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'A Walk in the Rainforest' A nature sound recording by Field Notes |
Introducing North Queensland's
Rainforests From Cooktown in the north, past Cairns to near Townsville in the south, stretches a range of high mountains and ridges, reaching down to the tropical coast. Catching the moist air off the Coral Sea, these highlands and associated coastal plains have been mantled with an emerald carpet of dense and primitive rainforest. In these forests are found the greatest diversity of flora and fauna in Australia. Despite being only 0.1% of Australia's land area, the Wet Tropics is home to 50% of our bird species, 30% of our marsupial species, 27% of our frog species and 60% of our butterfly species. Many of them are only found in this area, and there are numerous rare or threatened species. This bio-diversity is a product of Australia's evolutionary history. Around 50-100 million years ago, wet forests covered much of the continent, dominated by ancient plant forms, such as ferns, palms and cycads, whose descendants are still features of today's rainforests. With a gradual change in global climate, Australia became more arid, leading to the evolution of our familiar eucalypt sclerophyll woodlands and a diversity of animals that are uniquely Australian. Meanwhile the rainforests, and the creatures that depended on them, contracted to the wetter areas along the east coast. In more recent times, ice-ages and an interchange with the flora and fauna of New Guinea to our north, have seen further changes in the composition of our rainforests. Thus when we enter the rainforests today we find species that are representative of an earlier time, side by side with more recent arrivals. Examples of ancient forms to be encountered in the rainforests today are the primitive yet majestic Cassowary, or the curious Musky Rat-Kangaroo, a 'missing link' between the arboreal possums and terrestrial kangaroos. Co-existent with them are summer breeding migrants from Papua New Guinea, such as the spectacular Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfishers. The 7,500 square kilometres of tropical rainforest that we see today is considerably less than what existed before European settlement. Much of the lowland rainforest, particularly south of Cairns, has been cleared for sugar cane farms, while the upland rainforests have been extensively logged or, as on the Atherton Tableland, cleared for cattle grazing. In the early eighties, there was immense public concern expressed about the continuing destruction of tropical rainforest, focussed in particular by the controversial construction of the Bloomfield-Cape Tribulation road through virgin forest. In 1988, having easily fulfilled all the criteria for a natural area of outstanding global significance, the Wet Tropics were placed on the World Heritage List. Whether you have personally visited these forests or not, we hope the sounds you hear on this CD will inspire your imagination, and transport you to a vibrantly alive and evergreen world. In interpreting these notes, we suggest that you listen closely, and use your imagination to differentiate the bird calls. You may also like to accompany these notes with a good Australian bird/frog guide. It doesn't really matter how much you identify from this recording. We just hope you have some fun listening, and maybe the next time you go into a natural place, you will be surprised at how much more you become aware of.
An overview Our recording takes you on two walks through Australia's tropical rainforests; We begin with a morning walk through a mountain rainforest, and follow that by experiencing the dawn in a lowland coastal forest. It is late spring, immediately prior to the wet season, and the air, even early in the morning is both warm and very humid. This is the season that life in the rainforest seems to reach a climax in anticipation of the approaching Wet. Birds are establishing territories and nesting, frogs are calling as the first storms of the season inundate the forest, and the sounds of insect life are reaching a fevered pitch, a diversity of cicadas and crickets being heard all day and all night. As we enter the forest, we can immediately hear that we are in a dense tropical environment. The calls of fruit-pigeons and a variety of rainforest birds can be heard echoing through the forest, though few can be seen in the dense foliage of the canopy above our heads. They are occupied with their morning feeding rounds, and there is a profusion of activity. As we walk along a track through the forest, we encounter many of the creatures that live here, and gain an insight into the spectacular life of the this place. Our first walk is highlighted by coming across the bower of a Golden Bowerbird, and by waiting unobtrusively, we are rewarded not only with a view of the spectacular male, but also a ringside seat to his display. We conclude this walk by arriving at a mountain cascade, spilling over the rocks. Our second walk is in a lowland rainforest, and begins with us surrounded by the sounds of the forest at night. At first it may seem a little unsettling but it need not be, for night sounds often have a wonderful soothing quality. As dawn approaches the birds begin to awake, and we can hear that there are noticeably different inhabitants here than in the upland forests. As we stand quietly, we are approached by a curious Cassowary, a very rare and awesome inhabitant of the forests. Our walk concludes as we overhear a beautiful duet from a pair of Black Butcherbirds.
