October 12-31, 2024 with Jay VanderGaast & Alex Sundvall
Australia and New Guinea host some of birding’s most desired birds in the entire world. From marvels like Emu and cassowary, to stunning Birds-of-Paradise and Bowerbirds, it’s hard to find a nature documentary that doesn’t include a species from these two countries. This tour provides a unique experience to visit some of the highlights of both countries, giving people who might only have a single opportunity to visit this side of the world the ability to get the most for their time. With an impressive species total of over 400, this was truly a trip for the ages. We got incredibly lucky with a number of species, including watching the full successful display of a Victoria’s Riflebird to a female! This was such a memorable moment that this was ranked everyone’s favorite moment through the entire tour!
From Jay and I and all of us at Field Guides, we thank you for choosing to travel with us to Australia and Papua New Guinea. After 17 long days of birding with 5 flights, Jay and I were so thankful that this group was a patient, kind, and thoughtful one. No one was left behind as we slowly worked through muddy and steep trails together, and everyone helped if someone was having a hard time getting on a bird. We hope you had a lovely time and we look forward to hopefully seeing all of you again sometime on the birding trail soon!
Day 1: We started the tour after breakfast strolling along the Cairns Esplanade getting our first taste of Australian birds, with some highlights being Torresian Kingfisher, Mangrove Robin,our first Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove, and a magnificent look at a perched Gray Goshawk that flew right over our heads! After picking up a delayed Suan and enjoying our first Red-tailed Black-Cockatoos in the airport parking lot, we headed toward the Cattana Wetlands where we spent the rest of the morning. On our way there, we spotted a Black-necked Stork, a rare and irruptive species that can be very difficult to track down. This bird was on the wing and it was awesome to get such wonderful views! Once at the wetlands we had a nice mix of birds and dragonflies, with some of the better birds being Green Pygmy-Goose, Orange-footed Megapode, and our first Lovely Fairywrens. We also watched a female Sahul Sunbird actively building a nest right by the path. After lunch we checked Yorkey’s Knob where we connected with a lovely flock of Crimson Finches and great looks at Little Bronze-Cuckoo. We ended the day walking around Centenary Lakes getting our first good looks at Australian Brushturkeys, Black Butcherbird, and Bush Thick-knee.
Day 2: Today we headed toward the Atherton Tablelands with our first intended stop being the Mareeba Golf Course. On the way, we stopped briefly to watch a couple families of Australian Bustards parading around a field. Once at the golf course, we saw our first flock of Double-barred Finches! This can be a very difficult species to track down, so we savored what we assumed would be our only experience with this species. Little did we know this was a great year for these finches and we would see them again later! We also had wonderful looks at Scaly-breasted Lorikeets and Red-winged Parrot. From there we headed to Granite Gorge which gave us good bird as well as mammal watching! We started with feeding the adorable endemic Mareeba Rock-Wallabies, which would often hold your hand while they ate. We then walked around the campgrounds watching Squatter Pigeons, Great Bowerbirds, and even lucked into an insane Black Bittern, catching glimpses as the branches swayed in the wind way up in a Casuarina tree. After a quick lunch we went to the main attraction for the afternoon: Hasties Swamp. Here we encountered huge flocks of waterfowl, mostly Magpie Geese but also both Plumed and Wandering Whistling-Ducks! We also laid eyes on a few Buff-banded Rails, Black-fronted Dotterels, and our first Brown Cuckoo-Doves and Australian Spectacled Monarchs. Our first White-throated Gerygone was also around, but proved difficult for everyone to get their eyes on. Leaving Hasties we made a quick stop to watch a mixed group of both of Australia’s crane species: Sarus Cranes and Brolgas. It was wonderful seeing both species so close to each other, getting great comparisons of these difficult to separate species. That evening, we waited at a creek crossing hoping to get a glimpse of a Platypus, and thankfully we did! Like a tiny crocodile, just barely surfacing to breathe before diving again into the murky depths.
