Pre-tour Brisbane Extension:
Day 1 (Jan 24) – Our tour will commence with a 6pm meeting and dinner at our hotel in Brisbane. Night in Brisbane.
Day 2 (Jan 25) – We’ll start the day by exploring some excellent birding spots along the coast a little south of the Brisbane airport. At an area with a tall fringing row of mangroves near Lytton Point we should find Mangrove Honeyeater and Mangrove Gerygone lurking in the canopy. The open fields around the point also support healthy populations of birds like Australasian Figbird, Magpie-lark, Willie Wagtail, Welcome Swallow and the handsome, if common, Crested Pigeon. Once we have soaked in some of these more widespread birds, we’ll move over to the nearby Mangrove Boardwalk and high tide roost near Wynnum. Here we should encounter our first dazzling Fairywrens, with Superb and Red-backed both likely, and Variegated possible as well. Tawny Grassbirds and Golden-headed Cisticolas are often around the bushier sections near the car park, and if the trees are in blossom, we might find an array of honeyeaters including the impressive Blue-faced foraging around the area as well. We’ll try to time our visit for a high tide, when good numbers of waders often loaf around the small bird hide here. Species should include the hulking Far Eastern Curlew, both Bar-tailed and Black-tailed Godwits, Great Knot, Marsh Sandpiper and Red-necked Stint, just to name a few. Out on the boardwalk, which winds around an extensive stand of mangroves that line the shore of Moreton Bay we should encounter Torresian (and Sacred) Kingfishers, Rufous Whistler, little flocks of Silvereye and a nice mix of herons and egrets. After lunch we’ll move a tiny bit inland with a visit to some freshwater marshes with extensive stands of paperbark trees. Here we should find an array of waterfowl, hopefully including Plumed and Wandering Whistling-Ducks, calling Australian Reed Warblers and perhaps even a secretive Spotless Crake or Buff-banded Rail. The adjacent trees should hold our first Rainbow Bee-eaters, and an array of honeyeaters including Noisy Friarbird, Brown Honeyeater and attractive groups of Double-barred Finches. Night in Brisbane.
Day 3 (Jan 26) – We’ll start the day early to beat the worst of the Brisbane traffic as we head a bit to the north to the Tinchi Tamba Wetlands. This nearly 400-hectare city park lies adjacent to the Pine River and protects an area of tidal flats, coastal mangroves and salt-marshes, paperbark wetlands, open grasslands and patches of thicker forest. Widely regarded as the premier birding destination within Brisbane city limits this park boasts an impressive birdlist (over 240 species as of 2020). We’ll spend a relaxed morning here, soaking up the wealth of birdlife from Australian Brushturkeys strutting around in the understory to Brahminy and Whistling Kites circling overhead, Chestnut and Grey Teal paddling around along the riverbank and Laughing Kookaburras sounding off from the trees. The area supports a nice variety of parrots as well, and we should encounter noisy groups of Galah, Little Corella and Sulphur-crested Cockatoos out on the open fields, Pale-headed Rosellas, and Rainbow and Scaly-breasted Lorikeets over the course of the morning. After a slightly early lunch we’ll start heading inland, skirting the western edge of the city before striking out towards our eventual destination; the city of Toowoomba. Toowoomba is the second largest inland city in the country, with about 160,000 inhabitants. It serves as the hub to the rich farming and ranching area known as the Darling Downs, which sit on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range. Before reaching our destination, we’ll stop in to a few spots in the Lockyer Valley, one of the most fertile agricultural regions on the planet, and the source of a major proportion of the countries farmed vegetables and grains. Around the large Atkinsons Dam, part of the Lower Lockyer irrigation scheme we’ll look for Yellow-rumped Thornbills, Black-faced Cuckooshrike, Little Friarbirds, and Noisy Miners around the picnic area. The taller grasses around the pond sometimes support numbers of finches, including the local Plum-headed Finch, Double-barred Finch, and Chestnut-breasted Mannikin, as well as a healthy population of Brown Quail and skulky Little and Tawny Grassbirds. Out on the water we should see Australasian and Great Crested Grebes, Black Swan, Magpie Goose and our first Pink-eared Ducks. A stop in at the nearby Seven Mile lagoon should reveal Australian Pelicans, Glossy, Straw-necked and Australian Ibis and possibly both Royal and Yellow-billed Spoonbills as well as good chances for White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Swamp Harrier and Brown Songlark. Eventually we’ll reach Toowoomba, where we will spend the night.
