Birds of Far North Queensland Tour, Australia - 8 Days

Arrive in Cairns. Make your own way to Cairns and to our hotel (included) where we will meet for dinner & introductions. Accommodation: Cairns Plaza Foreshore Hotel (en-suite rooms; meals: D).

The tropical habitats surrounding Cairns contain some of Australia’s richest bird- and wildlife. We’ll start the day with a visit to the foreshore with coastal mudflats and man-groves to look for Shining Flycatcher, Mangrove Robin, Large-billed Gerygone, Collared Kingfisher, Striated Heron, Varied Honeyeater and Olive-backed Sun-bird. We should also see Rainbow and Scaly-breasted Lorikeet, Pied Imperial-pigeon, Australian Swiftlet, Spangled Drongo and Figbird.

One of the main tar-gets of the day will be the endangered Southern Cassowary. This large, flight-less, dinosaur-like creature can be surprisingly elusive! While looking for it, we should also encounter Black-faced Monarch, Graceful- and Yellow-spotted Honeyeater, Green Pygmy Goose, White-browed Crake and more. We will then head into the hinterland of Cairns: the Atherton Tablelands, where we may see Brolga and Sarus Crane. After a delightful days’ birding we will arrive at the Chambers Wildlife Rainforest Lodge, hidden in lush, tropical highland rainforest in the beautiful waterfalls and crater lakes district.

The lodge has resident Platypus, Brush Turkey mounds, and Tooth-billed Bowerbird bowers as well as a good chance to view Victoria’s Riflebird. After dinner we’ll look for mammals such as Sugar Gliders, Striped Possums and Bandicoots. Accommodation: Chambers Wildlife Lodge, Yungaburra (en-suite rooms; meals: B, L, D).

We’ll visit the spectacular Curtain Fig Tree, where there are regular sightings of Double-eyed Fig-Parrot, Wompoo Fruit-Dove, Spotted Catbird, White-throated Treecreeper, Lewin’s and Macleay’s Honeyeater, Large-billed Scrub-wren, Mountain Thornbill, Brown Gerygone, Eastern Whipbird, Little and Bower’s Shrike-thrush, Black-faced, Spectacled and Pied Monarch, Yellow-breasted Boatbill, Pale-yellow and Grey-headed Robin and Metallic Starling. We then head to wonderful Mount Hypipamee.

Around the main carpark and picnic area, there is a chance of Golden Bowerbird, particularly in fruiting trees, as well as Southern Cassowary, Tooth-billed Bowerbird, Spotted Catbird, Lewin’s and Bridled Honeyeater and the rainforest specialists: Fernwren, Emerald Dove, Chowchilla, Atherton and Yellow-throated Scrub-wren, Mountain Thornbill, Brown Gerygone and Pale-yellow Robin. Other birds we are likely to encounter include Australian Brush Turkey, Orange-footed Scrubfowl, Superb and Wompoo Fruit-dove, Double-eyed Fig Parrot, Figbird, Black Butcherbird, Green Oriole and Noisy Pitta, amongst others.

Later in the afternoon we bird the tropical gardens and streamside forests in the vicinity of the Chambers Wildlife Lodge which is set in lush tropical surroundings and caters exclusively to naturalists and bird-watchers. It is a tremendous birding area, and the also the perfect base for birding the wider district. After dark we will do some spotlighting for Tree Kangaroo, owls and nightjars. Accommodation: Chambers Wildlife Lodge, Yungaburra (en-suite rooms; meals: B, L, D).

We spend the morning birding and photographing the wonderful grounds of the lodge and its surrounding areas of farmland, creeks, woodland and rainforest which offers an array of tropical bird species.

Within the lodge grounds we may see Victoria’s Riflebird and Spotted Catbird on the feeders, and Wompoo and Superb Fruit Dove, Scaly-breasted Lorikeet, Topknot Pigeon, Emerald Dove, Tooth-billed Bowerbird, Atherton Scrubwren, White-throated Treecreeper, Macleay’s and Bridled Honeyeater, Yellow-breasted Boatbill, Spectacled and Black-faced Monarchs are all resident.

