I had thumbed through my copy of Pizzey & Knight many times and gawked at the beautiful depiction of Purple-gaped Honeyeater as rendered by master illustrator Mr. Frank Knight. I had discussed this bird with another mate who has seen them a few times and he recommended a trip to Monarto CP, a great small patch of remnant Heath and Mallee that stands between Murray Bridge and the Eastern slopes of the Lofty Ranges. I had driven through this area on my way to twitch Latham's Snipe down at Milang and had made a mental note of the quickest route to it from my place in Gawler East. I (once again) begged for some leave from family duties and (again!) it was granted with the understanding of a saint! (note : and accompanied by the rolling of the eyes of someone who has heard the same sad, tired pleading many times before...)
Taking the roads through the back of the Northern Lofty Ranges, the trip from Gawler to Monarto is completed in just over an hour. Pretty good in my opinion and easy enough to get to to warrant more regular visits. This was to be my first real 'reccy' of this little park and it turned out to be a bit of a surprise. The first half of the park, accessed by the main road linking Monarto and Langhorne Creek, features a short loop walk that begins and ends at the car park/entrance. This features a great stand of remnant Mallee woodland and Heath established on a very soft, white sandy soil. I was surprised to see plant species such as Correa and Eremophila thriving and flowering profusely in such free-draining soil. Sandy heath...a new experience for me! Despite the diverse flora, the bush was almost silent apart from the far-off clinking calls of a lone Grey Currawong. I had banked on late afternoon/early evening being the prime-time to see Honeyeaters in action but was beginning to worry the deeper I delved into the bowels of the park. I hung about a stand of Mallee in flower, hoping a bird of some description would visit the blossoms but all I got was another distant call carried on the now-strengthening (and very chilly..) wind. Still, I was using the lack of bird activity as an excuse to have a good old snoop about and take a closer look at some of the plants found in this part of the State that I have not seen in my 'patch' just one hour North-East.
I soon realised that the walking trail was all too suddenly looping back towards the car and I'd still not seen a trace of a Purple-gaped Honeyeater. I tried pishing, but to no avail, so I resorted to a good old 'thunder-clap' of my meaty hands and within a second or two I heard the call of something sounding somewhat Honeyeater-ish and within viewing range. I managed a fleeting view of the bird and it appeared to have all of the features of a Purple-gaped Honeyeater...but not a good enough view to see this much gawked-at-in-a-book 'purple-gape'. I thought it funny how such a small distinguishing feature of a bird can get stuck in your craw and bug you until you've viewed it to your (often ridiculous) satisfaction. However amusing I found the thought, I was not going to give up until I'd seen some bloody purple!
So, I skipped through spiky clumps of Lomandra and Xanthorrea, dodged spider-web's amongst clumps of Mallee and stumbled madly over stumps to get a satisfactory view of a thin strip of purple on a little bird's face.
But what a stripe!
I was feeling pretty smug once I finally got a decent look at it and felt properly vindicated, as it (to my mind) was a very beautiful addition to an already pretty little bird and worth trudging about like an uncoordinated lummox for!
I continued to follow the walking trail toward the car park and felt somewhat ripped-off that such a nice park had such a short walking trail. Then I spied a fire trail running along the northern boundary of the park. I followed it a little way and eventually found a patch toward the rear of the park where the more 'dense' stand of Mallee opened up into what appeared to be some rolder regeneration work. The woodland opened up into what I would best describe as feeling like a town park...a little more space between trees, less prickly grass cover, a thinner spread of dense shrubbery etc. It was down the back of the block where I got the biggest surprise.
This place was teeming with bird life. The birds, as I've been surprised to discover in other parts of Australia, seemed to prefer the more 'clapped-out' patch of bush adjoining some more dense, protective cover. Within a span of 5 or 10 minutes I had seen a bunch of great birds, including; Southern Scrub Robin, (the not-so..)Shy Heathwren, Yellow-rumped Thornbill, Yellow Thornbill, Mallee Ringneck, Variegated Fairy-wren, Diamond Firetail and a few other species too. But it was the amount of activity that startled me most. Each shrub I walked past I seemed to flush little gangs of a dozen or more birds, often in mixed flocks, all bursting out in a blur at once. It was a little overwhelming trying to keep up with the activity. So, I opted for sitting beneath some cover and tried to pish up a storm...I figured it may trick a Shy Heathwren into stumbling before my lens. The best photo in poor lighting is featured below, the result of a protracted and hilarious 'dance' beneath the bushes with a Southern Scrub Robin.
All in all, another productive afternoon spent chasing the 'boids' as I try to climb to 200 species for the year thus far! I really recommend checking this patch of scrub out if you're visiting Adelaide or if you live nearby and have never been there, the nearby Ferries-McDonald park is also said to be a great birding site but it'll have to wait until my next visit.
Wati Tjulpu
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