Day 4 (Jan 27) – Redwood Park, to Coolmunda/Inglewoo This morning will find us a bit north of Toowoomba, where we will spend some time exploring the trails around Highfields Falls. The small but scenic waterfall serves as the main focus for the park, but the many well laid out trails that wind around the falls area provide easy access to a very nice mix of birds. Depending on the fruiting and flowering conditions in the area we might find Brown Cuckoo-Doves, Common Bronzewing and Peaceful and Bar-shouldered Doves gobbling small fruits. The area is particularly good for cuckoo and honeyeater diversity, including such birds as Pacific Koel, the impressive Channel-billed Cuckoo, Pheasant Coucal and Lewin’s, Yellow-faced, Brown, White-naped Honeyearters and the colourful Scarlet Myzomela. Small bush birds should be evident as well, with White-browed and Large-billed Scrubwren joining Brown and Striated Thornbills, and White-throated and Brown Gerygones in little mixed flocks. With luck we’ll also pick out a trio of flashy flycatchers, including Black-faced and Spectacled Monarchs and Leaden Flycatcher. Leaving the Toowoomba area behind we’ll head southwest, bound for the small but usually very birdy Irongate Natural Conservation Reserve, a site owned and managed by the Queensland Government to protect several species of endangered trees. Here we’ll look for bird such as Cockatiel, Greater Bluebonnet, Red-rumped Parrot, Purple-backed Fairywren, Spiny-cheeked and Striped Honeyeaters, Speckled Warbler, Yellow Thornbill, Weebill, White-winged and Varied Trillers, Eastern Yellow Robin, and Mistletoebird. In the mid-afternoon we’ll head down to our base for the night in Inglewood, a small country town with the charming slogan of “catch the country spirit”. We should arrive with some time to spare, allowing for a bit of a rest before we head out for a late afternoon trip a bit south of Lake Coolmunda. Here in a more open arid landscape, we might find a wandering group of Emu, family group of Gray-crowned Babbler, or roving flock of Woodswallow (White-breasted, Masked and Dusky are all possible here). Night in Inglewood.
Day 5 (Jan 28) – Our main birding destination for the day will be a quiet backcountry road a bit to the north of Coolmunda Dam. Although the road looks rather unremarkable, as it winds north through a series of open fields and hedgerows, with small rows of trees and shrubs along the verge the area supports a wealth of birdlife, with a species list of over 200! Among the more common species in the area, we’ll look for things like Squatter Pigeon, Rainbow Bee-eater, Dollarbird, Red-winged Parrot, White-winged Fairywren, Fuscous, White-eared and Brown-headed Honeyeaters, Buff-rumped Thornbill, Varied Sittella, and if we are quite lucky perhaps even Ground Cuckooshrike, Diamond Firetail or Spotted Bowerbird. The road eventually enters the Devine State Forest, where we might find Red-capped and Hooded Robin, Jacky-Winter, Restless Flycatcher, White-winged Chough and the curious Apostlebird. A small water hole here can often be productive in the summer heat, with an array of birds coming in to drink or bathe in the heat of the day. In the afternoon we’ll likely visit the nearby Coolmunda Dam area for some general birding, or other sites nearby depending on our remaining needs. Night in Inglewood.
Day 6 (Jan 29) – Today will largely be a travel day, as we make our way back eastwards and then up into the Border Range Mountains that lie along the New South Wales-Queensland border. In the morning we’ll spend a bit of time exploring some of the open forest and waterholes in the sprawling Durikai State Forest. This more open eucalypt forest supports a few special species that we likely will not have encountered by this point in the tour. We’ll seek out the always difficult to locate Painted Buttonquail, parrots such as the dazzling Turquoise Parrot and Little Lorikeet, White-browed Babbler, Yellow-tufted and perhaps Black-chinned Honeyeaters. Heading further east we’ll pass through open farmland and eucalyptus woods broken occasionally by marshes and streams, and we should see Gray Butcherbird, Little Friarbird, and perhaps Glossy Black Cockatoo or Pretty-faced (Whiptail) Wallaby. By late afternoon we’ll enter the subtropical rainforest of the Lamington Plateau, a change of environment marked by flocks of Crimson Rosellas. We’ll arrive at O’Reilly’s Guesthouse in time for some late afternoon birding. If we’re lucky we may be able to watch a Satin Bowerbird decorating its bower or hand-feed the many semi-tame Regent Bowerbirds, Australian King Parrots, or Red-browed Finches that decorate the lodge grounds. In the evening Red-necked Pademelons graze on the lawns, and during dinner Short-eared Brushtail Possums often come to the dining room feeders. Night at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Guesthouse.
