Lord Howe Island - Part 2: Search for the Woodhen

Following the boat trip to Balls Pyramid and photographing the birds around our accommodation, the one bird I was determined to see and photograph while on the island was the Lord Howe Woodhen, an endangered species brought back from the brink of extinction in the last 30 years. It is most commonly seen at the southern end of the island so one morning I took a walk along the main road past the airport and golf course.

Sacred Kingfisher were everywhere as they seem to have taken on the Kookaburra role on the island - frequently seen perched on almost anything.

Sacred Kingfisher, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO400, 1/640 @ f/5.6

Sacred Kingfisher, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/8000 @ f/4 

Sacred Kingfisher, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/4000 @ f/4

The only bird more common was the Magpie-lark, seen and heard anywhere there was open pasture or mown grass.

Magpie-lark, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/4000 @ f/5.6

White-faced Herons were commonly seen on the beaches and in the pasture.

White-faced Heron, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/1600 @ f/8

A small flock of Pacific Golden Plover was foraging in the pasture on the grassy hillside next to the airport. They were a long way away (this shot is heavily cropped) but it was good to see them.

Pacific Golden Plover, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/4000 @ f/5.6

The only ducks I saw while on the island was this pair of what look like Northern Mallard-Pacific Black Duck hybrids.

Northern Mallard-Pacific Black Duck hybrid, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/4000 @ f/5.6

I spotted Buff-banded Rail foraging in the mown grass along the road into the airport so took a detour to see if they were more photo-friendly than their Milky Way relatives. They were!

Buff-banded Rail, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Sigma 300mm f/2.8 lens +1.4x adapter, ISO800, 1/4000 @ f/5.6

Roadside signs past the airport confirmed what the locals had told me about the most likely place to find woodhens

but, after an hour of unsuccessful searching, I gave up and headed back (a 6 km walk) to civilisation. My son and son-in-law passed me (riding bikes) on the road on their way back from a hike up to Goat House Cave on Mt Lidgbird and we agreed to meet up at Thomson's Store (self proclaimed best burgers for 600km) for lunch during which they told me (and showed me video evidence) that they had seen woodhens on a side road about 500m from where I had stopped searching. So, I borrowed my son's bike and rode back to the Goat House track. I walked the first few hundred meters along the track listening and looking for woodhens - to no avail - and gave up and decided to check out further along the main road, where I managed to find two birds right by the side of the road, one of which stood still long enough for me to get off one shot. Fortunately, I had already changed to a 24-70mm zoom lens while in the rainforest - a long lens would have been useless here.

Lord Howe Woodhen, Lord Howe Island
Pentax K-3, Pentax 24-70mm f/2.8 lens @ 70mm, ISO1600, 1/800 @ f/5.6

So, after a 13km walk and 13 km bike ride I managed to see and photograph my target species - tired but happy :-)

13th Beach Waders Revisited

It's getting close to the departure time for our migratory waders so I returned to 13th Beach to check on the Red-necked Stint and Pacific Golden Plover captured last time.

Immediately I hit the beach a large flock of Red-necked Stint was found feeding among the seaweed (a mixture of kelp and seagrass).

Red-necked Stint, 13th Beach

It was just after high tide when I arrived. This makes it easy to see the birds because they are higher up the shore but they are also much more easily disturbed by people walking along the beach.

Red-necked Stint, 13th Beach

This did give me the chance to move a little closer to the piles of weed and the birds soon returned to continue their feast.

Red-necked Stint, 13th Beach

Some were starting to get their breeding plumage--darker and more brightly coloured wing feathers and the characteristic red neck

Red-necked Stint

Several Ruddy Turnstone were skulking among the stints.

Ruddy Turnstone + Red-necked Stint, 13th Beach

Ruddy Turnstone, 13th Beach

I could sit and watch Stints and Turnstones all day but I was particularly interested in finding the Pacific Golden Plover found last time so I extracted myself as carefully as possible from my observation point close to the seaweed and walked westward up the beach to the rocks where the PGPs are usually found.

As I approached the rocks, the flock of PGPs flushed but soon settled closeby on the outer rocks.

Pacific Golden Plover, 13th Beach

It's a bit of a challenge crawling over rocks to get closer but I was reasonably successful,

Pacific Golden Plover, 13th Beach

getting close enough to capture several birds with different stages of breeding plumage development.

Pacific Golden Plover, 13th Beach

Waders of 13th Beach

Probably the best place on the Bellarine Peninsula to see a variety of small waders is the Black Rocks end of 13th Beach.

I arrived there this morning near low tide but right at the top of the beach, just in front of the dunes, was a flock of approximately 20 White-fronted Chat feeding on invertebrates in the sand and piles of seaweed. Chats are actually related to honeyeaters but White-fronted Chats can frequently be found feeding along the shore at this beach.

White-fronted Chat (female), 13th Beach

White-fronted Chat (male), 13th Beach

There were also several Red-necked Stint among the chats.

Red-necked Stint, 13th Beach

As I moved off to see if I could find the Hooded Plovers that are breeding further down the beach, a flock of noisy Masked Lapwing flew overhead.

Masked Lapwing, 13th Beach

There is an area of beach and dunes roped off where the pair of Hoodies is breeding so I walked past close to the water to try and avoid disturbing the birds but I found them at the water's edge. I knelt down amongst the piles of seaweed a took a few photographs.

Hooded Plover, 13th Beach

According to the signs on the path to the beach this pair has a chick so I didn't stay long, leaving the pair to resume their parenting duties.

There were several mixed flocks of small waders among the rocks at the western end of the beach.

Red-necked Stint, Red-capped Plover, Double-banded Plover,
13th Beach 

Red-necked Stint, Red-capped Plover,
13th Beach

It was difficult to get close to these birds as the rocky terrain means you cannot easily stay low when approaching but I did manage a few shots.

Double-banded Plover, 13th Beach

Red-capped Plover, 13th Beach

Red-capped Plover (with Red-necked Stints in background),
13th Beach

This site is also the most reliable place on the Peninsula to find Pacific Golden Plover and I managed to find them this morning along with a few Ruddy Turnstone

Pacific Golden Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, 13th Beach

Pacific Golden Plover, 13th Beach

but they were easily spooked...

Pacific Golden Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, 13th Beach

As I left the beach, the chats gave me a last look as they exploited the signs as preening roosts.

White-fronted Chat, 13th Beach

Seven species of waders and a smattering of chats made for a great morning.