The final day of the big drive took me from Townsville to Cairns. This was the shortest leg of the journey and I got into Cairns just after 4pm.I was worried that being in a conference from dawn until dusk might reduce my opportunities to blog about nature stuff. But that was before I arrived at my hotel. This is the view from my balcony.
Not bad, eh?
So I whipped out my binoculars and scanned the mud flats. And then I whipped out the camera. The tide was receding, so the birds were a long way out. Still, I saw three black-necked storks or jabirus ( Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus), a brahminy kite (Haliastur indus), a white-bellied sea eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) and sundry egrets, many of which are currently snoozing quietly in a rookery under my window. I hope I get up before them so I can get some decent photos.
