Campout 2011 Scottsdale | C & C 2010 Townsville | About

Campout 2011 Scottsdale Reserve, NSW

The annual Birds Australia Campout run by the Canberra Ornithologists Group (COG) was held at the Bush Heritage property Scottsdale south of Canberra from Wednesday 6th to Saturday 9th April. There were thirty-eight participants from all over Australia with two from New Zealand. 

The first outing was on Wednesday afternoon to an Apple Box woodland Travelling Stock Reserve at Strike-a-Light Creek, a few kilometers south of Bredbo on the Jerangle Road. 

The evening started off with a BBQ hosted by COG which was then followed by a welcome address from Birds Australia CEO, Graeme Hamilton.  Chris Davey, COG President, then gave a short presentation on the autumn movement patterns of birds in the area.  Peter Saunders, Manager Scottsdale, gave us a brief introduction to Bush Heritage and to Scottsdale and this was followed by Nicki Taws, Greening Australia, on the K2C survey. The evening’s events were concluded by a presentation from Sandy Gilmore, Ecologist, Bush Heritage who is responsible for assessing the abundance, distribution and status of mammals and birds on a number of Bush Heritage Reserves, including Scottsdale.

The next morning Sandy Gilmore showed the party around Scottsdale, visiting various habitats including Apple Box and Yellow Box/ Red Gum woodlands and riverine habitat along the Murrumbidgee River.  The honeyeater migration was in full swing with counts ranging from 20 to 50 birds passing per minute.  The afternoon was spent travelling over the badly burnt Tinderry Ranges and on to the Tallaganda State Forest.  After an evening meal the party split into two and spent a couple of hours spot-lighting for Powerful Owls in the cool temperate wet forest.  Some members of one of the groups were lucky enough to get a fleeting glimpse of an Owl flying overhead and all participants were able to get good views of Greater Gliders.

Friday morning was delayed by fog but this soon gave way to a good morning’s birding with 53 bird species recorded at Bumbalong, a small village situated a few kilometers north of Scottsdale and on the Murrumbidgee River.  The late afternoon was spent at North Ridge Park in Cooma, a Callitris woodland with a well developed understorey.  The highlight of this outing was a pair of Gang-gang with a young male that allowed wonderful close views of this beautiful bird, one that many of the participants had expressed a wish to see.  The day was concluded by COG member Mark Clayton with a bird quiz which provided much amusement.  Questions such as "name the bird with the longest bill in the world" and "are there any poisonous birds" caused much head scratching.

Again, due to early morning fog, the Kosiuscko2Coast survey was delayed but by midday on Saturday the 2Ha Atlas survey of 38 sites over 23 properties was completed.

Saturday was the 20th Anniversary of the formation of Bush Heritage and to celebrate this milestone the Campout participants and COG members involved in the K2C survey were, along with over 100 invited guests, treated to a lunch-time BBQ hosted by Bush Heritage.

The participants broke camp after the BBQ. A wet visit the next morning to Mulligan’s Flat Nature Reserve in the ACT  was attended by a few participants. Jenny Bounds outlined the history of the Reserve and the work that is being conducted by the Australian National University.

Our aim at the Campout was to show some of the habitats and associated bird fauna to be found on the Southern Tablelands and to show the honeyeater migration that passes through at this time of the year.  There were 98 bird species recorded during the Campout.  For me, the two outstanding features were the abundance of threatened woodland species and the continuing presence of some migratory species that would normally have departed the area.  

Chris Davey, President Canberra Ornithologists Group.

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2010 Congress & Campout Townsville

Birds Australia North Queensland (BANQ) hosted this year's Congress & Campout in and around Townsville from 13 - 20 August 2010.

View the abstracts from the Congress and the Bird list from the Campout.

About C & C

A Birds Australia Congress is held every 2 years alternate to the AOC. At each Congress, expert ornithologists and amateurs alike gather to hear fascinating lectures and discussions on a myriad of bird-related topics, attend workshops, catch up with the latest bird news, mingle at the Congress dinner, and go on field trips to places of local ornithological interest.  Since its inception in the early 1900s, the Congress has become an institution. All states and territories have hosted it, not just in the capital cities, but in many different regional centres as well, from Port Arthur in Tasmania to the Atherton Tableland in north Queensland, and from Geraldton in Western Australia to Rockhampton in Queensland. They have even been held as far afield as Norfolk Island, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, much to the delight of the participants.  Due to their popularity, participants need to book to attend the Congress, and advance notice about forthcoming events is published in Wingspan and on our website.

Many Congress' have a Campout as its climax. Each year the Campout is held at an interesting ornithological site within easy travelling distance from wherever the Congress was conducted. Some of the recent Campouts have been held in Kakadu National Park, on Cape York and in Gluepot Reserve.  Assisted by local birdwatchers, participants are able to see local specialties and may participate in local conservation projects, as well as enjoy a relaxing few days birdwatching in some of Australia’s best birding locations, and then catch up with friends (old and new) around a campfire each night. If camping is not your style, comfortable alternative accommodation is generally available nearby.

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