At night, we may also find Sooty Owl, and mammals such as Long-nosed Bandicoot, Sugar Glider, Northern Striped Possum and Red-necked Wallaby. We should see the impressive bowers of Golden Bowerbird. In the afternoon we‘ll bird our way towards the Daintree area in preparation for our Daintree river boat trip tomorrow. Accommoda-tion: Demi View Motel, Mossman (en-suite rooms; meals: B, L, D).

This morning we’ll take the “Daintree Eco Cruise” which should be a highlight of the trip, to see Estuarine Crocodile and birds including Papuan Frogmouth, Azure and Little Kingfisher, Great-billed Heron, Radjah Shelduck, Double-eyed Fig-parrot, Large-billed Gerygone and a good chance of Great-billed Heron.

Birding the areas around Daintree rainforest we’ll be looking for Shining Flycatcher, Bar-shouldered Dove, Pacific Koel, Scaly-breasted Lorikeet, Hornbill Friarbird and Dusky Honeyeater.

Following a visit to Mt Lewis targeting the elusive Fernwren and Blue-faced Parrotfinch, we turn north, to commence our trek up the Cape York Peninsula. The Peninsula Development road traverses a range of habitats. Late afternoon birding in the Lakefield region we’ll look for Black-backed Butcherbird, Star Finch, Black-throated Finch, Bar-breasted and Rufous-throated Honeyeater.

We’ll stay out for dusk, having a good chance to pick up some great night birds including, with luck, Grass Owl. Accommodation: Musgrave Roadhouse (en-suite rooms; meals: B, L, D).

We depart early to go birding in the northern sections of the Lakefield region, searching for two major targets: the beautiful and very restricted Golden-shouldered Parrot and the rare Red Goshawk. Both species will take some time to track down.

Other good birds we’ll come across include Rufous-throated and Rufous-banded Honeyeater, Star Finch, Black-breasted Buzzard and Black-necked Stork. After lunch we drive the Peninsula Development road through Coen to the rainforests of Iron Range, where we’ll arrive at the end of the day. Accommodation: Iron Range cabins (meals included: B, L, D.)

We’ll spend two full days in the rainforests of the Iron Range, one of Australia’s premier and unique ecosystems. From tall forest to heath to coastal bush, Iron range has a diversity of habitat and a range of wildlife found nowhere else on the planet.

We target gems such as Marbled Frogmouth, Large-tailed Nightjar, Yellow-bellied Kingfisher, Red-cheeked Parrot, Brown Booby, a variety of Terns, Black-eared Catbird, Fawn-breasted Bowerbird, Green-backed Honeyeater, Grey Whistler, Northern Scrubrobin, Magnificent Riflebird, Trumpet Manucode, Tawny-breasted and White-streaked Honeyeater, White-eared and Frill-necked Monarch, Trumpet Manucode, Lemon-bellied & Yellow-legged Flycatcher, White-faced Robin, Lovely Fairywren and the highly sought-after Palm Cockatoo and Eclectus Parrot and many more.

At some stage we head to the other side of the Iron Range and adjacent coasts, around the scenic settlement of Portland Roads. Here we’ll search for Spotted Whistling-duck, Tropical Scrubwren, Double-eyed Fig-Parrot, Mangrove Robin, Eclectus Parrot, Frill-necked Monarch, Tooth-billed & Fawn-breasted Bowerbird, Green-backed and Varied Honeyeaters plus any birds we may have missed earlier.

We’ll spend two full days exploring this magnificent region and will check the roads and forest at night for Common Spotted Cuscus and other nocturnal mammals before returning to our accommodation. Accommodation: Iron Range Cabins (en-suite cabins; meals included: B, L, D).

A final morning birding the rainforests of Iron Range picking up any species still needed and no doubt seeing more of the species we’ve seen on previous days. Then it’s time to say goodbye to your guide who will drop you at Lockhart River airport for your flight back to Cairns (not included in price; approx. AU$600; we will book at group rates and add to your bill). Tour ends (meals included: B, L). (Please liaise with us re. flight times before booking onward travel out of Cairns)