Cairns and the Atherton Tableland, September 2019

One of my targets of the trip was the Golden Bowerbird and his characteristic Bower.

A colourful flight shot of a Rainbow Lorikeet was one of the feature shots of the trip illustrating you never know what nature will bring.

For various reasons regarding our long-term stay in Malaysia Helen and I had to leave the country on the same day. Helen and Nikki were to spend 2 weeks in India and I opted for 8-9 days in Cairns and the Atherton Tableland. I was to go with my usual Jucy van and to spend 2 nights in Cairns, 2 near Lake Eachem, 2 at Granite Gorge and Two at Kingfisher Park. I had not bargained for local school holidays which meant two of the camping grounds were fuller than anticipated but overall it was a minor inconvenience.

I flew with SilkAir via Singapore and arrived in Cairns on Saturday morning 21^st September around 9.30am. While in Cairns I stayed in a budget motel to (a) get a good sleep, (b) to sort my gear and (c) to watch some rugby. The Cairns stay was split with one night on either end of the trip.

My photographic focus in Cairns was the mudflats adjacent to the Esplanade. The Northern migrants had arrived already to escape the on-coming winter. The Esplanade is popular with locals and tourists and is well set-up with a huge swimming pool, various workout stations and barbecue facilities. Sadly, like many other places errant folk throw rubbish anywhere except the bins provided. Unlike some places I am familiar with the wine and beer bottles cast into the lapping waters are removed at low tide the next day. There are many restaurants feeding the holiday-makers and day trippers. 

The large  and free, esplanade swimming pool is patrolled by lifeguards all day

The clusters of shorebirds are driven towards the Esplanade by the incoming tide. Several locals I spoke to said there are not as many birds in recent times.....another bad sign. I had fun with flight shots and a Kingfisher pair that likely had a nest nearby.

Sacred Kingfisher

Australian Pelican

I picked up my van later on Sunday and headed for the hills. I had been upgraded with a sleeping compartment on top of the van. This was much better than having to shuffle around the contents of the van and photographic gear to set up a cramped bed. Two minutes cranking and the boudoir awaited via an aluminium ladder. My friend Nick, when shown the picture of the set-up was concerned about how nighttime urination was accomplished. There were ways and medals for marksmanship should have been awarded.

I had stayed twice at the camping grounds at Lake Eachem. My main missions was to photograph the display of the Victoria’s Riflebird....if the time was right. Rather disappointingly the weather was not the best with drizzle in the morning. From previous experience I knew the Riflebirds displayed in the car park at the nearby Lake Barrine. I spent two mornings at the location and could hear the target birds calling but there were no displays. Wompoo Fruit Doves, Catbirds and the ubiquitous Brush Turkeys were around. In previous years, albeit later in the year, this area had been more productive. 

Rainbows, pretty to see but it means rain is in the neighbourhood.

The nearest town is Yungaburra, which is a small but pleasant place with colourful flower baskets, an old pub and well-stocked supermarket. I could live in Yungaburra.

The following shot of the displaying Victoria's Riflebird was taken 6 years ago at Lake Barrine. 

Lake Barrine tearooms

Wompoo Fruit Dove (bollocks are blue)

From Lake Eachem I went to view Hastie's swamp and chatted with other photographers there. A Purple Swamp Hen had caught a frog and it attempted to feed it to two young, black, fluffy chicks....and failed. This is the same species as the New Zealand Pukeko. It is correctly known as the Australasian Swamphen.

Near lake Tinaroo a Bush Thick-knee was taking a break.

 The next port of call was Granite Gorge. On the way I encountered a noisy flock of Red-tailed Black Cockatoos (male shown).

The camp was fuller than the last time I was here but I found a place in the pines on the periphery which was close to the toilet and shower block. I had photographed Rainbow Bee-eaters and Great Bowerbirds here before. The local Bowerbird had relocated his bower to beneath a large tree that precluded good photographic angles. 

The tree was in the middle of a horse-paddock that was delineated by an electric fence. I found rainbow bee-eaters and there was some nesting activity. 

Rainbow Bee-eaters

I also found another bower quite close to where the van was parked. It was under a scruffy bush and very close to the entrance road to the camp. Young boys played cricket only feet away. The sun was placed well for morning shots....too early for cricket..... some interesting behaviour  occurred. The main item in the bower pavement of this species is bleached snail shells and these seemed to be in limited supply......at least three other bower owners were stealing them. The owner of the tree bower was one of them. There is likely a dynamic situation where the bower basic building elements and toys fly regularly from location to location. 

A thief in action

A plain male bird unleashes a lilac 'flower' when a female comes close.

Tree Bower from above...three 'paved' areas and green broken glass...and always purple/pink toys

Bush Bower...close to habitation

Cars pass close by

....and young cricketers use the bush as a wicketkeeper

While photographing the van bower I noticed above me was a nest of a pair of Blue-faced Honeyeaters, and the adults were feeding chicks in the nest. Action target #2. The first image shows the male nectar-feeding. Like other nectar feeders they will feed the chicks protein in the form of insects. 

