13th June - Blashford Lakes and Harbridge, Hampshire

Its June, overcast, so no butterflies, what do you do?  Well I decided to try my hand at photographing Sand Martin at Blashford Lakes.  They have a prepared Sand Martin wall outside the Goosander Hide, and this has attracted quite a few Sand Martin.  Before walking around to the hide I checked the Tern hide where it was very quiet with the majority of birds being Egyptian Geese.

As I approached the Goosander hide a Song Thrush was singing in a tall Silver BIrch.

An early nester at the start of the year,its mate is probably sitting on their third brood.

Another songster was a Willow Warbler, it had a distinctive song, the typical Willow Warbler flutey song, but ending with the call of a Chiffchaff.  Ian and I had heard and seen this bird earlier in the spring.  Today though I couldn't see it only hear it.

Settling down into the hide the Sand Martin were flocking around the artificial Sand Martin wall.  Photographing hirundines is never easy as they twist and turn in the air and you have to just try and follow them.  These were the first shots taken close to the water.

 

There were some huge monsters in the water below the hide.  These are Common Carp and were probably about 40 pounds each, maybe more.  At this time of year they start to spawn.

Another distraction was this gathering of male Azure Damselflies.  Some have settled on a stone that looks a bit like an aircraft carrier in the water.

But back to the Sand Martin, they would flock around the colony and every so often they would fly into the wholes.

THe agility of these little birds in the air is amazing.

They would sit at the front of the holes.

Coming out of the hole and dropping down towards the water.

Three male Tufted Duck passed the hide chasing a female.

And some interesting views of the carp.  Here showing the broad pectoral fins.

As always, wherever a large gathering of small birds appears you can guarantee there will be predators.  The calls from the Sand Martins changed and they flocked closer as this female Sparrowhawk appeared.

The hawk wasn't successful and sat on the top of the concrete nest wall before flying off back across the hide and away into the woods.

It was quiet for awhile but it wasn't long before the Sand Martins returned to their business.

Just as I was about to leave the Black Swan that has been here for several weeks appeared in the middle of Ibsley Water.

As I walked back I could hear the Willow Warbler once more and this time I was able to find it in a Willow tree would you believe.

I turned off towards Harbridge on the way home and pulled over to watch the water meadows.  I used to come here in the winter many years ago for the Bewick's Swan, but never at this time of year.  A male Cuckoo sat on the overhead wires and a Buzzard flew over.  A little later on there was a female Marsh Harrier, and a Sparrowhawk that looked like it had caught a Sand Martin.

But the bird I was hoping for was the Hobby.  I managed to see two, but they were very high and distant and catching insects.  I waited to see if they would come lower but it didn't happen.

A typical June day birding, but some interesting sightings.

21st February - Apollo Bay to Port Fairy, Victoria, Australia

We were up early and the weather was much better today with blue skies and plenty of sunshine.  Finshing breakfast and checking out we were advised by the hotel owner to stop off at Mait's Rest, a boardwalk trail through lush rain forest.  Apparently it was best to get there early as it can get quite busy.

Forming part of the Otway Ranges National Park, Maits Rest sits about 15 minutes from Apollo Bay. The car park leads to a selection of boardwalks and gravel paths that take you around a 30-minute walking route. As you go, you get the chance to take in the lush valley floor, the ancient trees that soar skywards, and the collection of tree ferns and moss that cover the forest floor like something out of a fairy-tale.

The trail gets its name from, Maitland Bryan, In 1914, around the time of World War 1 he was the Otway region's first forestry officer. On his regular patrol from Apollo Bay to Horden Vale or the Lighthouse Road to Cape Otway, Mait would rest his horse in this beautiful patch of rainforest

A Eucalyptus in the car park.

Ferns and mos

Moss hanging in the branches and being lit up by the golden morning sunshine.

Spectacular palm like ferns

Giant trees, reaching for the sky

Back in the car park

We left Mait's Rest and continued along the Ocean Road, a little further along we turned off once again and headed south to the Cape Otway Lighthouse.

Rather than visit the lighthouse, and the view, which we later found out was shrouded in mist, we walked along a trail to what was signposted a look out to the lighthouse.  The trail had scrub on either side and we could not see the ocean, but continued on.  As we came around a bend I noticed something dark by the side of the trail, a closer look revealed that it was a Southern Rock Wallaby.

It sat watching us as we watched it, the only movement a switch of the ear and then it hopped slowly away into the bush and out of sight.

