Friday, August 16, 2013

Brief chat about finding rare birds



Brief chat about finding rare birds: pray to all the avian gods for more  than your fair share of luck. Then go out all the time looking at birds. Then stop looking for rare birds. Enjoy seeing all there is to see. And there may, just may, suddenly appear from nowhere, a rare unlooked for species, like, say, a Yellow Chat (Epthianura crocea). At Mungalla Station, hundreds of kilometres outside its range. A range confined mostly far inland from Ingham, apart from a small, isolated population near Rockhampton. Brief surprise sighting on hymenachne at the Mungalla wetlands yesterday. No sight or sound today. But who knows what's out there tomorrow, or all the tomorrows of a birdwatcher?

3 comments:

Sonja said...

Well done on seeing such a rarity.

It's good advice too!

Gouldiae said...

Wow Tony! Must have made the heart race a little.
From How to be a Bad Birdwatcher, (Simon Barnes)…
‘… I raised my binoculars to my eyes – and entered heaven!’
Regards,
Gouldiae.

Tyto Tony said...

And now, two days without sight or sound. But it is a big wetlands and access to much of it very difficult.

Head up for dragonfly, head off for fish head . . .

One moment it's dragonfly trying to dance on White-bellied Sea-Eagle's head, the next it's all go for fisher's discarded fis...