In a Highland Rainforest - Track 1: Entering the Forest 7.21 At the edge of the rainforest, Red-browed Firetail Finches call with a thin "Seep, seep" (...esp. 0:35-0:41...), and fly up from the ground (...0:59), while a pair of King Parrots feed noisily nearby (0:09-0:14, 0:25, 0:30-33). A Fernwren (see Track 4) gives what is probably an alarm call, but which seems to us to have a wonderfully exotic character to it (0:44, 0:55, and later at 3:23). As we enter the rainforest, a diversity of rainforest birds may be heard calling from high in the canopy, dominant among them a variety of Fruit Pigeons. Three species are present here: the Superb Fruit-Dove, the Brown Cuckoo-Dove and the Wompoo Fruit-Dove (see track 2). Both the Superb Fruit-Dove and the Brown Cuckoo-Dove call with a series of upslurred "Whoop!"s, which seem to fill the forest; the Superb's has a lower voice, a more full and resonant "whoooop!" (...1:09-1:12,...1:40...) or "Hoo!" (0:24), even though it is a slightly smaller bodied bird, while the Brown's has a lighter timbre, and at close range may be heard to be a multi-syllable call, sometimes described as "w-w-whop!" or "did you Walk?" (...0:41-0:52,...). The Superb also has a short and soft "coo-a-oo" (5:18-5:21, 5.24, 5.26), which sounds disarmingly human at times. The Green Catbird is a character that catches the attention of many visitors to these rainforests. Its extraordinary call is a nasal, cat-like, grinding wail (2:14, 2:23, 2:35,...), heard mostly in the months prior to the wet season. Notice also the interspersing of contact calls; sharp explosive whistles (1:44, 1:51, 1:58, 2:05, 2:10...), which, in close proximity, can be very loud and quite electrifying! Antiphonal calls from Eastern Whipbirds are prominent as well. The male gives his well known "whipcrack!" call (4:42-4:44), and the female immediately responds with her "Chew-eee" (4:45). The chorus of them at around 3:17 is particularly pleasing, Like many birds, their calls vary slightly from place to place. Compare these north Queensland birds with those from the temperate forests of Victoria on our 'Tall Forest' recording. Two closely related birds may be heard calling alongside each other here - the Grey Fantail and the Rufous Fantail. Both are aerial acrobats, chasing insects in little forays from the canopy, before returning to alight with much tail fanning and pirouetting. The Grey Fantail ranges widely across the continent, mainly in woodland, and will be familiar to many, while the Rufous Fantail prefers damper and thicker forests. Both have similar calls; delightful silvery cadences of song. But listen carefully - while the Grey Fantail sings up the scale (...4:25-4:26, 4:33-4:36...), the Rufous Fantail cascades down (4:38-4:40, 4:50...). Hopping among the leaf-litter on the ground are a pair of Yellow-throated Scrubwrens. In the dim light of the forest it is difficult to see the delicate washes of lemon plumage that give them their name. They have a pleasantly scratchy voice, which is surprisingly loud for such a small bird (3:24-3:26, echoed immediately by partner 3:27, 3:32-3:33, 3:48, 4:23-4:24, 4:53, 6:14-6:20). Yellow-throated Scrubwrens also have an amazing ability to mimic, and if you listen closely you can just hear a wonderful little burst of sub-song (6:28-6:59, esp. around 6:54). Australian Honeyeaters are superbly adapted to feeding on eucalypt blossoms. Despite the lack of these in the rainforest, there are still several varieties of Honeyeater which live in the wet tropical forests. A few of them can be heard here, including the Lewin Honeyeater, with its characteristic 'machine gun' chatter (1:11, 3:31-33, 4:59-5:01 & 7:07-7:18), a few Macleay's Honeyeaters calling to each other in the background (3:34-3:38, 3:44-3:48 & 3:50-4:03), and, way off in the distance, a Bridled Honeyeater (4:57). Also to be heard are a tiny Brown Gerygone (pronounced 'jer-Rig-o-nee'), with its insistent "What is it? What is it?" calls ( - a bit fragmented here) (2:09-15, 2:31, 2:42, 2:46, 3:00 & 3:08), a Bower's Shrike-thrush (2:08 and Track 2; 0:03), what is possibly a Bassian Thrush (around 2:20), a few short snatches from a Golden Whistler (1:34-1:36, 1:45, 1:59, 3:56, 4:50), and likewise from a Large-billed Scrubwren (4:47-48) While this has been going on, our pair of feeding King Parrots have been flapping around from one bush to another (3:50-3:58, 6:10-6:17), and now fly off with a screech (6.18).