Finally we came to clearing in the scrub and a view of the lighthouse, not what we expected

Back at the car park, Helen picked up some swifts high above us.  Not the best record shots, but it can be clearly seen to be a White-throated Needletail.

Back in the car we headed back to the Great Ocean Road and turned left heading in the direction of Port Fairy.  The road took us through eucalyptus and beech forests.  Eventually the road opened up and we passed into what looked like farmland.  A little further along there were two cars parked on the side of the road and there were people looking up into the trees.

I pulled over and got out and they announced to me that there were Koala in the trees.  The amazing thing was that the Koala had been found by their young son.  I grabbed my camera and told Helen and we walked over to get a view.

The branches were a problem and I tried to get a better view.  In front of me there was a fence and I didn't realise it was electrified.  As I leaned closed there was a sharp pain in my thigh as I brushed the fence.  At first I didn't realise what it was and shot back, the pain was sharp but faded and I was back and knowing to avoid the fence I managed to get some good views.

Thee were three all together, this one being the easiest to see.  They remind me of the Sloths in central America, they have a similar diet that needs rest to digest it.  They didn't seem bothered by the crowd watching them.

Here are the other two cuddled up together, you can just make out the nose of one of them.

This was a huge bonus, having seen them in the two sanctuaries we visited and back home in zoos, I really wanted to see them in the wild and here they were.  We were very lucky and a big thanks go out to the little boy who spotted them.

Leaving the Koala we headed on.  The road was not like the stage from Torquay to Apollo Bay, we stayed in land with not too many views of the ocean.  We were headed to our first stop, the Twelve Apostles, a collection of limestone stacks that exist off shore in Port Campbell National Park.

To view the Apostles there is a car park and information centre on the other side of the road, you then follow a path that goes under the Ocean Road to a series of viewing platforms.  As we walked out we were followed by several Helicopters that were taking visitors to see the Apostles from the air.

Walking on to the platform we had the first view of the Twelve Apostles.

Erosion of the mainland coast's limestone cliffs began 10 to 20 million years ago, with the stormy Southern Ocean and blasting winds gradually wearing away the softer limestone to form caves in the cliffs.

The caves eventually became arches, and when these collapsed, rock stacks of up to 45-metres high were left isolated from the shore, resulting in the iconic Twelve Apostles.

Eight of the original nine stacks remain standing at the Twelve Apostles' viewpoint, after one collapsed in July 2005.

In front of the Apostles the cliffs were in a sweeping arc, evidence of the sea's erosion.

Closer views of the limestone stacks.

There is no access to the beach, but there were footprints all over it.  These were probably from birds and crabs.

More views of the stacks.

Though the view from the promontory by the Twelve Apostles never included twelve stacks, additional stacks—not considered part of the Apostles group—are located to the west within the national park..

The blue sea turning white as it crashes onto the beach.

A different angle on the Apostles.

The other stacks that make up the number of Apostles were viewable from another view point, but this was a much longer walk in the midday sun, it was very hot with little shade and the view was not as spectacular.

However on the way back we came across this colourful butterfly.

The Black Jezebel, is found along the eastern seaboard of Australia, from Queensland, through New South Wales to Victoria. The upper sides of the males are white with black tips containing white spots on the forewings, and narrow black margins around the hindwings. A common butterfly it is seen in every month of the year.

Out of the heat it was time to move on.  The limestone rock in the cliffs is easily eroded by the southern ocean and there are many wonderful features along the coast road.

Our next stop was Loch Ard Gorge, which is home to a smooth, pearlescent bay and an inlet of clear, blue water. It’s flanked by two yellow-washed cliff faces and tufts of vibrant greenery. Back in June 2009, the arch of Island Archway crumbled in on itself, leaving two separate hunks of rock that run parallel to each other. 

After the gorge it was London Bridge, which was named for a series of arches that resembled the old London Bridge.  Originally a natural archway and tunnel in an impressive offshore rock formation, London Bridge collapsed in 1990 and became a bridge without a middle. Before the collapse, visitors to the site were able to walk across 'the eastern bridge' that stretched across to the mainland.  When the tunnel collapsed two persons were stranded on the eastern side and had to be rescued by helicopter.

Y

et another beautiful untouched beach.

The Bay of Martyrs, 

The Bay of Martyrs itself is 2.5 kilometres long and inside the bay there are two smaller bays; Crofts Bay and Massacre Bay. 

