WONDERFUL WERRIBEE

Yesterday, I spent a wonderful day at Werribee. A birding mate from New South Wales was visiting Victoria and suggested a trip to the Western Treatment Plant. I agreed with alacrity. We met at Beach Road at 9.30 a.m. and birded happily until around 4 p.m., clocking up just 66 species, including three that we heard but did not see (Red Wattlebird, White-plumed Honeyeater and Australian Reed Warbler). I love going to Werribee and always enjoy myself there, no matter what the weather or how badly the birds behave. However, I do like the place to perform when I have an interstate guest, and I confess that yesterday I was disappointed with both the number of birds and the number of species. There were lots and lots of very vocal Little Grassbirds just about everywhere we went, and an incredible number of skeins of ibis flying overhead. Almost every time I looked up, there was another flock of a hundred or so birds. Assuming it wasn't a few birds recycling themselves, we must have seen many thousands of ibis. All those I identified were Straw-necked.

That was good. However, we saw very few ducks, just a handful of pelicans, no coots, no terns whatsoever, and just a few raptors. There were not many waders, and those that were there were skittish, but that's fine for September. The bird of the day was undoubtedly the Australian Crake that entertained us at the Borrow Pits while we had lunch, walking and running around in front of us perfectly at home. Probably the only other noteworthy bird was a Buff-banded Rail, playing along the creek edge near the Beach Road entrance. This photo of a Buff-banded Rail, taken by Ken Haines, is not the same bird. (Indeed, if I'm honest, it's not even the same race.)

Apart from the crake and the rail, I was disappointed. Over the years, I've visited Werribee many times, but I can only find records for two visits in the month of September. That was in 2007 and 2017. On both those occasions I saw many more species than I managed yesterday. The only bird I've identified that we saw yesterday, but not in either 2007 or 2017 was a Black-faced Cuckooshrike. In 2017, not only did we see both the crake and the rail that we saw yesterday, we saw two other crakes as well: Baillon's and Spotless. Yesterday must be one of very few visits to Werribee at any time of year when I came home coot-less. On my previous September trips, not only did I tick coots, but I saw moorhen on both occasions and a nativehen in 2017. I saw Glossy Ibis on both previous September trips. There was not a hint of Glossy Ibis yesterday. I saw a Great Crested Grebe in 2017, a bird I wanted yesterday for my year list, but did not see. We saw many more ducks on both previous September visits: more birds and more species, namely: Hardhead, Pink-eared and Blue-billed Ducks and Grey Teal. In 2007 we saw shelduck. In 2017 we saw gannets, but the coast road was closed yesterday, so we had little chance of gannets. We did visit the boat ramp, so we could have seen them. In 2007, we saw Pacific Gulls, but again, without driving along the coast road, we'd have been lucky to get Pacific Gulls yesterday. Nothwithstanding being denied access to the coast road, I did expect to see some terns. Not a one. On both previous September visits, we saw both Crested and Whiskered and in 2007, we saw Caspian. In 2017 we saw many more species of raptors: Spotted Harrier, Collared Sparrowhawk, Peregrine Falcon and both Wedge-tailed and Little Eagle. Yesterday, we saw kestrels, Whistling and Black-shouldered Kites, Brown Falcon and Swamp Harriers. In 2017 we saw Zebra Finch. There were no finches yesterday. There were no avocets yesterday either, a bird I sorely missed. In 2017 we saw Red-capped Plovers, Red-kneed Dotterels, Marsh Sandpipers and (yes!) Sanderlings. Nothing so exciting put in an appearance yesterday. The wind was cold, and we were a bit cross when our key did not work in the padlock when we attempted to leave, and we had to retrace our steps to the Beach Road entrance. But it is churlish to complain. We still had a fantastic day. It really is impossible to have a bad day at Werribee. Even if you come home tern-less and coot-less.