From Mission Beach we moved to Deeral
to access a day trip out to Normanby Island in the Frankland Group National
Park to do some snorkeling on coral reefs. The trip involved a half hour
cruise down the scenic Mulgrave River and a short run out to the islands. There
were not many birds to report on the river run, a few egrets (Great,
Intermediate and Cattle), Masked Lapwings and kingfishers (Sacred and Forest)
plus six Eastern Curlews in flight. Out at sea there were very few sea birds in
this area, which is inside the Great Barrier Reef; in fact only one Silver Gull
was sighted. On Normanby Island I saw only Bar-shouldered Doves and Varied
Honeyeater. The honeyeaters and doves turned up for lunch. They have learnt
there are scraps to be picked up when fifty odd people have lunch al fresco on
a tropical island. Also on the shoreline of the island were three Beach Stone-curlews
(see Fraser Island post for photos of this species), a couple of Sooty
Oystercatchers, a Reef Egret and an Osprey. Still it was a great day out and a
good way to see some magical coral and some of the many and varied animals
that live on coral reefs.
Leaving Deeral we climbed steeply
through rugged and very scenic country up to the Atherton Tableland passing
through Atherton and Mareeba on our way to Kingfisher Birdwatchers Lodge at
Julatten where we have been for the past three days. This is a good base to
explore a range of birding habitats, especially tropical rainforest, savanna
woodlands and wetlands. For more information about this renowned birding
location I suggest a visit to the Kingfisher Birdwatchers Lodge web site:
Birding highlights captured with
photos over the past five days or so include some honeyeaters endemic to
Queensland and a pair of Double-eyed Fig-Parrots constructing a nest hollow.
The Fig-Parrots were found one
morning when I was looking, with no success, for the Blue-faced Parrot-Finch.
The female Fig-Parrot was
constructing a nest hollow exactly as shown in the Morecombe Field Guide. She
was chewing a hole in the side of a dead rainforest tree branch some 10 metres
up. The wood was obviously soft as she ripped out a good quantity of chips
during the ten minutes I observed the pair. It seems that the female does all
of the work, while the male perched on the end of the limb about a metre away,
no doubt fulfilled a very important guard duty role, as the female is
vulnerable with her head inside the slowly deepening hollow. While I watched
them the male spent most of the time hanging upside down from the end of the
limb. I am not sure how this position enhances surveillance however it may be
that it gave him a better look at me standing below with a large camera trained
on them.
During this time the male uttered
short calls to the female. At the end of the session the male walked down the
top of the limb to the female where he appeared to inspect progress and then
proceeded to pass food to her. This looks as if the birds are kissing. He did
this five times and then returned to the end of the limb. It was then that they
both flew off together. I returned to the tree once that afternoon and three times the following day
but did not find them there.
The Double-eyed Fig-Parrot is Australia's smallest parrot. The name double-eye comes from a PNG race which has a dark spot near the eye giving the appearance of two eyes. There are three races within Australia.
The Double-eyed Fig-Parrot is Australia's smallest parrot. The name double-eye comes from a PNG race which has a dark spot near the eye giving the appearance of two eyes. There are three races within Australia.
The following photos
unfortunately are not sharp due to distance and lighting however I thought they
were good enough to show the nest hollow construction activity and interaction
between the two birds.
Note female Double-eyed Fig-Parrot on left of dead limb at hole under construction and the male at end of limb on watch duty. |
The female takes a break from nest excavation and checks me out before resuming work. |
The female back at work. Another shot shows her further into the hole so it is a little deeper than her position indicates in this shot. |
The male coming to inspect progress. |
Is he complimenting her on progress? |
They are not kissing. The male is feeding the female. |
Apart from the Hooded Parrot and sadly the now extinct Paradise Parrot which excavate nest hollows in termite
mounds, Double-eyed Fig-Parrots are the only Australian Parrots that excavate
nest hollows. The other parrot species use existing hollows, though they may enlarge them or improve
entry a by chewing out wood.
Due to its location and sheer
size Queensland is the most bird rich state in Australia and has the largest
number of endemic birds, that is bird species found only in Queensland. Many of
the endemic species are honeyeaters and we have managed to find some and
photograph a few.
The Bridled Honeyeater is a large honeyeater. We found them in a variety of habitats. |
I found this species very attractive so couldn't resist including another photo. |
This is one of the Varied Honeyeaters that joined us for lunch on Normanby Island. |
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