The Specialty Tour

This is a speciality trip searching for some of the regions rare, special and unique birds. The birds we will look for include one of the rarest and localised birds in the world, the Rufous Scrub-bird. The Rufous Scrub-bird is one of only 2 species in this family, it often skulks around the rainforest undergrowth and is difficult to see. However, our area is the best place to see these elusive birds and the other Noisy Scrub-bird is even harder and more restricted!! Given the right place at the right time we have a reasonable chance of seeing one.

White-Headed Pigeon

We will also concentrate on looking for some of the other highly specialised and difficult to see birds of Australia that occur in this region. These birds include the Paradise Riflebird (the southernmost Bird of Paradise in the world), Superb Lyrebird (the world’s largest passerine) and the shy but stunning Noisy Pitta. Other specialities include Bassian Thrush, which is an endemic Zoothera Thrush a much sought after genera, the stunning Spectacled Monarch & Rose Robin.

It is essential for this trip that we are at the site for first light, this is when all of the specialities are at their most active.

In a 1 day trip we will concentrate on the Scrub-bird and the Riflebird and hope to see the other specialities while we are searching for them. The area we will go to is 1.5-2 hours drive and the trip includes a very early start. It is an area of pristine montane rainforest and wet sclerophyll woodland. We will get to the Scrub-bird site for dawn and spend the first few hours searching. While it is still early we will also spend some time looking for the Riflebird in particular. We will then spend the rest of the morning searching for the other diurnal specialities in good areas of rainforest.

Laughing kookaburra - World's largest Kingfisher

Other species that we could come across during our seaching include: Australian Brush-Turkey, Emerald & Brown Cuckoo Dove, Topknot & Wonga Pigeon, Pacific Baza, Black-shouldered Kite, Grey Goshawk, Australian Kestrel & Hobby, Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Australian King Parrot, Red-rumped Parrot, Brush, Fan-tailed & Shining Cuckoo, Australian Koel, Channel-billed Cuckoo, Southern Boobook, Tawny Frogmouth, Australian Owlet Nightjar, White-throated Needletail, fairy-wrens, treecreepers, pardalottes, scrubwrens, White-throated Gerygone, thornbills, many species of honeyeater, Flame and Eastern Yellow Robins, Eastern Whipbird, Varied Sitella, Crested Shrike Tit, whistlers, Leaden Flycatcher, fantails, cuckoo-shrikes & trillers, butcherbirds & corvids, Green Catbird, Satin Bowerbird.

Because these birds are so difficult and there are lots of other species, a 2 day tour is highly recommended. This will give us 2 dawn starts and I full evening, increasing our likelihood of success.