Devs Big Year Challenge 2020

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Devster
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Replacement for 161 since the Purple-backed Fairy-wrens haven't been split yet.

161. Paperbark Flycatcher - Mt Isa

Devster
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Some more birds from my trip

163. Inland Thornbill at Opalton. Plenty of these guys about. Quite friendly and curious

164. Mulga Parrot - Very EPC shot as it was very late in the afternooon and I could not get a clear shot before they all spooked. Was a lifer for me.

165. Bourkes Parrot. Another EBC Lifer. Again would not let me get close enough for a decent shot, so a very big crop

166. White-browed Woodswallow

167. Rufous-crowned Emu-wren - These were at the dinosaur trail near Winton and what little characters these guys are! Diving in and out of the pointy spinifex. Another lifer for me.

168. Jacky Winter - I saw a lot of these on the trip but only managed one photo. This one was just outside of Longreach at a station property called Noonbah. They are great enviromentalists and have accomodation which we stayed at. They family have a number of subspecies of birds & reptiles named after them including a subspecies of Splendid Fairy-wren. You can check them out here https://www.noonbahstation.com.au/ It is well worth the stay.

169. Black Honeyeater - Another lifer. Plenty around at the top of the flowering Bloodwoods

170. White-winged Triller

Another shot of the Red-winged Parrot, just because I love this inflight shot

dwatsonbb
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Love the variety and some excellent photos Dev.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

karentwemlow
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What a great trip! I really must do some (local) travel and find some different species, love all your photos. Might be a bully but that Grey-fronted Honeyeater is just beautiful, love it.

Devster
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OK I think this are the last photos from my trip.

171. Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike

172. Brown Quail

173. Australian Bustard

174. Little Eagle - This one was nesting nearby. Was a lifer for me.

175. Singing Honeyeater

176. Spotted Nightjar - My biggest EBC yet and another lifer for me. My camera just would not focus until it was too late. So this was the best I could do until i upgrade my Flash

177. Red-browed Pardalote - Chased this guy everywhere but he just wouldn't come done low enough or out of the tree enough for a really good photo. That said, i am still pretty happy with this one.

178. Halls Babbler - Another one of those birds you hear before you see and just won't let you get close enough for a decent photo.

179. Pallid Cuckoo - Now this photo I am very happy with. This is full frame too, so he let me get in very close

180. Major Mitchell's Cockatoos - While not a great photo is still the best one I have of these elusive cockatoos

181. Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater - Lots of these, just other birds distracted me from them

182. Masked Woodswallow

183. Red-backed Kingfisher - I had tried to take photos of these guys all trip but they would always take off once you got anywhere near them. This guy took off too but then landed on a branch in great light and stayed there for about 5 mins. Love his funky hair do

sue818
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Wow, some amazing birds and photos, Dev... well done as some of them are so elusive. I think the Rufous-crowned Emu-wren, Red-browed Pardalote and Red-backed Kingfisher are my favourites but the Pallid Cuckoo is a beauty and any Nightjar is hard to beat. Really enjoying the variety of birds coming through this year.

dwatsonbb
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Some really sharp pics of some really nice birds Dev, hope you can get some more!

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

Devster
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Thanks Sue and Dale.

Here a few from Mt Glorious after I returned.

184. Bell Miner

185. Golden Whistler

186. Rufous Fantail

sue818
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Love that Rufous Fantail ... unusual to get one in such great light. 

I found that rain for you, Dev, it is here in Coonabarabran. Spent the day in the Pilliga Scrub and came back sopping wet with a filthy car from the muddy unsealed roads. Left the camera in the car and missed photographing a little Spotted Pardalote that ignored social distancing rules and came to investigate me. 

Devster
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Thanks Sue, yes it is unusual for them to be in such good light. Isn't that always the way when you don't bing your camera with you. I went to the dump yesterday and there were Square-tiled Kites flying pretty low, but, no camera with me.

dwatsonbb
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Yet again nice work, your photos are so clear and crisp. 

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

Devster
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A few of the locals

Her's a couple more I have taken recently in the local area.