Days 7 & 8 (Jan 30 & 31) - O’Reilly’s Guesthouse is celebrated by birdwatchers worldwide for its amazing shows of multicolored tropical species, many of which are hand-tame and present fantastic photographic opportunities. Species that frequent the guesthouse feeders include bizarre Australian Brush-Turkeys, stunning Regent Bowerbirds (the guesthouse emblem)—the male being arguably the most beautiful Australian bird—more subtle but equally attractive Satin Bowerbirds, chunky Wonga Pigeons, cheeky Lewin’s Honeyeaters, and ragged flocks of Crimson Rosellas and Australian King Parrots. But the feeding frenzies around the guesthouse are by no means the only ornithological attractions at O’Reilly’s. Set in the heart of Lamington National Park, the guesthouse has lengthy trails that take off in various directions through superb montane rainforest containing a wealth of specialties that will be new for us. These include Paradise Riflebird, curious Green Catbirds, entertaining Australian Logrunners, both Bassian and Russet-tailed Thrushes, remarkably confiding Eastern Whipbirds, and three species of scrub-wren all so tame they will feed within feet of us, and many, many more. Perhaps the ultimate prize is Albert’s Lyrebird, a species with a tiny world range but also a very shy bird, usually heard singing but not always seen—and even then, often just a large dark shape bounding away through the undergrowth. And after dinner one night we’ll make a serious attempt to find Marbled Frogmouth, a seldom-seen denizen of the high rainforest canopy. The lower slopes of the mountains are drier, and support a different suite of birds. On at least one of the days we’ll drop down in elevation to look for birds such as Red-browed Treecreeper, White-naped Honeyeater, Variegated Fairy-Wren, and Spotted Pardalote, and we’ll also visit a Bell Miner colony site, a treat for the aural senses, though the birds can be frustratingly difficult to locate because they remain largely motionless in the canopy. Nights at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Guesthouse.
Day 9 (Feb 1): After an early morning at O’Reilly’s searching for any species still missing and enjoying the superb ambience of the location and its many very approachable birds, we’ll drive back down to the coast and then east back towards the Brisbane harbour where we will board with our cruise ship in the early afternoon in preparation for an early evening departure.
Main Cruise:
Day 1 (Feb 1): The main tour begins on the ship in the evening with an onboard meeting and dinner shortly before the ship leaves the Brisbane Harbor. We’ll spend the waning hours of the day up on deck, where we should rack up a nice selection of coastal Australian species as we navigate the channel out of the harbour and pass through Moreton Bay inshore of Stradbroke Island. Night aboard ship.
Day 2-4: We’ll wake the next morning well east of Australia, as we traverse the Tasman Sea over the course of three days. This small sea, roughly 1,250 miles across, stretches between Australia and New Zealand and reaches depths of over 17,000 feet. If you are used to small-boat-based pelagic adventures, where the horizon is constantly dipping in and out of view and it’s hard to hold on to the railings while operating binoculars, the experience of birding and of telescope use from the comforts of Deck 8 on a large and stable cruise ship with ample space is a dream. Generally, we can find a protected area near the bow during all but the roughest sea conditions, and there are always endless opportunities for non-birding entertainment and food (or simply a comfortable bed) just meters away from our birding platform. Three days of seabirding will familiarize us with many of the different kinds of seabirds found in this region, as we transit from central Australia to the northern New Zealand coast. Six or more species of albatross are possible, including Antipodean and Snowy Wandering, Northern Royal, Buller’s, Tasmanian Shy, and Salvin’s. Among the Pterodroma petrels, we should see mostly Cook’s and Gray-faced Petrels, and we hope to spot some rarer ones like the beautiful Mottled, White-headed or Black-winged. The ship will pass fairly to the south of Norfolk Island, an area with substantial undersea topography that on previous trips has produced a great selection of warmer water species such as Red-footed Booby, White Tern, Bulwer’s, Collared Petrel, Tahiti and Kermadec Petrels and both White-tailed and Red-tailed Tropicbirds. Cetaceans can be plentiful in these waters as well, with about 35 species recorded. We’ll certainly keep an eye out for surfacing whales, and—with a bit of luck and some quick photography—may even be able to record a few rare Beaked Whales among the more common species. Nights aboard the ship.
