Wollongong

Visited: Autumn

Recommendation: The whole area around Wollongong and Lake Illawarra is stunning. There are many areas to walk along the coastline, lookouts across the lake and country areas to explore. My focus was on the area around Windang Island which was productive for shorebirds.

On visiting Wollongong, I stayed at the southern end of the city in Windang on the edge of the ocean and the entrance to the Lake Illawarra. It was a stunning location with easy access to lots of interesting places. The first stop was Windang Island, late in the afternoon at low tide. The island is connected to the mainland by a sand bar that is traversable at low tide. 

Large gulls had been visible circling the island during the day so I was keen to see what else was there. A steep but short climb was required onto the top and around the bottom were swathes of relatively flat rocks. It was there I explored first.

My first spot was a lone Sooty Oystercatcher who quickly led me to several others. They wandered over the rocks and were uncharacteristically approachable. The bright orange eye and bills, along with pink legs looked stunning in the late afternoon sun.

Sooty Oystercatcher (Haematopus fuliginosus)

Close to the oystercatchers was a Great Cormorant. I have not seen many of these and they are difficult to photograph as they are very shy. It looks like this bird is in moult as the feathers are rough and give off an almost silvery colour. At the other end of the size scale was the tiny Double-banded Plover. These birds are from New Zealand and a few make it to south east Australian shores during the cooler months. Their bands are not visible in non-breeding plumage which can make them difficult to identify. 

Close to around 20 of the plovers was a pair of Grey-tailed Tattler. These rather plain birds are easy to identify with their uncluttered plumage and yellow legs. As they groomed, they presented some lovely poses.

Grey-tailed Tattler (Tringa brevipes)

The large birds I had seen from the shore were in fact Kelp Gull. A couple of juveniles were present along with some older birds moulting into adult colours. These gulls are uncommon in Australia, being seen only in coastal areas along eastern and southern areas. Kelp Gulls are opportunistic feeders, meaning they'll eat just about anything they can find. They'll hunt for small prey, scavenge for carrion, and even steal food from other birds. This adaptability helps them thrive in a variety of coastal environments. 

Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus)

My favourite find of the afternoon was an Eastern Curlew digging into the sand with its enormous bill. These birds are long-distance migratory animals, with a breeding range in Russia and north eastern China and non-breeding grounds in Australia, including Tasmania and southern New Guinea . Their migration journey is truly epic, traveling over 10,000 kilometers each way! 

It was only the start of a stay in the Wollongong area and it felt quite magical. The combination of sand, pasture, sun and ocean made it stunning to be in. The animals and birds were such a bonus.