Birds arrive for the Red Centre Bird Festival - 100s of Budgies, Raptors, Parrots, Bush Birds - photos

The Red Centre Bird Festival is happening this week and Alice Springs is alive with birds and birders. Activities are running all week. Yesterday morning I led a group of 25-30 people around the Alice Springs Telegraph Station, and we managed to see a variety of small bush birds. This morning there was a large contingent at the Alice Springs Poo Ponds, and tomorrow afternoon is an outing to Simpsons Gap. Thursday morning it is back to the Poo Ponds and then Friday morning another group at the Telegraph Station, followed by the start of the Twitchathon on Friday at 6 pm. My son Moses and I will be trying to crack the 100 bird mark for the 24 hours.

Moses and I went out to a place just south of the Alice Springs airport to check out the flocks of Busdgerigars. Estimation of numbers was between 500 and 1000 (I know that is a large gap but have you ever tried counting them?) We also saw some Banded Whiteface, as well as a close-up encounter with some Southern Whiteface who had a nest in the shrub we had pulled up next to, not to mention White-winged Fairy-wrens and White-winged Trillers, Cockatiels, Masked Woodswallows, Brown Falcon and a host of other birds. The Centre is drying out and the remaining water-holes and dams are starting to be frequented by Budgies in huge numbers, as well as Cockatiels in their hundreds.

Alas I am out at Nyirripi for the week, but this has its benefits as I also get to drive through Newhaven Station which is only 10 kms down the road. More Banded Whiteface, White-fronted Honeyeaters, Grey-headed Honeyeaters, Singing and Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters, Masked and Black-faced Woodswallows, Ground Cuckoo-shrikes, the list seems endless sometimes and the camera is constantly clicked.

I am really looking forward to getting back to town and starting the Twitchathon. When we went to see the budgerigar flock, we could have driven north instead. I had checked with another birder and he went north, and saw Bourke's Parrots by about 5:30 pm which meant the photos were stunning. A lot to look forward to and get excited about. That's not to mention some breaking news by John Young, the Night Parrot "re-discoverer" that will be revealed on Sunday night.

Even if you can't make it for the Bird Festival week, try to get to Alice Springs for a wonderful birding experience before it gets too hot.

And now for the photos:

Flock of Budgerigars, try counting that lot!

Black-breasted Buzzard, check out the feet!

Diamond Dove being given the eye by some Zebra Finches

Dragon

Grey-headed Honeyeater 

Landscape near Nyirripi, NT

Rainbow Bee-eater

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Sand Goanna

Singing Honeyeater

Sunset near Nyirripi NT

Zebra Finch

Red Centre Bird Festival Twitchathon precursor

This week in Alice Springs, the Red Centre Bird Festival is happening. This coming weekend sees two big events, the Twitchathon and the Night Parrot Talk by John Young with new discoveries so should be awesome.

I have been checking out the local spots in preparation for the Twitchathon. Some amazing sights around at the moment. Here is a sample from the last few days:

Red-capped Robin and Splendid Fairy-wren

Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike 

Black-shouldered Kite

Mistletoebird

Black-faced Woodswallow

Budgerigar flock

Brown Falcon with snake

Red-browed Pardalote

White-browed Babbler

Colourful Parrots - Mulga Parrots, Cockatiels, Australian Ringeck Little Corella, Budgerigars

As the centre of Australia dries out, the remaining waterholes become very busy with bird activity. I visited one place recently and managed a few photos of a variety of birds.

Mulga Parrot male

Mulga Parrot - female

 Cockatiels

Australian Ringneck

Little Corella

Galah (nest is inside the tree hollow)

Budgerigars

Sometimes you get no peace in the natural world even if you outnumber the protagonist(s) 50 to 1

The Grey Teals at Papunya number over 50 at the moment. For the past week or so I have watched them take off, circle wildly and loudly then settle back onto the water. They were joined by Pink-eared Ducks (were 5 the other day, now seemingly back to 4) and Pacific Black Ducks (3 which have now either taken off to their next stop, or been taken off by something else). Mostly, I thought my human intervention via the car was the reason for their flightiness. Late this afternoon it was a Black-breasted Buzzard, human, Little Crow, and they even seemed disturbed by the Whiskered Tern at times. I wished I was closer to the action but the area is enclosed by a cyclone fence, so some of the images, especially the Buzzard were unfortunately not as crisp as I would have liked.

Black-breasted Buzzard

Grey Teals off to the skies then returning to their water haven

Little Crow

Pink-eared Ducks

Whiskered Tern

(I know why it is here now, but why would it come here in the first place? Maybe a regular stopover)

Willie Wagtail with one of those lovely Central Australian backdrops