Day 3: We started the morning with a little pre-breakfast birding right outside our rooms of the Chambers Rainforest Lodge. The feeders here attracted both Victoria’s Riflebirds and Spotted Catbirds, with a couple of Rose-crowned Fruit-Doves in the nearby trees. After breakfast we headed to Lake Barrine for our first big target of the tablelands: Tooth-billed Bowerbird. This strange and incredibly restricted species is somewhat common there, and after a short walk we were treated to excellent views of a singing bird around eye level. We even saw a display ground, although compared to some of its cousins it was quite disappointing. When we got back to the parking lot there were a couple of Yellow-breasted Boatbills and a stunning Wompoo Fruit-Dove calling from an open perch! On the road again, we stopped at an overlook where our highlight was a Horsfield’s Bronze-Cuckoo, one that’s often missed on this tour. Our next big stop was Mount Hypipamee, where yet another big target awaited: Golden Bowerbird. Unlike the more muted Tooth-billed, adult male Golden Bowerbirds are incredibly striking! Unfortunately it’s been years since a full adult male has been seen low down enough for us to hike to, so we’ll have to settle for a slightly less shiny young male. It can take up to 6 years for Golden Bowerbirds to gain full adult plumage. For some it will take less, and some may never turn fully gold. It’s not yet certain why there’s this disparity between individuals! Regardless, after a small bit of bushwhacking, we were face to face with a slightly less than Golden Bowerbird doing it’s full array of vocal sounds and imitations. On our way back down, we heard a Victoria’s Riflebird displaying somewhere that sounded near the path. Sure enough, after tracking down his perch it was right over our heads! Not only did we get to watch this bird display, a female came down to watch! Slowly she got closer and more interested in his display, until eventually they copulated! It can take people months of dedicated searching and waiting to see what we saw in mere minutes. To say we were lucky is an understatement! This will not be the last incredible sighting from Mount Hypipamee, but that will come on another visit. From here, it was off to lunch and then an afternoon at the Curtain Fig, this massive strangler fig that’s one of the largest in the world! Here one of the most accommodating new birds for us were the handsome Gray-headed Robins that were hopping around the parking lot when we got there.
Day 4: Again we started with some pre-breakfast birding in front of our rooms. We saw essentially the same birds as the day before, but we added a Sahul Cicadabird and a couple Double-eyed Fig-Parrots. Our main birding this morning was at the Wondecla State Forest, which was a bit drier forest than where we’d previously been birding so far. Soon we were surrounded by Fuscous Honeyeaters and even saw a couple Varied Sittellas, Red-browed Firetails, and even a Dusky Woodswallow! Our lunch today was at a beautiful countryside farm with all fresh food, and a flock of Topknot Pigeons! Then in the afternoon, we headed back towards the coast where we hoped for a much larger bird than a pigeon or bowerbird. We arrived at Etty Bay hoping for greatness, and after a long walk down the beach, we spotted a legendary male Southern Cassowary with a baby in tow. We got to watch these mythical birds at fairly close range bathing and drinking in a small freshwater pool just off the beach. After these giants walked back into the woods, we left for Edmonton where we scoured some turf farms and ponds for a continuing Little Curlew. While searching, we saw our first male Red-backed Fairywren, Crimson Finches, Chestnut-breasted Munias, and Golden-headed Cisticolas. Eventually we were able to track down the Curlew, appearing more like an Upland Sandpiper than the longer billed curlews. With the curlew was a Yellow-billed Spoonbill and we heard a handful of White-browed Crakes, with a couple lucky folks getting brief glimpses as they darted between the grasses.
Day 5: Our morning was spent birding around our driver Clayton’s work in Speewah. The sprawling greenhouse complexes were home to a host of great birds, including the recently described Cryptic Honeyeater. Next was a quick stop at Davies Creek where we saw the resident White-browed Robin and a handful of Lemon-bellied Flyrobins. In the afternoon, we birded along the Pickford Road where we saw our first Blue-winged Kookaburras and even a pair of giant Emus! We also had nice views of Red-winged Parrots, Little Friarbirds, a Sahul Brush Cuckoo, and some Blue-faced Honeyeaters. Then it was off to the rodeo grounds where we caught up with the local group of Apostlebirds. We even found a nest! Along with good sized groups of Double-barred Finches, Clayton ran out and grabbed a Frilled Lizard to let us get an up close view of this magnificent reptile. We ended the day walking down the Cairns Esplanade scanning through the shorebird roost. 10 species of shorebirds were present with highlights being Red-capped Plover, Greater Sand-Plover, Far Eastern Curlew, Terek Sandpiper, Great Knot, and a lone Sharp-tailed Sandpiper. We also had a small group of the newly minted Australian Tern, recently split from Gull-billed Tern. We spent the rest of our night packing for our flight the next day to Papua New Guinea!
Day 6: Today was primarily a travel day, however once we landed and got settled at Raintree Lodge, we headed toward the coast for some quick afternoon birding before it got dark. Instantly the feeling was quite different from Australia. The regions were much poorer and the infrastructure much worse, but the people were still incredibly friendly and curious about us. We had a few new species with a more New Guinea flair, and a few shorebirds that were good for our country lists, but the main highlights this afternoon were the flock of high flying Lesser Frigatebirds overhead, a Brown Goshawk and Australian Hobby zipping through, and the endemic and range restricted Silver-eared Honeyeater.
