Some birds found while exercising

 This morning I took myself to the back of the WWTP for an exercise walk on which I would note the birds I saw.  To give added aerobic benefit I schlepped a couple of kgs of scope and tripod.  Initially I thought there were few fowl around, but it turned out they were all on the rocky banks hiding from the wind.  

I was particularly pleased to see a pair of Musk Ducks on the Big Pond.

A Jacky Winter - one of at least 8 in the area - posed nicely.
The total list of species seen is https://ebird.org/australia/checklist/S89171254.

In the afternoon we  went for another walk on the beach at Bastion Point. At the foot of the steps Frances noticed a White-fronted Chat perched on a clump of washed up seaweed.  As we peered at the weed and sand we realised there were Chats everywhere.

The highest count we got to here was 33, which is an exceptionally large flock for this species.  As we got to the mouth - which was very wide - there were another 6.

Returning to the steps, the big flock was still there: some of them perched in a more exposed position. 

Last Winter there were a flock of about a dozen Australian Pied Oystercatchers at Quarry Beach for most of Winter.  This afternoon (29 May about 1515 hrs) when we returned to the steps there was a flock of 25 Oystercatchers feeding on the fresh(ish) washed up seaweed.  

Presumably there was a lot of small animal life in there!  

From time to time I noted leg flags on the Quarry Beach flock, but usually only one or two birds were so adorned.  I photographed the birds I thought were flagged today and got readable numbers off 4 of them: 57, 85; 9A and JJ.  Images below - you will note there is a flag on the bird behind JJ which may be 57 - certainly begins with 5 - or something else.  The flag numbers have been reported to BLA.


Other "good things" noted were 2 Little Egrets, 1 Great Egret and a Caspian Tern sending up a fountain of water when it dived!  The checklist is here.

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