187. Magpie-lark - Female as she doesn't have the white eyebrow and black throat that the male has

188. Pied Currawong

189. Wandering Whistling-ducks - A very large crop as they were quite some distance away

190. Radjah Shelduck - This one was a lone one that has just started hanging around all of a sudden. Seemed to be very friendly

Alex Rogers
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Dev, what a lovely lot of birds! Some amazingly exotic birds (Bourkes Parrot I've never heard of!) and some great shots - love the emu wren (they are normally very hard to photograph) the pardalote is gorgeous and I also really like the red-winged parrot shot, amongst others. Great to see, thanks for posting

karentwemlow
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What fantastic photos Dev, I love them. And that Spotted Nightjar - it would make my year to see and get a photo like that! 

sue818
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Wow, considering this year's challenges, what a tally! I love the Radjah Shelduck although I prefer the old Burdekin Duck name.

Devster
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I went to check out the wader roost at Toorbul on the weekend but I would say they had all been spooked as there was only 2 Pied Oystercatchers and 2 Masked Lapwings there. I did see a dog off a leash nearby (looked like a local) so maybe it scared them all off. After waiting for a while and watching the plethera of Caper White Butterflies flying by, a few shore birds briefly showed up. It wasn't long though before they took off again. Not sure if they were spooked by some of the local raptors.

191. Brahminy Kite - A couple of these circling. It's been a while since I have seen these Raptors so it was nice to get a shot even if they were high in the sky.

192. White-bellied Sea-eagle - A couple of these, but by the time I got to them they were high up. This one is a juvenile as it still has the dark band around the neck. Possibly why the shore birds spooked.

193. Eastern Curlews - Some on their brief landing before being spooked again.

194. Whimbrel - A lone Whimbrel flying past

195. Australian Tern (Formerly Gull-billed Tern sub species) - Terns are not my strong suit and I hadn't even realised that this had been split into a species of its own. TBH I didn't even know they were a subspecies of Gull-billed Tern. Anyway I had that confirmed on ABI

196. Bar-tailed Godwits & 197. Great Knots (Also confirmed on ABI) - These are the smaller ones in the front

198. Cattle Egret - Doing what Cattle Egrets do . . . hanging around cattle

199. Chestnut Teal - A very big crop and EBC.  I popped to Bribie Island to see what was at Buckleys hole since the rain. 

200. Magpie Geese - This was taken at the local tip

201. Tawny Grassbird - At the local park, late one afternoon.

dwatsonbb
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Wow dev 200+ well done. Some great photos again.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

sue818
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Great set of shots, Dev... love the Whimbrel. We are getting some wonderful birds sighted this year.

We seem to be a bit short of shorebirds in Sydney at the moment as my walk this arvo at Olympic Park produced none! I really like photographing shorebirds as IDing them gets the brain working.

Devster
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Thanks guys. you are right with IDing shorebirds Sue, very tricky

Devster
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A few more I found. I am finding that common birds I thought I had, I actually don't. Must be from last year. lol. I also had a corrupt file which has detroyed most of my photos from the first half of the year. I tried copying it over and some worked but most didn't.

202. Common Myna

203. Pale-headed Rosella - One of my favourite birds. This photo shows that even birds have days where you just don't look your best.

204. Pied/Black-winged Stilts - A few juveniles in there as well

205. Bush Stone-curlew - This one was at Australian Zoo but not one of their exhibit animals. This one decided to sit on eggs not far off a major walkway. At one stage I saw a couple of Asian kids throwing sticks at it while the parents smiled and watched on. Needless to say I got fair up them and told them that this behaviour was not acceptable and to 'Parent up'. My girlfriends jaw just dropped. lol

Replacement for my 199. Chestnut Teal. A slightly better shot

sue818
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Nice, Dev. Love the Bush Stone-curlew & good on you. I keep a copy of my files on a separate drive & don't delete from camera to certain all is OK. Sorry you lost some pictures.

I have been am going through my posts to see if I overlooked anything and that is why I now need a coastal trip to find a Forest Kingfisher. 

Devster
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Here are 2 I missed from my trip as well as a few locals.

206. Fairy martins - These guys were bathing in this puddle.

207. Crested Pigeon - This one was sitting in a patch of grass that had just been watered in the caravan park at Winton

I call this next one "The Top Knot Tree" I know they're not proper Top Knots but Crested Pigeon tree didn't sound as cool

208. Long-billed Corella - Don't you hate when you have your exposure compensation up then forget to take it back. This is what happens to the whites when you do that.

209. Noisy Miners - I call these guys the 3 Amigos. Again I still had the settings wrong

210. Australian Wood Duck

211. Pied Butcherbird - This one is a resident one, which torments my little dog. lol

212. Grey Butcherbird - This one doesn't seem to like the other Pieds and tends to chase them away. Bully.

213. Noisy Friarbird - This ones been having a good feed as it still has pollen on its beak

sue818
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Another nice group of sightings, Dev. I suspect we have all been caught not altering the camera settings, it is frustrating but I love the Long-billed Corella. Are you sure the Fairy Martins were bathing rather than collecting mud for their nests?