Along the Forest Path -
Feeding high in the canopy are a group of Wompoo Fruit-Doves. These majestic looking pigeons have a distinctive and characterful call from whence comes their name. As well as this signature "Wom-poo!" (...1:13, 1:21...), they also utter a variety of "Whuck-oo"s and mutterings, like a group of grumpy old folks. One bird we encountered (and we apologise for it not appearing on this recording because it caused us great mirth) gave its "Wompoo" with all the plum-in-mouth falsetto of a Victorian English lady. Closer to the ground, a pair of Spectacled Monarchs flit past, moving from branch to branch. They have three main calls; an animated chittering song (0:05-0:10), a harsh grating chatter (fairly continuously, but especially around 1:43-2:20) and, intermittently, a series of raspy upslured whistles (1.08, 2:13).
The male Victoria's Riflebird, with his iridescent black plumage, displays and maintains his small territory from high up in the canopy. His territorial call, a loud, rasping "Errssch" (0:03, 0:21, 0:28-0:36...) echoes through the forest, mingling with the calls of neighbouring males not far off (around 1:58..). His display is as spectacular as it is rarely seen - the male faces the female, throws his head back, and raises his wings forward, the tips meeting under his chin. Then, swaying from side to side, he alternately slices the air with them, snapping them backwards and forwards like some Bruce Lee of the rainforest. The female seems to be left mesmerised by the increasing rapidity of his dance, and finally the male encircles her with his wings and mating follows. A variety of small birds inhabit the rainforest, often moving through the upper and middle layers of the forest in small flocks. Large-billed Scrubwrens are constantly animated, and may be recognised by their scolding and twittery "see-saw" calls (1:01, 1:39-1:41, and esp: 2:09-2:24, 2:29-2:31 & 2:45-2:48). In the background may still be heard the Wompoos and the Spectacled
Monarch, plus a Figbird (0:03, 0:21 & 0:28), a Crimson Rosella
(1:07), a Little Treecreeper in the background (see track 6) (1:11...),
a Rose-crowned Fruit-dove (descending series of "Whoops")
(0:06-0:13, 2:57-3:00, and later on Track 4; 0:09 & 0:14-0:17),
a Brown Gerygone (1:40-1:41), and a Black-faced Monarch (much clearer
on track 5) (~2:36, 2:39, 2:45, 2:55...). Track 4: Stagemakers (Tooth-billed Catbirds) 4:00 The Tooth-billed Catbird looks like a drab brown version of the Green Catbird we met earlier, although they are probably more closely related to the Bowerbirds. The male Stagemaker makes and maintains a bower of sorts, and is virtuosically vocal in advertising his presence. The bower, whilst being simple, is relatively easy to recognise - an area of the forest floor is swept clean of litter and adorned with a dozen or so large leaves, upturned so that their pale undersides stand out in the rainforest gloom. During spring in particular, the forest echoes with the calls of advertising males, each waiting perched above his carefully tended 'stage'. Their calls are astoundingly varied, including rich liquid notes, vigorous chirps, chattering and burring whistles, and a diversity of subsong that may include mimicry. (0:00, 0:12, 0:24,...). High in the canopy are a flock of Topknot Pigeons. These magnificent large fruit pigeons are unique in having a ruddy-brown crest on their head, unlike any other pigeon. In the early years of white settlement in Australia, they were seen as a handy supplement to the food supply, and this, combined with the clearing of rainforests, has seen their numbers decline from the flocks of thousands originally described, to those of 50-100 seen today. Topknot Pigeons are also different in not having a prominent pigeon-like call. Instead they make up for it by being noisy wing flappers, and may be heard moving from branch to branch, picking off seasonal fruit (0:14, 0:30, 0:35, 1:25). Some tiny snatches of song come from another small canopy-feeding bird, a Mountain Thornbill (0:40-45, 0:49...1:00...1:10...1:14), and later a Large-billed Scrubwren may be heard again (2:06 & 2:16-2:19). Rufous Fantails call intermittently, their silvery calls softened by the distance. Also in the distance are Whipbirds, a Riflebird (3:35...), a Golden Whistler (2:51) and a Spangled Drongo (3:34, 3:42 & 3:51). Finally, the beautiful and simple call of a Fernwren begins (2:43
