Three birding spots, one big morning: Wynnum Mangrove Boardwalk & Port of Brisbane, 27 January 2025

This morning I ventured out on my first proper bird walk further away from home, and it was wonderful—it felt like a mini holiday.

I arrived at Wynnum Mangrove Boardwalk just before 6 am. Aside from the mosquitoes, the boardwalk was stunning—so quiet, with just the soft back-and-forth of the incoming tide and tinkling song of the Mangrove Gerygones to keep me company. (I searched high and low for those little gerygones but they were tricky to spot.) The early-morning peace, the trees emerging from the shallow water, and the filtered light made the boardwalk feel like a setting in a fantasy story.

My first real spots of the day were a pair of Australian Rufous Fantails, but they were just blurs in my photos. Luckily the Grey Fantails sat still for a few seconds so I could grab some (very) quick shots.

I also captured this Leaden Flycatcher before it darted off:

I had forgotten to put insect repellant on and was annoyed that I had to go back to the car—until I spotted this gorgeous family of Chestnut Teals on my way back:

Back on the boardwalk and freshly lathered up with insect repellant (but still being eaten alive), I said hello to a few Torresian Kingfishers, who were very happy to pose for a few nice photos:

And also a Little Pied Cormorant, perched up on top of the highest tree it could find:

The high tide had cut off the end of the boardwalk, so I retraced my steps and then continued on to the northern part of the circuit, where I finally found a Mangrove Gerygone, cosy in its nest:

I stood there awwing at it until I felt like it was starting to look at me with an F-off away from my nest glare.

There was a bird hide at this section of the walk but not many birds around, so I headed to my next birding location: Swan Lake at Port of Brisbane. True to its name, I did indeed see some Black Swans:

But there were also lots of birds in the trees by the lake, like this sweet little Silvereye:

Back on the lake, I saw three more lifers!

Some fluffy Australasian Grebes:

And a whole lot of Eurasian Coots with some Hardheads:

I also saw about six Royal Spoonbills, hanging out in the shallow water:

I just love their head feathers.

And, a very common bird, but I couldn’t resist adding this cool photo of an Australian Pelican tying itself in knots to preen its wings:

For the final stop on this birding bonanza, I drove a few minutes to the Port of Brisbane Shorebird Roost, which was a super cool birding location with a great bird hide.

From the bird hide, I managed to finally get some nice photos of a Great Egret. Up until now I’ve found them very difficult to photograph. I love how its feathers were blowing in the wind.