I will be interested to see how many different species we manage between us this year.

Alex Rogers
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Some great shots there Dev. Yes, I've also (too often) forgotten to adjust exposure compensation back for a while lol. Those long billed corella can look a bit spooky - I think the sanguina part of their name means blood, and yours looks suitably vampiric! Love your bush stone-curlew shot - and attitude towards parenting correction! 

dwatsonbb
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As alway some lovely photos. Like the crested pigeon sitting down, so clear.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

Devster
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214. Spotted Dove - Don't know how I didn't have this one yet

215. Striped Honeyeater - I think this is a younger one as the black on the head is not all that prominent

216. Australian White Ibis - Another one I don't know how I didn't have yet

sue818
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Know just what you mean, Dev, I have some glaring omissions.
 

Love the Striped Honeyeater; I consider it a surprisingly chubby (not sure that is the right word) looking bird. They can be quite curious about you as well. I had one that kept coming closer until I had to back away.

Devster
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Lol Sue, I know what you mean about chubby with the Stripped Honeyeater. Compared to other Honeyeaters they certainly are on the larger side. Oh and you are probably right about the Fairy martins. i didn't even think of that but it makes sense

Devster
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Went to Mary Cairncross reserve today for the first time and wow there were sooo many birds calling. The Green Catbirds were almost annoying there were so many calling for such a long time. We got there about 8am and left at 11am and all the birds were still calling loud and clear. I only managed 3 new birds for the challenge but heard so many more. So hard to photograph the birds though due to the very low light and no flash. I think some of these I was shooting at ISO 10000!! I highly recommend a visit if you're ever up this way. Other species heard but not photographed. Paradise Riflebird, Wompoo Fruit-dove, Rose-crowned Fruit-dove, Wonga Pigeon, Brown Cuckoo Dove. There were also, Eastern Whipbirds, Brown Gerygones, Large-billed Scrubwrens, Yellow-throated Scrubwrens and White-browed Scrubwrens everywhere you looked.

217. Pale-yellow Robin - Normally fairly shy compared to the EYR but there were plenty of these guys about

218. Black-faced Monarch - So many of these guys around. They were calling all day long and very curious.

219. Russet-tailed Thrush - this one was collecting worms, I'm assming for young.

This photo gives a good veiw of the tail and wing coverts

The following day we went to Dayboro to have a look for some Kingfishers & White-eared Monarchs. While I dipped on both of them, I did manage a very ordinary shot of a male Cicadabird and some Brown Thornbills.

220. Cicadabird - A very EBC photo

221. Brown Thornbills - Curious little ones

Alex Rogers
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Nice Dev, you really are getting a great variety - and quite a few birds I haven't seen. Great to see them here. That thrush is so similar to the Bassian - I was reading up on how to tell them apart, and it seems super difficult in the field - a nice catch for you :-) 

dwatsonbb
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Another nice set Dev. Love that Thrush, and the Pale Yellow Robin is kinda cute. The Monarch is a special looking bird to. Thanks for posting, and please keep the, coming.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

sue818
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Lovely shots again, Dev. The Pale-yellow Robin is a cutie but also love the Thrush. Looking forward to more.

Devster
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A quick visit to my local patch last weekend at Lake Samsonvale for a few to add to my list.

222. Straw-necked Ibis - The Ibis tree. lol

223. White-throated Gerygone - This guy was calling his little heart out but would not stay still and look at the camera for a decent photo.

224. Yellow-faced Honeyeater - Probably my favourite for the day and with the standard annoying branch in the way. These guys sound very familiar to the Brown Honeyeaters, so I wonder how many times I have miss ID'd their call.

225. Sacred Kingfisher - A very EBC photo. Long way away and heavily cropped. I can't believe I haven't taken any decent photos of these guys yet. One I really hope to get a better shot of.

sue818
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Love the White-throated Gerygone and Yellow-faced Honeyeater. Forest Kingfishers are my problem, cannot even find one! Nice to see that you are still finding new species, Dev... impressive list!

Alex Rogers
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Nice Dev, I like the gerygone and Yellow Faced Honeyeater too. You are racking up an awesome list!

TommyGee
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Great photos Dev. Every lake should have an ibis tree!

