First mist netting session at the Mangroves

Up early to go the mangroves to set up for mist netting. It was thick fog when we got there in the dark and proceeded to put the nets up. 1 x 18m, 2 x 9m, 3 x 12m. Matt organised the event Mavis , Mary, Jingle and Ed came down with Gill one of the guests.

Opened at 6 am. Had an initial rush of birds coming out of roost and then a slow trail off towards 9 am when from then onwards very little was caught.

A total of 50 birds were caught including Dusky gerygone, Mangrove grey fantail, white breasted whistler, and lots of yellow white eye.

Mangrove Grey fantail and adult, broad tail feathers and no white tips to the primary coverts. Also wing feathers worn and brown compared to other immature birds caught.

Dusky gerygone, similar to Mangrove gerygone but identified by the white eye (Mangrove is dark red as well as a lack of white patches in the tail. This is an adult birds again identified on eye colour, juvs are dark yellow in colour.

Setting the scene

Hi all, i promised some bird in the hand but before that, here are some scene setters.

Bush Banding

Managed to get some banding done with the aid of Mavis Russell a visiting bander and old hand of the Obs so it was a real bonus having her around while i found my feet.

The shade house has bird bathes set up behind it so you can watch the bush birds come in to drink but also provides the perfect mist net site.

The Great bower birds (right) come in to drink mostly in the afternoons, along with Brown goshawks (below) which use the baths to drink, bathe and eat whatever's around !!!!!!!!!!




























Brown goshawk a nice male



The shade of the eucalypt cast on the picnic table provides a great banding station where we can band birds and show visitors staying at the observatory.





















more photos to follow of birds in the hand.............

Landed at Last !!!!!

Hi all

Well i guess you've been thinking where the hell is this Blogg he promised us??? Well here tis coming at you from the hot and humid tropics of Broome in Western Australia.

I arrived with great cold which turned into a chest infection and just before i turned myself in for swine fever testing it started to disappear !!! that combined with jet lag made it a rough first week but i've now got my feet firmly under the table and starting to get to grips with all thats going on.




Just to confirm to everyone my freeserve account doesn't like sending from my laptop here so i have reverted to my hotmail address which is re_entree@hotmail.com and a role reversal of kin draw will come up as my name....yes its just backwards for all you sharp eyed people amongst you !!!









Well this is where i am living at the moment Fab Eh?????? A real des res!!

Its basically a tin box which heats up in the day and goes slightly cold in the evening. We have had a couple of mornings at 9 degrees and average day temperatures about 32 degree and most night temperatures 11 to 16 degrees.



We have receieved some unseasonal rain, one night it spotted rain but sounded like a hail storm on the tin roof, and the next really was a good down pour leaving 4.9mm.






Then the sunsets are fantastic ................