Great Crested Tern – Birds as Poetry —— Just because I WANDER doesn't mean I'm LOST

Beach Day: Crested Terns

April 30, 2025Posted in Great Crested TernTagged Great Crested Tern3 Comments

On a free day, with some good sunshine, a place I like to check out is on the end of a little point on Port Phillip Bay.
Because of the formation of the area with a long tongue of basalt from ages past volcanic eruptions, there is a mudflat that extends out several hundred metres. On low tide the flats are well exposed and some of the rock edges allow the birds to rest out of the water.

A small colony of Greater Crested Terns are regulars, but recently over summer they have been away on nesting duties, as there is no suitable area nearby.

So it was good to walk out on the damp sand and sit on the rocks with the Terns and watch them preen and hunt and interact with their noisy, always crying young.

With so many gulls around any catch that was made was hotly pursued by the gulls. And at one point a frustrated Tern decided to attack the annoying gull.

And all too soon the tide began to flow in, and it was time to slosh back to the dry sand.

Enjoy

Click on a photo for a larger view in a slide show.

Along The Track: Teach Fishing

March 7, 2023Posted in Along the Track, Arctic Jaegar, Black-faced Cormorant, Crested Tern, Great Crested Tern, Point CookTagged Along the Track, Arctic Jaegar, Black-faced Cormorant, Great Crested Tern, Point Cook Coastal Park5 Comments

So the old story goes:
Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day.
Teach him to fish
And he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer. (at least I think that’s how it goes)

EE was out for the day, and as the weather was fine in the afternoon, I decided to go to a special place at Point Cook park. We don’t usually go out that far, as its a long haul through some very loose slippery sand so we avoid it.

A point in the park was formed millenia ago when the great western plains lava flows occurred. The lava jutted a tongue out into what was to become Port Phillip Bay. Over the years, sand has been deposited on both sides of the rocks, and two tiny little bays have been formed with the sand keeping the water shallow.
On low tide the point can go out for about 150m or more, and on very low tide the sands are exposed and its possible to walk out most of the way.

The rocks form a lovely resting spot for the seabirds and it’s not unusual, even on high tide, to find cormorants, gulls and terns, and occassionally swans and pelicans making the most of the view.

I like it as a quiet, lonesome place. One of my preferred solo birding spots.

So I pushed on through the pine plantation, slogging over the hot slippery sand until I reached the coolness of the shoreline. Then a few minutes along the beach to the point. Luck would have it, it was late on a falling tide so there was some exposed sand I could walk out on. Because of the little bays, the water is pretty shallow and it’s easy to take off boots and socks and roll up the Levis and wade out a bit.

Greater Crested Terns were in abundance and fishing further out, but returning to enjoy a meal on the rocks. A scattering of Red-necked Stints were also in attendance, getting ready for their epic journey.
When I walk out in the water paralled to the rocks, the birds generally are relaxed and don’t seem to pay any attention. Except for a pair of Pied Oystercatchers, that immediately moved as far away as they could to the sand on the far side. Then they do what Oystercatchers do best. They glared at me.

A tern came in with its latest catch and seemed to want to brag to everyone about its good fortune, and flew about from rock to rock cackling and playing with the meal.

I moved back to the sanddune and sat on the grass with a brew of the Earl’s finest and soaked up the feeling of isolation.

With a loud call and wing flurry the gulls all took to the air and at first I missed the action, then a dark shape flew over the rocks. Regaining composure, and the camera, I called out to no one in particular, “Arctic Jaeger”, and as there was no one else, its just as well I didn’t call to anyone in particular.

Sure enough. A Jaeger was looking for an afternoon snack, and what better way than to relieve some hapless gull of its meal.
But they were gone. It turned to head along the beachline, just as an unsuspecting Tern flew in with its latest meal. The Jaeger summed the matter up in a split second and the chase was on. Jaegers have a surprising turn of speed and incredible air contol, at one point, its head was going in one direction, its wings in another, the body in yet another direction and its feet controlling the action.

Somehow the Tern managed to lose enough height to get onto the sand, and mantle its meal with its wings. Thwarted the Jaeger moved along the beach to retrieve some other offering and in the flick of a wing was gone.

Time had run out, so it was time for me to slog back through the pines and home.

Enjoy

A Greater Crested Tern doing a spin dry to remove excess water

A young Greater Crested Tern picking up from the shallows

One of a handful of Red-necked Stints working the area

Arctic Jaegar. A summer visitor, not one I’d usually see, and certainly not in close to shore

A serious chase and one the Tern does not want to lose

The Tern was heading for the safety of the beach and managed to land with its food intact.

Thwarted the Jaeger collected something from the beach before flying off

And for bonus points! As I was leaving a Black-faced Cormorant flew in. They normally reside futher south in the Bay, so its been good to have a few around.

Snapshots: Crested Tern Feeding Young

March 21, 2019Posted in Great Crested Tern, The Shallows, Werribee River ParkTagged Great Crested Tern, Werribee River Park4 Comments

Over the past few weeks I’ve been working on a new “Sit” spot at “The Office”.
At one point the Werribee River as it cuts through the old sandhills that once were part of the lake that became Port Philip Bay, runs over a stony bottom and has not been able to cut deeply, but rather has formed an area of shallow water at low tide.

To compensate, the river water spreads out into a number of small backwater lagoons or billabongs, so there is quite a range of areas for the birds to congregate and feed.

The Werribee Golf Club skirts the river at this point, so access to the area is relatively easy from the K Road carpark. A great feature is that the afternoon light is coming from behind the photographer, and as my Mum used to say when we used the Box Camera, “Keep the Sun over your left shoulder dear”, so she’d love the lighting happening here.

It’s only a couple of kilometres to the River Mouth at South Werribee, and the fish regularly come and go with the tides.

No doubt I’ll feature more of this area as I settle into working from the river bank. A couple of hours with a ‘cuppa’, and a bit of patience brings all sorts of activity along the river.

One of the birds in the area are Great Crested Terns, and at the moment they are feeding their juveniles. I just can’t get close enough to the far bank, but sometimes the Tern will sweep by with its payload.

Enjoy