Field trips for Townsville wildlife enthusiasts

people on dam wall
The beginning of the Birdlife Townsville walk at Ross Dam

The period between Christmas and Australia Day is a quiet one for many organisations but everyone seems to be gearing up again now.

Birdlife Townsville (formerly, I think, the Townsville Region Bird Observers Club, which was cumbersome but accurately reflected their focus) didn’t slow down at all for January: their calendar lists nine events for that month, which is close to average. They are a keen lot!

I was invited to their “Ross Dam Survey” on January 17th and enjoyed it. A dozen of us met at the Dam carpark, drove along the Kelso side of the dam as far as we could and then walked, first along the dam wall and then down beside the creek which enters the head of the dam. There were, of course, lots of water birds – ibis, spoonbills, egrets, cormorants, pelicans, etc – but many other species were sighted and counted in the two and a half hours. I learned a lot, not least that my bird-spotting skills could improve with more practice like this!

Wildlife Queensland has begun announcing its monthly walks. The first is to Paluma Dam (a lot further away than Ross Dam but very beautiful) on February 21st.

Both of these associations welcome non-members as participants in at least some of their events, but encourage membership. And why not, when the clubs do so much for conservation?

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