Cassowary Tours Newsletter May 2011
Welcome,
The 2010 season was another great one for Cassowary Tours with a number of very interesting trips to an exciting mix of locations.
The season kicked off in June with the inaugural tour of PNG...Wow! The birds of paradise are so beautiful and extraordinary. This was an epic birding adventure with a great group and fantastic local guides and lodges. Highlights include Raggiana BOP Lek, Greater Bop display, King Bop performance, Flame Bowerbird, Blue BOP, King of Saxony BOP, Ribbon-tailed Astrapia, and amazing views of some super-skulkers such as Lesser Melampitta and Lesser Ground-Robin.
The first Cape York/Iron Range trip of the year kicked off in July. It's always nice to see the special birds again after the wet season, there were excellent views of many different species, including Golden-shouldered Parrot, Eclectus Parrot, and Palm Cockatoo.
In August there was an East Coast of Australia tour with the Carsons from Wales, again this trip produced an amazing quantity and quality of birdlife, plus epic landscapes, incredible diversity of habitats, and a rich selection of unique wildlife.
To complete the entire east coast the Carsons then joined the Cape York/Iron Range tour in early September. A very pleasant time of year on the peninsular and great birding with highlights including Red Goshawk, Yellow-billed Kingfisher and Magnificent Riflebird display.
The Kalkadoon Grasswren tour in September gave our best ever views of Carpentarian Grasswren, plus Kalkadoon Grasswren, Rufous-crowned Emu-wren, and many other interesting inland species. Pictorella Mannikin were plentiful on this trip.
In late October and November the Cape York/Iron Range tours produced fantastic sightings with the full cast of specials on offer. There were some epic battles with the Red-bellied Pitta which resulted in brief but breathtaking views for only a lucky few.
The upcoming season is huge! Cape York/ Iron Range tours are as popular as always, the Darwin, Kakadu and Top End trip is going in August, the inaugural South West trip in October is full, and there will be a special 12 day private tour of Cape York in November.
Cassowary Tours is growing stronger each year and building a respectable reputation for quality birding tours. I thank every tour participant and especially the multiple repeat adventurers who keep coming back for more. Your endorsement is a great reward and it is so enjoyable to see the pleasure our incredible birds produce in people.
Regards, Ben.
Past Newsletters:
Royal Spoonbill
Victoria's Riflebird
Toothbilled Bowerbird
Latham's Snipe