to track 5; 0:16). Fernwrens are inhabitants of the forest floor, picking
over the leaf litter as they forage in loose pairs. Their calls are
almost ventriloquial, seeming to hang in the air, while gradually building
to a crescendo. Track 5: Chowchillas 6:38 On any morning, the rhythmic calls of Chowchillas may be heard resonating throughout the forest, sometimes for an hour at a time. What one is hearing is not just one bird but several in a communal family group, alternating their calls sequentially to produce an almost continuous cacophony. Chowchillas are small dumpy ground dwelling birds that scratch and rummage noisily amongst the ground litter, throwing debris to either side with vigorous kicks. At close range, a group of Chowchillas calling are almost painfully loud to listen to! A pair of Bower's Shrike-thrushes approach, calling to each other (4:42,...and esp: 5:37, 5:42, 5:48,...). Like the Grey Shrike-thrush of drier woodlands (as heard on 'Tall Forest' and 'A Morning in the Australian Bush'), they are a dull grey colour yet their calls are beautifully musical. They are most often heard in the spring and summer months, being almost silent during winter. The call of the White-headed Pigeon, despite its deep magnificence, is often difficult to hear in the rainforest. If you listen carefully, you can just hear, alternated with a low "Cooo", another sound, like an indrawn breath (Track 4; 3:51, but clearer at 3:12-3:16 & 3:54-3:57). Like many rainforest pigeons, White-headed Pigeons are nomadic, and move from place to place in search of ripe fruit. The "sneezes" of a Spangled Drongo are still to be heard (1:13, 1:21,...1:50, 2:07, 2:22, 3:27,...), plus Whipbirds, the Golden Whistler (1:55), the piping of a pair of Grey-headed Robins (~2:30,...petering out by around 5:50), Large-billed Scrubwrens in the background (3:38 & around 5:00), our Yellow-throated Scrubwren (5:05) and the Black-faced Monarch again (5:15-19, & 5:40), a Fig Parrot in flight (6:03) and a Grey Fantail (6:12, 6:33).
The Bower's Shrike-thrushes are still around (1:01, 1:09, 1:20,...), as are a pair of Whipbirds (2:32, 3:00) a Green Catbird (contact call only, 3:13), and the Golden Whistler (0:23, 0:32 & 0:46). A Cicada is dislodged from its resting place and flies clumsily, falling to the ground (0:34). A Little Treecreeper hops up the vertical side of a tree trunk in search of insects, calling every now and then (0:17-0:21, 3:51, 3:57, 4:42,...). They are actually a sub-species of the White-throated Treecreeper, which is common in wetter forests throughout SE Australia, and its voice is similar. Particularly pleasing are its soft trills (such as at 4:58 & 5:11). In the background are a pair of Noisy Pittas (4:06, 4:12, 4:17, 4:25,...). These primarily ground-dwelling birds are beautifully coloured, yet remain inconspicuous until they call, which is both loud and repetitively. Their characteristic "Walk to Work" signature tune is often recognised in rainforests up and down the east coast of Australia. Flying swiftly overhead, above the top of the forest canopy, is a Double-eyed Fig Parrot (5:27-5:33). These tiny, brilliant green parrots resemble Lorikeets, but with a shorter tail. There are actually three regional sub-species of this Fig Parrot, but whilst those around Cape York and the Wet Tropics are reasonably numerous, the sub-species from the rainforests of NE NSW seem close to extinction. Once again, clearing of its lowland forests habitat seems the most likely cause. Fig Parrots feed, as their name suggests, on figs and other fruit, but it is actually the seeds that they are after, leaving the mauled fruit still on the tree. Because of their size, and their habit of feeding high in the canopy, catching a glimpse of these beautiful little birds is a real treat. Track 7: By a Mountain Cascade 3:26 We finally arrive by a sparkling mountain stream, and a small waterfall that cascades and splashes on the rocks below.
