Visited: very late dry season
Recommendation: This little patch of rock and sand in Darwin is a great place to find migratory shorebirds. All the usual suspects can be found here as well as some less common birds like the Oriental Plover. It is worth a visit if you are in Darwin.
The Darwin suburb of Nightcliff is a little north west of the airport and around half of its perimeter is coastline. I visited Sunset Park close to the jetty and here, there is a path that overlooks a very small area of rock. The tide was in so there was no visible beach and at first, I couldn't see any birds.
I stood and just admired the early morning light on the rocks and the water but then I saw movement. And again. The more I looked, the more I saw birds on the rocks and a good number of them too. I followed the steps down onto the rocks and began to inch my way forward towards them. I knew that Oriental Plover had been seen here in recent days and I was keen to find them.
Greater Sand Plover (Charadrius leschenaultii)
Siberian Sand Plover (Charadrius mongolus)
Shorebirds are notoriously difficult to identify, particularly when they are in non-breeding plumage. The worst of all of them, for me, are the sand plovers. When they are next to each other, it is easier but telling the Greater and Siberian Sand Plovers apart from photos is so hard. I have been back and forward on these 2 birds. I am pretty sure that the bird on the right is the Siberian (formerly named the Lesser) Sand Plover. It is more compact and the bill is small. The bird on the left is bulkier with a larger bill making it the Greater Sand Plover. And then I change my mind!
Red-necked Stint (Calidris ruficollis)
Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)
I particularly like these photos. The Sand Plover on the far left is a small bird but the Red-necked Stint next to it is demonstrably smaller. It just shows how tiny this bird is. There is a lot of publicity about the endurance of the godwit when they migrate but this tiny bird, the size of a finch, flies every year from the high Arctic to Australasia. They are, by far, my favourite wader.
Pacific Golden Plover (Pluvialis fulva)
Great Knot (Calidris tenuirostris)
The Pacific Golden Plover and the Great Knot are not similar shorebirds other than in size and at a stretch, shape. However, in non-breeding plumage, even they are difficult to distinguish between.
Grey-tailed Tattler (Heteroscelus brevipes)
Curlew Sandpiper (Calidris ferruginea)
Terek Sandpiper (Xenus cinereus)
Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)
There were lots of sandpipers here. The Curlew Sandpiper is one of the smallest and plainest but easily identified by the downward curve of the bill.
I always like seeing the Terek Sandpiper, also easy to spot with its short orange legs and upturned bill. This odd photo is actually of 2 birds next to each other.
Lastly we have the Common Sandpiper and my tip for identifying them is that they bob as they move.
Great Crested Tern (Sterna bergii) & Lesser Crested Tern (Sterna bengalensis)
On the edge of the rocky area were a group of terns. It was wonderful to see the Lesser Crested and Greater Crested side by side. The greater is actually larger than the lesser with a sturdier bill but there is no problem telling them apart with those bill colours!
I didn't find the Oriental Plover but had a wonderful morning with these stunning birds.