Semi-palmated Plover in Bundaberg

 

Semi-palmated Plover

Birder Scott Fox did well to spot a small plover on the far side of a rapidly shrinking freshwater pool midway between Bundaberg and Bargara in south-east Queensland on November 24, 2023. Observations by Scott and other observers left little doubt at the time that this was a Common Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) and not the similar Semipalmated Plover (C. semipalmatus). Both species are known from a handful of records in Australia scattered across various states.

Ringed Plover

I turned up at the pool late in the afternoon of November 30. A tightly bunched flock of Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, evidently spooked by a raptor, were flying around the pool, and with them was a small plover with an obvious white wing bar (a feature which rules out Little Ringed Plover C. dubius). Others noted that although the bird had been seen late in the late afternoon, it was much more regular early in the morning, especially the first hour of daylight, after which it evidently flew away to unknown sites, returning later to the pool.

Early on the morning of December 1, I met up with Chris Barnes, Andy Jensen and Jane Hall at the site. Andy picked up the plover on the far shore. This is not an easy bird to log. Lighting conditions were dreadful. It stuck to the opposite bank - too far for decent images. Usually it fed in the interface between dying hyacinth and living hyacinth and was difficult to spot; if resting or its back was turned, it was not visible. However, observers agreed that features favoured its identification as Common Ringed Plover: a more pointed, longer bill; a conspicuously broad breast band that is broken; an equally conspicuous supercilium; no white extending above the gape; no indication of an eye ring; no evidence of webbing between the toes noted in the field or in sharper shots that Chris managed in better light conditions (though this feature requires confirmation). I’ve included a couple of Chris’s images in this post. At the time of writing (December 3) the bird has been seen daily since November 24, although it was not seen this morning, possibly due to heavy rain overnight, it was seen in the afternoon. The bird was generally feeding alone, although associating loosely with Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and Black-fronted Dotterels.

Ringed Plover (Chris Barnes)

Ringed Plover with Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Chris Barnes)

This was a previous record of Ringed Plover for Queensland: at Boonooroo in 1983; that bird frequented a tidal shorebird roost. There are two records also of Semipalmated Plover from Queensland: 1 bird has been present the last two summers at Geoff Skinner Reserve near Brisbane; the other was spotted by Chris Barnes near Bundaberg in 2012.

Semipalmated Plover at Geoff Skinner Reserve

POSTSCRIPT 8/1/2024

The plover appeaed to have have vacated the Rubyanna Road swamp and was being seen regularly in recent days on sandflats at nearby Burnett Heads. Here it was much more approachable and observers were getting clearer views and images. Angus Daly noted that he detected a faint yellow eye ring and raised questions about the supposed lack of webbing between the toes. Fresh images by Chris Barnes did indeed show more extensive webbing, clinching the identification of this bird as a Semi-palmated Plover.

Back at the Bundaberg pond in January, an adult female Black-necked Stork accompanied by an immature bird were seen.

Black-necked Stork

I was pleased to catch up with an Oriental Cuckoo in woodland along a walking track behind Bargara Caravan Park, where we were staying.

Oriental Cuckoo

Strong south-easterly winds offshore brought large flocks of terns inshore: they were mostly noddies, both Black Noddy and Brown Noddy in what looked to be about equal numbers (though birds were distant) in mixed flocks. Among them were 20+ Bridled Terns, which were even further out to sea.

Black Noddy & Brown Noddy offshore (distant)

In the camping ground, a fine Frill-necked Lizard entertained us for a couple of days, feeding on the short grass until well after sunset, when it appeared to be catching numerous ground insects at dusk.

Frill-necked Lizard

A pair of Radjah Shelduck were spotted flying over the camping ground and located later in a nearby tidal creek. This species is becoming increasingly regular in south-east Queensland in recent years.

Radjah Shelduck

Red-backed Fairywren

Eastern Koel and Red-backed Fairywren were among the more common fare on offer.

Eastern Koel