Which bird species do you think is the biggest attraction to visitors of your lodge (please only name one species)?
Victoria’s Riflebird (Ptiloris victoriae)
What is the name of your lodge, and since when has your lodge been operating?
Atherton Tablelands Birdwatchers’ Cabin, since 2016
How best to travel to your lodge?
By car; less than 2 hours from Cairns
What kind of services – except for accommodation and food – does your lodge offer to visiting birders?
Birdbath and feeders near the cabin, riflebird display post just meters from the cabin’s veranda, bird and other animal checklists, reference books/field guides, a list and map of birding and wildlife spots on the Atherton Tablelands. BTW: we do not offer food, except for an extensive range of condiments. The cabin has a well-equipped kitchen.
What makes your lodge special?
We are located in the Atherton Tablelands, where nearly half of Australia’s bird species occur. Within an hour’s drive (or much less), you can visit many diverse ecosystems: savannah woodlands, upland rainforest, wetlands, and open rural areas. The cabin is set within an ecotone of rainforest and sclerophyll forest. There is only one cabin, so you can enjoy undisturbed, tranquil birdwatching.
View from cabin veranda
What are the 10 – 20 most interesting birds that your lodge offers good chances to see?
- Australian King Parrot
- White-throated Treecreeper
- Red-backed Fairywren
- Yellow-throated Scrubwren
- Mountain Thornbill
- Macleay’s Honeyeater
- Bridled Honeyeater
- White-cheeked Honeyeater
- Eastern Spinebill
- Grey-headed Robin
- Pale-yellow Robin
- Golden Whistler
- Bower’s Shrike-thrush
- Pied Monarch
- Yellow-breasted Boatbill
- Victoria’s Riflebird
- Satin Bowerbird
Our property bird list encompasses 132 species, so far.
Australian King Parrot
What is the best time to visit your lodge, and why?
June to December: riflebirds displaying, September to March: most birds breeding
Is your lodge involved in conservation efforts? If yes, please describe them.
We preserved our property as a Nature Refuge, the highest conservation status for private land in Queensland (comparable to National Parks). Our property also borders onto Herberton Range National Park.
Yellow-breasted Boatbill
What other suggestions can you give to birders interested in visiting your lodge?
Although we are in the tropics, bring warm clothes, as it can get chilly here at 1000m elevation at any time of the year.
Do you have activities for non-birders? If so, please describe.
There are private, marked walking tracks in our forest, including a self-guided botanical walk. You can go spotlighting for gliders, possums, frogs, geckoes, etc. We occasionally set up a light sheet to attract moths, beetles, and other insects. In the nearby national park,s there are many walks and waterfalls/swimming holes. Some villages/towns on the tablelands have art galleries/art trails.
Tree-kangaroo
If any reader of 10,000 Birds is interested in staying at your lodge, how can they best contact you?
Via the contact pages of our website: www.athertontablelandsbirdwatcherscabin.com.au info@athertontablelandsbirdwatcherscabin.com.au
Is there anything else you would like to share with the readers of 10,000 Birds?
We welcome guests, who enjoy watching birds and being part of nature, respect flora & fauna around them, and who understand that nature is unpredictable and that there is no guarantee that they will be able to tick off every bird on their list. Thus we do not encourage call-back, approaching nesting birds, and photographers who have to get their perfect shot to the detriment of their target species and/or the flora on our property. We do not allow the feeding of cassowaries under any circumstances.
We do not allow the feeding of cassowaries under any circumstances.
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