ZooChat Big Year 2020

Birds
75. Golden Whistler Pachycephala pectoralis
76. Channel-billed Cuckoo Scythrops novaehollandiae
77. Eastern Koel Eudynamys orientalis

 

Birds
47. Oriental Magpie-robin Copsychus saularis
48. White-browned Fantail Rhipidura aureola

 

At the confluence of the Big and Little Arkansas Rivers, near downtown Wichita is a large statue titled, "Keeper of the Plains". This local landmark also happens to be the site where a handful of black-crowned night-herons have decided to tough out the winter. On my lunch hour I dropped by to visit them.

66 Black-crowned Night-Heron - Nycticorax nycticorax

I don't know if this is just a North American thing, or do people throughout the world go birding in cemeteries? Seems around here they are a great place to bird, especially in the winter. I'm guessing its because they often have large coniferous trees. I stopped by Maple Grove Cemetery in Wichita to do a little birding. Only got one new species, but overall it was pretty birdy.

67 Golden-crowned Kinglet - Regulus satrapa

 

Half-day off work today for complicated reasons so took the opportunity to head down to Carsington Water in order to fail to see a Jack Snipe for the second time this year. I did indeed fail to see a Jack Snipe, but nature rustled up a consolation addition nevertheless.

Birds:
87. Common Gull - Larus canus

 

Birds
38. Barred Owl Strix varia
39. Great Horned Owl Bubo virginianus

Mammals
4. Northern Raccoon Procyon lotor

 

Not a Red-footed Booby. They're pretty infrequently reported off Australian coasts and pretty strictly at sea (with the exception of a sick bird that showed up in a school in Essendon a year or two ago). If you saw it inland, it'd have to be a pretty unwell bird, in which case I'd expect it wouldn't be flying overhead, and unless you're Brisbane or further north, you're not really well within range. Even Brisbane's only had a few records I believe... And if you're 7 km inland you're in totally the wrong spot to see one.

While it's hard to know without seeing the bird, the description sounds very good for Pacific Gull. Pacific Gulls will often fold their wings in a very angular fashion when they're gliding in strong winds and they have yellow bills, dark wings and are bulkier than a Black Kite. Red-footed Boobies do not have yellow bills and they have long, thin tails not short triangular ones. I'd also not be too surprised to see a Pacific Gull 7 km inland, even if they're usually coastal.

BIRDS
146 - Australasian Gannet (Morus serrator)
147 - Short-tailed Shearwater (Puffinus tenuirostris)
-- Australian Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis) [heard]
148 - White-throated Needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus)

REPTILES
4 - Common Blue-tongued Skink (Tiliqua scincoides)
5 - Southern Water Skink (Eulamprus tympanum)

FISH
2 - Short-finned Eel (Anguilla australis)

INVERTEBRATES
5 - Common Shining Cockroach (Drymaplaneta communis)
6 - Common Brown (Heteronympha merope)
7 - Blue Ant (Diamma bicolor)

 

Thank you. Pacific Gull seems to fit quite well but I’m still not 100%.

Just for the record, I am North of Brisbane, but considering it obviously wasn’t a red footed booby it doesn’t really matter anymore.

I’ll remove red footed booby from the list which brings me down to 57.

What do you reckon are the chances of it being an albatross? As that was my first thought when I originally saw it...

 

One quick addition at Yorkshire Wildlife Park today:

Birds:
88. Grey Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea

 

I wouldn't like your chances of it being an albatross either. They're even less likely to fly over land than a Red-footed Booby, although more common in the area. If you want to tell whether it's a seabird, get a good look at the wings and the flight pattern, and check the shape of the bill. Most tube-noses almost never flap their wings and just turn and glide fairly low over the water with long streamlined wings constantly straight and outstretched. They also have relatively small heads, thin bodies, short tails and long bills. Also check the underwing pattern - it varies by species, but the Thalassarche species which are more likely to show up near shore have black feathers lining the leading and trailing edges of the wings continuously.

 

A local flowering tree had an abundance of butterflies; orchard swallowtails, clearwing swallowtails, blue triangles and a new species I was finally able to identify up close.
Birds
78. European Starling Sturnus vulgaris

Invertebrates
32. Rhinoceros Beetle Xylotrupes gideon
33. Dainty Swallowtail Papilio anactus

 

Are the crows in Norfolk Ravens, Fish crows, or American?

 

Birds
40. Lesser Scaup Aythya affinis
--Common Goldeneye x Hooded Merganser Hybrid

 

They could be any of those. Do you have any photos?

 

Not Ravens. In the east they only occur in the mountains. Close to the coast Fish Crow are most likely but American are also quite possible. The easiest way to ID is the call. The "caw" of a Fish Crow is short and sort of hollow or nasal-sounding. The American Crow has a longer "caw" that is deeper and seems to resonate more.

 

Birds
32. Australian Wood Duck
33. Hardhead
34. Australasian Grebe
35. White-headed Stilt
36. Masked Lapwing
37. Spotted Dove
38. Kookaburra
39. White-winged Triller
40. Eastern Rosella
41. Australian Reed Warbler
42. Welcome Swallow
43. Red-browed Firetail Finch
44. Black Swan

Mammals
2. Wallaroo

Reptiles
1. Eastern Water Dragon



Hix

 

Mammals
3. Bonnet Macaque Macaca radiata
Birds
49. White-browed Wagtail Motacilla maderaspatensis
50. Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher Cyornis tickelliae

 

Well, that was an interesting day. First lifer of the year! I was overdue a Whipsnade visit anyway, to catch up in general and see the new aquarium in particular, but the seemingly-reliable presence of a certain bird convinced me to make it sooner rather than later. The day was boosted even further by a stop just off the motorway at Brogborough as a shrike had been reported (and as so often with this species, it was exactly where it had been reported) and by filling in a few more common species as well. Green Woodpecker and Red Kite have a habit of turning up together on a zoo day - either Whipsnade or Hamerton are both good.

Birds:
89. Great Grey Shrike - Lanius excubitor
90. Black-throated Thrush - Turdus atrogularis
91. Mistle Thrush - Turdus viscivorus
92. Red Kite - Milvus milvus
93. European Green Woodpecker - Picus viridis