East Coast Low fills pond at Randwick Environment Park, Sydney

The normally full pond at Randwick Environment Park in Sydney dried up at the start of the 2017-2019 drought and apart from some brief interludes has been dry ever since. East Coast Lows are described as extratropical cyclones by the weather bureau and despite Sydney missing the full force of this week’s storm there was enough rain on top of previous wet weather to fill the pond. The pond is now well above previous levels. Hopefully this will provide a basis for continued water and will again attract the wide range of birds that have been seen in this city haven.

This view from the western viewing platform shows the water level well above normal.

A handfull of water birds have already arrived and yesterday’s survey included Pacific Black Ducks, Australian White Ibis, two Chestnut Teals, a Purple Swamphen and an Australasian Grebe, seen here.

New Holland Honeyeater

The New Holland Honeyeater makes a handsome sight feeding in this flowering gum at Sydney’s Randwick Environment Park.

Sydney parks

Photos taken over the last few weeks in Sydney’s parks.

Brown Quail at Centennial Park, Sydney

Spangled Drongo photographed at Randwick Environment Park, Sydney

Superb Fairy-wren at Sydney Park in Sydney

Little Pied Cormorant at the Duck Pond in Centennial Park, Sydney

Powerful Owl with possum at Centennial Park, Sydney

Summer surveys in Sydney’s east

The parks are quiet in the heat and our bird number count is down. Rumour has it that the water birds have left for inland waters this year; Kensington Pond at Centennial Park had only one solitary Eurasian Coot that had to join a flock of Pacific Black Ducks for company. The total species counts at Centennial Park were only one or two down on normal but total numbers were well below average. The morning’s survey was enlivened by two Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos squabbling with an agitated Sulphur-crested Cockatoo.   

Although I associate Yellow-rumped Thornbills more with the open fields of the country they are seen quite regularly at Randwick Environment Park. Here two birds were foraging amongst the litter in the parks well maintained gardens for insects and the occasional seed.

The lake at Randwick Environment Park is bone dry, it has only had fleeting partial water fills since the drought. More worryingly the creek is running at a trickle. The count included a solitary magpie, even the Noisy Miners were down to two. There were more birds on the bushy side of the park, including Yellow-rumped Thornbills, New Holland Honeyeaters and Superb Fairy-wrens.

Randwick Environment Park is a surprising oasis of green in Sydney’s east. The flat area pictured was a well populated lake and water bird refuge before the drought.

Rain fills Sydney Eastern Suburb ponds

Australia’s top birding organization Birdlife is asking birdwatchers to do more surveys in response to the bush fires. They highlight the importance of knowing what is happening to bird numbers, not only in burnt out areas, but across the rest of the country as well.

Last weekend I surveyed my two regular Eastern Suburb sites. The past week’s 200 – 400 mm rain has extinguished most of the fires across NSW and in the city it has filled ponds in local parks and brought a flush of green to the previously desiccated bush. The pond at Randwick Environment Park was full for the first time since early 2018 and the count there showed a handful of Pacific Black Ducks, three Eurasian Coots and an Australasian Grebe in addition to the regular Magpies and Red Wattlebirds.   

At the Kensington Pond in Centennial Park there were ducks, coots and an Intermediate Egret gracing the waters. In the slither of Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub that lines the northern bank were Red Wattlebirds, New Holland Honeyeaters, Superb Fairy-wrens with Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos in the adjacent Maritime Pine trees.

Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo at Kensington Pond, Centennial Park, Sydney

At the Fly Casting Pond, a Freckled Duck, one of three that have been in residence on and off over past months, was showing signs of breeding plumage with its bill reddening at the base.

Freckled Duck at Fly Casting Pond at Centennial Park, Sydney

Randwick Environment Park productive despite dry conditions

The 13 hectares of Randwick Environment Park, nestled behind Sydney Eastern Suburb’s low coastal hills, is an island of bush in the city and haven for an unexpectedly wide range of species. The east has had more rain than most of Sydney over the past two years but not sufficient to reinstate the park’s two hectares of shallow lake and wetlands.

 In August 2017 a survey of the wet area described exposed mudflats and 20 bird species including Grey Teal, Pacific Black Ducks, Grebes, Dusky Moorhen, White Ibis, Coots and a White-faced Heron. By April 2018 the same area was described as dry and there were no water birds counted among the 11 species but there were 16 Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos. More recent counts have listed only four or five species including Magpies, Kookaburras, Ravens, and Currawongs in the now dried out wetland.

 Last week’s survey of the previously wet area was another low count; five species including two Yellow-rumped Thornbills which might be another marker of the dry conditions. However this park continues to surprise and the junction of the oval and walking track was swarming with small birds. Forty or fifty Silvereyes, two dozen Red-whiskered Bulbuls, Red-browed Finches, more Yellow-rumped Thornbills and then Starlings and Common Mynas, Eastern Spinebills, Red Wattlebirds, New Holland Honeyeaters, Spotted Pardalotes, a Golden Whistler, Willie Wagtail and a Restless Flycatcher all in a small area.

Restless Flycatcher at Randwick Environment Park

Eastern Suburbs Sydney

This morning was a catch up in eastern Sydney. Firstly Centennial Park, an oasis close to the centre of Sydney, gathering place for a surprising number of water birds and some bush birds. Checking on the regulars, there is one of the Tawny Frogmouths, a male, together with this year’s fledgling sitting on a higher branch in the same tree. The Intermediate Egret is on the Lily Pond and the Grey Butcherbird is in position to swoop on passersby. At Kensington Pond I do a standardized two hectare, twenty minute survey. Not many water birds, some Dusky Moorhens and a couple of Eurasian Coots. There are New Holland Honeyeaters, Red Wattlebirds, Spotted Doves and Crested Pigeons as well as the usual collection of Superb Fairy-wrens, Australian Magpies, Australian Ravens and Magpie-larks. Highlight is a Sacred Kingfisher sitting on the far bank close to construction work for the Randwick Golf Course Light Rail Station - still going on.

Then on to Randwick Environment Park, a small park formed in 2010 from 13 hectares that had been previously part of Randwick Army Barracks. The park contains endangered remnant Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub and a wetlands covering several hectares at its centre.  At times this park has attracted unusual birds including Latham’s Snipe, White-necked Heron, Australasian Shovelers, Horsfield’s Bronze-Cuckoo, and Spangled Drongos. However as this year’s drought kicked in the wetland dried and water birds disappeared. Another standardized survey confirms that Australian Magpies, Red Wattlebirds, Laughing Kookaburras (pictured below) and Noisy Miners have taken control of what is now a totally dry area. The highlight was a Yellow-rumped Thornbill, an uncommon visitor to the park.