A Nightwalk in the Rainforest - Track 8: Nocturne 8:53 The rainforest at night is an amazing place. It is pitch black on the forest floor; only occasionally can one see a star through a gap in the canopy. As one's eyes become accustomed to the dark, one notices patches of luminous fungi glowing eerily on decaying logs. Occasionally the pale green light of fire flies may be seen winking here and there, as these tiny insects float through the forest. From all around in the forest may be heard the surprisingly penetrating calls of Common Nursery-Frogs (Cophyxalus ornatus) and Pealing Chirpers (Sphenophryne robusta). These tiny frogs, only 25 mm. long, call prolifically after rain. A chorus of Nursery-Frogs may be heard first, their single-syllable "cheeps" carrying through the forest (0:00,...). A little later, the Chirpers can be recognised by their two-syllable piping calls (~2:20-~6:20). Both are extraordinarily loud for such small creatures, and at close range can leave you with your ears ringing! A small insect feeding Horseshoe Bat flies swiftly between the tree-trunks, giving high-pitched squeaks (1:43, 3:02-3:07, 3:55-3:58 & 4:09-4:14). Nocturnal insects are ever-present, and no more so than during the
lead up to the wet season. On the occasion that I recorded this I stood
in the dark of the forest for several hours just absorbed and soothed
by the myriad sounds around me. Track 9: Pre-dawn 4:02 As the night draws on, the intensity of the nocturnal insects diminishes, finally leaving a singing chorus of crickets (track 8; 6:55...). Sooty Owls, which are very rare inhabitants of the temperate rainforests of SE Australia, are among our favourite creatures ('Sooties' are featured at the conclusion of our 'Tall Forest' recording). They are replaced in the northern tropical rainforests by their near relative, the Lesser Sooty Owl. These secretive birds are perfectly adapted to hunting in their dark, densely-timbered environment. With the largest eyes of any masked owl and sooty grey plumage, they watch from open clearings, pouncing on prey such as small mammals, frogs and lizards. Mating and holding territory permanently, a pair of Lesser Sooty Owls will occasionally scream or whistle to each other, maintaining contact throughout the night. Their adult call is a piercing downward whistle, often likened to the scream of a bomb dropping (which can be heard in its full glory on 'Tall Forest'). Here however, I think we have a juvenile or sub-adult bird, possibly still begging for food (Track 8; 8:20, 8:28, 8:46, Track 9; 0:10, 0:41 & 0:44), and occasionally practicing the full whistling call (0:14, 0:28,.0:55, 1:30, 2:50, 2:55 & 3:02). The Northern Barred Frog (Mixophyes schevilli) is an impressive animal, not only because of its size, over 90mm, but because of the beautiful and delicate sandy-ochre banding across its body. It may be heard occasionally calling from the forest floor with a deep resonant "Wohk" (1:10, 2:02, 2:18, 3:34). Depressions in the forest floor attract more moisture than surrounding areas, and these are often havens for small ground dwelling frogs such as Buzzing Nursery Frogs (Cophixalus infacetus), which can be heard calling on all sides (2:20...).
In a Lowland Rainforest - Track 10: A New Day 8:38 Against a background of mono-tonal piping from Grey-headed Robins and "chipp"ing from a Pale-yellow Robin (Track 9, around 3:18 on...), the forest awakens. A great diversity of morning birdsong may be heard here, and I'm going to try and pick out as much as I can. A few early risers include a Helmeted Friarbird (track 9: 3:55-3:59), a Shining Bronze Cuckoo, (ascending whistles, faintly heard in the distance, track 9: 3:52-3:55), a Golden Whistler (0:07, 0:15), the Black-faced Monarch (0:26-0:28, 1:07, 1:20, 4:08 & 4:30), a Green Catbird (2:01), the Black Butcherbird (1:13-14,...1:41, 1:53, 2:03...), and a Brown Gerygone (1:34-1:36). The fantastic metallic twangings and churrings come from a Spangled Drongo (1:24, 1:35, 1:45, and esp: 1:48-1:59 & 2:03-2:12). In the Australian vernacular, a Drongo is a pretty dopey fellow, but these birds belie that with their slick iridescent black plumage and distinctive fish-like forked tail feathers. They are aerial feeders, soaring out above the canopy, swooping, fluttering and turning gracefully to pluck insects from the air and upper foliage. They remind us of the Rainbowbirds of our drier woodlands, and like them are