Where to park up and spot Australia's most iconic birds
It’s official: people are flocking to birdwatching hotspots around the world, and with some of the best twitching on the planet right here, Australia’s definitely got something to crow about. Read on for six of the top RV accessible birding destinations around the country.
Scenic Rim, QLD
The Lamington National Park is one of six national parks in Queensland’s Scenic Rim region, which are custodians of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed site of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia. Come for the Glossy Black Cockatoos and the uncanny mimics that are Albert’s Lyrebirds, look for the blue bowers built by the Regent Bowerbird and see if you can spy the ground-dwelling, critically endangered Eastern Bristlebird. King parrots, whipbirds, the spectacular Paradise Riflebird and sweet little Green Catbird, with its meowing call, are all found in this region just 110 kilometres south of Brisbane,
TIP: Tap into the expertise of local park rangers, who often run guided walks and talks about their extraordinary workplaces.
Cobourg Peninsula, NT
Australia has 67 Ramsar sites, which protect internationally significant wetlands, and the Cobourg Peninsula, 500 kilometres east of Darwin, was the first Australian site on the list. Put Garig Gunak National Park in your travel plans between August and October to visit its mangroves that harbour iconic Brolgas and magpie geese, families of kingfishers and the rare and endangered Red Goshawk and shorebirds such as the Great Knot and Far Eastern curlew.
TIP: Permits are needed to visit and camp at the park’s two main sites; book at least six weeks in advance.
Chiltern, VIC
Crossing the Hume Highway between Albury-Wodonga and Wangaratta, the mountains and eucalypt woodlands of the Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park are a hotspot for birds of prey. With more than 220 species recorded here, keep the binoculars to hand for parrots and honeyeaters of all colours, including the critically endangered Swift parrot and the Regent honeyeaters, who zero in on the park when the ironbarks flower in spring. Lovers of robins are spoilt for choice and even amateur birdwatchers will admire the rosellas, ringnecks and lorikeets endemic to the region. Camp in the park for early mornings, or set up at any of the commercial caravan parks in the surrounding historic towns, including Chiltern and Eldorado,
TIP: Check with local birdwatching groups or naturalist clubs for tips on hides and species, and set the alarm clock for early morning or late afternoon walk when birds are most active.
The Coorong, SA
Best known as the location of the pelican-meets-boy book Storm Boy, it’s no surprise the pelican is this coastal lagoon’s unofficial mascot. Thousands of pelicans are estimated to live here. Take the short Jack Point Pelican Observatory walk to see Australia’s largest pelican breeding rookery. Pelicans aside, more than 200 bird species live in the Coorong, which is a major stopover point for migratory birds as far afield as Siberia. To go deeper and quieter, join a birdwatching kayak tour to spy gulls and gannets, wedge-tailed eagles, goshawks, black falcons, plovers and a slew of parrots – the critically endangered orange-bellied parrot has been spotted here. Two hours south of Adelaide, the RV accessible Coorong has free campsites and dump points, and paid sites within the Coorong National Park.
Bruny Island, TAS
Box-ticking twitchers will love South Bruny National Park, which, if you’re lucky, patient and persistent, could let you tick off all 12 Tasmanian endemic species. Top of the list is the tiny, endangered Forty-spotted Pardalote, with a population of about 1,500, making it one of Australia’s rarest birds. It has been recorded at Inala Jurassic Garden, home to 95 species and a breeding refuge for Swift Parrots; book ahead for a tour of its reserve. Watch the skyline for white-bellied sea-eagles, the land for white wallabies and the sea for fur seals and whales.
Namadgi National Park, ACT
High in the Australian Alps, the Ginini Flats Wetland Complex pulls all the birds. Set in the Namadgi National Park, the avian star of this sphagnum bog and fen is the Latham’s Snipe, which migrates from Japan and Siberia, arriving in August and September. Here, they’ll recover from the journey, which includes a remarkable three-day, 7000-kilometre non-stop flight across the Pacific. Raptor spotters should watch for Brown falcons, harriers and Nankeen kestrels, with showy Gang-gang cockatoos and superb lyrebirds vying for attention. The national park has riverside campgrounds suitable for RVs.
