Follow my Tweets
Lameroo, South Australia
Lake Roberts, Lameroo, South Australia
Earlier this year my wife and I drove from our home in Murray Bridge in South Australia to Sydney in New South Wales. We were going there to play with our precious grandson – oh, and see our son and daughter in law. On our first day of travelling we left early and reached Lameroo in the Murray Mallee region of eastern South Australia.
We stopped at our favourite place on the edge of town at Lake Roberts. Here we had morning tea and a cuppa. The sunshine was lovely but the breeze was bitterly cold. I managed a few photos of the local birds before we headed east again. We had a great distance to cover before bed time.
Grain silos, Lameroo, South Australia
Lameroo is a small town in a prominent farming region. The main agricultural pursuits are wheat and barley crops with potatoes grown at nearby Parilla. Many farmers also run sheep and cattle on their farms.
After leaving Lameroo we continued driving for about an hour and half before finding a convenient roadside parking area where we stopped to have a picnic lunch. There was a interesting patch of scrub next to the car park, complete with a short walking trail featuring a good range of local native flora (see photo below). This was of particular interest to my wife but the bird life was keeping a low profile and rather quiet so I didn’t get a long list species seen in this location.
Roadside walking trail between Lameroo and Ouyen
Marion Bay, Yorke Peninsula
Penguin Point, Marion Bay, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia
On the second day of our recent short holiday on Yorke Peninsula here in South Australia we drove from Edithburgh where we were staying to the town of Yorketown. Here we refueled and also visited a local nursery. My wife has a small nursery of her own and is always on the lookout for native Australian plant nurseries to visit, just like I’m always on the prowl for bookshops.
We then drove to Marion Bay near the heel of the peninsula. Many years ago we had several very enjoyable beach holidays in this small town. It had been quite a few years since our last visit, so we were interested in seeing what changes had occurred in recent years. The original beach shack area in the old part of this beach village had changed little, but there has also been considerable building going on to the south with many new – and expensive looking – houses. Many of them were obviously holiday homes and not permanent dwellings.
We stopped in the car park at Penguin Point. We had to sit in the car to eat lunch as the wind had intensified during the morning and was by then almost gale force. Not at all pleasant to be sitting outside. In fact, I tried to take a few photos of two Ospreys soaring on the wind above the bay and had terrible trouble keeping on my feet to take the shots.
Marion Bay, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia
Marion Bay, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia
Birds of Burra Gorge, South Australia
Galah at Burra Gorge, mid north of South Australia
Burra Gorge in the mid north of South Australia is an interesting location for birding. This gorge marks the boundary between the hills further west and the dry plains to the east. It is therefore a transitional zone between the birds of the wetter parts to the west, especially around the Clare Valley about 40km away, and flora and fauna of the saltbush plains immediately to the east.
On my most recent visit last spring, the bird life was not very prominent because it was midday on a rather warm day. It would be good to camp here for several days because I believe I’d get quite a good list of birds, especially first thing in the morning. Several Galahs looked like they were preparing to breed because they were investigating hollows in some of the trees in the picnic ground.
Nearby an Australian Magpie was already sitting on a nest and others were feeding recently fledged young begging to be fed.
Magpie on nest at Burra Gorge, mid north of South Australia
Burra Gorge, mid north of South Australia
Burra Gorge, mid north of South Australia
Burra Gorge, South Australia
Burra Gorge, South Australia
Late last year we travelled to Peterborough in the mid-north of South Australia. We were visiting family and on the way we stopped at the beautiful Burra Gorge for lunch. This gorge cuts through the hills to the south east of the old mining town of Burra. It is a popular picnic area with picnic tables and toilets but no other facilities.
It is also a popular camping area, as shown in the photo above. Our visit was during school holidays as so there were quite a few campers and caravans in the camping area. All campers have to be self sufficient as far as food and water is concerned. The nearest shops are in Burra, some 30km away. There are also no powered sites.
Burra Gorge, South Australia
Birding while having lunch
Yellow Rosella, Balranald, NSW
Whenever we travel, we try to pick suitable places for meal breaks. For us, suitable places are not shopping malls, places with crowds of people and busy locations. We prefer quiet, natural spots where I can do some birding while we have lunch or a cuppa.
On our way home from Sydney last year we stopped for lunch on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River in Balranald, far south western New South Wales. While we ate I managed a few photos of the local birds, including the Yellow Rosella shown above. This rosella is a sub species of the common Crimson Rosella usually seen much further east. For a better photo click here.
A Laughing Kookaburra also came near for a look at what we were doing, but I was unable to get a close shot before he flew off downstream. For better photos click here.
Laughing Kookaburra, Balranald, NSW