The following is a brief report on Wartook State Forest, an open woodland on the western edge of the Grampians (Gariwerd) National Park in Western Victoria.
Over the years I have visited the forest many times. Highlights of trips include good numbers of Speckled Warbler, Black-eared Cuckoo, White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike, Hooded Robin, Diamond Firetail, Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, Black-chinned Honeyeater, Emu, Restless Flycatcher, White-browed Babbler, Varied Sittella (black-caped ssp) and lots of small passerines such as Yellow and Yellow-rumped Thornbill, Weebill, Spotted and Striated Pardalote.
I've found that the best spot for birding in the Wartook SF is along O'Sullivans Rd. To get there from the Halls Gap take the Mount Victory Rd. Just before you get to the township of Wartook turn left into O'Sullivans Rd (a track really). From here travel west for approx. a kilometer until you reach a track that leads left. Park here and bird along the ridge that leads south, particularly between the track and a small dam at the top of the ridge. Speckled Warbler, Black-eared Cuckoo, Hooded Robin, White-throated Needletail, 'black-capped' ssp of Varied Sittella, Resless Flycatcher and Diamond Firetail have all seen is this area. Wonderful woodland birding. Western Grey Kangaroo are common here, and Red-necked Wallaby is also quite common. I have also recorded a very large majestic male Red Deer at this spot.
A bit further on is a large area of grass trees (Xanthorrhoea spp.), which can be teeming with honeyeaters, such as Yellow-tufted, White-eared, White-naped, Brown-headed, New Holland and, usually higher in the canopy, Black-chinned Honeyeater. This area is also an excellent place to see White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike. During spring this area of the forest is a good place to see wildflowers, such as native orchids.
If you continue along O'Sullivans Rd you come to a creek bed. This is also a good place to see Speckled Warbler, as well as whistler and robin sp.
Another good birding spot in the area is Cherrypool on the Henty Highway at the Glenelg River (30 kilometers west of Wartook). Apart from being a great swimming hole, one they has been used for thousands of years by the people, the birds are also excellent. Birds that I've seen here include Latham's Snipe, Buff-banded Rail, Little Lorikeet, Brown Treecreeper, Bassian Thrush, Azure and Sacred Kingfisher, Intermediate and Great Egret, Darter, Royal and Yellow-billed Spoonbill, Black-fronted Dotterel, and there's a colony of Nankeen Night Heron. Another pleasant surprise was the seeing both Superb and Variegated Fairy-wren.
Tiger Snake
Grampians Bird List:
- Emu 28%
- Australasian Grebe 11%
- Hoary-headed Grebe 11%
- Great Crested Grebe 6%
- Australian Pelican 6%
- Little Black Cormorant 17%
- Great Cormorant 11%
- Little Pied Cormorant 17%
- Darter 6%
- White-necked Heron 17%
- White-faced Heron 22%
- Australian White Ibis 6%
- Straw-necked Ibis 11%
- Yellow-billed Spoonbill 6%
- Black Swan 6%
- Australian Shelduck 6%
- Australian Wood Duck 28%
- Grey Teal 11%
- Chestnut Teal 6%
- Pacific Black Duck 22%
- Hardhead 6%
- Musk Duck 11%
- Black-shouldered Kite 6%
- Whistling Kite 17%
- White-bellied Sea-Eagle 11%
- Swamp Harrier 6%
- Brown Goshawk 11%
- Wedge-tailed Eagle 33%
- Little Eagle 17%
- Australian Hobby 6%
- Brown Falcon 6%
- Peregrine Falcon 6%
- Brown Quail 6%
- Buff-banded Rail 11%
- Purple Swamphen 6%
- Dusky Moorhen 11%
- Eurasian Coot 17%
- Black-winged Stilt 6%
- Masked Lapwing 33%
- Black-fronted Dotterel 11%
- Silver Gull 11%
- Common Bronzewing 39%
- Brush Bronzewing 22%
- Crested Pigeon 17%
- Peaceful Dove 6%
- Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo 44%
- Gang-gang Cockatoo 78%
- Galah 22%
- Long-billed Corella 61%
- Sulphur-crested Cockatoo 39%
- Rainbow Lorikeet 39%
- Musk Lorikeet 17%
- Little Lorikeet 6%
- Purple-crowned Lorikeet 17%
- Crimson Rosella 61%
- Eastern Rosella 17%
- Red-rumped Parrot 22%
- Blue-winged Parrot 6%
- Pallid Cuckoo 6%
- Fan-tailed Cuckoo 28%
- Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo 11%
- Powerful Owl 6%
- Barking Owl 6%
- Southern Boobook 44%
- Tawny Frogmouth 11%
- Laughing Kookaburra 50%
- Sacred Kingfisher 6%
- Rainbow Bee-eater 6%
- Welcome Swallow 28%
- Tree Martin 17%
- Australasian Pipit 6%
- Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike 17%
- White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike 11%
- White-winged Triller 11%
- Bassian Thrush 28%
- Common Blackbird 28%
- Australian Reed-Warbler 6%
- Rufous Songlark 11%
- Willie Wagtail 22%
- Grey Fantail 67%
- Rufous Fantail 6%
- Satin Flycatcher 11%
- Restless Flycatcher 11%
- Jacky Winter 22%
- Scarlet Robin 6%
- Red-capped Robin 6%
- Flame Robin 22%
- Hooded Robin 11%
- Eastern Yellow Robin 61%
- Crested Shrike-tit 6%
- Golden Whistler 22%
- Rufous Whistler 17%
- Grey Shrike-thrush 61%
- Grey-crowned Babbler 6%
- White-browed Babbler 22%
- Superb Fairy-wren 56%
- White-browed Scrubwren 61%
- Chestnut-rumped Heathwren 6%
- Brown Thornbill 61%
- Yellow-rumped Thornbill 17%
- Yellow Thornbill 6%
- Striated Thornbill 22%
- White-throated Gerygone 6%
- White-fronted Chat 6%
- Varied Sittella 11%
- White-throated Treecreeper 61%
- Brown Treecreeper 17%
- Mistletoebird 17%
- Spotted Pardalote 50%
- Striated Pardalote 33%
- Silvereye 28%
- Yellow-faced Honeyeater 78%
- White-eared Honeyeater 22%
- Yellow-tufted Honeyeater 17%
- White-plumed Honeyeater 11%
- White-naped Honeyeater 61%
- Black-chinned Honeyeater 11%
- Brown-headed Honeyeater 17%
- Noisy Friarbird 6%
- Crescent Honeyeater 33%
- New Holland Honeyeater 67%
- Tawny-crowned Honeyeater 11%
- Painted Honeyeater 6%
- Eastern Spinebill 67%
- Blue-faced Honeyeater 6%
- Noisy Miner 17%
- Red Wattlebird 72%
- Little Wattlebird 6%
- Magpie-lark 28%
- White-winged Chough 17%
- White-browed Woodswallow 6%
- Dusky Woodswallow 22%
- Australian Magpie 61%
- Pied Currawong 83%
- Grey Currawong 33%
- Australian Raven 11%
- Little Raven 11%
- Forest Raven 11%
- Common Starling 6%
- House Sparrow 22%
- Diamond Firetail 6%
- Red-browed Finch 39%
- European Goldfinch 11%