Day 7: With an early breakfast and a picnic lunch in tow, we spent the entire day at the jewel of Port Moresby: Varirata National Park. A gift from the government to the people of New Guinea, this huge tract of protected foothills forest is home to an incredible diversity of birds. Every day you spend at Varirata will be different, and I think that is beautiful. Almost every bird we saw and heard today was new for us, and all were absolutely incredible. Highlights were 5 different species of Fruit-Doves including Beautiful, Pink-spotted, and Dwarf; Pheasant Pigeon; a family of Papuan Frogmouths; a Barred Owlet-Nightjar roosting in its hole; a family of Barking Owls; the incredibly tiny Papuan Dwarf Kingfisher; a huge flock of Blyth’s Hornbills so close you could hear the whistling of the wind in their wings; Rufous-bellied Kookaburra; Papuan Eclectus; Chestnut-backed Jewel-babbler; Trumpet and Glossy-mantled Manucodes; Growling Riflebirds; Raggiana Birds-of-Paradise (the national bird of PNG); a noisy group of sickly looking Gray Crows; Black Berrypecker; a nesting Olive Flyrobin; Yellow-faced Mynas…the list simply goes on and on and on! What an impressive group of birds and what a spectacular first full day impression of birding in Papua New Guinea. And only a teaser of what was yet to come.
Day 8: Another travel day for the most part as we dealt with the infamous Air Niugini. Thankfully the delays were reasonably short and we were off to Mount Hagen in no time. From there, we drove through the scenic countryside to the Kumul Lodge. We were birding on our way there of course, spotting Long-tailed Shrikes, Singing Starlings, Black Kites, Pied Bushchats, and Great Woodswallows along the way. Once we got to the lodge and settled in, we did some pre-dinner birding at the feeders. Amazingly the fruit feeders here in the highlands attract a few different species of Bird-of-Paradise amongst other fantastic and colorful birds. Well patterned Brehm’s Tiger-Parrots and flashy Stella’s Lorikeets flew around, Brown Sicklebills and Ribbon-tailed Astrapias gorged themselves on fruit, and Mountain Mouse-Warblers and Rufous-naped Bellbirds hopped on the ground. The highlands were much cooler and much wetter than the lowlands we had been enjoying previously, but it was well worth it for the bird life here.
Day 9: Our morning was spent hiking out to attempt to see Lesser Bird-of-Paradise, Raggiana’s smaller more montane cousin. However, Raggiana Birds-of-Paradise have actually started to move into this area and most of the birds we saw were unfortunately hybrids between the two! We did eventually track down a good pure looking Lesser. More highlights on this steep muddy trail were Magnificent Bird-of-Paradise, Yellow-breasted Bowerbird, White-shouldered Fairywren, and Ornate Melidectes. And of course the stunning views! After our hike we did a bit of shopping at the market the local tribe had put out for us, and then headed a little farther up the road. Here, we had much better views of Magnificent Bird-of-Paradise as well as our first Brown Falcon and Greater Lophorina (the former Superb Bird-of-Paradise). We made our way down toward the Lai River where it was difficult to hear over the roaring sound of water. Torrent Flyrobins love this habitat though, and there were many here, acting almost like a New Guinean Dipper. After lunch, we headed to Murmur Pass, a beautiful lookout in the highlands famous for its King-of-Saxony Birds-of-Paradise, the only bird in the world with 6 words in its name! And it certainly delivered! On our walk to the pass, we spotted a young male with only one antenna, but once we got to the pass a glorious adult male was calling from an exposed perch giving us all wonderful views of this exquisite bird-of-paradise. More highlights here included Plum-faced Lorikeets, Black-bellied Cicadabird, a calling Wattled Ploughbill, Tit Berrypeckers, a Black-breasted Boatbill right over our heads, Mottled Berryhunter, the outrageously tailed Stephenie’s Astrapia, the nuthatch-like Blue-capped Ifrita, Lesser Melampitta, Loria’s Satinbird, and a small flock of Blue-faced Parrotfinches. What an incredible afternoon!
