Outback Queensland Tours - Cunnamulla - Australia - Out The Back Australia Tours

Birds in the Cunnamulla District

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Written by JBensusan

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Boasting 57 varieties and over 210 species of Australian native birds, the Cunnamulla area is a dream location and a must do for all true bird enthusiasts.  Some are rare or endemic to this semi-arid country landscape, like the Grey Falcon, which is amongst the rarest birds in Australia, but breeding in the area.  Other specialties include Halls Babbler, Bourke’s Parrot, Chesnut-Breasted Quail-Thrush, Black-Breasted Buzzard, Square-Tail Kite, Painted Snipe, Crested Bellbird, Redthroat and the Spotted Night-Jar.

There are a variety of locations where birds can be sighted in and around Cunnamulla.  A good time to see many varieties is at feeding/watering time, so around sunrise and sunset is ideal.  The Allan Tannock Weir is a good vantage point to view the many water birds in the area along the Warrego River, including at Darby Land Bridge.  The sandhills at the back of the caravan park is another great location and also offers a nice walk.

Hundreds of bird species thrive in the area. For the serious birdwatchers, Out the Back Australia recommends the following locations (booking for these properties is essential):

          Bowra - a hotspot for Australian birdlife
          Aldville Station
          Charlotte Plains

Bird Species in and around Cunnamulla include:

Australian Mud-Nesters Apostlebird White-Winged Chough Australo-Papuan Robins Hooded Robin Jack Winter Red-Capped Robin Australo-Papuan Babblers Chesnut-Crowned Babbler Grey-Crowned Babbler Hall’s Babbler White-Browed Babbler Barn Owl Barn Owl Bee-Eaters Rainbow Bee-Eater Bowerbirds Spotted Bowerbird Bustards Australian Bustard Button-quails Little Button-Quail Red-Chested Button-Quail Cockatoos Cockatiel Galah Little Corella Pink Cockatoo Major Mitchell’s Cockatoo Red-Tailed Black-Cockatoo Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo Cormorants Great Cormorant Little Black Cormorant Little Pied Cormorant Pied Cormorant Crakes and Rails Australian Spotted Crake Baillon’s Crake Black-Tailed Native-Hen Purple Swamphen Cranes Brolga Cuckoos Black-Eared Cuckoo Fan-Tailed Cuckoo Horsfield’s Bronze-Cuckoo Pallid Cuckoo Cuckoo-Shrikes and Trillers Black-Faced Cuckoo-Shrike Ground Cuckoo-Shrike White-Bellied Cuckoo-Shrike White-Winged Triller Darter Darter Ducks Australasain Shoveler Australian Wood Duck Black Swan Blue-Billed Duck Grey Teal Hardhead Musk Duck Pacific Black Duck Pink-Eared Duck Plumed Whistling-Duck Wandering Whistling-Duck Fairy-wrens and Grasswrens Splendid Fairy-wren Striated Grasswren Variegated Fairy-wren White-winged Fairy-wren Falcons Australian Hobby Black Falcon Brown Falcon Grey Falcon Nankeen Kestrel Peregrine Falcon Finches Diamond Firetail Double-Barred Finch Plum-Headed Finch Zebra Finches Flower-Peckers Mistletoebird Flycatchers and Fantails Australian Magpie-Lark Grey Fantail Restless Flycatcher Willie Wagtail Frogmouths Tawny Frogmouth Grebes Australasian Grebe Hoary-headed Grebe Hawk Owls Barking Owl Southern Boobook Owl Hens Black-Tailed Nativehen Honeyeaters Black Honeyeater Black-Chinned Honeyeater Blue-Faced Honeyeater Brown Honeyeater Brown-Headed Honeyeater Crimson Chat Grey-Fronted Honeyeater Grey-Headed Honeyeater Little Friarbird Noisy Friarbird Orange Chat Painted Honeyeater Pied Honeyeater Singing Honeyeater Spiny-Cheeked Honeyeater Striped Honeyeater White-Fronted Honeyeater White-Plumed Honeyeater Yellow-Throated Miner

Rainbow Bee-Eater Spotted Bowerbird Galahs Major Mitchell's Cockatoo Brolga Fairy Wren White-Necked Heron Crimson Chat Glossy Ibis Kookaburra

