EASTERN YELLOW WAGTAIL

Photographed at Broome water Treatment Plant at some distance; March, 2019

(*896)              EASTERN YELLOW WAGTAIL                Motacilla tschutschensis 

AUSTRALIA                   768

Breeds in Asia and has a foothold in North America in Alaska; populations migrate to South Asia and Australia. Insectivorous, inhabiting open country near water.

NOTE:

Current subspecies: 

angarensis:      South Siberian yellow Wagtail; breeds from Siberia to n Mongolia

leucocephala:  White-headed Yellow Wagtail; breeds nw Mongolia, China and Russia

taivana:            Green-crowned Yellow Wagtail; winter to Taiwan and Wallacea

macronyx:       Southeast Siberian Yellow Wagtail; winter nw of South China Sea

simillima         Bering Sea Yellow Wagtail; Kamchatka and Bering Sea

WESTERN FIELDWREN

Photographed at Nilgen Nature Reserve Lookout, WA, March 2019

1268                WESTERN FIELDWREN                    Calamanthus montanellus

AUSTRALIA                767

Recently split, was considered a subspecies of Rufous Fieldwren. Endemic to sw Australia. Inhabits low shrubland, particularly saltbush and bluebush communities. Forages for insects and seeds, hopping along ground through undergrowth; will hop to top of bushes to investigate disturbance.

WHITE-BELLIED WHIPBIRD

Photographed at Vivonne Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, January 2019

1267                      WHITE-BELLIED WHIPBIRD                    Psophodes leucogaster                     

AUSTRALIA                    766

Also known Mallee Whipbird. Recently split from Western Whipbird; contains two species: lashmari, found on Kangaroo Island, and leucogaster, found in south central SA.

TUFTED DUCK

Photographed at Werribee Water Treatment Plant (WTP), Victoria, January 2019

1266                   TUFTED DUCK                   Aythya fuligula 

AUSTRALIA               765

From northern Eurasia; occasionally found as winter migrant on coasts of USA and Canada. Migratory within their range. Feed mainly by diving; eat molluscs, aquatic insects and some plants, sometimes feeding at night. Breeding habitat close to marshes and lakes with plenty of vegetation to conceal nests; also found on coastal lagoons, shorelines and sheltered ponds.

NOTE:   First record for Australia.

JAVAN POND HERON

Photographed on West Island, Cocos,  December 2018

(*815)                   JAVAN POND-HERON            Ardeola speciosa

AUSTRALIA               764

Found in freshwater marshes, grasslands, ponds with well-vegetated fringes and occasionally coastal mudflats. 45 cm. Distribution: parts of mainland Southeast Asia, Greater and Lesser Sundas, Sulawesi and Mindanao.  

ORIENTAL HONEY-BUZZARD

Photographed at Lake Joondalup, Western Australia, December 2018

(*   858)                ORIENTAL HONEY-BUZZARD             Pernis ptilorhyncus

AUSTRALIA.                   763

Turns up in a variety of forested habitats, from primary rainforest to open woodlands. 50 cms. Distribution: Oriental region and northeast Asia: northern populations migrate.

HODGSON'S HAWK-CUCKOO

Photographed on West Island, Cocos, December 2018

1265                   HODGSON'S HAWK-CUCKOO                Hierococcyx nisicolor

AUSTRALIA                  762

Also known as Whistling Hawk-cuckoo. Found in n-e India, Myanmar, southern China and s-e Asia. Brood parasite. 

SIBERIAN THRUSH

Photographed on Home Island, Cocos, December 2018

1264                    SIBERIAN THRUSH                     Geokichla sibirica      

AUSTRALIA                  761

Breeds in Siberia, strongly migratory with most birds moving to southeastern Asia during winter; rare vagrant to Western Europe. Very secretive. Omnivorous, eating wide range of insects, earthworms and berries. 

NOTE:   Third record for Australia.

CHESTNUT-WINGED CUCKOO

Photographed on Home Island, Cocos, December 2018

1263                 CHESTNUT-WINGED CUCKOO                  Clamator coromandus

AUSTRALIA                      760

Also known as Red-winged Crested Cuckoo. Found in southeastern Asia and parts of South Asia. Breed in Himalayas and migrate south in winter to Sri Lanka, southern India and tropical Southeast Asia including parts of Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines. 

NOTE: First record in Australia, and only photographs in Australia.

RUFOUS SCRUBBIRD

Photographed at Brushy Mountain Camping Ground, Werrikimbe National Park, near Walcha, NSW, October 2018

1262                   RUFOUS SCRUBBIRD                   Atrichornis rufescens   

AUSTRALIAN                   759

Found in isolated pockets of dense moist tangles of ferns and undergrowth up to a metre high, with tussocks, fallen logs and deep leaf litter; often adjacent or near temperate rainforests, including Antarctic beech. Isolated populations above 600 m; from Mt Mistake, s of Gratton (Q), s to McPherson's Ranges and ranges in ne NSW, inland to New England Ranges and Gibraltar Range N"P s to Barrington Tops NP (NSW). Rare, sedentary, range much reduced by logging. 

BANDED FRUIT-DOVE

Photographed at Gubara Pools, Kakadu, Northern Territory, October 2018

1261                  BANDED FRUIT-DOVE                   Ptilinopus cinctus    

AUSTRALIA.              758

Occurs in small groups, pairs or alone in pockets of rainforest. Feeds on figs and other fruits. Shy and often hidden in foliage. Inhabits rugged sandstone escarpments with patches of monsoon rainforest and fruit trees, never far from water. Range restricted to Arnhem land in Northern Territory.

ORIENTAL CUCKOO

Photographed at Darwin Botanical Gardens, October 2018

1260                   ORIENTAL CUCKOO                Cuculus opatus 

AUSTRALIAN                    757

Large cuckoo. Often solitary. Shy, elusive. Migratory: from Eurasia as far south as Indonesia, NG, northern Australia; some over-winter in Australia. Uncommon. Inhabits rainforests, monsoon forests, vine scrub, riverine thickets, wetter, densely canopied eucalyptus forest, paperbark swamps, mangroves.