Little Grassbird at West Creek

Should be a great year for waterbirds so let's go for broke - 250 spp for 2011.

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Rod Hobson
Posts: 509
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:03 am

Little Grassbird at West Creek

Post by Rod Hobson »

Folks,

Yesterday afternoon I took the mutt for a walk along West Creek starting at the southern end behind the Garden of Rememberance. From here I walked along the creek to where it flows into the City Golf Club links then back. This is always a good walk for animals but yesterday proved quite exceptional. The highlight of this walk was of my first hearing and then sighting a Little Grassbird just below Kearney Springs at GDA94 - S 27 deg. 35' 45" x E 151 deg. 56' 40"; +/- 25 metres. This was my first record of this species ever for the Toowoomba City area. Two Clamorous Reed Warblers seen in the reeds at this same pool.

Two other records of interest were of approximately an half dozen or so male White-winged Trillers around the pools just south of the Alderley Street crossing; all busily chasing each other about the trees there. A single female Satin Bowerbird and a Sacred Kingfisher seen in this same area as well. Near the Black Flying-fox colony at Kearney Springs I also saw an adult and juvenile Nankeen Night Heron and a lone Buff-banded Rail.

Large numbers of Hardhead seen throughout the walk, as well as five Darters. A Figbird was observed carrying nesting material whilst several family groups of Dusky Moorhens that included hatchlings recorded on this walk. Australasian Grebes in larger numbers than usual also present along this waterbody on the day.

Birdlife was prolific in these wetlands, as was other local fauna that included the frogs Litoria fallax and Limnodynastes peronii, the freshwater turtles Chelodina longicollis and Emydura m. macquarii and plenty of Spangled Perch.

Regards,
Rod Hobson
Last edited by Rod Hobson on Tue Nov 15, 2011 6:50 am, edited 2 times in total.
Pat McConnell
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:42 pm

Little Grassbird

Post by Pat McConnell »

After Rod's sighting of a Little Grassbird, Kath and I decieded to see if we could also see them. On Thursday 10 November we did the walk along West Creek between Spring and Stenner Streets and were lucky enough to see three Little Grassbirds. This was a new bird for Kath. Thanks for the info Rod!
Rod Hobson
Posts: 509
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:03 am

Little Grassbirds at West Creek

Post by Rod Hobson »

Pat,

I must have missed you and Kath by about an hour going by our phone conversation. Earlier in the day that you saw three Little Grassbirds I saw a pair in the same area. When I went back there the following morning I didn't see or hear any of the species but it was very hot and windy at the time. I did see five Buff-banded Rails along the creek between Kearney Springs and the City Golf Club boundary though; they're everywhere at present around Toowoomba and in the Lockyer Valley.

On the same day as we saw the grassbirds (10th November) I also saw a lone Pallid Cuckoo along the creek perched in a Chinese Elm near the edge of the golf links.

Regards,
Rod H.
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