After my early morning trip to Casuarina Beach, we decided to have a look at a couple of museums, Darwin Aviation Museum and Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. Both rather interesting.
After visiting MAGNT - always up for a walk along a boat ramp, to see if there are any birds.. and there was :D
Was quite entertaining watching a Striated Heron stealing the Eastern Reef Egrets food.
284. Eastern Reef Egret (Lifer)
285. Striated Heron (Lifer)
286. Grey-tailed Tattler (Lifer) not a great shot unfortunately, but still cool to see.
We did one more cruise. A wetlands cruise on the Mary River - at Point Stuart. We were rather lucky, since we were the only ones on the tour. Henry even got to steer the boat at the end, which was his highlight.
My highlight was seeing the Black-neck Storks! Man these are awesome birds.
Anyway better start at the beginning of the tour, lucky to see a pair of White-bellied Sea Eagles.
287. White-bellied Sea-Eagle
288. Nankeen Night-Heron
289. Australian Pratincole (Lifer)
290. Black-necked Stork (Lifer)
Replacement photo for Glossy Ibis (57) better views this time
and quite liked this shot of a Comb-crested Jacana on the lilypads on the billabong.
wow, Abby, so many fantastic shots. So happy that you have seen so many wonderful birds on this trip and still had family time. What a great trip.
Gouldians are always lovely but the Glossy Ibis shot is stunning... then you captured the White-bellied Sea-eagle and got a Pratincole and a Black-necked Stork... apart from the others. Love the lot. I gather that you are happy with the new camera. More please.
Thanks Sue. Had a fantastic trip. Liking my new camera, still getting use to being more manual than what I had.
291. Torresian Crow (Lifer) - I seem to overlook the crows/ravens so this is an awful shot.
292. Pied Imperial-Pigeon (Lifer)
293. Eastern Koel (Heard this calling a number of times, so on our last morning I finally tracked it down in the caravan park.)
On our last day in Darwin, after dropping off our rental car, we decided to head back to the Darwin Botanical Gardens for one last look, and I am glad we did. Saw three more lifers!
294. Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove (Lifer)
295. Rufous Owl (Lifer) saw a pair, amazing!!
296. Black Butcherbird (Lifer) - no fact sheet
This is all my birds from my NT trip. Hope it hasn't been too much of a bombardment of photos.
You even managed to get 2 of your lifers in one shot, amazing. That would have been great to watch. So many great shots in that lot, so I won't pick a favourite. I do also like the extra non bird shots as well, that little lizard/gecko is cool.
Fantastic selection of birds from the NT trip and so many lifers but I especially like the Rufous Owls and the Rose-crowned Fruit-dove. I also like the shot of sunset on Mindil Beach and the Dragon (whose name I forget!). So pleased that you found time to visit the wonderful Botanic gardens and the museum/ Art gallery. I hope you found time for a bite at the Gallery as the food is quite good.
That was a highly successful trip but ther photographer is also very good.
Wow, Abby... still going strong. What a beautiful shot of the Rose Robin! I love the stare from the Brown Goshawk and the Black-necked Stork. Expect you'll find another couple to hit 300.
Ohhh your trip looks fabulous! 50+ lifers! How exciting :-) Darwin is one of my favourite birding places ever - I've enjoyed most of those locations too, but you've had great success with so many birds. So many honeyeaters that I've never seen, too! I'd dearly love to see some of those finches (Gouldian, Masked, Long-tailed) and the Pitta - gosh, what a bird. Love the Crimson Finch shots, the Shining Flycatcher (so shiny!) and the Forest Kingfisher shots too. Your photos are fantastic, well done indeed.
Adorable rose robin, Abby. And an incredible set of birds from up north - so many lifers, I would have struggled to keep the camera still. I just love seeing birds I haven't even heard of so sharp in your photography and very much alive in NT, etc. The rufous owl is very cool.
Did a bit of twitching today. :D Had seen that some people had been seeing a couple of Pilotbirds at Tarra-Bulga N.P so thought since it was a nice day, lets do a 3 hr round trip.
Lovely additions, Abby, the Cattle Egret is beautiful and looks so soft and cuddly but what stunning shots of the Pilotbird! Doubly satisfying being a lifer. Definitely worth the trip. More please.
Very nice pilotbirds and a super-crisp swallow sitting still. Pilot birds seem so busy and intent on the forest floor that they hang around for photos too, once you can find them.
Thanks everyone for a wonderful 2022. I have a couple to add for the end of the year.