nomadic or migratory, dispersing from their breeding grounds and heading most often north, where many Drongos spend the winter in Southern New Guinea. The Grey Whistler has a particularly pleasing and melodic call, which is heard often in the lowland forests (2:40, 2:46,...3:18-21, 3:26-29,...4:51-54,...6:13-16, 6:19-22,...). An interesting comparison is to made between the calls of various Whistler species. The 'whipcrack' is a common component of their repertoires to varying degrees, but the athleticism and variety of the calls is quite different. The Rufous (see our 'Australian Bush' recording) and Golden Whistlers ('Tall Forest') are well known for their incredible vocalisations. By contrast the Grey Whistler has much in common with the Olive Whistlers of SE Australia ('Tall Forest'), also a resident of dense forests, in having a characteristic tuneful call which is oft repeated. Yellow-breasted Boatbills are endearing little black, white and vivid yellow birds, who are often found among the lower stratas of the rainforest. They are members of the Flycatcher family, and possess a unique, broadly flattened bill, which is adapted for snapping up small insects. Here a male passes by, moving from one understory bush to another, uttering an almost continuous series of "Twit-twit-twit. t-t-TWER-tit" calls (in the background 2:40-3;13 and ~5:50... foreground: ~ 6:50-8:14). Meanwhile there has been considerable other activity going on. Here
we go: Noisy Pittas have been calling to each other (2:25, 2;30,...5:03,
5:09, 5:14, 5:19,...), a small flock of Silvereyes can be heard twittering
in the background (~2:02...2:18, 2:26-2:29... and all around 5:30),
also a Superb Fruit-dove (2:03-2:05, 2:16-2:19, 2:27-2:31,...) and
an Emerald Dove (soft downslured "currr". followed by a forlorn
sounding series of "Ooops") (3:25-3:39, 3:54-4:06,...), Wompoo
Fruit-Doves (3:48,...5:40...), a Little Shrike-thrush (2:26, 2:29,
2:37), Large-billed Scrubwrens (3:37), a Metallic Starling (see track
12) (4:45), Orange-footed Scrubfowl (See track 12 also) (4:26, 4:58,
5:12, 5:21,...), a King Parrot (single penetrating whistles) (5:53 & 5:54),
a Graceful Honeyeater (whose primary call is an inconspicuous yet quite
loud "Chep") (4:49, 4:54, 4:57, 6:06, 6:09, 6:14, 6:21, 6:26,
6:28...) and a Rufous Fantail (7:11). Track 11: Encounter with a Cassowary 2:33 The Southern Cassowary is an awesome and imposing creature. It is a large flightless bird, like an Emu, but with glossy black, hair-like plumage, a sky-blue neck with bright red wattles and, atop its head, a bony crest or casque. They stand as tall as a person and as well as being of formidable size, they carry a reputation for aggression, supported by a dagger-like toe on each massive foot. This reputation is probably only partly deserved however, as the birds are more often shy and rarely seen inhabitants of the dense forest. During the breeding season, when the males are left alone to solitarily raise the young, they may be territorial, but most of the confrontations between bird and human seem to occur with semi-tame birds as a result of feeding by tourists. Cassowaries are not only difficult to locate in the rainforest, they are also rarely heard, and their almost sub-sonic calls are even harder to record! Despite their size and strength, the Cassowary is unfortunately also a symbol of the fragility of the rainforest. Through a combination of factors, including massive clearance of its lowland rainforest habitat, road kills and attack by wild pigs, the Cassowary is greatly in danger of extinction. Throughout the night and into the early morning, one can often hear cries echoing through the forest that sound as though a demented Turkey is being murdered (see track 10; 4:26 on). What you are hearing is probably an Orange-footed Scrubfowl (We just called them 'Bush Chooks') (0:15, 0:59-1:04, 1:16-1:20, 2:00-2:06, 2:26-2:31). These native terrestrial fowl are incubator nest builders, and every now and then in walking through the rainforest, one comes across one of their nest mounds - a large pile of soil and leaf litter scraped together on the forest floor. Orange-footed Scrubfowl are also found throughout New Guinea, Indonesia and the South Pacific islands, and one of their SE Asian relatives is probably the predecessor of our domestic chicken. Certainly sounds like it anyway. Cameo appearances here from a Black Butcherbird (1:09), a Little Shrike-thrush
