Central Cape York : Artemis Station and Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park
Tim Dolby
Considered the largest wilderness in northern Australia, central Cape York is a fascinating area, with 99% of it retaining native vegetation! The main habitat is tropical eucalyptus woodland savannah, which stretches right across Cape York. The dominant tree in these woodlands is the Darwin Stringybark (Messmate) (Eucalyptus tetrodonta). The savannah is interspersed with wetlands, rivers, and mangroves. Relatively undisturbed, central Cape York has few species, such as the Golden-shouldered Parrot (critically endangered), Red Goshawk (endangered), and Buff-breasted Button-quail (critically endangered) (all discussed below), that are threatened by inappropriate fire regimes, habitat change, and cattle grazing. Central Cape York is mostly flat, although the Peninsula Ridge runs up the Cape York backbone. This is the northern extension of the Great Dividing Range, one of the longest mountain ranges in the world, stretching over 3,500 kilometres.
For me, the best time to visit is the dry season, between May and October. You can easily visit central Cape York as for a long weekend from Cairns or, as is sometimes done, incorporate a visit into a trip to the Katini-Payamu (Iron Range) National Park, either on your way up, on your way back, or both.
To get there, you drive up the Peninsula Development Road, which these days is progressively bitumen. The Peninsula Development Road was (still is) considered one of Australia’s great 4WD drives, so being progressively sealed is not making four-wheel drive enthusiasts happy. For birdwatchers though, this is great news. That being said, a 4WD is definitely pretty much essential when visiting Cape York, as some of the roads can be challenging (so take care when driving). Central Cape York has several towns, Lakeland, Laura, and Coen, which have service stations and supplies.
Some background on the birds of central Cape York
The main target species on the way up Cape York is the spectacular Golden-shouldered Parrot. It is found in a small area of central Cape York and must be one of the world’s most beautiful parrots. The males feature wonderful colours of blue, yellow, and red. Endangered, the population is estimated at between 700 and 1100 birds left in the wild, and its numbers seem to be continuing to decline. So, conservation measures for this species are critical for its survival. The main issue affecting their numbers is habitat loss, but also changes to their habitat, thus increasing the predation by butcherbirds.
Another key species to look for in the area is the Black-backed Butcherbird. Like Golden-shouldered Parrot they are only found in central Cape York. It was once thought to be closely related to the Pied Butcherbird but has since been shown to be more closely related to the Silver-backed Butcherbird, which is found in the north of the Northern Territory and Western Australia. Its specific scientific name is Cracticus mentalis. The word mentalis loosely translates to ‘mental noisy bird’, which probably does not do the bird justice.
Aside from the Golden-shouldered Parrot and Black-backed Butcherbird, Central Cape York is a stronghold for the endangered Red Goshawk, the rare Eastern Grass Owl, and the critically endangered Buff-breasted Button-quail (discussed in more detail below). Red Goshawk like to hunt in the tropical savannah forest, while Eastern Grass Owls hunt over grasslands and the grassy fringes of wetlands.
There is an interesting selection of finches in central Cape York. Firstly, Star Finch; with the birds here are the Cape York race clarescens. Such a gorgeous bird, it is something you want to try and see. There is also the Cape York race of the Black-throated Finch, atropygialis, with the black rump. The FNQ and Cape York race of the Masked Finch is leucolis, which has white-ear patches and was once known as the ‘White-eared Finch’. The Cape York race of the Crimson Finch, evangelinae, has a white belly (rather than black) and is known as the ‘White-bellied Crimson Finch’.
There is also the Cape York race magnirostris of the Pied Currawong, with a distinctive large and long bill and short tail, and the small Cape York race griseigularis of the Blue-faced Honeyeater. They are both particularly common in the streets of Coen.
