Our group of 14 visited Helen’s property to look for the many bush birds that visit her garden. In addition to six bird baths, Helen also has also filled two old bath tubs, which she has stocked with local native water plants, and they provide an attractive place for birds to drink and bathe. Red-browed Finches and Superb Fairy-wrens were easy to find, but some of the shyer birds could be heard calling but did not show themselves with so many people in the garden. Some of the group walked to a nearby wetland, which had dried out over summer, although we did see a Brown Thornbill there, and a group of White-winged Choughs in a nearby revegetation area on the farm. A shady pergola provided a perfect place for a late morning tea.
Many thanks Helen for hosting our visit. We saw or heard about 20 bird species, among them several Rainbow Bee-eaters, White-plumed Honeyeaters, Welcome Swallows, a Kookaburra and a group of 4 Brown-headed Honeyeaters which visited the old bath near the pergola.
A list of the species recorded can be viewed on eBird at: https://ebird.org/australia/view/checklist/S44984511
Please meet at the car park behind the Seniors Building at 9.30am, where we car pool for a trip to Euroa. We will go birding in the morning, followed by lunch at 12.15pm at Seven Creeks Hotel in Euroa. We will do a short walk along Seven Creeks in the town, then visit the Euroa Arboretum on the old Hume Highway south of the town centre. If time permits, we will look through the fence at the adjacent water treatment plant to look for waterbirds on the ponds. As usual, please wear sturdy shoes and bring a water bottle and binoculars if you have them.
If you are interested in coming to lunch in Euroa, please ring or email me by Tuesday 8 May, so I can confirm numbers with the hotel. Ph 5762 5755 or coskoy@bigpond.com
Please note that our birding program will be in recess over winter. Our first outing for semester 2 will be on Thursday 13 September 2018.
Kathy Costello