The end (of 2024) loomed...
… but there were still a few ‘chores’ to complete. First a brief return to Georgetown and surrounds in search of the elusive Gouldian Finch… a search that proved fruitless in the end. However, I did manage to pick up a few newbies when travelling. The monstrous Narcissus Jewel (Hypochrysops narcissus) is an inhabitant of the mangroves around Cairns and I connected with it while dipping my new Qld bogey, Great-billed Heron, on the mangrove boardwalk near the airport for the fifth or sixth time. The Jewel and a Black-spotted Flash (Hypolycaena phorbas) skulking in the gloom were good consolation prizes!
Up into the hills again and then out into the hot, dry savannah where we waited for a glimpse of the target species in vain… it was fun having a bit more time to poke around though, and we did enjoy some nice zenbirding experiences, including several close encounters with swarming Banded Honeyeaters – always a treat to see. In our wanderings we also connected with a curious dragon and were excited to find that it was a modest range extension for the species, which is far more common to the north-west.
And then a fire approached from the east… and our entire project area essentially burnt to the ground. No loss of (human) life or infrastructure beyond a few fences… but it would have been a worrisome time for the landholders, I’m sure. We bailed from the Einasleigh Uplands and went birding in the tablelands on the way back to Cairns. I FINALLY connected with the so-called Atherton Thrush (a possible cryptic species of Zoothera)… watch this space!
Back home again and a twitch was on almost immediately to connect with the near-mythical Thylacine Darner (Acanthaeschna victoria) thanks to some timely gen from the great Ged Tranter. Whilst the first individual I found was moribund (pictured below), before too long I connected with a female ovipositing in the gloomy swamp. A lifetime dream fulfilled, and my 100th Dragonfly species in the bag! Sadly, I have kind of run out of potential for new drangonflies and damselflies now in SEQ (barring a few rares), so my Odelist is likely to stagnate for a little while, like the blackened water of the Tamborine swamp… how appropriate.
All too soon it was time for my last field trip for the year… a long-overdue return to my home away from home: the area around the (in)famous Mt Coxendean. Happily, on this trip I was to be accompanied by the indomitable GUDA! Gus was relatively excited, as there were numerous vertebrate lifers awaiting him on (and in) the cracking clay plains… I was not as excited, given the dozen or so trips I have made to this area before, but it was still going to be fun.
Straight off the bat on the first night we had an exciting encounter, with a Needletail seen below the canopy after sunset. We weren’t sure if we flushed the beast from its bedtime branch, or if it was coming in and looking for a spot to sleep, but it was the closest I’ve come so far to my dream of finding one perched. Very cool! The rest of the first night was uneventful and turned into a bit of a slog… we eventually got back to where we had parked, on some unutterably remote back road, to find that our car had been broken into. Gus was absolutely ropeable – I have to admit I simply felt bemused. Once we realised that they’d stolen some of our shit though it was a different story. Grubs!
The next couple of nights were better – more froggy and snakey – and we were shifting towards the nocturnal lifestyle so it wasn’t as mentally punishing. We ticked a couple of grid cells off for FrogID, I and managed to connect with one of my last outstanding Brigalow Belt serpents: CORAL SNAKE. An absolute monster, and an animal I had always wanted to see. Gus ticked a couple of new frogs and a handful of geckoes also, but the best was yet to come! A hoped for and long awaited furtick, the extremely charismatic Spectacled Hare Wallaby, eventually loomed out of the darkness. A two-lifer night for me! GUDAs harvest continued with another lifer on the way back to camp, the most common arboreal mammal in the area… the always pleasant Central Gurgler (no pics this time).
Back home, I had a brief spell in the office, and was pleased to receive a ‘working hard award’. As my prize, I selected an absolutely fantastic origami lyrebird. Matt’s dad folded the beast himself from paper he had made, and it is now sitting proudly on my desk. And then it was off to Melbourne for the ESA conference! I was staying with my old friend and collaborator, Louise Ashton, in a lovely little apartment. This was an awesome mini-holiday for me (despite being sick as a dog). It was fun getting my research mind operational again, and ‘engaging in the scientific community’. I learned a lot and there were a few happy extracurricular activities too. My pal Tim Bawden had kindly agreed to take me out to look for a few local specialities (and hunt county ticks). County (LGA) birding may be the next frontier…
Anyway, Tim and I cleaned up in Bunyip. We stopped for a little walk, and I quickly became boggled by the local bird song dialects, which was a little disturbing. State ticks fell fast, and I really enjoyed seeing a super high-up Needletail flock catching the last of the sun. Moving further into the forest, Tim pointed out a couple of very range-restricted plants and once it had (finally!) gotten dark around 10 pm, he quickly whistled up Leadbeater’s Possum. Unreal stuff. Cracking views of a Sooty Owl on the way home rounded out the night, and we headed back to Melbourne. As usual when out with Tim, I was falling asleep in the car by the time he dropped me off. It had been awesome though – thanks mate!
Another desultory week in the office followed and then I took a whole bunch of time off, eventually ending up at the usual year-end spot – Woodfordia – after a relaxing Christmas with the families 🙂 At the festival a good mate of mine, the polymathematician Philip Griffin, helped me with the bird walks (in between his concerts) and happily they all went well. I met a very interesting muso through Philip as well (Sam Lee) and took him out birding one morning. A lovely experience, and a classic example of the Woodford spirits connecting like-minded people. J also joined me for several days of the festival and, as usual, we had a great time immersed in the folk festival ethos.
The final holiday event was a lightning trip out to the Bunya’s to visit some lovely SEVT with Life at World’s End star Chris Wiley and his friend Mick. Mick had acquired a large block of land adjacent to the Bunya Mountains NP some time ago, and has been gradually building up the species list on the block ever since. The place is absolutely amazing, with almost no weeds at all in the thickets. We helped Mick find a few new species for the block and engaged in some high-quality forest bathing – at one stage, bathing for quite some time after getting turned around in the vines!
That concludes the year that was 2024. A good one for me; thanks to Jess, Barkley and Hoopert for being my pack (and for everything), to all my friends for the good times (and for everything else) and to my family for the love and support since childhood (and everything you do for me). I’m very privileged to lead the life I do and I’m excited to see what 2025 brings my way!
