Travelling east from Keep River National Park on the border of Western Australia and the Northern Territory the next National Park that you come to is the Judbarra/Gregory National Park. It is a vast park with much of it only accessible by four-wheel drive. It is also a very popular park for accessing the Victoria River to catch a Barramundi! There are plenty of opportunities for observing crocodiles, a huge variety of birds, rock art, hiking trails and spectacular scenery. Big Horse Creek is a popular camping spot for fisherman with a boat ramp that is accessible to two-wheel drive vehicles.

Last week I detailed the Great Bowerbird’s bowers in Keep River National Park and now I will show you just how different the contents are when you allow camping in the area! This bower is easily visible just beside the road to the boat ramp on your left hand side just before the picnic tables.

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Great Bowerbird bower

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Top of bower

The contents at this bower are a great selection of items that the Great Bowerbird has chosen to try and attract a mate. There are plenty of pieces of broken glass, drinking straws, plastic bottle tops, aluminium foil and a piece of grey fabric. There are also natural items such as the small rocks, bones and shells.

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Items on display in the bower

Every now and then you come across a Great Bowerbird’s bower with an item in it that is amusing and this one has to be the presence of a little fish sauce container! It is a close contender for “best item” along with our little set of wheels in the bower in Broome! The marbles in the bower at Fitzroy Crossing are also worth a mention!

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Fish sauce bottle in bower!

Great Bowerbirds particularly like green and white objects, but anything shiny soon grabs their attention. Maybe you have had something stolen while you were camping?! Have you ever found anything really interesting in a bower?

Written by Clare M
Clare and her husband, Grant, have lived permanently in Broome, Western Australia since 1999 after living in various outback locations around Western Australia and Darwin. She has lived in the Middle East and the United States and traveled extensively in Europe. She monitors Pied Oystercatchers breeding along a 23km stretch of Broome's coastline by bicycle and on foot. She chooses not to participate in social media, but rather wander off into the bush for peace and tranquility. Thankfully she can write posts in advance and get away from technology!