AUSTRALIA - HOLIDAY/RECCE TOUR - DAY 27 - OCT 23RD - CAIRNS

MISSION BEACH - LACEY CREEK - LICUALA LODGE GARDENS


Before I write today's blog here are a few more photos from yesterday.

WITH ROAD SIGNS LIKE THIS ALL OVER THE PLACE
IT IS A WONDER WHY THE CASSOWARY CROSSES THE ROAD -
BUT THEY DO......................

THIS BIRD BROUGHT THE ENTIRE TRAFFIC TO A STANDSTILL
AND RIGHTLY SO!

LOTS OF PEOPLE GOT OUT OF THEIR CARS TO PHOTOGRAPH THEM

SAFELY ACROSS, SO WHY DID THE CASSOWARY CROSS THE ROAD.............?




.................UNFORTUNATELY BECAUSE THIS MALE DIDN'T LIKE THE LOOK OF ME -
SO I EVER-SO-QUICKLY GOT BACK INTO THE CAR - NOT THAT I WAS AFRAID OF COURSE!
APPARENTLY THEY ARE GOOD AT FOOTBALL AND LIKE TO KICK OUT.

Today I got up early and set off for Lacey Creek to take the same trail as we did yesterday, this time I was hoping for a few new species and a possible Cassowary sighting.

I arrived at 5:30am just as it was getting light and the first bird I saw was amazing. I rounded a corner on the track where a small clearing appeared on my left, at rhe back of the clearing I saw a couple of flashes of bright blue at first I thought it was a Ulysses Butterfly but through my bins I realised I had found a NOISY PITTA, absolutely fantastic, a bird I have wanted to see for years. It was too dark to try to photograph it so I watched it just amble away from me and disappear from sight, wow!

Black Butcherbird

 

Brush Turkey - male

The rest of the walk was anti-climatic, in fact I never saw much at all, lots of calls and a few glimpses of honeyeaters, figbirds and friarbirds but not much else.

Brush Turkey and Black Butcherbird

From the creek trail I drove to the beach but it was really windy there, the only sightings were of large numbers of Pied Imperial Pigeons, these birds roost on off-shore islands and fly back to the
mainland each morning.



Scaly-breasted Lorikeet - a perfect colour match for its environment

Back at the lodge we had a great breakfast with the other guests and left about 9:45am for Cairns. We stopped at 'The Babinda Boulders' an impressive rock formation along a river. We took the trail and then had lunch in the picnic area next to the car park. Several birds appeared as we walked through the car park including the lovely TOPKNOT PIGEON, I was really pleased to see this species perched as all my other sightings of it were of flyovers.

  

the TOPKNOT PIGEON showing the weird 'knot' of brown feathers at the back of its head 

Other birds present were Scaly-breasted Lorikeet, Black Butcherbird, Brush Turkey, Metallic Starlings, Figbirds and a few honeyeaters.