​Unfortunately our October outing to the northern part of the Warby Ranges was cancelled due to wet weather. It’s hard to plan outdoor activities with any confidence during our soggy spring!  Let’s hope we have some fine weather for our last activity for this year. 

On 11 March, eleven people enjoyed an interesting wander around part of the almost dry Lake Benalla. The morning was surprisingly productive.

We had superb views of an Azure Kingfisher fishing in one of the stagnant side channels, which looked muddy and uninviting to us, but this tiny bird dived into the murky water 3 times, and each time emerged with a small fish in its bill. Black Duck, Grey Teal and Dusky Moorhen had their bills in the mud at the edges, sifting delicacies from the sludge. As one of our members commented, to the birds it was probably our equivalent of coffee and chocolate. Four Gang Gang Cockatoos and a flock of 15 King Parrots flew through the area. It was a good day for Kingfishers, as we also had good views of Kookaburras and Sacred Kingfishers. We were able to compare the difference between the White-throated Treecreeper and the Brown Treecreeper. And Australia’s smallest bird, the Weebill, showed itself when three birds appeared in a small tree beside us.

Rupe explained that an old timber structure at the edge of the river was the remains of a weir that provided the town’s water supply until about 1940. He also pointed out a large covered well nearby.

29 bird species were recorded. The bird list can be viewed at https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S84038533

On 8 April we will visit Violet Town for a morning walk along the Honeysuckle Creek in the town. Please meet at 9am in the car park behind the Seniors Community Centre in Benalla. As usual, bring any water and nibbles you need for the morning, wear sturdy shoes and bring binoculars if you have them.

Kathy Costello

Photographs:  Andi Stevenson

24 people attended our birdwatching outing on Thursday 12 March 2020. The group enjoyed a morning stroll around the southern section of Lake Benalla. We set out from the library towards Jaycee Island and returned via the main bridge in town. We saw several Australasian Darters on our walk, and it was interesting to compare these waterbirds with the Little Black and Little Pied Cormorants which were also present on the lake. Andi Stevenson took a lovely photo of a darter drying its wings.

The group also had good views of the two treecreepers found in the woodland area, the White-throated and the Brown Treecreeper. A number of Grey Fantails were seen well as they flitted above our heads, catching insects among the wattles and red gums. The Western Gerygone remained hidden from view, although its beautiful song was oh so close.   

​Our lake continues to be a treasure for birdwatching. We recorded 32 bird species for the morning. Details can be viewed on this link to our list on the eBird website  https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S66153812

Although U3A activities have ceased until further notice, birdwatching is an enjoyable pursuit which I hope some in the group will be able to continue, without an organised outing.

Kathy Costello

Fourteen participants attended our outing on 14 March, enjoying a leisurely walk around the southern half of Lake Benalla. The lake has been a drought refuge for birds over our very hot and dry summer, and we were pleased to record 32 different species for the morning.  There were a lot of small bush birds around the bridge on to Jaycee Island, including Spotted and Striated Pardalotes, Red-browed Finches, White-browed Scrubwren, White-browed Treecreeper and a good number of Superb Fairy-wrens. And there was the beautiful Azure Kingfisher which flashed past under the bridge and quickly disappeared downstream. 

​Thanks Margaret Walshe for the photos. For a complete list of the birds recorded, please see our eBird list at https://ebird.org/australia/view/checklist/S54160519

Next outing Thursday 11 April 2019 to Euroa. 

Please note we will not be able to do the planned walk along Holland’s Creek via Willis Little Drive. Instead we make a morning visit Euroa, looking over the fence for water birds at the water treatment plant, then going to the nearby Euroa arboretum.

We will meet as usual in the car park behind the Seniors Building in Benalla at 9.30am on Thursday 11 April. Please wear comfortable footwear and bring binoculars and any food and drink you require. The arboretum will be open for native plant sales when we visit.

​Kathy Costello

Our group of 14 birdwatchers walked around the southern part of Lake Benalla on Thursday 8 March. It was a pleasant morning that became hot by lunchtime.

The water level in the lake was very low, as water authorities work to kill off the last of the aquatic weed Cabomba. Despite this, we had a very successful session of bird watching. Yellow Spoonbills were still nesting, and a total of 8 birds seen. We were close enough to admire the beautiful plumage of male and female Wood Ducks as they walked past our group. We also had close views of Australasian Swamphen and several Darters. It was interesting to watch a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo feeding a noisy begging youngster in a nearby tree. Robyn did well to find the White-throated Gerygone calling nearby, and most people had a good view of this beautiful but tiny songster with its bright yellow breast. Another yellow breasted bird we were lucky to find is the Crested Shrike-tit, although it did not show well in the foliage. Other birds seen included Superb Fairy-wren, Grey Fantail, Striated Thornbill, White-throated Treecreeper, Sacred Kingfisher and Kookaburra.

​A total of 42 species was recorded. The eBird list can be viewed at

https://ebird.org/australia/view/checklist/S43609753
​
Kathy Costello

Fourteen people attended our bird watching walk on a sunny Tuesday morning on 6 June 2017. Vaughan Cowan led us around the northern section of Benalla golf course, an area of red gum bushland with a large dam and not many golfers to interrupt our birding. Vaughan made sure we kept well away from the golfers as we carefully skirted or crossed several fairways.

The golf course is a popular spot with a variety of parrots and cockatoos. We saw a large number of Eastern Rosellas feeding on the fairways. King Parrots were flying through or perched in the trees. Several flocks of noisy Musk Lorikeets were attracted to three flowering ironbark trees beside one fairway. I was surprised to see one Rainbow Lorikeet with them. This is the first one I have seen around Benalla, and seems to be a new record for the area. Rainbow Lorikeets have long been established in Shepparton and Melbourne, and there are good numbers in Seymour, so their spread to Benalla was probably inevitable. The most numerous bird was the Noisy Miner, which thrives in the habitat provided by tree-lined fairways.

In the bushland we found some of our smaller birds; a flock of Striated Pardalotes feeding high in the red gum foliage, several Red-browed Finches in the tall grasses below, and a couple of family groups of Superb Fairy-wrens. Back at the car park, several people saw two Gang-gang Cockatoos landing in a lone tree on the driving range. We then adjourned to the golf club bistro for an enjoyable lunch.

We recorded 23 species for the day. The full bird list can be viewed at
http://ebird.org/ebird/australia/view/checklist/S37677995

U3A Bird watching will resume on Tuesday 5 September 2017.
​
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 coskoy@bigpond.com) by Thurs 7 April, so that a booking can be made. As I’ll be away for a few days, Margaret Walshe (5762 3906, margaretwalshe@bigpond.com) will also take bookings.

Acknowledgement:  Christine Pollard.   Thank you, Chris!