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Visited: late dry season
Recommendation: Broome is a birder's paradise, everyone knows that. Spots like this, however, are lesser known but still packed full of wildlife. Explore every inch of the coast around Broome
I began my exploration at the Streeter's Jetty. It is to the east of the city centre and is close to the where the sea water in Roebuck Bay becomes the Dampier Creek, which feeds this special area of mangroves. It is just behind a row of shops and cafes but could be a different world. The first thing you notice are the mosquitos, but what else would you expect?
The jetty is not very long at all but you soon hear birds like the white-eye. I love their cheery song as they chatter to each other. Very quickly I picked up other mangrove specialists. This turned out to be a fantastic place to see some normally difficult birds to find. The only endemic I couldn't find was the White-breasted Whistler. Next time maybe.
Black-tailed Whistler (Pachycephala melanura)
Australian Yellow White-eye (Zosterops luteus)
Mangrove Fantail (Rhipidura phasiana)
Red-headed Myzomela (Myzomela erythrocephala)
Also in the area were pardalote and bee-eater. Both were sitting up high and singing intermittently. The Striated Pardalote is generally considered the most common species of pardalote in Australia. They have a very broad range across most of Australia, excluding the arid central regions and they can inhabit a variety of habitats, from forests and woodlands to more open areas. There are six recognized subspecies:
Pardalotus striatus striatus: Nominate race, found in eastern Australia.
Pardalotus striatus substriatus: Found in central and southeastern Australia.
Pardalotus striatus ornatus: Found in southwestern Australia.
Pardalotus striatus uropygialis: Found in the Northern Territory and northwestern Australia.
Pardalotus striatus melvillensis: Found on Melville Island.
Pardalotus striatus melanocephalus: Found on Groote Eylandt.
Striated Pardalote (Pardalotus striatus)
Rainbow Bee-eater (Merops ornatus)
Underneath are around the jetty were plenty of brightly coloured crabs. As usual, they disappeared when they sensed foot steps but ventured out of their holes when the movement stopped. These beautiful animals are found along the Kimberly coast, into the Top End and the western parts of Papua New Guinea.
Flame-backed Fiddler Crab (Tubuca flammula)
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