have them, and a water bottle. If you want morning tea, you will need to carry whatever you want to eat. Please note the walk will be automatically cancelled if it is a total fire ban day. There are a number of guides or tools that can help you identify Australian birds. Some of these include printed field guides, bird identification apps for those with smart phones or tablets, information on websites, information on how to use binoculars and last but not least, help from birdwatchers in identifying local birds and their calls. Printed field guides include: Pizzey, G and Knight, F The field guide to the birds of Australia, 9th ed, 2013. Price $37 to $45 Simpson, K and Day, N Field guide to the birds of Australia, 2004, Price $33 to $40 Morcombe, M Field guide to Australian birds, 2000, Price $42 to $50 Slater, P The Slater field guide to Australian birds, 2nd ed, 2009, Price $33 Digital field guides Morcombe’s Birds of Australia $28.60 Google App Store (special price) and Apple iTunes, $37.99, updated Oct 2014 Pizzey and Knight Birds of Australia $49.95, Google App Store and Apple iTunes, updated Dec 2014 Useful websites Birdlife Australia http://birdlife.org.au/ Birds in Backyards (Birdlife Australia) http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/ Birdlife Australia, Murray Goulburn Branch, program for 2016 http://birdlife.org.au/group-events/birdlife-murray-goulburn/ Birding-aus (online & Facebook) Victorian Birders (Facebook) ... and lots more groups on Facebook Listing sites (to enter lists of birds seen at birding sites so that other birders can see them) eBird - a world-wide listing database run by Cornell Uni. Dept of Ornithology. Excellent statistical reports. Also has a Facebook Page. Eremaea Birdline - to report rare or unusual sightings in Australia; linked with eBird. http://www.eremaea.com Binoculars - How to use central focussing binoculars – printed guide (pdf) and YouTube video: Downloadable Document: Session 1 - Notes for Participants and Nokia Printed Guide - 'How to Use Central Focussing Binoculars' (pdf). Acknowledgement: * My thanks go to Val La May, convenor of Seymour and District U3A Bird Appreciation course, for ideas contributed to these notes. Kathy Costello Two videos for those interested in finding out more about the amazing shore birds which fly annually from their breeding grounds in the Arctic Circle to summer in Australia, returning every year - flying a total of 30,000 kilometres a year. If you would like to know more about birds in the Benalla district and would appreciate help in identifying birds, this new group could be for you. Kathy Costello is interested in sharing her passion for birdwatching and will run a pilot group during Semester One. February’s introductory session will be in W4, followed by birdwatching sessions in local habitats rich in a range of bird life including Reef Hills, Winton Wetland and Benalla Lake. The program will involve mainly morning walks, with the possibility of one or two all day outings to more distant areas such as the Warby Ranges. If you can bring a pair of binoculars you will gain more value and enjoyment from this activity.
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BirdwatchingIf you would like to know more about birds in the Benalla district and would appreciate help in identifying birds, this group could be for you. The program involves mainly morning walks in local habitats rich in a range of bird life such as Reef Hills, Winton Wetland and Benalla Lake. There may also be an all day outing to a more distant location. Bring along a pair of binoculars to gain more value and enjoyment from this activity. Convenor and contact detailsPhotographer - Andi Stevenson, with others contributing from time to time.
Meeting TimesSix meetings:
Semester 1 - March, April and May. Semester 2 - August, September, October, November. 2nd Thursday of the month 9.30am to 12 noon Meet at the car park behind the Benalla Senior Citizens Community Centre. Check newsletter for times and details. Please note that outing arrangements are automatically cancelled on days of total fire ban. New membersIf you are new to the birdwatching group, check out Birdwatching - Notes for Participants - you will also find a video link in the notes which may assist you to adjust your binoculars
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