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Ipswich Bird life

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If you have a love for birds, Ipswich is the definitely a place to visit, boasting 277 recorded species of different birds in the Ipswich Area. With such a diverse range of bird-life, it is hard to miss the opportunity to visit and see all different birds in the Ipswich area, ranging from Willy Wagtails that are regular visitors to the backyard gardens to Raptors that can be seen soaring high in the skies above. So pack your camera, your binoculars and grab something to eat, while I take you on a tour of Ipswich Bird life. There are so many wonderful locations to visit and view this amazing range of bird life in the Ipswich area. There are places where you can relax and enjoy nature within a 2 minute walk to Denmark Hill Conservation Park or a little more adventurous 30 minute drive to White Rock Conservation Area , where you can hike along the 3 km walk to White Rock viewing over a 130 different birds species all in the one location.  There are so many more places in between, to
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Eastern Whipbird

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Having mostly-green plumage and living in the dense undergrowth, the Eastern Whipbird is seen far less often than it is heard. Its whip-crack call is a characteristic of many of the moist forests in eastern Australia. The unusual feature of this call is that it is often performed by two birds calling in unison, with one bird contributing the first part of the call and another giving the second part. This so-called ‘antiphonal’ calling involved great co-ordination between the two birds to give the call its familiar whip-crack sound. Adult Eastern Whipbirds are mostly dark olive-green above, with a long tail, and a grey-white belly. The head and breast are black, with a broad white patch on the side of the face and a black crest. The eye is pale cream and the bill is black. Young whip birds are generally duller, with a smaller crest. The white cheek patch is absent in very young birds, and increases in size as the birds mature. Distribution The range of the Eastern Whipbird is
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Heron - Striated Heron

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The Striated Heron is probably the least obtrusive of Australia’s herons. It lives quietly among the mangrove forests, mudflats and oyster-beds of eastern, northern and north-western Australia, where it creeps about in the soft mud among the mangrove roots in search of prey such as fish, crabs and other marine invertebrates. When foraging, these herons usually adopt a hunched posture, with the head and neck drawn back into the bird’s body, while keeping the bill held horizontally, parallel to the surface of the mud. Description The Striated Heron is a small, squat water bird with short legs, a black crown and a small, drooping crest. There are two colour morphs (forms). The grey morph has a grey face, throat and neck streaked centrally with black, dark brown and white. The dark grey upperparts have a metallic green sheen and pink-brown to grey underparts. The wings are also green grey, with each feather outlined yellow. The eye is yellow outlined with dark grey, the bill is blac
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Quoll - Spotted-tailed Quoll

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The Spotted-tailed Quoll is the second largest carnivorous marsupial in Australia after the Tasmanian Devil. Identification There are four species of quolls in Australia and all have the characteristic pointed snout, well-developed canines and hairy tail. As their name suggests, the Spotted-tailed Quoll is the only species where the pattern of white spots on the body continues to the tail. Distribution The Spotted-tailed Quoll is found in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. Habitat Spotted-tailed Quolls live in forests and woodlands and heath. Feeding and Diet At night, this solitary animal hunts and feeds on a variety of prey including birds, medium-sized mammals and reptiles, which it attacks by biting the back of the skull or neck. Other behaviours and adaptations During the day, the Spotted-tailed Quoll shelters in caves, rock crevices or hollow logs. Conservation Status The Spotted-tailed Quoll population is seriously threatened througho
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Dingo

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The Dingo is Australia's wild dog. It was probably introduced to Australia by Asian seafarers about 4,000 years ago. Its origins have been traced back to a south Asian variety of Grey Wolf . Recent DNA studies suggest that Dingoes may have been in Australia even longer (between 4,640-18,1000 years; Oskarsson et al 2011), however, the earliest undisputed archaeological finding of the Dingo in Australia has been dated to 3,500 years ago. Identification The Dingo, is a placental mammal which means it gives birth to live young, feeds its young via mammary glands that produce milk and has fur or hair of some form. The colour of a Dingo's coat is largely determined by where it lives. The 'standard' coat colour is ginger with white feet. However in the desert areas, the fur is more golden yellow while in forested areas the fur can be a darker tan to black. The body fur is short while the tail is quite bushy. Its dog-like appearance with a relatively broad head and erec
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Apostlebird

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The Apostlebird is a medium-sized dark grey bird with a short strong bill, brown wings and black tail. It is normally seen in groups of six to ten birds, and is usually seen on the ground. It belongs to the group of birds known as 'mud-nesters', the Family Corcoracidae, noted for their communal life style and their bowl nests constructed of mud and plant fibres. Distribution: The Apostlebird is found in eastern Australia in inland areas from lower Cape York Peninsula, Queensland to northern Victoria and from Naracoorte to Mount Lofty Ranges, South Australia. There is also an isolated population in the Elliott and Katherine areas, Northern Territory. Feeding: The Apostlebird usually eats seeds and vegetable matter, insects and other invertebrates and, sometimes, small vertebrates. In autumn and winter, it will move to more open country, where seeds become the more important part of its diet. The Apostlebird forages on the ground in groups, often in association with
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Duck - Pacific Black Duck

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Despite being predominantly brown, the Pacific Black Duck has always been known as the ‘black duck’. Its only black plumage is a bold stripe that runs across the bird’s face, from its bill to behind its eye, giving it a distinctively striking pattern. It has been claimed that the duck appears as though it is black when seen at a distance. The species is known as the ‘Grey Duck’ in New Zealand, but as it has barely any grey plumage, this is hardly a more appropriate name! Description The Pacific Black Duck is mostly mid-brown in colour, with each feather edged buff. The head pattern is characteristic, with a dark brown line through the eye, bordered with cream above and below and a dark brown crown. The upper wing colour is the same as the back, with a bright glossy green patch in the secondary flight feathers. The white underwing is conspicuous in flight. Young Pacific Black Ducks are similar to the adults in plumage. Distribution The Pacific Black Duck is found in all but
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Ibis - Australian White Ibis

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The Australian White Ibis is identified by its almost entirely white body plumage and black head and neck. The head is featherless and its black bill is long and down-curved. During the breeding season the small patch of skin on the under-surface of the wing changes from dull pink to dark scarlet. Adult birds have a tuft of cream plumes on the base of the neck. Females differ from males by being slightly smaller, with shorter bills. Young birds are similar to adults, but have the neck covered with black feathers. In flight, flocks of Australian White Ibis form distinctive V-shaped flight patterns. Another common name for this bird is Sacred Ibis, but this more appropriately refers to a closely related African species. Distribution: The Australian White Ibis is common and widespread in northern and eastern Australia, and both its range and abundance in western Australia is expanding, despite its absence from Western Australia prior to the 1950s. The species is absent from Tasmani
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