Day 10: This morning was devoted to an incredibly special bird of the New Guinea highlands: the Blue Bird-of-Paradise. We headed up the Tonga Trail where we were hoping to spot one, and waited. While we waited, we did see a great collection of new birds; highlighted by White-breasted Fruit-Dove, Yellow-billed Lorikeets, Marbled Honeyeater, Buff-faced Scrubwrens, a Black Fantail, and a Fan-tailed Monarch. Possibly most surprising was a couple of Eastern Yellow Wagtails, a migrant and wintering bird here in the highlands from much farther north. After 4 hours of waiting and nearly calling it a couple times, finally a Blue Bird-of-Paradise made itself known and came out for us to see. The views were a little distant, but it didn’t make the bird any less glorious, especially after a long wait. It was well worth it! We spent the afternoon back at Murmur Pass where the birdlife was much the same as the day before. We did get better views of Black-bellied Cicadabirds, Yellow-browed Melidectes, Blue-capped Ifrita, Rufous-backed Honeyeaters, and Blue-faced Parrotfinches. We also picked up Dimorphic Fantail, Fan-tailed Berrypecker, Canary Flyrobin, and a small group of Hooded Munias.
Day 11: Another long travel day! We started out with an optional walk around some of the Kumul Lodge trails, where we added Large Scrubwren and Gray-streaked Honeyeater. It’s never too late to find new birds! From there we headed to Mount Hagen Airport where we again had to deal with Air Niugini delays. While we waited, we spotted a Papuan Harrier patrolling the airstrips, which even flushed an Australian Pipit. Once we landed in Port Moresby again, we quickly dropped off bags at Raintree Lodge and headed straight to the Pacific Adventist University for some more lowlands birding. A host of new birds awaited us here: with highlights like Radjah Shelduck, Channel-billed Cuckoo, Comb-crested Jacana, Pied Herons, Common Kingfisher, Common Paradise-Kingfisher, Red-cheeked Parrots, Yellow-streaked Lorys, Fawn-breasted Bowerbirds, Rufous-banded Honeyeaters, Black-backed Butcherbird, and our best looks yet at Coconut Lorikeets.
Day 12: Today was another long and full day exploring Varirata National Park. Like magic, even though we had already spent a full day here we had a number of new species for us. New highlights were both Purple-tailed and Zoe’s Imperial-Pigeons, a calling Greater Black Coucal, fantastic views of a rare Dwarf Koel, multiple calling Chestnut-breasted Cuckoos, a Long-tailed Honey-Buzzard circling right overhead, a nesting Variable Goshawk, a stunning Brown-headed Paradise-Kingfisher, phenomenal views of Black-capped Lorys, an exceptional Eastern Hooded Pitta that hopped right into view for us, Plain Honeyeater, Stout-billed Cuckooshrike, Painted Quail-thrush, Chestnut-backed Jewel-babbler, Piping Bellbird, some wailing Hooded Butcherbirds, Crinkle-collared Manucode, and a ridiculous Goldenface sitting motionless for minutes, something none of the guides have ever seen one do. Getting a scope view of a Goldenface is incredibly challenging, and everyone getting scope views and digiscoped photos is unheard of. Fewer than 60 photos exist of the species on the Macaulay Library, and only one video of a bird briefly taking off exists.
Day 13: Today was primarily a travel day again, with an early flight to Brisbane. Since we were one of the first flights out, we thankfully didn’t have too many delays. When we arrived in Brisbane, we caught a quick bite to eat and then headed out by boat to the local botanical gardens. I stayed back because I wasn’t feeling great, but I was told that y’all had a lovely time walking around the grounds and saw a number of wonderful birds including our first of the Black-shouldered subspecies of Masked Lapwing, and baby Dusky Moorhens and baby Bush Thick-knees.
Day 14: We started the morning at Swan Lake near the Port of Brisbane, where it lived up to its name giving us our best views yet of Black Swans! In the raft of Gray Teal we also picked out a couple of Chestnut Teals, new for the list. We also had some great views of Australasian Grebes, Pied Cormorants, Royal Spoonbills, Mangrove Gerygone, Leaden Flycatcher, and Australian Reed Warbler. From here we started heading towards the mountains and to O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat. On the way we stopped at Daisy Hill hoping to spot some Koalas. Unfortunately, the center was closed so we were unsuccessful with that. We did however luck into some great birds here, with a nesting Tawny Frogmouth, Sacred Kingfishers, Channel-billed Cuckoos, and a Common Bronzewing perched motionless below eye level, offering us fantastic views of its namesake iridescent wing panel. On the drive, we spotted a few groups of Maned Ducks in the pastures and a handful of Dollarbirds perched up on the high wires. Upon entering Lamington National Park, we stopped on the side of the road where we spotted a small group of Glossy Black-Cockatoos perched far off in the distance. Once we got to O’Reilly’s, we settled into our rooms and went for a quick walk on some of the shorter trails. We were quickly greeted by the Crimson Rosellas, Australian King-Parrots, and Satin and Regent Bowerbirds that are all used to getting fed and are quite accustomed to people. Some of us even had birds on our arms and heads! We also heard our first Noisy Pitta, Green Catbirds, and watched Australian Logrunners feeding a baby! A wonderful end to a long day of travel.
