2014-11-10

140915 Queensland Lakefield NP and Lotus Bird Lodge

Queensland, Australia 2014-09-05--09-25
140915 day 11 Monday
© NF Photos 140915

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I woke up at 05.30 for breakfast at  6.00. And we left for our daytrip at 7.00. The agenda for today was mainly Lakefield NP and Nifold Plains MAP. The main goal of today was to find the rare Golden-shouldered Parrot. Acc to wiki there are only about 2000 individuals left in the wild. They live in open, forrested grassland with lots of Termite mounds they use for ensting in. An interesting bird and reading about it is a good thing. So, our first stop for the day was at a grassland with termites and eucalyptus trees. It did not take long before we found some of them. And also Galah on the forest floor. To the left.

Golden-shouldered Parrot
 Back on the road one of us with sharp eyes noted a nest in a tree. Three cars stopped. A Red Goshawk was sitting on a nest. I can´t help bur wonder what the birds think of us birders. We had to circle the tree to get a view of it´s head. This one is rare s well.  :)
We also saw some emu but I have better shots another day. And a widl boar, and today the birdguide did not dare to run it over as he did yesterday. Yesterday he tried to run over a piglet with a rented car full of Swedish tourists. Maybe I should not mention it but it pissed me off and it IS a part of the trip.  He said he did not like them as they eat birds eggs. But that is a bad excuse.
From the eucalyptus forest we headed to the Nifold Plains, a vast area of grass and antshills. There was also a small wetland and we spent some time there. Lots of  Termite mounds, cows, butterflies and birds. Loved it. There was several kinds of mounds in the area. Some sharp and pointy and others looking like fat little men. And they differed in colors too. :)


It is me on the image above so you can see the size of the mound.
Not much shades for the poor cows. So many gathering below the small trees.
It was hot so we drove back to the lodge to chill off a little. I took the opportunity to check out the Lotus Lagoon and it´s birds. There was lots of Comb-crested Jacana. They are both cool and beautiful. They must have the longest feet ever. :)
The Annie River
We also payed a visit to the Annie River. You could feel in the air  that we were close to the ocean. And we walked among the mangrove. It was also a place were people camped. A few seemed to actually live there.
Back to Lotus Bird Lodge rather late but in time for dinner. We were served a real feast. Fresh and nice seafood. Everyone exept for me and one other enjoyed it. I´m no fish person so I had steak.
After another long and dusty day it was great to go in the shower. Have to pack again as we go back south tomorrow. Back to Cairns. For another treat, the Coral Reefs. :)

Driving on very dusty roads. I did see a sign saying "STOP HERE  to drop dust before entering the city." I think that says it all. I think it was close to Musgrave Roadhouse when we went there to refuel. Below, dusty road with several warning signs for flooding. The creek approximately where the car is. The world of opposites.



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20 comments:

  1. A whole day of fantastic sights - how wonderful! I would love to see the Golden shouldered Parrot!

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  2. Härliga foton.... Spännande....

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  3. What fabulous shots!

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  4. Jag har alltid gillat de färggranna papegojorna.

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  5. Well you are continuing on this trip seeing wonderful birds that you come across your way. it must be great fun.

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  6. Impressive area and beautiful photos.

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  7. What an idiot driver.... I would have probably bashed him on the side of the head if he had driven over an animal with me in the car...... makes my blood boil.....

    luckily you saw some birds .... but, I would have had trouble getting past the driver's actions....

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  8. thanks guys! Thanks Bumble Vee :)

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  9. Nydelige bilder! Et spennende sted å være!
    Her er mitt bidrag: http://hanshb.wordpress.com/

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  10. What an exciting adventure. So glad you got to see some rare birds, the parrot is so pretty.
    Oh that is awful about trying to hit a piglet, they don't deserve that at all.

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  11. Wow! I can't imagine seeing such colorful birds in the wild! I'm looking forward to clicking on other posts...such beautiful photos!

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  12. Well you certainly saw a lot. You are right, trying to cull the feral pig population with tourists on board is maybe not the way to go but they are a pest and introduced causing many problems. Sorry, I have lived on stations and I understand the tour guide's point of view but on the other hand those piglets are cute. Those birds are beautiful and those termite mounds are huge.

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  13. That red winged parrot is so lovely, and I love the green green growth. The lodge looks wonderful..and I love seafood so would have loved the meal without change.

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  14. Also thank you so much for the compliment on my bird pictures. That really means a lot coming from an amazing photographer like you!

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  15. What a great group of images! Wonderful.

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  16. thank you for taking us along to Queensland. We haven't been there yet, but it is high on my agenda. Happy travels. It was great to meet you over at Communal Global.

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  17. I love seeing parrots free instead of in cages...So colorful and other interesting birds and wildlife. Dust.. wow you are not kidding..it must be hard to wash out of clothes....Michelle from Nature Notes..

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  18. By using RentalCars you can find the cheapest car hires at over 49,000 locations across the world.

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