| Birding
On My Own - Australia and New Zealand 2002 Emmalee Tarry |
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Queensland North |
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Chris has a small open, flat bottom boat . It is very stable
and perfect for birding. Trips last 2 hours and cost AU$40. They are popular
and you need reservations in advance. At the ticket office in the village, I paid for the trip with my credit card and picked up a brochure with a list of the expected frequency of possible sightings. With Chris' permission, I have reproduced the list below. The only trip of the day is at 6:30 AM (6 in summer ) and you need to be in Daintree Village the night before unless you are really in to getting up early. |
| Key | Less Than 50% - < | More than 50% - > | Almost Certain - AC |
| Jan | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Saltwater Crocodile | < | < | > | AC | AC | AC | AC | > | < | < |
| Great-billed Heron | > | > | > | > | > | > | > | > | > | > |
| Black Bittern | AC | AC | > | > | AC | AC | ||||
| Spectacled Flying-Fox | AC | < | < | < | < | < | < | AC | AC | AC |
| Little Kingfisher | < | > | > | > | > | > | > | > | < | < |
| Paradise Kingfisher | < | < | < | < | ||||||
| Papuan Frogmouth | > | > | > | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC |
| Double-eyed Fig-Parrot | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < |
| Green Tree Snake | < | < | < | > | > | > | > | < | < | < |
| Channel-billed Cuckoo | > | < | > | > | > | > | ||||
| Gould's Bronze Cuckoo | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < |
| Shining Flycatcher | AC | > | > | > | > | > | AC | AC | AC | AC |
| Large-billed Gerygone | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < | < |
| Azure Kingfisher | > | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC | > |
| Pied Imperial Pigeon | AC | AC | AC | AC | AC |
| The Azure Kingfisher posed as many kingfishers will
do. It is very hard to take good pictures from a boat full of people as someone
is almost always moving. This is the same kingfisher I saw at Kakadu.
We saw the Little Kingfisher and Laughing Kookaburra. The trip built quite a bird list:Yellow Oriole, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike, Tree Martin, Brown-backed Honeyeater, Graceful Honeyeater, Helmeted Friarbird, Papuan Frogmouth, Figbird, Royal Spoonbill, Australian Grebe, Cattle Egret, Little Pied Grebe, Rainbow Lorikeet, Darter, Sunbird, Leaden Flycatcher, Little Egret, Large-billed Gerygone, Shining Flycatcher, Pacific Black Duck, Striated Heron, Hardhead. |
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The flat-bottomed boat can navigate the shallow side channels
lined with thick rainforest and because Chris encourages people to be quiet the
birding is great. On one of these channels that we saw a Wompoo Fruit Dove sitting on her nest. We also saw the Pied Imperial Pigeon. |
| Look closely at this picture. A harmless Green Tree Snake is sliding along the branch. Chris actually plucked this snake from the branch and showed it to us. This was taken after he returned it to the branch. Poor guy probably gets picked up every day. |  |
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This beautiful spray of flowers bloomed on the river bank. The upper part of the river supports a thick rainforest. Birding in a rainforest can be tough. The open river makes it possible to see birds as they move across the channel or come in for a drink. |
| Chris Dahlberg Boat Trip on Daintree
River c.o. PO Daintree, QLD 4873 winter April 1 to Oct 31 6:30 AM summer Nov 1 to Mar 31 6:00 AM no trips during Feb and Mar |
Phone: (07) 4098 7997 Email: chrisld@austarnet.com.au http://www.daintreerivertours.info |
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