(1:26, 2:15, 2:23), a Superb Fruit-dove (0:14-0:23, 0:34-0:41, 0:52-0:54),
and Chowchillas (in background). Track 12: Paradise Kingfishers 3:28 Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfishers are spectacular tropical birds, which migrate each spring from the highlands of New Guinea to nest in terrestrial termite mounds throughout north Queensland's rainforests. What our photo does not show are their two long white tail plumes, which stream behind the bird as it flutters through the forest. As they are more often heard than seen, it is a pity that their call is not as beautiful as their appearance. (Kingfishers may of course have their own opinions about this.) (0:00, 0:07-0:09, 0:32-0:35...). The Pied Monarch is a striking little black and white rainforest bird, whose calls, a series of soft chiming trills, are most likely to be heard at close range (from around 0:58 to Track 13; 0:20). Their nests are beautiful little structures - a delicately cup of twigs, held together with cobwebs and decorated around the rim with lichen, and slung like a hammock between two vines. Another bird likely to attract attention in the lowland rainforests during the spring and summer is the Metallic Starling - not because it is a conspicuous rainforest bird as such, but because of the large (and noisy) communal breeding colonies that they build. A colony may contain hundreds of nests and a thousand birds, and festoon a single tree. When they move out into the forest to feed, they also travel in flocks or loose groups. They are well named, for not only do their calls have a metallic twanging quality (1:06, 1:10-1:12, 0:17, 0:19, 1:29 & 1:34), but their plumage is an irridescent and shining jet black. They are also a migratory species from New Guinea, and after breeding most birds return north. In addition you can hear those wonderful Catbird contact calls again (0:22, 0:45, 0:51, 0:58-1:00), a Whipbird (0:08-0:10, 0:56-0;58), a Grey Whistler (very softly) (0:35-0:37, 0:49-0:52), Chowchillas, a Yellow-spotted Honeyeater, who is a common resident of lowland rainforests yet some how seems not have got much of a look in on this recording (downwards series of "Chip"s: 1:30-1:34 & 2:35-2;37), the Emerald Dove (1:57-1:59) and Rose-crowned Fruit-doves again (3:13-3:23), a Lewin Honeyeater (3:19-3:22) and lastly a Varied Triller (3:07 & 3:08).
This recording marked a wonderful end to our journeys in the rainforests of North Queensland, and we felt it only fitting that it should also complete the album. Here two Black Butcherbirds duet with each other (0:05-2:56). Like other closely related species of Butcherbirds; the Grey, (featured on "Tall Forest") and the Pied (on "Morning in the Australian Bush"), the Black Butcherbird is a superb vocalist. Like the Pied Butcherbird, a pair of birds will call antiphonally, alternating sections of melody to complete a song that can sound as though only one bird is singing. We particularly love the end of their duet - the pause before the final "poop-poop" (3:05). The lowland rainforest relative of the upland Bower's Shrike-thrush is the Little Shrike-thrush, and as mentioned earlier, like many Shrike-thrushes it has a rich musical voice (0:00, 1:00, 1:10, 1:45, 1:52, 2:00, 2:59 & 3:33). The Varied Triller gives its more usual and complete call (0:22-0:30), while a few Lewin Honeyeaters can be heard (1:15-1:18, 1:26-1:27, 1:49-1:52, 2:10,...), as well as the rhythmical chatter of a Macleay's Honeyeater (2:58-3:02). We end with a group of fruit-pigeons heard from a distance. Wompoo Fruit-doves, Brown Cuckoo-doves and a Rose-crowned Pigeon create between them a somewhat surreal soundscape.
Some references we found useful; Australia's Wet Tropics Rainforest Life (and a series of other guides, including: Autralian Tropical; Reptiles & Frogs, Reef Life, Birds, Butterflies, & Orchids) - Clifford and Dawn Frith (Frith & Frith Books, P.O. Box 581, Malanda, Qld 4885) Where to Find Birds in NE Queensland - Jo Wieneke Bird Calls of North Queensland Rainforests (cassette) - André Griffin, ("Wirrawilla", CMB 16 Paluma 4816) (possibly available from the Birds Australia Shop in Hawthorn, Melbourne) Frog calls of NE Queensland (cassette) - Jean-Marc Hero (James Cook University, Townsville, 4811) Nth Qld. Wet Tropics, a Guide for Travellers - Rod Ritchie (Rainforest Publications, PO Box 51, Millers Point, NSW 2000)
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