Summer at Lake Wallace

Lake Wallace near Lithgow in NSW is a good place to see rare ducks and Great Crested Grebes. Over this summer there has been a deficit in duck numbers on the east coast of NSW and last week there were only a few ducks on Lake Wallace. But these included Blue-billed Ducks, Musk Ducks, Australian Wood Ducks and Hardheads, making my stopover there worthwhile as always.

There were numerous Great Crested Grebes on the lake, most of them like this one were accompanied by one or more juvenile chicks.

This Great Crested Grebe chick is well camouflaged against the lake in its juvenile colours.

There were two Blue-billed Ducks lurking in dense vegetation at the lake shore and emerging every now and then for a photo. In a particular light, these blue bills show almost fluorescent light blue colour, highly visible through the reeds.

The reeds were also alive with Australian Reed-Warblers flying back and forth.

Lake Wallace is popular inland holiday spot with campers and caravanners who can park close to the lake. A beautiful place on a crisp summer’s day like that of last week.

Herdsman Lake in Perth, Western Australia

Herdsman Lake is only a few minute’s drive from the centre of Perth and provides home to many water birds and small birds. It consists of dredged ponds that were once part of a chain of wetlands that extended from north of Joondalup to south of Cockburn. There are dense wetland rushes dominated by Bulrush, fragments of remnant paperbarks and Flooded Gum woodlands, and grass parklands.  

The Wildlife Centre at the southern end of the lake is managed by the WA Gould League and runs bird walks, information nights, night stalks and wildlife excursions. The Olive Seymour boardwalk there provides for excellent bird viewing.  

Sightings from a short visit to the park included Australasian and Great Crested Grebes, Australian Shelducks, Grey Teal, Cormorants, Pelicans, Laughing Turtle-Doves, Australian White and Straw-necked Ibis, Black Swans, Western Gerygone and New Holland Honeyeaters. Another sighting on the boardwalk: a curled up Tiger Snake! And lots of entertainment from the Great Crested Grebes and their families, pictured below.