Box-Ironbark Birding

Box-Ironbark Birding We provide bird watching tours and accommodation on a 257ha Trust for Nature covenanted property

During a recent week long camp here by a group of dedicated birders, we had some great sightings of various birds, many ...
27/04/2026

During a recent week long camp here by a group of dedicated birders, we had some great sightings of various birds, many of them nectar feeders here for the prolific Ironbark flowering that is currently getting into full swing.
Sightings included White-fronted, Tawny-crowned and Black Honeyeaters, as well as Musk, Little, Purple-crowned and Rainbow Lorikeets, as well as a number of Swift Parrots.

The Brown Honeyeater (presumably the same individual) that had last been seen in late March also turned up on the last day of the camp. A couple of birders who had dipped on sighting it in March, managed to see it this time.

Thanks to Lynn Murdoch and Peter Fowler for sharing some of their great photos taken during the camp!

A recent visit by Mary Cosham, Jennifer Sui and Robyn Cuzens turned up some Tawny-crowned Honeyeaters, a species we have...
15/04/2026

A recent visit by Mary Cosham, Jennifer Sui and Robyn Cuzens turned up some Tawny-crowned Honeyeaters, a species we have only recorded once before on our property, back in Feb 2023. They were located in an area of Cassinia scrub, so not necessarily here as a part of the Ironbark flowering. Lets see if they move on or establish a population. Many thanks to Robyn for sharing her wonderful photos!

As the Ironbark flowering gets further into swing, lots of Little and Noisy Friarbirds are being observed, as well as sm...
09/04/2026

As the Ironbark flowering gets further into swing, lots of Little and Noisy Friarbirds are being observed, as well as small numbers of Swift Parrots. Andrea Conway has recently visited us and was kind enough to share some of her fantastic photos, including the Brown Honeyeater that graced us with its presence for approx. 10 days from when it was first discovered.
Of course the ever present Diamond Firetails in our garden are always popular with the photographers and the Striated Pardalotes nesting in some nestboxes under our verandah roof are also easy to get a photo of as they perch atop a nearby tree.

01/04/2026

The first Swift Parrots of the season sighted today at home. Expect further arrivals in coming days with the Ironbark flowering really picking up some steam now.

I posted these pictures on the ABID fb page. ID has been confirmed as Brown Honeyeater. One comment mentioned that there...
26/03/2026

I posted these pictures on the ABID fb page. ID has been confirmed as Brown Honeyeater. One comment mentioned that there have been only 3 other records of this species in Vic, so we are rather stoked with this little visitor! It's been in a flowering Ironbark next to our house since 19 March.
Note that the other bird in the first photo is a Purple-crowned Lorikeet.

A White-throated Treecreeper sits on a perch above the bird bath in our garden. Rather unsurprising you might think, but...
26/03/2026

A White-throated Treecreeper sits on a perch above the bird bath in our garden. Rather unsurprising you might think, but this is indeed the first time we have ever recorded a White-throated Treecreeper in our garden in our nearly 30 years here.
The species occurs commonly in the surrounding National Park, but has always seemed to prefer the large contiguous forest that the Park offers. In the smaller patches of forest present in the centre of our property, we had never recorded its presence.
The bird has been in and around the garden for a couple of weeks now, and, on more than one occasion, has even inspected our painted verandah posts for any sign of prey!
I have wondered whether the regrowth of vegetation since we purchased the property has made our central forest block less isolated from the larger surrounding areas and therefore encouraged this individual to venture into these areas.
The red spot below the ear coverts indicates the bird is a female.

As we move closer to the anticipated exceptional Ironbark flowering event, a number of species are already taking up the...
09/03/2026

As we move closer to the anticipated exceptional Ironbark flowering event, a number of species are already taking up their positions! Little Friarbirds have arrived in some numbers and taking advantage of the last of the Mistletoe flowers whilst they await the coming bonanza. Our birding friend Damian Archdale was keen to see them and he wasn't disappointed when he visited on Saturday. We also saw a pair of Diamond Firetail with (presumably) the male jumping up and down trying to impress what we assumed to be his female friend.
Damian also managed to get a photo of one of our Tawny Frogmouths as it dispensed a large yawn!
Thanks for sharing your wonderful photos Damian!

A couple of days ago a pair of Wedge-tailed Eagles were sighted in a large dead paddock Ironbark (killed by Mistletoe in...
18/02/2026

A couple of days ago a pair of Wedge-tailed Eagles were sighted in a large dead paddock Ironbark (killed by Mistletoe infestation incidentally). We assume this is our resident breeding pair as their very dark colour indicates they are possibly Gen X's in an established territory 😀.
A much younger version of myself used to go in search of their nest each year - this pair had the most annoying habit of changing their nest site each year - I came to believe they did this on purpose, and I have to admit now that they won!
On the occasions I did find their nest, I managed to bring numerous customers there for a peek, and, for old times' sake, I have included a pic taken back then (Dec 2019) at their nest that year.

A Red-capped Robin has graced us with its presence in and around our garden for the last 6 - 8 weeks. It calls reasonabl...
16/02/2026

A Red-capped Robin has graced us with its presence in and around our garden for the last 6 - 8 weeks. It calls reasonably frequently, which some texts would lead me to believe it might be an immature male, however females also sometimes lack the rusty red cap, so it could also be an immature or adult female on that score. This one has a faint hint of red on its forehead, as well as the white wingbar, though the latter does not show up well in these photos. Happy to receive my audience's expert opinions!

For the first time in three years we are seeing bud development on the Ironbarks. In fact, with the amount we are seeing...
15/02/2026

For the first time in three years we are seeing bud development on the Ironbarks. In fact, with the amount we are seeing, it looks like it could well be a bumper flowering event, perhaps the best for 6 or 7 years. Every time we have a significant event like this we are inundated with nectar feeders, including Swift Parrots, many Lorikeets, Friarbirds, Wattlebirds and of course a myriad of smaller Honeyeater species. Flowering usually commences March/April and can continue right through till September. Swift Parrots have been known to hang around for months during these events - indeed, why would you go anywhere else!!!

We have only recorded White-breasted Woodswallows twice prior to today's visit by a mixed flock of White-browed and Whit...
09/02/2026

We have only recorded White-breasted Woodswallows twice prior to today's visit by a mixed flock of White-browed and White-breasted Woodswallows. First occasion was Feb 2013 and the second was Oct 2025. Two adults of the latter species were observed feeding an immature bird, which lacked the full dark throat of the adults - see photos

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174 Mt Black Quarry Road
Wirrate, VIC
3608

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+61408548840

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