Alice Springs Sewage Ponds

The first birds you are likely to see and hear are the Little Crow. They sit on the fences, bounce around the grassed areas outside the plant and can be seen sitting on the low level bushes. Distinguishing between the Little and Torresian Crow has proved to be a challenge for me as the differences between them are so subtle. Anyway, in Alice Springs the birds are Little Crows. A lot of times with corvids, geography is the biggest help in identification.

Little Crow (Corvus bennetti)

As you hit the ponds themselves, you will start to see waders. Most common was the Black-fronted Dotterel and they will take flight as soon as your get too close. The ponds are a great place to see Wood Sandpiper in the open. I rattled off dozens of photographs on one occasion and laughed when I processed them. The bird was so still that every photo was exactly the same. Some birds are just more active than others I guess.

The Wood Sandpiper is not common in Australia, but it can be found throughout the continent, with  higher concentrations in the north-west. They are migratory birds that breed in Eurasia and spend their non-breeding season in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Australia. 

Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola)

Around the ponds, you can hear the haunting high pitched call of the Little Grassbird. The inhabit thick areas of vegetation and there, you can also hear the more melodius calls of the fairywren. All 3 local species of fairywren, the Splendid, Purple-backed and White-winged can be found here. The females and juveniles are all plainer than the more shy cand colourful males. It can be hard to distinguish between the species in the field so I find photography can be a great help later on.

Little Grassbird (Poodytes gramineus)

It was no surprise that the Black-tailed Nativehen was present as it is found in a variety of aquatic habitats, including swamps, marshes, and ponds. It was more of a surprise that it was out in the open as they are usually very shy. More of a surprise was seeing them at all. Although they are widespread across Australia, they are much less common in hot, desert areas like Alice Springs. I think the lure of these incredible wetlands is responsible for their presence.

Black-tailed Nativehen (Tribonyx ventralis)

There were only a few Pink-eared Duck on the ponds and they were quite far away. This interesting duck is so named for its distinctive pink-colored ear tufts. These tufts are located behind the eyes and are most prominent in males during the breeding season. I would have thought that unusual bill would be a better descriptor for this duck as the pink tufts are so rarely seen. Anyway, it was good to see them.

Pink-eared Duck (Malacorhynchus membranaceus) 

There is a theme here - lots of shy waterbirds. Although this dotterel seems to be looking straight at me, it is quite a long way away. My camera lens is long and can reach birds at quite a distance. This adult bird was more concerned with the young chicks running around the water's edge. 

These large dotterel are primarily found in Australia with some sightings as far south as Tasmania, east as New Zealand and north as New Guinea. 

Red-kneed Dotterel (Erythrogonys cinctus)