My partner and I visited Australia in November, to stay with her brother in Perth, Western Australia. It wasn't a wildlife holiday, although we did go on a whale watching trip to see Sperm Whales that pass the west coast of Australia between August and November, on migration. We also visited the Margaret River area, a wine growing region, for four nights. The woodland here contained many species of small birds. When in Perth I would visit Herdsman Lake, a 20 minute walk away from where we were staying, most mornings before breakfast. This is probably Perth's premier bird watching reserve. It contains a large array of water birds, although I came across very few small birds other than the ubiquitous 'Willie Wagtails', a couple of honeyeaters and a few Clamorous Reed Warblers, the only species that we would recognise as a true warbler in Western Australia. In all, I identified 82 bird species during our stay and probably missed a few in the dense woodland of Margaret River. Insect life in the Australian spring was a little disappointing: we did see some dragonflies and butterflies (including what looked remarkably like a Painted Lady), but it soon became clear that I should concentrate on the birds. Here is a selection of images of birds, photographed on the holiday.
Singing Honeyeater, a fairly common bird in Perth
Little Pied Cormorant, a cute little bird which was very common, both at Herdsman Lake and elsewhere
Darter, the 'Serpent Bird' with its long neck. I never saw it fishing or flying!
Clamorous Reed Warbler. I was pleased to get a photo of this bird which, like other members of its family, loves to skulk in the reeds. Very noisy!
Spotted Turtle-Dove, the larger of two turtle-doves that are commonly seen in Perth, alongside the Feral Pigeons!
Sacred Ibis, one of two very common Ibises in Perth (the other is Straw-necked). These birds are present in their hundreds at Herdsman Lake, where there is a breeding colony.
Crested Tern. The commonest breeding tern around Western Australia's coastline, this bird can be identified by its large size and yellow bill.
A female Red-winged Fairy Wren, photographed in the Margaret River area.
This Osprey was one of a pair that took quite an interest in us as we walked along a coastal path. They left the nest site together, perhaps indicating that they were not (yet) nesting. Quite a few Osprey pairs were seen along the coastline. There is debate about whether these Ospreys and 'our' Ospreys are separate species.
Port Lincoln Ringneck (or '28 bird', so named because of its call). These birds appear to have been pushed out of Perth by the noisy and invasive introduced Rainbow Lorikeet, which is the dominant parrot in the city. However, they are still common in the Margaret River area. This bird appears to be nesting in a tree hole.
Little Corella. This parrot is still seen in decent numbers in Perth, where it is a ground feeder.
Australasian Pelican. These birds were seen at Herdsman Lake. Their breeding colony is 20-25 miles away on Penguin Island, which we had hoped to visit whilst we were in Perth Unfortunately, the landing area on the island had become too sanded over for boats to visit, so we had to settle for a boat trip around this and other islands, with compensation in the form of a very active school of Dolphins.
