Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences Centre for Ecosystem Science

Day 10, Sydney to Broken Hill

John Porter profile portrait John Porter
Aerial photo of an inland dam and the wall of the dam. The water is very high in the dam. The landscape around is green and vegetated with some cleared spaces, roads and buildings in the foreground. The water surface is reflecting the blue cloudy sky.

Date: Monday October 17th 2022

Project: Eastern Australian Waterbird Survey

Observers: John Porter & Terry Korn

Pilot: Alex Katopodis

The skies were heavily overcast as we departed Sydney and flew direct to Burrendong Dam, the first wetland in this part of Survey Band 4. 

 

Burrendong Dam.

The weather had cleared a little west of Bathurst, so we were able to proceed unhindered. Burrendong Dam is currently at 130% capacity and the spillway was a spectacle as the waters roared out into the Macquarie River. There were only a few cormorants on the dam.

The spillway at Burrendong Dam.

Survey of Burrendong Dam.

After refuelling at Dubbo we continued west, travelling north of the Lachlan and near Mt Hope and Yathong Nature Reserve in mallee country. The landscape was far greener than we had ever seen it. Surprisingly, the Talyawalka Lakes were mostly dry, with only one, Teryaweynya Lake holding water and supporting low numbers of waterbirds and a small colony of around 300 Pied cormorants.

 

Teryaweynya Lake.

Survey of Teryaweyna Lake.

We headed a little further west along Band 4 to the Menindee Lakes system. Most of the large lakes in the system were completely full, with waterbirds widely dispersed across large areas of open water. The most numerous waterbirds were pelicans, cormorants and darters, followed by occasional herons, spoonbill and egrets.

Lake Menindee and Lake Pamamaroo.

Survey of Lake Wetherell near Lake Menindee.

We spent several hours covering this almost full lake system and with the sun setting we headed into Broken Hill for a late finish.