The next 2 shots are the male flying to the nest and then the female ( she has a lighter blue face)

I wondered if there were better angles to photograph the tree bower but found another gem....a flowering tree that was being hammered by a bunch of nectar feeders. This kept me busy for a few hours and was one of the trip highlights.

The flowering tree...the bower is under the large tree behind.

A new selphie trend.....the shadow selphie

Rainbow Lorikeet

Spangled Drongo

Noisy Friarbird

Rainbow Lorikeet

Great Bowerbird (the bower is nearby)

Blue-faced Honeyeater (male)

While not a nectar feeder, but in the same area, was a ubiquitous Kookaburra. They always let you know where they are.

Granite Gorge is in a semi-arid region whereas Lake Eachem was a rainforest area and I had warm sunny days that were a little windy at times. The nearest town is Mareeba....which appears to be rather down-market compared to Yungaburra and the older centrepiece of the area, Atherton.

The next venue was Kingfisher Park...a privately owned rainforest fragment in sugar territory. On the way I passed through Mount Malloy a very small settlement where there were once a number of bowers. One was located in the local school. It was still there and the proprietor had added a number of toys but it was surrounded by wire mesh...protection for the Bowerbird but not good for nature photographers. The stick avenue was rather scruffy but he had an impressive collection of extras.

There are years of collecting bower decorations illustrated here.

Kingfisher Park was not busy (school-kids are mostly excluded because it is for serious birdwatchers). I picked my spot and set out to explore. A stream runs through the property and for an hour each night I watched two platypuses surface and submerge. 

Where forest meets sugar

...........and they clearly revere their politicians.

The nights were cool and some mornings were misty.

There were a number of honeyeaters raiding flowers and down the road a pair of Papuan Frogmouths were engaged in a very slow-motion courtship. These are very large....and handsome ...birds. They are the same size as a medium to large owl.

Yellow-bellied Sunbird (female). Same species as the Olive-backed Sunbirds found in Asia

Spectacled Monarch

Lewin's Honeyeater

Papuan Frogmouths (Female left, male right)

In a patch of gum trees on the periphery of a nearby Aussie Rules ground was a nest of Metallic Starlings. The sleek birds look very similar to our local Asian Glossy Starlings. A red-eyed bird whose coat looks like an oil slick in the angled morning sun. They build community nests and are very noisy doing so. There must have been 100-150 in this flock jabbering constantly when all of a sudden they all take off together. They fly in formation around the area before returning to the nest 15-20 minutes later. At times the ‘small cloud of these birds performs mini murmurations.

An important social centre at such places is the community kitchen. Well set-up to cook and store food in the rusting refrigerator it is also a good place to have a chat with others about what they have found. There was a nice young Indian guy from Canada and a large female mid-wife from New Zealand. She was interested in catching up with the rugby scores. 

One of the stars of the location was a Noisy Pitta. Pittas are colourful birds that lurk around forest floors. There are several species in Malaysia but only one in Australia. I caught him on the driveway on the morning I left for Cairns via Port Douglas.

hard to compare with our local Garnet Pitta

I was running out of supplies at this point, with one night to go, so I stopped at Port Douglas for a breakfast of bacon and eggs before returning to the same motel in Cairns that was handy to the Esplanade. The evening shoot was compromised by the tide being so far out but next morning it came in rapidly pushing the shore-birds closer and close to the boardwalk.

Migrants from the North: A Whimbrel and an Eastern Curlew

Gull-billed Tern feeding on the wing (non breeding)

Displaying Pied Oystercatchers.

Black-fronted Dotterel

Gull-billed tern

Eastern Curlew. 75% of this Northern Hemisphere species winters in Australia.

Sandpiper

Sacred Kingfisher in flight

Mixed flock of waders in flight

I later returned the van and went to the airport. I had a wait there but a much longer wait at Changi Airport.....eight hours. I watched a replay of the Wallabies playing Wales and joined the hundreds sleeping on the floor. At Cairns airport I was intrigued by a large Russian plane that was parked there ...all week. It had 4 wheels at the front and 20 in the middle. Research revealed it to be a Antanov 124-100. It has been hired by the Singapore airforce to bring 4 helicopters to Queensland for military operation.

Wikipedia says: Designed in the 1980s the Antonov-124-100 is the world’s largest civil cargo aircraft, and an acknowledged leader of the air cargo market for the transportation of oversized and super-heavy shipments. The combination of exceptional characteristics such as its cargo compartment size, flight range and uplift capability without using special loading equipment allows the An-124 to carry super-heavy and oversized cargo up to 120 tonnes across the greatest range.

 It was a good relaxing 8 days. I heard the Hypipamee Golden Bowerbird (first image) is no longer on site. Time marches on but the memories stay.