Day 5: We’re scheduled to dock early in the morning, allowing us to disembark for a full day of birding near Auckland. We plan a short drive north to the coast near Muriwai, where an impressive colony of Australasian Gannets will be on display against a scenic backdrop of seaside bluffs, sand beaches, and coastal heath. A short boardwalk to a viewing platform allows visitors excellent views of these smart-looking birds, and—given the timing of our visit—there should be a lot of chicks on display as well. The coast here should support a few other species of interest such as Variable Oystercatcher, White-fronted Tern, and perhaps the large and colorful Tui, one of two species of Honeyeater native to New Zealand. Along the roadsides we’ll also experience a wealth of non-native species that now dominate much of the open landscapes of the country. We should see Eurasian Skylark, Song Thrush, Eurasian Blackbird, Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, European Goldfinch, and Yellowhammer in the hedgerows. We might also see wide-ranging Australasian birds such as Swamp Harrier, Masked Lapwing, Welcome Swallow, Australian Magpie, Sacred Kingfisher, and Purple Swamphen. Some native songbirds are possible, too, and we’ll keep an eye out for Grey Gerygones and New Zealand Fantails. On the way back to Auckland, we’ll stop at a few wader spots in search of the scarce New Zealand Dotterel and Double-banded Plover. As the day draws to a close, we’ll board our ship in time for dinner. Night aboard the ship.
Day 6: We’ll dock at the harbor near Tauranga in the early morning and will soon be away on our minibus bound for the Whirinaki Te Pua-a-Tane Conservation Park. Although the drive is long, it’s scenic, and the birding rewards once we’ve reached the forest make the trip well worth it. This protected area encompasses tracts of ancient Podocarpus totara trees and is widely considered one of the largest and most ecologically important forest reserves in the country. We’ll spend much of the day exploring some of the many trails through the reserve on the lookout for the scarce Yellow-crowned Parakeet, garrulous Kaka, North Island Robin, Tomtit, Tui, Shining Bronze and Long-tailed Cuckoos, and the diminutive Rifleman. Some of the scarce native forest birds are still extant in the preserve as well, and we’ll keep an eye out for New Zealand Bellbirds, Whitehead, and Grey Gerygone. The drive to and from the forest will certainly have birding possibilities, including wetlands harboring the local New Zealand Grebe and handsome New Zealand Scaup and we’ll keep a sharp eye out for New Zealand Falcon, always a tough bird to encounter throughout the country as we drive back in the late afternoon to Tauranga to board the ship. Night aboard the ship.
Day 7: During our first full day at sea around New Zealand we will cruise southwards down the east coast of the North Island, passing through some of the richest waters in the world for tubenose diversity. We may see no less than five species of albatrosses today, including Wandering (Gibson’s), Northern Royal, Buller, Shy and Salvin’s Albatross. Among the Pterodroma petrels, we should see mostly Cook’s and Gray-faced. With the larger Procellaria, we will learn how to spot Parkinson’s Petrel among the common White-chinned Petrel. We should also see a nice variety of shearwaters, including Flesh-footed, Buller’s and Sooty Shearwaters and maybe even a few Fairy Prion, Common Diving-Petrel or White-faced Storm-Petrels. Night aboard the ship.
Day 8: Our shore excursion today will be a bit different from our previous ones. We’ll dock in Picton, a small city at the head of the long and picturesque Queen Charlotte Sound. The region is world famous for its extensive vineyards and amazing scenery, but our day will involve taking a much smaller boat into the sound to several small islands near Cape Jackson. Making landfall on these islands will allow us to seek out birds such as South Island Saddleback, South Island Robin, Weka and perhaps (with great luck) the critically endangered Orange-fronted Parakeet. Along the rocky coastlines we may see Spotted and King Shags, the latter endemic to the waters around the Marlborough Sounds and numbering fewer than 1,000. Marine mammals are common in the area as well, and we will keep a look out for the tiny endemic Hector’s Dolphin as well as more widespread species such as Bottlenose and Dusky Dolphins, Orca and New Zealand Fur Seals. We’ll have a bit of time ashore in Picton as well, perhaps providing an opportunity to sample some of the wines that have put this small corner of the country on every oenophile’s map. Night aboard the ship.