Finally, this part of Cape York where critically endangered Buff-breasted Button-quail was last officially recorded on Cape York. It remains the only Australian bird yet to be photographed. For some time, since 1985 to be exact, they were thought to occur in the northern end of the Atherton Tableland near Mount Molloy. However, recent research by Patrick Webster of the University of Queensland indicates that the birds seen were almost certainly an undocumented colour variation of female Painted Button-quail; when breeding, the females develop a brighter, rufous plumage. That means the last official sightings of the Buff-breasted Button-quail were those in Cape York. It was collected by naturalist William Rae McLennan in February 1922, so no Buff-breasted Button-quail has been a confirmed recording for over 100 years. As Patrick Webster points out, this was when the “Tasmania Tiger roamed Tasmania’s forests, and the Paradise Parrot was still nesting in termite mounds of southeast Queensland” (1). That being said, Cape York is so vast that there remains a hope that a population does exist. The last specimen was collected in Messmate Savannah just north of Coen, so get out there and look! Good luck.
Some animals to look for central Cape York
Just quickly, not forgetting mammals and reptiles. Central Cape York has a very nice selection. Macropods include Agile Wallaby, Northern Nail-tail Wallaby, Antilopine Wallaroo, Common Wallaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Godman’s Rock Wallaby (in the northern section of the Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park in the Bathhurst Ranges), Black Wallaby, and the impressive Spectacled hare-wallaby (a species I have always wanted to see). While some other mammals of note include the Lakeland Down’s or Northern Short-tailed Mouse, Krefft’s Glider, Northern Brown Bandicoot, Common Planigale, as well as Little Red and Black Flying Fox.
In terms of reptiles, keep a lookout for Frilled Lizard (on the roadsides), Sand Monitor, Yellow-spotted Monitor, Merten’s Water Monitor, Northern Bluetongue, Black-headed Python (again on the roadsides), Freshwater Crocodile, and, when near water, definitely keep an eye open for Estuarine Crocodile, particularly in Rinyirru. In terms of smaller lizards, I won’t go through them all, but I will mention some, simply because of their names are so great. These are the Black-throated two-pored Dragon, Large-disced Litter-skink, Zig-zag Gecko, Tuberculated Ring-tailed Gecko, Excitable Dtella, and Dubious Dtella! And we thought birds had unusual names!
Artemis Station
Artemis Station is one place you can see Golden-shouldered Parrot without impacting their conservation. Artemis Station is a working cattle station that covers a significant portion of the core range of the Golden-shouldered Parrot. To get there, turn off the Peninsula Development Road 96 km north of Laura (23 km south of the Musgrave Roadhouse) along Dixie Road, with the station entrance a further 1 km down the road.
Fortunately for birdwatchers (as part of the conservation of this species), the owners of Artemis Station have set up a predator-proof feeding station immediately before the property’s entrance, with a good number of parrots coming to feed each day. Consequently, you have a good chance of seeing them. If you are visiting the feeding station out of courtesy, it is worth popping into the station to let them know you are there.
The bush area around the feeding station is also a good spot to look for roosting Golden-shouldered Parrot, listen for the delightful soft, high-pitched parrot-like call. It is also good for Red-browed Pardalote (ssp. yorki), again listen for their lovely mellow call of five or six notes, Black-backed and Pied Butcherbird, White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike, Grey-crowned Babbler, and White-throated Gerygone, once again listen for their delightful violin-like call that sounds, to me, like dripping water.
For me, another birding highlight of Artemis Station is the presence of both Laughing Kookaburra and Blue-winged Kookaburra in one place. I have stayed in the cabins a few times at Artemis Station, and the dawn chorus is wonderful. The first birds to call are Laughing Kookaburra, with a large family laughing with raucous laughter! This is almost immediately followed by a family of Blue-winged Kookaburra, making a raucous cacophony of sounds that has been described as demonic and maniacal. It makes for a wonderful birding experience listening to these two crazy species of kookaburras declare their territories.
The other main target species for the area is Black-backed Butcherbird, one of the few Cape York bird endemics that occupy tropical woodland (rather than rainforest). Start looking for them in the woodlands from Laura onwards. A particularly good spot around the Laura Roadhouse, just south of town. There is usually a pair in the northern garden area of the roadhouse. They are distinguished from Pied Butcherbird, also common on Cape York, by their white throat and black nape band. Note that the roadhouse was closed the last time I visited, but you can still access the garden.
