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One of the nicest things about staying with my grandparents in Sydney is the proximity of their house to part of the Sydney Harbour National Park. This park, which protects scattered headlands, bays and islands of natural bush, is located around the entrance to Sydney Harbour. Dobroyd Head, the section in Balgowlah near where my [...]

This week we were very lucky to have the third record of a Great Frigatebird for Broome. We had seen one of the other two recorded birds during a cyclonic event a few years ago. This was a very odd record, as we didn’t get the strong winds associated with Cyclone Iggy, as it was [...]

More than a few groups of birds around the world have been given names with wren in it, almost as if the sight of a very small and active bird automatically associates with the small Winter Wren of England where most of the namers originated. There are antwrens of South America, wren-babblers of South East [...]

We have had a wet week in Broome with a tropical low to our north and further down the coast there is a cyclone. This cyclone has been named Cyclone Iggy and is a dominant circle on our satellite image of Western Australia. It has been amusing to listen to the “younger” weather people on [...]

As you all know, “brown” can be quite good on a bird and it comes in all colours and sizes! For those of you familiar with shorebirds there is a lot of “grey” out there, so I thought I should share some “brown” with you. One of the best places to find “brown” around Broome [...]

Last Sunday we went for a short drive to the east of Broome to see if we could find some sunshine! The rain has been great for the land and everywhere is turning green. You do need to be careful of cattle wandering across the highway, as the grass always looks greener on the other [...]

… and sometimes the bird tries to get you.

It had to happen eventually! We have all been waiting for the rain to arrive and it seems to be later this Wet Season. The frogs must have been wondering what was going on, but now they are happy. It’s not “rain” here until we get over 10mm in a downpour, which has now officially happened [...]

Contrary to what many people believe, Sydney is not the capital of Australia, and even calling it the premier city in the country might elicit angry complaints from the inhabitants of Melbourne. But it is the first and oldest city in Australia, and arguably the most scenic, sprawling (and it certainly does sprawl) around a [...]

We have recently come across several Masked Lapwing Vanellus miles families around Broome. They generally lay four eggs, but we have only seen a maximum of three surviving chicks after a few days.  A good indication that they have eggs or young is the extreme noise that they make. They will often fly at both [...]

Each week as I schedule my post it brings my attention to the huge time difference between Broome and New York. For those of you even further west you are even further behind us! Throw in the completely different climate we are experiencing in northern Australia and we seem to be absolutely worlds apart….but are [...]

This week we decided to do a day trip about 40kms north of Broome in search of a Beach Stone-curlew, as they had been absent in Roebuck Bay for some reason this year. The road north starts off as bitumen/tar and then becomes sand/pindan and a four-wheel drive is recommended due to changing conditions. Here’s the [...]

Time for some poetry! What can I say about Roebuck Bay… The pindan cliffs, the miles of sea A seabed full of history. What can I say about Roebuck Bay… The tide is in and the fishermen stand The hermit crabs are crossing the sand What can I say about Roebuck Bay… The tide goes [...]

Early Friday morning we heard them! We have heard and seen these birds a few times recently, but they came into our garden for a drink and bath early Friday. I have already given a huge clue as to what these birds look like-it’s all in the naming! Most Australian bird names describe the bird [...]

In Broome we only have one species of Gull-the Silver Gull Larus novaehollandiae. It is a well-known bird that is commonly called “Seagull” and they are far from shy. They are found not only on the beaches of Broome, but in the shopping area and at the rubbish tip. They are in larger numbers during [...]

We have spent most of our time recently with the shorebirds of Roebuck Bay. They have returned from the north, though more are returning and there is very little knowledge on their arrival back in the Bay. When they depart on their northward migration it is possible to go into Roebuck Bay in the late [...]

Hoopoe Upupa Epops With a name like that you would just want to see this bird! It sounds good and it looks good….even a non-birder would be impressed! We saw these birds in Egypt in 1994 and they were just great and Grant saw 5 in Busan, South Korea a few weeks ago, just after [...]

Semipalmated Plover in Broome….am I mad!? Isn’t that a bird that doesn’t venture “down under”….you are correct….or you were correct! In late 2009 there was huge excitement in Broome when a Plover was observed at the famous Poo Ponds and was initially presumed to be a Ringed Plover, which is extremely rare, but not unheard [...]

The nights are getting warmer……. Our daily forecast does not change much all year-sunny and 32c. However, the nights are getting warmer! Our minimum is suddenly 25c and the humidity is going up…soon we will be hearing “sunny and 32c with a chance of an afternoon shower”. They are even teasing us that it may happen [...]

We have a rare visitor in Broome at the moment, which is rather nice! The last time we had a Banded Lapwing Vanellus tricolor visit was 25th February 2008 and prior to that was 23rd September 2005. On those occasions the bird was on one of the school ovals, but this time it has decided [...]