Herons, Egrets and Bitterns Australasian Bittern Great Egret Intermediate Egret Little Egret Nankeen Night Heron White-Faced Heron White-Necked Heron Ibis and Spoonbills Australian White Ibis Glossy Ibis Royal Spoonbill Straw-Necked Ibis Yellow-Billed Spoonbill Kingfishers Laughing Kookaburra Red-backed Kingfisher Sacred Kingfisher Kites, Eagles and Allies Black Kite Black-Breasted Buzzard Black-Shouldered Kite Brown Goshawk Collared Sparrowhawk Letter-Winged Kite Little Eagle Spotted Harrier Square-Tailed Kite Swamp Harrier Wedge-Tailed Eagle Whistling Kite White-Bellied Sea-Eagle Larks Singing Bushlark Nightjars Spotted Nightjar Old World Warblers Australian Reed-Warbler Brown Songlark Rufous Songlark Orioles Olive-backed Oriole Owlet-Nightjars Australian Owlet-nightjar Parakeets Budgerigar Painted Snipes Australian Painted Snipes Pardolates, Thornbills and Allies Buff-Rumped Thornbill Chesnut-Rumped Thornbill Inland Thornbill Red-Browed Pardalote Redthroat Slaty-Backed Thornbill Southern Whiteface Striated Pardalote Weebill Western Gerygone Yellow-Rumped Thornbill Yellow Thornbill Parrots Australian Ringneck Blue Bonnet Blue-Winged Parrot Bourke’s Parrot Budgerigar Eastern Ringneck Parrot Mulga Parrot Red-Rumped Parrot Red-Winged Parrot Pelicans Australian Pelican Pigeon and Doves Bar-shouldered Dove Common Bronzewing Crested Pigeon Diamond Dove Flock Bronzewing Peaceful Dove Squatter Pigeon Pipits Australian Pipit Plovers Banded Lapwing Black-Fronted Dotterel Inland Dotterel Masked Lapwing Pacific Golden Plover Red-Capped Plover Red-Kneed Dotterel Pratincoles Australian Pratincole Quail-thrushes and Wedgebills Chesnut-Breasted Quail-Thrush Chirruping Wedgebill Ratites Emu Ravens and Crows Australian Raven Little Crow Torresian Crow Rollers Dollarbird Whistlers and Shrike-Thrushes Crested Bellbird Grey Shrike-Thrush Rufous Whistler Woodswallows and Butcherbirds Australian Magpie Black-Faced Woodswallow Dusky Woodswallow Grey Butcherbird Little Woodswallow Masked Woodswallow Pied Butcherbird White-Breasted Woodswallow White-Browed Woodswallow Zesteropidae Silvereye

Kingfisher Eagle Parrots Plover Black-Fronted Dotterel Emu and Chicks Marsh Sandpiper Masked Woodswallow

Don’t know where to start your bird watching?

Call into Out the Back Australia to find out where to go and what birds you can expect to see.

A bit more information about the most popular birds and other animals of the area:

Emu
The emu is the tallest native bird in Australia, measuring from 1.6 meters to 1.9 meters in height and weighing in between 30 - 45 kilograms. The emu’s speed is almost legendary in Australian folklore.

The emu’s legs are long and powerful, enabling it to run fast in a zig zag pattern or kick swiftly in defense. Their legs seem to bend back to front and each foot has three forward facing toes and one hind toe. The emu’s body is covered with a shaggy grey-brown coat of feathers. The chicks (young emus) have a soft, downy striped coat.

The male emu is the incubator of the eggs, which are large and green. He seldom leaves the eggs until they have all hatched, which takes 8-10 weeks. The father remains the primary caregiver until the chicks leave the safety of the family, usually after 6 months. The emu stands proudly next to the kangaroo on the Australian coat of arms.

Kangaroo
The Kangaroo is a unique marsupial that belongs to a small group of animals called macropods. Most macropods have hind legs larger than their forelimbs.

Being a marsupial, the kangaroo and its relative, the wallaby, have a forward opening pouch, unlike koalas and wombats, whose pouch opens to the rear. Kangaroos are abundant in the outback, sometimes almost reaching plague proportions. Hence, certain numbers are culled for their meat and skin.

The Brolga
The Brolga is a large grey crane, with a featherless red head and grey crown. The Brolga stands up to 1.3 metres tall and has a wingspan of 2.4 metres. Unlike the Emu, the Brolga can fly and is famous for its dancing displays during courtship.

Brolgas usually breed from July through March or September through June in the northern areas. It is normal for the Brolga to lay two eggs in a nest made from plant stems, grasses and sticks.

Goanna
The goanna is a species of monitor lizard. They grow up to 160 cm long with a flat body and strong legs and claws. They have a very long neck and tail. The goanna tongue is similar to that of a snake that slithers in and out. When threatened, the goanna may rear up or run fast on their hind legs. Goannas are very adept at climbing trees, swimming and fast running. They live in woodland or grassland areas and survive on a diet of smaller lizards and reptiles, snake eggs, insects and small mammals.

Little Corella
The Little Corella is a common sight along the Warrego River and further west. They are mostly white, but have a blue eye-ring with a pale pink patch between the eye and beak. Sulphur yellow underwings can be seen in flight. They measure between 35-39 cm, making them smaller than their sulphur-crested cockatoo cousins.

Sometimes numbering into the hundreds, Little Corellas feed in large noisy flocks, often together with galahs. They mainly feed on grains and grass seeds found on the ground.  Little Corellas are thought to pair for life, typically decades. They nest in hollow trees and usually incubate 2 to 4 eggs for about 25 days. The chicks hatch naked and are totally dependent on their parents. Many are domesticated and make good pets, but are still best enjoyed in their natural habitat, flying freely for all to enjoy.

When visiting Cunnamulla, should you need assistance in planning your site-seeing activities, please don't hesitate to call 07 4655 1679 or stop by the Visitor Information and Tour Booking Desk and we'll be glad to help you.  We have more than 4 generations of knowledge to share with you, so you can make the most of your journey.