In general, while driving up Peninsula Development Road, the roadside woodlands are good for honeyeaters. Make sure you stop at a few places, such as by the side of a creek or river, and go birdwatching. For instance, you might see Dusky, Banded, Yellow, White-throated, Bar-breasted, Blue-faced, and Yellow-tinted Honeyeaters, as well as Pale-headed Rosella (ssp. adscitus), Red-winged Parrot, White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike, Grey-crowned Babbler, Squatter Pigeon (ssp. peninsulae, with a red-eye ring), Red-backed Fairy-wren, White-throated Gerygone, Red-browed and Striated Pardalote (‘Black-headed Pardalote’ ssp. uropygialis), Weebill, and Double-barred, Black-throated, and Masked Finch (white-eared Cape York ssp. leucotis), while Pied Currawong (Cape York ssp. magnirostris) is common in the streets of Coen.
Artemis Dam
Artemis Dam is a gorgeous tropical dam that can be covered in water lilies. It is located around a kilometre west of the Artemis Station entrance. It can be an excellent place for waterbirds and bush birds. It is the sort of dam where you see Magpie Goose, Green Pygmy-Goose Plumed Whistling-Duck, Pied Stilt, Brolga, Black-necked Stork, Comb-crested Jacana, Glossy Ibis, and Australia Darter, all fantastic birds. I have also seen Latham’s Snipe feeding on the edge of the dam. Woodland birds can be special; I once had a Red Goshawk flying over the road near the dam. I have also seen Red-winged Parrot, Pale-headed Rosella, Peaceful and Diamond Dove, Squatter Pigeon (once, and pretty much the northern extension of its range), Blue-winged and Laughing Kookaburra, Black-backed and Pied Butcherbird, Spangled Drongo, Dollarbird, Yellow Honeyeater, White-throated Gerygone, and, of course, there is a chance of Golden-Shouldered Parrot. Note the dam is viewable from the road but is located on Artemis Station, so has restricted access, and you will need to get permission from Artemis to enter.
Musgrave Roadhouse
After Artemis Station, it is usual to go onto Musgrave Roadhouse for some food, beer, and overnight kip. If you are staying at the Musgrave Roadhouse, Pied Butcherbirds will serenade you in the morning. Their melodious call is always a great way to start the day. There is a little dam behind Musgrave Station that can be quite good for waterbirds such as Plumed and Wandering Whistling-Duck, Magpie Goose, Green Pygmy-Goose and Radjah Shelduck and Brolga.
Lilyvale Road
From Musgrave Station, travel around 18 kilometres east along Lilyvale Road to the point where there is a road that turns north. The tall forest in this area is a potential site for the rare and endangered Red Goshawk. A large, powerful hawk, they will occasionally glide up and down this road. Once considered a true ‘goshawk’ in the subfamily Accipitrinae, they are now thought to be more closely related to the somewhat similar, Black-breasted Buzzard and Square-tailed Kite.
Other birds I have seen along Lilyvale Road are Red-winged Parrot, Red-browed Pardalote, Yellow-throated Gerygone, Yellow-tinted, Banded, Rufous-throated, and Rufous-banded Honeyeater, Channel-billed Cuckoo, Lemon-bellied Flyrobin, White-throated Gerygone, Little Woodswallow, Black-backed Butcherbird, and, one year, I came across a nesting pair of Black-breasted Buzzard.
Another feature of Lilyvale Road are the magnificent examples of mounds of the Magnetic Termite (Amitermes meridionalis). On one birding trip, I was showing my group of clients these mounds, elaborately explaining how they work, trying to sound like an authority on the subject, when a woman in my group gave a quiet cough and said, “You do know that my husband,” who was standing right next to her, “is the world’s leading expert on termite mounds.” “Oh,” I said. I then asked him to explain how they work. In his field, he, the termite expert, was quite famous. He said his major legacy was his research on termite mounds and farming, proving that farms that keep termite mounds in their paddocks are more productive than farms that remove termite mounds. That’s actually really interesting!
