Waders and Doves

On Tuesday morning I went and had a quick look at the wader roost at Buffalo Creek - the tides have been high which coupled with birds from the Northern Hemisphere starting to arrive post breeding has meant that numbers and diversity have been increasing steadily. I was a good hour past the tidal peak so the waders had moved down the beach and dispersed a bit but there was still a great selection on show - both species of sandplover [greater and lesser]; red-necked stint; great and red knot as well as sanderling and turnstones.
My attention though was drawn to the oystercatchers - there were only three individuals but of two species. Australian Pied which looks very similar to the oystercatcher you get in the UK and the Sooty Oystercatcher which doesn't look similar other than the shape..

...very attractive birds.

As Tish was still playing catch up from the nightshifts I left her in peace and went for a walk behind the hospital. This area of coastal forest and mangroves can be very productive but also very frustrating as it is heavily used recreationally by mountain bikers, horse rider, runners and dog walkers. As it was mid morning by this stage I was not expecting too much but was very pleasantly surprised.
The undoubted highlights be the prolonged views of three Rose-Crowned Fruit Doves feeding  and displaying in the forest. In the UK most of the doves are really quite boring [Turtle Dove being the sole exception to this] but that is definitely not the case over here. Across Australia there are many very colourful species of dove / pigeon and in the Northern Territory the two brightest are Emerald and Rose-Crowned Fruit Dove. To say they look nothing like any UK dove would be an understatement - these pictures don't do the fruit dove any justice, they are absolutely superb..

.. a bit more colourful than collared doves don't you think!!