I wanted to visit the Narawang Wetlands again to see if I could get some better photos of the Black-backed Bittern, but also wanted to fit in some other places in Sydney Olympic Park. So I caught a train to Concord West, and first visited the Waterbird Refuge in Sydney Olympic Park. From there, I made my way towards Newington and the Narawang Wetlands.
in the Waterbird Refuge I spotted many of the usual birds. Here is a White-faced Heron –
A few of the birds in the mangroves. A Silvereye –
And a Superb Fairy-wren –
One of many Pied Stilts –
This spider seems to have plenty of food –
At Wentworth Common, I watched these Chestnut Teals demonstrating their pecking order –
In the pond was an Australasian Grebe –
I had lunch and then walked over to the Narawang Wetlands. On the way I spotted this Buff-banded Rail –
And a Grey Butcherbird –
At therein pond, I noticed this Australasian Darter with material caught in its beak. It looked in a lot of distress.
Then I saw a capture attempt.
The attempt was unsuccessful. The Darter dived and swam off. I then talked to the person who made the attempt. He was Connor, a bushcare worker who had been in the area, and a bird watcher. He also had background working on the bird sectional the Zoo. He was aware of the dangers in trying to grab a bird like a Darter – and he had worn safety glasses.
He had also contacted Wires who had advised him what to do. One of their workers was on the way.
Meanwhile, the poor Darter swam around the pond trying to rid itself of the material.
The exhausted Darter then made its way back to its perch.
The Wires person arrived and tried to capture the Darter with a net on a long pole, but the bird flew off. The bird can fly and swim OK but cannot open its beak. We didn’t see it again.
I stayed at the pond for about two hours, waiting to see if a Bittern would appear. I saw no sign of any.
That evening, Connor posted notices on various social media local bird pages with instructions for any birdwatchers who saw the Darter.