There is a fascinating history surrounding this part of Victoria, which is alluded to in the place names of other bays and lookout points – Massacre Bay, Massacre Point, Bay of Martyrs. According to stories that have spanned generations, Europeans killed a large group of Karrae-Wurrong Aboriginal men here. They did so by running them off the cliffs, whilst the women and children were supposedly killed in a swamp that is close by.

However, there are many contradicting stories and, more importantly, no written evidence of what happened. All that is known is that the population of Aboriginal people dropped from a few thousand to almost none. Some theories believe this was caused by mass migration, but local folklore has other ideas.

After getting into the wrong car I retrieved my camera from my car and managed to get some acceptable shots of a Singing Honeyeater.

More from the Bay of Islands.

The Southern Ocean has carved a stunning collection of rock stacks and sheltered bays with clifftop walks, scenic lookouts and small beach coves

Another set of stacks.

Red soil resembling Mars.

This was the last stop, next was Port Fairy, historically known as Belfast, a coastal town in south-western Victoria, at the point where the Moyne River enters the Southern Ocean.  

In the early 19th century whalers and seal hunters used the coast in this region. The crew of the sealing cutter The Fairy (Captain James Wishart) reportedly gave the bay its current name in 1828.  Whatever its origins, the name "Port Fairy" had come into general use by 1835.

We found our hotel, checked in and then decided to go for a walk around the water front.  As we passed an area of open grass there was a Willie Wagtail seeking shade from the afternoon sun under a park bench.

The streets were lined with huge Norfolk pines and I noticed a small falcon fly into them, heading in the direction of the river.  I waited for it to appear again and it turned out to be an Australian Hobby, very similar in looks to the European Hobby.

We had decided to walk around Griffiths island.  A short walk along the causeway from Martin’s Point gets you onto the island.

The Island is a dune habitat comprising of 37 hectares of remnant coastal scrub and grassland. The Island was named Griffiths after John Griffiths, who established Port Fairy’s whaling industry on the island in the 1830’s. He set up a whaling station on the island and built a large timber house in 1837. By the early 1840’s so many whales had been killed that the supply was almost exhausted and the whaling station closed.

In the shallow lagoon beside the causeway there were Silver Gulls and a pair of Chestnut Teal, the drake looking quite smart.

Black Swans

White-faced Herons

And a Little Pied Cormorant.

Griffiths Island is the site of Australia’s most accessible breeding colonies of short tailed shearwaters or mutton-birds.  It also supports a number of native animals including a small mob of swamp wallabies.  We came across two of the Swamp Wallabies and they were quite tame unconcerned by our presence, preferring to stay in the shade under the trees.

The swamp wallaby is a small macropod marsupial of eastern Australia. This wallaby is also commonly known as the black wallaby.  

Despite their name, they live in forests, scrublands and woodlands with thick undergrowth - not swamps!

The trail takes you around the island to the light house.

The Griffiths Island Lighthouse and a Lighthouse Keeper’s Cottage were built in 1859 by Scottish stonemasons out of bluestone. The unique stairway of the lighthouse was cut with each step being inserted in the next course of stone in the outside wall.

The lighthouse is still fully operational and over the years the light’s power has changed from vegetable oil, kerosene, gas and wind to solar power. These days it’s a solar powered light with a wind assisted generator. 

The lighthouse keepers’ cottages were demolished in the 1950s; however, their gardens live on with many hardy plants flowering in the appropriate season.

The trail then runs out and to save from damaging the dunes and stepping on the shearwater nest holes you have to walk across the beach.  A large gull was standing on the beach and I slowly made my way towards it.

The huge bill immediately identified the gull as a Pacific Gull, the largest gull found in Australia.

At distance it can be confused with the Kelp Gull, another "black-backed" gull, but this is a larger gull and with that huge bill, and in flight there is a black band on the tail.

What a bill.

It has become scarce in some parts of the south-east, as a result of competition from the kelp gull, which has "self-introduced" since the 1940s.

I edged slowly closer in the hope it would fly and show the black band on the tail, however it didn't want to fly and just slowly swam away from me.

As we left the beach, one more look at the lighthouse.

We picked up the trail once more and headed back to the causeway.  It was at this point my battery in the camera ran out and for once I didn't have a replacement.  Fortunately there was nothing of any real interest as we made our way back to the hotel.

That evening we ate in the hotel, catch of the day was Stargazer, and interesting fish that was cooked superbly.  

Tomorrow we head inland and north to the Grampians, over the last few days we have heard reports of bush fires in the area, one being quite devastating.  We had called our hotel and were reassured everything was OK there.