Some 23 km east of Musgrave Station (around 5 km past the Lilyvale Road turn-off), you come to the wetland of the Lotus Bird Lodge. This wetland can be teaming with waterbirds, including Radjah Shelduck, Wandering Whistling-Duck, Green Pygmy-Goose, Black-necked Stork, Magpie Goose, Comb-crested Jacana, Glossy Ibis, Royal Spoonbill, Little Pied Cormorant, Eastern Swamphen, and Eurasian Coot. Look out for macropods around the wetland edge. Both Agile and Northern Nailtail Wallaby drink at this wetland, and Sand Monitor roam its outer edges. Note that the wetland is privately owned. You can view it from the roadside without entering the property, or you could drive into the Lotus Bird Lodge and ask if you can have a look.
Along Lilyvale Road, there can be a lot of carrion, mostly dead Agile Wallaby. A butch of raptors were feeding at one carcass, with four different species: White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Wedge-tailed Eagle, and Black and Whistling Kite. The interesting thing about it was that a White-bellied Sea-Eagle feeding directly on the dead kangaroo, while two Wedge-tailed Eagle were to the sides of the carcass, perhaps 10 metres away, and the kites were hanging out around the edges, perhaps 20 metres away. What this told me was that the White-bellied Sea-Eagle was the dominant raptor, not the Wedge-tailed Eagle. I assumed it would have been the other way around. The Wedge-tailed Eagle would have been dominant, i.e., feeding on the carcass. Apparently not! Perhaps the answer is the talons. The talons of the White-bellied Sea-Eagle are huge! Well, you learn something new every day! Keep an eye open for Frilled Lizard and Black-headed Python, I have seen both along Lilyvale Road.
Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park
Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park is a vast national park (it’s well over 5000 000 ha), the largest on Cape York, and the second largest in Queensland. It protects a diverse landscape of grasslands, woodlands, coastal estuaries, mangroves, mud flats, wetlands, and sandstone hills in the south. Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park has some sensational birding spots and is definitely worth visiting.
It is located 340 km north-west of Cairns, via the Mulligan Hwy. You can also access the parks by turning onto the Peninsula Development Road in Lakeland and heading up to Musgrave. To get there, from the Musgrave Roadhouse, drive east along Lilyvale Road, then continue to the Marina Plains Road until you reach Lakefield Road. From there you can head into Lakefield National Park (it is well signposted). The park begins around 38 km from Musgrave Station.
When visiting, I tend to stay at Musgrave Roadhouse or Artemis Station, although there are several good camping grounds throughout the park, including Kalpowar Crossing and Hanns Crossing Campgrounds. Lakefield Road (unsealed) runs through the middle of the park but is impassable through much of the wet season.
Low Lake (Rarda-Ndolphin)
One place to visit at Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park is a wonderful wetland called Low Lake (Rarda-Ndolphin). Note that on Google Maps it marks it as Sweetwater Lake. You can get there via Lilyvale and then Marina Plains Road; the turnoff is located after Saltwater Crossing, around 50 km from Musgrave Station. Then it is a 4 km drive to the wetland. It is one of the most pristine wetlands I’ve visited in Australia, surrounded by rushes and reeds and covered in waterlilies.
On the occasions I have visited, there were waterbirds everywhere, seeing Comb-crested Jacana, Wandering Whistling-Duck, Rudjah Shelduck, Green Pygmy-goose, Pacific Black Duck, Hoary-headed Grebe, Glossy and Australian White Ibis, Brolga, Great, Intermediate, Little, and Cattle. In late spring and summer, the lake is also a good place for shorebirds, including Common Greenshank, Marsh Sandpiper, and Latham’s Snipe (in grassy areas bordering the lake).
