I have often driven to Coraki via Gundurimba and one of the roads I often noticed takes a right just past South Gundurimba Hall. Another is further along Coraki Road with the curious name Flood Reserve Road. Since I had been doing some random winter drives in the good weather (2020) I thought I might have a look down each of these ... consulting Google Maps (what else!!) the night before heading off led to some excited anticipation because it showed the road at the Hall (McMahons Road) joined up with Flood Reserve Road as it meandered along beside Pelican Creek, both passing through farmland. Seemed like some promising country for birds 😁.
As it turned out, Google maps was a tad misleading (who would have thought that was even possible 😜?!). McMahons Road was a pleasant country lane but not too far along was fenced off as a private road. However, Flood Reserve Road, did not disappoint and led me through a wonderful morning and on to an even better afternoon.
First gem I spotted was this egret grazing in the long grass on an island in a paddock dam, It looks regal in both: "just" the grass in the first, but also with the cow also grazing in the background for contrast and co-existence in the second. Crouching in the long grass too as that neck concertinas down!
Well along the Flood Reserve Road you cross Pelican Creek several times and have the opportunity to park and wander along several billabongs (really, they are wider stretches of the Creek). Here are some shots of some of the tiny finches and wrens that were flitting merrily among the reed and grass heads and resting on branches in bushes. The first a young red-browed finch; the second & third more mature ones with the red bills and red brows becoming more pronounced, but still adolescent. The fourth photo of the set is a female fairy wren. Each photo offers a useful context to appreciate the small size of these birds and the third one especially shows off the "finery" of the breast feathers.
This next one, while over-exposed sadly, still offers a nice image of the still waters beside the steep bank with the white-headed pigeon drinking providing a wonderful mirrored reflection. A nice reminder of a peaceful wander beside the Creek ... here I would like to return in another season to see what other treasures might be present 😊.
While heading into Coraki for some lunch, I noticed a Lagoon Road heading west. Worth a look with a name like that - so I did after lunch, just because I was there and I could. There were indeed some nice ponds and small wetland areas but not too much birdlife this day. I did however manage two good sightings as you see labelled below which certainly made the exploration worthwhile.
The yellow eye of the female and purple/crimson/blue hue of the crown feathers are striking features in the first photo. The transparency afforded by the sunshine backlighting the second image is a treat allowing identifcation of this bird of prey soaring on the thermals.
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| Black-necked stork |
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| Whistling kite |
On the return journey - well the way home really, since the "return" began when I left home 😉 - I ended up deciding to drive by Lismore Lake. While it is some time since there has been a good body of water in it, there remains plenty of long reeds/weeds and it is still a lovely walk along the bank between the Lake and the river on the eastern side. This afternoon was a real treat and capped a really good day with some fantastic images ... they are presented in the order they were sighted rather than necessarily grouped together in species as I tend to do in these posts.
Each labelled bird below has been featured in earlier posts, but some of these are much clearer images. I rate the ones here of the rainbow bee-eater my best (of this bird) so far. The light was just about prefect and the setting in the pine tree really complimented the most gorgeous colours of these birds. The long tail "streamers" indicate the male. The white-breasted wood swallows need little said about how they make a simple palette look so wonderful and soft and their posing this day showed off that magificence in groups, pairs and as singles - really special. The photos included of the scarlet honeyeater are as clear as I have been able to capture so far, if not quite as beautiful as the contrasting ones I captured in the jacaranda in Bellingen - they still look magnificent in this riverside winter bush setting. Hell, even the humble figbirds (by comparison) look really good!
Enjoy my fantastic end to a great day 😁!
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