Day 9: We’ll wake at Lyttelton, just south of the larger city of Christchurch. We’ll disembark shortly after docking and set out to explore the adjacent rugged coastline and the shores of the vast Lake Ellesmere. Our chief birding goals for the day will be the iconic Kea, and the bizarre Wrybill. The first species will require a drive inland to the base of the high western mountains, where these charismatic (and sometimes overly mischievous) parrots can often be found. Other woodland birds such as Pipipi (Brown Creeper), South Island Robin and Tomtit are possible too. We’ll then head back towards the coast, checking some areas which are often productive for Wrybill. These small plovers possess one of the oddest bills of any bird, bent sideways to the right at a shockingly abrupt angle. They use this unique bill to probe underneath large, rounded stones in braided rivers and rocky shorelines. It’s a scarce bird with an estimated population of only a few thousand. Here, too, we should see a selection of wintering northern hemisphere waders such as Bar-tailed Godwit, Sharp-tailed and Curlew Sandpipers, Red-necked Stint, and large numbers of Pied Stilts and Double-banded Plovers. In the late afternoon we’ll head to the back to the ship. For those that are game we’ll likely do a bit of seawatching from the bow after we depart the port. Night aboard the ship.
Day 10: We’ll depart the harbor at Port Chalmers (just outside of Dunedin) and venture out to the Otago Peninsula. We’ll spend the morning at the Orokonui Sanctuary, a wonderful reserve surrounded by an impressively constructed predator proof fence that lies just a few kilometers out of the port. Here we will have our first chance to immerse ourselves in native forest, with a heavy presence of native birdlife. Tui and New Zealand Bellbird are common here, and we have excellent chances at also encountering hulking Takahe, Pipipi (New Zealand Creeper), South Island Robin, Rifleman, and Tomtit. After Orokonui we’ll head down towards the series of coastal lagoons where we should encounter a fine array of waterbirds including the majestic Royal Spoonbill, endemic Paradise Shelduck and iconic Black Swan. As we depart the harbour we may well spot Little Penguins along the shoreline, and we’ll pass by a large breeding colony of Northern Royal Albatrosses near the tip of the Taiaroa Headland. Night aboard the ship.
Day 11: Today we’ll be cruising in the amazingly beautiful Fiordland National Park. New Zealand’s largest national park was formed millennia ago by massive glacial flows that carved deep fiords into the coast of South Island. At the heart of the park lies the deep-water Milford Sound. The sound cuts through the Southern Alps, and the shores are lined by towering cliffs that soar nearly a mile above the surface. Rainforest clings to the cliffs, and dozens of graceful waterfalls plummet into the ocean. The day will be filled with scenes of incredible scenery, but we will (of course) keep a watchful eye on the waters for seabirds as well. The endangered Fiordland Penguin is a distinct possibility here, as are Sooty Shearwaters and White-capped Albatross, and with some luck we might spot a Southern Giant Petrel or dapper Cape Petrel. Bottlenose Dolphin and loafing New Zealand Fur Seals should be regular sights throughout the day, all set against one of the most scenic backdrops imaginable. Night aboard the ship.
Day 12-14: We’ll have three full days at sea, as we sail back across the Tasman Sea between the North Island of New Zealand and Brisbane. We will transition from the cooler waters off the southern New Zealand coast to the markedly warmer waters of central Australia, with an impressive variety of seabirds to keep us occupied. Some will be familiar to us from our first crossing of the Tasman Sea, but our higher latitude should make for a slightly different mix of species. We expect regular sightings of at least five species of albatross, shearwaters like Buller’s, Flesh-footed, Fluttering, and Sooty, and petrels like Cook’s and Gray-faced. We will keep our eyes open for rarer species along this route, which includes waters that are little explored by pelagic birders. Nights aboard the ship.
Day 15: We’ll arrive back in the port of Brisbane during the night and will disembark the ship early in the morning with participants shuttled to the airport or into town as they prefer.