On my first trip to Low Lake, from one tree on the edge of the wetland, Black-throated, Masked and Double-barred Finch flew down the water’s edge for a drink! Very nice! The Black-throated Finch here is the black-rumped subspecies atropygialis. The best time to see the finch is the dry season. Other woodland birds I saw around Low Lake were Black-backed Butcherbird, Pale-headed Rosella, Forest and Sacred Kingfisher, Lemon-bellied and Leaden Flycatcher, Rufous Whistler, Grey-crowned Babbler, Red-backed Fairy-wren, and Varied Sittella. The honeyeaters here were pretty and included Brown, Dusky, Banded, White-throated, Brown-backed, Yellow, Rufous-banded, and Blue-faced. The area also supports Papuan Frogmouth, which I have seen daytime roosting at the nearby Saltwater Creek crossing—another good birding spot—which is also a good place to see and listen for Large-tailed Nightjar and Spotted Nightjar (at you might flush them from the road), and look and listen for Southern Boobook and Barking Owl. Finally, Low Lake is a good spot to look for Northern Nailtail Wallaby, while Agile Wallaby is very common. Please note It that Low Lake has areas where access is restricted to protect significant cultural resources, so as a rule it is worth keeping to the car park and viewing areas.
Nifold Plain
The Nifold Plain is a wonderful sprawling grassy floodplain dotted with stately termite mounds and stands of Gebang Palm (Corypha utan), some as tall as 20 metres. The Gebang Palm, like others in the genus Corypha, only produces flowers at the end of its lifetime, a process known as monocarpy. When they do flower, however, they are spectacular, producing a massive inflorescence (flower head) as big as 5 metres tall containing as many as one million flowers! It is an area which, during the wet season (December to March), forms a vast network of floodplains. During the wet season, the Nifold Plain becomes inaccessible. Once the water recedes, the deeper permanent rivers and dams attract a great variety of birds.
The Nifold Plain is an excellent place to see Star Finch. To get there, you need to continue east along Lakefield Road, continuing for around 5 km from the Low Lake turnoff/Sweetwater Crossing until you reach the plains and a raised viewing area over the plains. Next to this viewing area is a dam. During the dry periods of the year, I have seen several large flocks of around 50 Star Finch feeding and drinking here. The Star Finch is the northern subspecies clarescens. This population of Star Finch is patchy but stable.
The dam and the general areas around the Nifold Plain attract a great range of other birds, including Emu, Brolga, Sarus Crane, Black-necked Stork, Australian Bustard, Australian Pratincole (quite common right across the Nifold Plain), Swamp Harrier, Australian Hobby, Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo, and Black-faced Woodswallow, while looking in grassy areas for Horsfield’s (Singing) Bushlark and both Zitting and Golden-headed Cisticola.
Another target for Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park is Eastern Grass Owl, with this area thought to be a stronghold for this rare species.Just at dusk, watch the grassland for the owl as it begins its night hunt. This area is one of the strongholds for this rare species. Other nightbirds to look for are Papuan Frogmouth and Large-tailed Nightjar. What a great place the Nifold Plain is!
Mariner Plains
On the first trip to Rinyirru, we accidently continued along Mariner Plains Road (rather than take the Lakefield Road turnoff). We ended up in the area around the Annie River campsites. These are located on the edge of Prince Charlote Bay and proved to be both interesting and challenging at the same time!
At our first stop near the Annie River campsite, we entered an area of tall tidal mangroves. As any birdwatcher knows, mangroves can be fascinating places and habitats that attract some interesting birds. Upon entering, we were immediately attacked by a wild swarm of a hundred million killer mosquitoes! It was like the scene from the movie The African Queen, where Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn pull their boat into shore on the Ulanga River and get attacked by mosquitoes. We ran as fast as we could out of the mangroves, running around where the car was parked, with an individual swarm of mosquitoes following each one of us. I managed to break free of my swarm, but I could see another member of our group was struggling. They would break free briefly, but then the swarm would catch up with them. After running around for a good few minutes, we all managed to break away from our own mosquito swarms. Phew!
