On the weekend I went to the western treatment plant in Werribee and finally saw a few wader species along with many others including Black-tailed Native Hen, Flame Robin female and many Whiskered Terns along with one White-bellied Sea Eagle perched far away.
Whiskered Tern
a different angle
Buff-banded Rail unusually out in the open
Fairy martins getting mud for their nests on a nearby disused building
Red-necked Avocet
Waders galore near the hide
Little Pied Cormorant with Little River as the background
Australian Spotted Crake
'Oh, is that what I look like? I'm a cute little bugger aren't I!!'
Black-tailed Native Hen
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
Group of Curlew Sandpipers who flew into the same pond where the last shot was taken and fed with the Sharp-tails.
Common Greenshank on bank of Little River
Australasian Gannet over the bay
Great Crested Grebe in the bay!
Red-kneed Dotterel - one of many seen
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Thanks for looking.
These are wonderful, Owen. We need to have a BIBY book and these would definitely be included along with the captioned sections.
[q]'Oh, is that what I look like? I'm a cute little bugger aren't I!!'[/q]
That so fits that photo what a great candid shot - love it!
Alison
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"the earth is not only for humans, but for all animals and living things."
Oh, how I love the Red-necked Avocat!( I have not seen one before!) All those Waders are amazing! O boy, the Spotted Crake is amazing, so is the Red-kneed Dotterel! Owen, your photos ARE GREAT!!! My next project will be to go there! (As soon as my dog is well again, and I can leave her at home) Thanks Owen for posting those fantastic photos. M-L
M-L
Thanks guys, I'm glad you enjoyed them. The Crake was actually hunting for seeds or insects which is part of their diet. The pose gave the illusion it was gazing at itself!
Cheers, Owen.
Great shots, Owen. I often find wader species difficult to tell apart so your shots are quite instructive.
AWESOME photos, what a great day you had! The Avocet looks amazing, I've never seen one and am very jealous! Great Crake photos too. Well done. Next time I'm up there on 'the mainland', I'll be there in a hearbeat :)
Cheers,
Scott.
Great photos, never seen an Avocet b4, they have a strange upturned bill dont they.
if your happy when your birding, flap your wings.
Great photos, love the waders - I do always find them difficult to identify, I have a book Shorebirds of Australia (Geering, Agnew & Harding) which is very helpful, but find that the sandpipers in particular give me trouble working out which is which. These are beaut pics. We got quite a lot of shorebirds in WA, haven't been to the beaches in the right season here. Must go soon by the look of it.
Meave
Thanks. I really should get that shorebird book because I have looked at it before and looks like a great book.
Cheers, Owen.
What a great collections of birds. I like to see the fairy martins gathering their mud
ah what a great place the WTP is.... you certainly saw a great mix of birds and got some lovely shots, especially of the more shy ones like the crake and the great crested grebe...you have inspired me to go again....maybe this weekend.Thanks.
Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best
Thanks. I hadn't seen Fariy Martins gathering mud before and there was a puddle with lots of mud around which was an ideal spot.
Cheers, Owen.
Nice pics thanks Owen - I see now your similar photo to mine.
Tim
Hi Owen
We are off to Victoria tomorrow in the caravan, and while down there would like to try and visit the Western Treatment Plant. I understand from something you said that we need a permit to be there - can you tell me where to obtain that please? I will have access to a computer on the road, so if you could send some info it would be really appreciated. I realise that we may not be able get it, but we do want to do a bit of birding anyway(Bob keeps telling people he shoots birds which of course horrifies them) while we are away, and many of the Victorian birds are a bit parochial and won't come up to Brisbane. Thanks if you can find that info for us.
Meave
Permits for the smaller general access area are $20 and for the larger special access area they are $20 as well and this is for a two year permit. You get the key for a $50 deposit which you can get refunded if you don't want to visit again.
To get a permit you need to go to this site in western Melbourne
Melbourne Water Operations & Maintenance
89 Millers Road
P.O. Box 512
Altona North, VIC 3025
Telephone (03) 9235 2828 Facsimile (03) 9235 2637
To get the special access permit I mentioned above Melbourne Water will give you an adress in Werribee to go to for a short slide show.
Alternatively if you want a once off visit BOCA have a list of people willing to take visitors around the plant.
Cheers, Owen.
A very productive day for you, Owen. I hope you also manage to see the Baillon's Crakes that are there in large numbers.
Cheers,
George
Melbourne, VIC
Thanks Owen, very detailed info just what I needed. I hope we'll be able to get down there for a couple of days anyway, though we are mainly going to Milawa (we are going to see Bob's sick sister who lives there).
but even if we don't get there this time we sure will in the near future. Much appreciated.
Meave
Meave
I have no idea when my dad can take me again George but next time we go (which shouldn't be too far away) I will make sure we go to the place you gave directions to first. I will also make sure we pick a fine day.
Cheers, Owen.
Keep your eyes open for the Little Bittern that was also seen there yesterday(?). Take a look at Birdline for further details.
Cheers,
George
Melbourne, VIC
What a lovely set Owen... another must go place if I ever get to Melbourne..... I like to hit a city's classy spots LOL
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Yeah I heard about the Little Bittern George. Another one I have never seen but probably hard to find.
Cheers, Owen.