308. Australian White Ibis
309. Grey Shrike-thrush
310. Powerful Owl (Saw these pair twice in the last month, first time near the end of November and then I took my hubby to see them last week, just a few photos of them.)
extra
Like Dale said Thanks to Karen and Sue for all you do.
I am amazed that I got to 310 - so many lifers this year, its really been an amazing year.
Looking forward to seeing what we all see this year coming. Hope everyone has had a wonderful Xmas, and a Happy and safe new year.
Congratulations on cracking 300 Abby! And thank you for the beautiful photos, both of the birds and the scenery. What an amazing trip :) Katherine Gorge looks incredible.
Fantastic Year and incredible shots, Abby wonderfully capped off by a Powerful Owl chick. 310 is a great number. Thanks for the company and commentary about your photos and travel. An enjoyable time for everyone.
Fantastic total, and some amazing shots over the year - what a strong finish with those gorgeous owls! May you have a great birding year in 2023 as well :-)
Those finches are exquisite. Love them all though. Some great captures.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
Thanks Dale.
After my early morning trip to Casuarina Beach, we decided to have a look at a couple of museums, Darwin Aviation Museum and Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. Both rather interesting.
After visiting MAGNT - always up for a walk along a boat ramp, to see if there are any birds.. and there was :D
Was quite entertaining watching a Striated Heron stealing the Eastern Reef Egrets food.
284. Eastern Reef Egret (Lifer)
285. Striated Heron (Lifer)
286. Grey-tailed Tattler (Lifer) not a great shot unfortunately, but still cool to see.
We did one more cruise. A wetlands cruise on the Mary River - at Point Stuart. We were rather lucky, since we were the only ones on the tour. Henry even got to steer the boat at the end, which was his highlight.
My highlight was seeing the Black-neck Storks! Man these are awesome birds.
Anyway better start at the beginning of the tour, lucky to see a pair of White-bellied Sea Eagles.
287. White-bellied Sea-Eagle
288. Nankeen Night-Heron
289. Australian Pratincole (Lifer)
290. Black-necked Stork (Lifer)
Replacement photo for Glossy Ibis (57) better views this time
and quite liked this shot of a Comb-crested Jacana on the lilypads on the billabong.
wow, Abby, so many fantastic shots. So happy that you have seen so many wonderful birds on this trip and still had family time. What a great trip.
Gouldians are always lovely but the Glossy Ibis shot is stunning... then you captured the White-bellied Sea-eagle and got a Pratincole and a Black-necked Stork... apart from the others. Love the lot. I gather that you are happy with the new camera. More please.
Thanks Sue. Had a fantastic trip. Liking my new camera, still getting use to being more manual than what I had.
291. Torresian Crow (Lifer) - I seem to overlook the crows/ravens so this is an awful shot.
292. Pied Imperial-Pigeon (Lifer)
293. Eastern Koel (Heard this calling a number of times, so on our last morning I finally tracked it down in the caravan park.)
On our last day in Darwin, after dropping off our rental car, we decided to head back to the Darwin Botanical Gardens for one last look, and I am glad we did. Saw three more lifers!
294. Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove (Lifer)
295. Rufous Owl (Lifer) saw a pair, amazing!!
296. Black Butcherbird (Lifer) - no fact sheet
This is all my birds from my NT trip. Hope it hasn't been too much of a bombardment of photos.
Just a couple of extras to finish off with.
You even managed to get 2 of your lifers in one shot, amazing. That would have been great to watch. So many great shots in that lot, so I won't pick a favourite. I do also like the extra non bird shots as well, that little lizard/gecko is cool.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
Fantastic selection of birds from the NT trip and so many lifers but I especially like the Rufous Owls and the Rose-crowned Fruit-dove. I also like the shot of sunset on Mindil Beach and the Dragon (whose name I forget!). So pleased that you found time to visit the wonderful Botanic gardens and the museum/ Art gallery. I hope you found time for a bite at the Gallery as the food is quite good.
That was a highly successful trip but ther photographer is also very good.
Thanks Dale and Sue.
297. Common Blackbird - just to add to the numbers, I might even get to 300 this year which is super exciting!
And I forgot to add this shot from Darwin. A juvenile Brown Goshawk. Saw it on the path, then it flew up into the surrounding bushes.
As much as I enjoyed being away and seeing new birds and landscapes, it is nice to go for a walk and hear all of the familiar calls/songs.
I finally tracked now a Rose Robin, up in Sherbrooke Forest. Gardens up there are looking beautiful, all the spring flowers are out.