Despite this, the Mariner Plains were a fascinating area, well worth an extended visit. It was a mixture of floodplain grasslands, open-wooded mangrove forests, termite mounds, and patches of the Cabbage Palm (Corypha utan), again an impressive palm with massive trunks. Brolga was common in the grasslands, along with a few Sarus Crane and Australian Bustard, and Emu. Along the banks of the Annie River, we saw Mangrove Gerygone—a bird species that is rare at Lakefield. Indeed, I think this was the first and, at the time, only record for Lakefield National Park. Other birds along the river were Large-billed Gerygone, Striated Heron, Torresian Kingfisher, and Shining Flycatcher.
Twelve Mile Waterhole
In the southern part of Rinyirru National Park, Twelve Mile Waterhole is nestled among trees along both deep and shallow sections of the lagoon and near the junction with the Laura River. Common waterfowl to look for include Magpie Goose, Radjah Shelduck, Plumed Whistling-Duck, Green Pygmy-Goose, and, although I have not seen them there, there are regular reports of Spotted Whistling-Duck. Other waterbirds include Black-winged Stilt, Black-fronted and Red-kneed Dotterel, and Comb-crested Jacana. Nankeen Night-Heron, White-necked, White-faced, and Pied Heron, and Little, Plumed, and Great Egret. Another target species for Lakefield is the white-bellied form of the Crimson Finch (ssp evangelinae), with the Twelve Mile Waterhole a good place to see them. Black-throated, Double-barred, and Red-browed Finch also occur here.
It is a great place to see honeyeaters; for instance, on one visit I saw Yellow-spotted, Yellow, White-gaped, Brown-backed, Rufous-banded Dusky, Banded, Blue-faced, White-throated, as well as Little and Helmeted Friarbird. It is also worth looking out for Lovely Fairy-wren around the wetland, while Red-winged Fairy-wren are more common there. Other birds I have seen include Azure and Forest Kingfisher, both Laughing and Blue-winged Kookaburra (with both the first to call in the dawn chorus), Yellow Oriole, Spangled Drongo, Fairy Gerygone, and raptors such as White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Eastern Osprey, and Brahminy Kite.
There are many other good birding sites in the southern section of Rinyirru National Park, such as the Hann River Crossing, Caulders Lake (2WD) and Horseshoe Lagoon (4WD), and there is a nice waterhole next to the New Laura Ranger Station. All are worth a look, and hold birds similar to Twelve Mile Waterhole. Good luck!
A couple of additional sites on the way up
Daves Dam
On the way up to central Cape York, after heading through Mt Carbine, the first spot I usually make is a dam known colloquially as ‘Daves Dam’. It is located 4.2 kilometres down Hurricane (on some maps Kondaparinga) Road. This heads south from the Mulligan Highway, 26 kilometres north of Mt Carbine. It is surrounded by some nice dry savannah woodlands intermixed with open grassy areas. So, there is a possibility of seeing Black-throated Finch. It was here that I saw one of the largest flocks of Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo I have ever seen, with hundreds coming into drink to drink from the dam. Other birds I have seen at Daves Dam Pale-headed Rosella, Red-winged Parrot, Blue-winged Kookaburra, Diamond Dove, Red-backed Fairy-wren, Grey-crowned Babbler, Australian Bustard, Apostlebird, White-throated Gerygone, and Yellow and White-throated Honeyeater. So, lots of good dry woodland birds.
Split Rock Art Site
The Split Rock Art site is worth a stop. Not considered a usual birding locations, it can be quite productive particularly for honeyeaters. Of real note a White-streaked honeyeater was recently recorded here, a bird that is normally seen around Cooktown and the Iron Range. Split Rock is located around 14 kilometres south of Laura, but is badly sign-posted, so easy to miss. The artwork sites here are some of the oldest and largest galleries in the world, so very impressive. Dates of the art range from between 15,000 and 40,000 years old and are listed by UNESCO as being among the top 10 rock art sites in the world.
Have a good trip!
Tim Dolby
(1) Patrick Webster. Is the buff-breasted button-quail still alive? The Conversation, Feb 4, 2022.