Devster
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Thanks guys. Tom, the funny thing is, the Ibis tree was someones property, not a lake. lol

Devster
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Some from the other weekend when I took my boys to Bribie for a swim. This is Kakadu Beach which has a variety of migatory waders. It is fenced off and they are behind a sand dune so even with my 100-400 and 1.4 TC this was the best i could manage, so apologies in advance.

Some Variety of Terns

226. Caspian Tern, 227 Crested Tern

228. Gull-billed Tern - This I had confirmed on ABI as I struggle with the new split

OK from Left to Right

229. Red-necked Stints, 230. Lesser Sand Plovers & 231. Sharp-tailed Sandpipers - Again, had them confirmed on ABI

232. Red-capped Plover

Devster
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233. Eastern Koel (Male) trying to hide from Noisy Miners.

234. Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo - These were from my trip to Petrie last weekend

Alex Rogers
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Good going Dev - we've been hunting out some similar birds recently :-) 

karentwemlow
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What a great assortment to pick up in the last few weeks of the year, nice work! I love the White-throated Gerygone and their musical calls. They nest at my place most years and make such a fortress of a nest. Good to see the Ibis tree in flower too :-)

dwatsonbb
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Seems I have missed a few weeks of your posts Dev, think I got confused when I commented on you Best Photos post.

Again another great set. You have racked up a good tally, well done.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

Devster
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I headed out to Towoomba and The Bunya Mountains for a few days with my lady to see if I could add any to my tally. I think my aim of 250 will just be shy but still very happy with the result. I have absolutely loved seeing birds from all over the country, especially those Tassie Endemics. Oh and those Gang Gangs Sue. 

235. Scaly-breasted Lorikeet (Can't believe I didn't have this one since I have them at my place)

236. Weebill - Bit of a story with this bird as my car threw a tail shaft at 6am in the morning. I thought since noone will be open for a few hours that I would just get out and bird. Missed a lot that I had hoped for but this little one was a silver lining. Turns out it was a public holiday so had to do some bush mechanics on my car to limp it back to town. Luckily a local helped me get on the road again.w

237. Brown Songlark - Headed to a place called Devon Park Boundary road. I thought with a name like that this has to be a good spot. lol. Got this guy a long, long way out before he took off.

238. Yellow-rumped Thornbill - Another one on the same road. 

The next day we headed to the Bunya Mountains but Google maps took us such a weird way but I wasn't complaining as I managed a few species I may not have gotten.

239. Black-shouldered Kite - There was a family of 4 hunting. this is one of the Immature ones I think, due to the buff on the chest

240. Horsfield's Bushlark

241. Rose Robin. The most cooperative and photo friendly Rose Robin I have even seen. i made this one Large as I am very happy with this photo.

242. Paradise Riflebird. From a co-operative robin to non co-operative Riflebird. So an EBC shot

243. Fan-tailed Cuckoo - There were at least half a dozen of these calling all around us but it took me 20-30 mins to actually lock on to one. Sooo hard to spot

TommyGee
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What a fantastic run home! That Rose Robin is just beautiful.

Alex Rogers
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Love the Rose Robin and the Black-Shouldered Kite shots. You have set quite a total there Dev - any more in the final wash up of the year to get you to 250? Its been a real pleasure seeing your shots over the year :-) 

sue818
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Wow, Dev, what a final run and an impressive number of birds.  Great set but the Rose Robin is a stunner!

You have shared some fabulous birds with us this year, ones that we were unlikely to see like the Kalkadoon Grasswren and some amazing shots. Thank you so much for accepting the challenge, Dev, it has been a lot of fun.

Devster
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Thanks for the wonderful comments guys. My big trip helped get me over the line. Was kind of a last minute thing but definitely the best thing I did in 2020. I have a few more I took on the last day. I will quickly go back and see if I missed any. These are from Mungarra reserve in Petrie and a couple from Dayboro.

244. Leaden Flycatcher (managed both male and female)

245. Bar-shouldered Dove

246. Brush Cuckoo

247. Azure Kingfisher

Devster
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Found another one I missed already. Can't beieve this is the best shot I have of a Rock Dove.

248. Rock Dove

Devster
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249. Eastern Great Egret in breeding plumage

sue818
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So close, Dev.... surely you must have photographed a White-browed Scrubwren, a Tree Martin, a Striated Thornbill, a New Holland Honeyeater or is there a Pink-eared Duck lurking the background somewhere?

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