Day 15: Our plan was to spend the morning before breakfast walking the same trail as the previous night, but our walk was quickly interrupted by a displaying male Albert’s Lyrebird just off the path! While it was a tad obscured, it was very close and very loud, mimicking a whole host of natural and unnatural sounds; even the sound of pattering raindrops! This was the star of the show, and for some the highlight of the entire trip! This species is incredibly range restricted, and O’Reilly’s is one of the best places to see one. And getting to see a full display is incredibly rare! Our luck on this trip was on an entirely new level. After breakfast, our first stop was along the Wishing Tree Track where we had our first Paradise Riflebird, Rose Robin, heard more Noisy Pittas, and even discovered an Australian Owlet-Nightjar roosting in a high up hole. Next on the morning’s agenda was the Python Rock Track, where we finally got some views of White-headed Pigeon, Noisy Pitta, and even an Eastern Shrike-tit and a Bassian Thrush! We also got much improved views of Paradise Riflebird. Our last stop before lunch was down Duck Creek Road where we had our first Red-browed Treecreeper, Variegated Fairywrens, and Spotted Pardalotes. While the Pardalotes were a bit slippery for us, the other birds performed nicely! After lunch, we raced an impending rain storm and headed to Kamarun Lookout. Here we had our best looks yet at White-eared Monarch, a bright and beautiful adult perched at the top of a tree. We also had our first Fan-tailed Cuckoo of the trip. That evening, we walked around the grounds where we spotted an Australian Boobook by thermal scope, getting a spotlight on it before it flew away for everyone to see!
Day 16: Another travel day, we started the morning walking around the grounds of O’Reilly’s picking up our last remaining birds for the area. We finally got great views of Green Catbird and Rose Robin, with all the other usual birds hanging out as well. After breakfast we headed to Luke’s Bluff where we spotted some distant nesting Peregrine Falcons, and had close encounters with Pale-headed Rosella and Spotted Pardalotes. On our way down off the mountain, we stopped at a little park for lunch where we finally got everyone caught up with White-throated Gerygone and added the elusive Tawny Grassbird to our list. From there we headed to the airport, and flew to Sydney for our final day of birding.
Day 17: Our plan for the day was to spend it all birding the famous Royal National Park. However, when we arrived at the trail we normally walk, we discovered that it was closed for the weekend due to prescribed burns in the area. Disappointed and scrambling a bit, we decided to walk a little on the other side of the creek the trail bordered, in hopes that we could see some of the same species. This turned out to be the perfect decision as we were treated to multiple Superb Lyrebirds drinking from the creek, getting marvelous views. With our main target for the morning out of the way, we headed to the coast getting an incredibly scenic look at the South Pacific from steep blufftops. We did a bit of seawatching, spotting Wedge-tailed Shearwaters, a couple Australasian Gannets, and even a Black-browed Albatross between the waves. On our walk, we found Little and Red Wattlebirds, Eastern Spinebills, Southern Emuwrens, and had our best views of one of the most famous and charismatic of Australia’s birds: the Laughing Kookaburra. Our final stop for the day, and our final stop for the tour was a small local park not too far from Royal where we found one of the local roosting Powerful Owls. An incredible end to a fantastic tour with over 400 species across two rich and diverse countries.
Mammals:
Platypus
Long-nosed Bandicoot
Coppery Brushtail Possum
Short-eared Brush-tailed Possum
Sugar Glider
Common Ringtail Possum
Green Ringtail
Striped Possum
Red-necked Pademelon
Red-legged Pademelon
Mareeba Rock-Wallaby
Agile Wallaby
Eastern Gray Kangaroo
Spectacled Flying-Fox
Gray-headed Flying-Fox
White-tailed Giant Rat
Humpback Whale
Dingo
Herps
Eastern Water Dragon
Yellow-faced Whipsnake
Frilled Lizard
Carpet Python
Krefft's River Turtle
Boyd's Forest Dragon
Lace Monitor
Jacky Dragon
Cunningham's Skink
White's Skink
Striped Marsh Frog
Whirring Tree Frog
Eastern Water Skink
Pale-lipped Shadeskink
Eastern Saw-shelled Turtle
Northern Barred Frog
Eastern Short-necked Turtle
Red-bellied Short-necked Turtle
Cane Toad
Painted Keelback
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/336181
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/naz24TRIPLIST.pdf
Warm wishes and happy birding! Jay and Alex