Each time we go to Geikie Gorge we make a detour to go to the Low stage crossing at Fitzroy Crossing if the climate permits. Having noticed the attractive Purple-crown Fairy-wrens in Geikie Gorge we hoped so as to add one other chook species to our 2022 yr checklist. There have been numerous modifications over current years on the low stage crossing and after some critical erosion just a few years in the past the monitor all the way down to the river was closed to autos. The crossing itself continues to be holding up, so you’ll be able to stroll down the dusty monitor and observe the bird-life up and down stream. Since I final wrote in regards to the crossing in 2015 we’ve got visited yearly and as you’ll be able to think about there may be at all times one thing new to see. At totally different occasions of yr there are totally different birds to see and the water stage is extraordinarily variable. By September every year it’s normally at its lowest stage and on this current go to it was already previous 1pm and a sizzling and dry 43c.
As you’ll be able to see within the header photograph it’s now fairly a steep and dusty descent to the Fitzroy River. When it is extremely sizzling you need to put on closed-in footwear otherwise you danger burning your ft. There have been many Black Kites and Whistling Kites hovering within the thermals over the river. We might hear Gray-Topped Babblers within the dense bush as we made our manner down.
Fitzroy River from the low stage bridge
The primary birds that we noticed had been Straw-necked Ibis ingesting on the river after which Magpie-larks and Black-fronted Dotterels. A number of bushes had been in flower and so they had been attracting Little Friarbirds, Rufous-throated Honeyeaters, White-gaped Honeyeaters and Yellow-tinted Honeyeaters. Fairy Martins had been dipping into the water and in addition Rainbow Bee-eaters swooped down catching bugs and returning to perch on the branches overhanging the river. There was fairly a raucous sound and the Sulfur-crested Cockatoos had been within the bushes and coming all the way down to drink.
Sulfur-crested Cockatoo
We wandered throughout the low stage bridge to see what was beside the water in every route and shortly added Brolga, Peaceable Doves, Little Pied Cormorants, Masked Lapwings and Bar-shouldered Doves to the checklist for the situation. There have been different raptors together with Brown Falcon and Brown Goshawk. Trying again in the direction of the bushes we quickly observed further birds together with Lengthy-tailed Finch, Rufous Whistler, Yellow-throated Miner, Paperbark Flycatcher, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike, Nice Bowerbird and White-winged Triller. I had observed a really small pool of water that was attracting the Double-barred Finch and I might hear one thing else within the close by dense bushes. It did not take lengthy and instantly there have been Star Finch on the fringe of the pool ingesting. We hadn’t noticed Star Finch but in 2022, so standing out within the solar was price it! The Star Finch knew the way to cool off!
Star Finch
when the Star Finch bathed they virtually turned invisible till they stood up and their purple payments gave them away.
Star Finch and Double-barred Finch bathing and ingesting
As we climbed again up the steep dusty slope to the automobile we observed we had been being watched by a few agile wallabies. They had been staying within the shade for apparent causes and as soon as the daylight began to fade they’d make their manner all the way down to the water to drink.
Agile wallaby
The climate may be difficult at the perfect of occasions, however the rewards for venturing out in the midst of the day will also be rewarding. Most of the finch species must drink all through the day and if you too can do this in acceptable clothes and footwear you could properly observe a chook species you have not seen but this yr.