298. Rose Robin
Love the Rose Robin, and the Goshawk has a nice feel to it.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
Wow, Abby... still going strong. What a beautiful shot of the Rose Robin! I love the stare from the Brown Goshawk and the Black-necked Stork. Expect you'll find another couple to hit 300.
Ohhh your trip looks fabulous! 50+ lifers! How exciting :-) Darwin is one of my favourite birding places ever - I've enjoyed most of those locations too, but you've had great success with so many birds. So many honeyeaters that I've never seen, too! I'd dearly love to see some of those finches (Gouldian, Masked, Long-tailed) and the Pitta - gosh, what a bird. Love the Crimson Finch shots, the Shining Flycatcher (so shiny!) and the Forest Kingfisher shots too. Your photos are fantastic, well done indeed.
Adorable rose robin, Abby. And an incredible set of birds from up north - so many lifers, I would have struggled to keep the camera still. I just love seeing birds I haven't even heard of so sharp in your photography and very much alive in NT, etc. The rufous owl is very cool.
Thanks guys. Yes Michael it was pretty hard to focus just on one bird. Pretty happy that I will hit 300 for this year.
299. Olive-backed Oriole - didn't want to come out and pose on a nice clear branch for me...
300. Little Tern - just had a couple of days in Lakes Entrance - got lucky had one nice morning for a bit of bird watching.
301. Black-faced Cormorant - Lifer - EBC shot hopefully one day I will see them a tad closer..
302. Pied Cormorant - Thought I would have posted one of these before now, but couldn't find it in my spreadsheet.
303. Australian Pied Oystercatcher - was just going to say this was a replacement photo, but couldn't find it in my spreadsheet either.
Now a replacement shot for 108 Australian Pelican.
Well done, Abby... nice birds to get over the 300 mark. A really clear shot of the Oystercatcher.
Congrats on your 300. Again some more great photos.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
Oh wow, some great pics there Abby and congrats on your triple century!!
A couple from the list that Karen so nicely put together.
304. Magpie Goose - photo taken at Fogg Dam - have also seen them here in Victoria.
305. Jacky Winter - did see one eariler this year, but lucky for me saw a pair yesterday.
Also wanted to add this update.
Cattle Egrets in breeding plumage.
Some more great shots there, love them all.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
That Jacky Winter was worth waiting for! Lovely shot. Cattle Egrets done up nicely for the end of year formal.
Thanks guys.
Did a bit of twitching today. :D Had seen that some people had been seeing a couple of Pilotbirds at Tarra-Bulga N.P so thought since it was a nice day, lets do a 3 hr round trip.
306. Welcome Swallow -
307. Pilotbird (Lifer) woohoo great day!
Nicely done, Pilot bird looks a bit like a Scrubwren of sorts.
Both great photos, guessing worth the trip then.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
Lovely additions, Abby, the Cattle Egret is beautiful and looks so soft and cuddly but what stunning shots of the Pilotbird! Doubly satisfying being a lifer. Definitely worth the trip. More please.
Very nice pilotbirds and a super-crisp swallow sitting still. Pilot birds seem so busy and intent on the forest floor that they hang around for photos too, once you can find them.
Beautiful work with the Pilotbird, so beautiful! Really lovely shots
Thanks everyone for a wonderful 2022. I have a couple to add for the end of the year.
308. Australian White Ibis
309. Grey Shrike-thrush
310. Powerful Owl (Saw these pair twice in the last month, first time near the end of November and then I took my hubby to see them last week, just a few photos of them.)
extra
Like Dale said Thanks to Karen and Sue for all you do.
I am amazed that I got to 310 - so many lifers this year, its really been an amazing year.
Looking forward to seeing what we all see this year coming. Hope everyone has had a wonderful Xmas, and a Happy and safe new year.
Congrats on over 300. Some great shots of some great birds. Love the Powerful Owls. A great challenge to be a part of.
Dale Huonville, Tasmania
Congratulations on cracking 300 Abby! And thank you for the beautiful photos, both of the birds and the scenery. What an amazing trip :) Katherine Gorge looks incredible.
Great photos to finish a super total! Congrats and I hope 2023 brings you another impressive set of shots and lifers :)
Fantastic Year and incredible shots, Abby wonderfully capped off by a Powerful Owl chick. 310 is a great number. Thanks for the company and commentary about your photos and travel. An enjoyable time for everyone.
What an awesome year you have had Abby, thanks for sharing! Love the Powerful Owl, I still have not ever seen one.
Fantastic total, and some amazing shots over the year - what a strong finish with those gorgeous owls! May you have a great birding year in 2023 as well :-)
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