Southern Eyre Peninsula Bird Watching Tour, South Australia

You’re met at the Port Lincoln Hotel by your personal Australian Coastal Safaris Bird Guide. We start our ornithology experiences with a journey to Billy Lights Point. This short walk is a bird lovers delight. A small fringe of coastal mallee and sheltered bays is the perfect location for both water birds and bush birds. Pied, Little Pied and Black Cormorants, Grey Teal and Chestnut Teal Ducks, Osprey, White-Bellied Sea-Eagle, Sooty Oyster Catchers, Pied Oyster Catchers, Striated Pardalotes, Western Yellow Robins, Superb Blue Wrens, Blue-Breasted Wrens, White-Browed Babblers, New Holland Honeyeaters, Brown-Headed Honey Eaters and Rock Parrots can all be found on this walk. We venture to the small coastal hamlet of Tulka where waders, Swans and Sea Birds can be seen from the Bird Hide. This is another known location for Southern Emu-Wrens near a well first dug by Captain Matthew Flinders when he explored the area in 1802. Next, we take you to the diversity of the Port Lincoln National Park. From the naturally rugged and wild Sleaford Bay and the Southern Ocean to the tranquility of the Spalding Cove area and other beautiful beaches. Of the 29,000ha National Park, the tour follows Captain Matthew Flinders journey through the Wilderness areas. Rugged cliffs provide an opportunity to view Osprey and White Bellied Sea-Eagles and to keep a look out for Kites and Harriers. We head towards Wanna Cliffs and/or Stamford hill to encounter birds such as the elusive & rare Mallee Fowl (not guaranteed to see), Purple-Gaped Honeyeaters, Striated Pardalotes, Spiney-Cheeked Honeyeaters, Dusky Woodswallows, Australian Pipits, Blue Breasted Wrens, and White-Browed Scrubwren. Lunch is an aussie style picnic, before heading to Mikkira Station, no visit to Lower Eyre Peninsula is complete without visiting one of Australia’s very best habitats where Koalas can be found in the wild. We admire the restored original homestead and go exploring under the beautiful old Eucalypt trees and come face to face with the cuddly icon of Australia as they laze in the Manna gums. Wild but placid kangaroos casually hop around in this beautiful historical setting, where in 1842 Scotsman Adam Borthwick and his family made their home as one of the very first settlers of the region. Emus roam and this is also the home of astounding bush birds including: Port Lincoln (Australian Ringneck) Parrots, Black-Faced Cuckoo-shrikes, Pallid Cuckoos, Golden Whistlers and an occasional Scarlet Robin. Accommodation: Port Lincoln Hotel Lunch provided.

Early morning pickup at 7.30am, today we travel up the east coast of Eyre Peninsula. Depending on your guide, this day will be all about visiting the best spots for the best bird spotting. You may visit areas such as Tumby Bay and Second Creek where we look for sea birds, Ruddy Turnstones and the endangered Hooded Plovers known to nest on the beaches in the area. Heading off the main road and into the region called Greenpatch & Koppio. This is predominately farming & grazing lands although huge areas are given to Conservation Parks and local hotspots for birds such as the rare Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoo, birds of prey such as the Wedge Tailed Eagle, Herons & Egrets, Sacred Kingfisher, Peregrine Falcon, Hobby Falcons, Tawny Frogmouth, Kestrals, White Winged Chuffs, Superb Blue Wren or the Bluebreasted Fairy Wren. Todd River area is renowned for seeing many bush birds in their natural habitat, where you may spot a variety of ducks, the Australian Boobook, Red Wattlebird, Rainbow Lorikeet, Honeyeaters, Gray Fantail, Southern Scrub & Western Yellow Robins to name a few. A picnic lunch will provide an opportunity to stop and watch the birdlife. This day is all about going with the flow and letting the day unfold to new experiences and sightings. Accommodation: Port Lincoln Hotel

At 9.00am this morning, we travel to the beautiful Coffin Bay, the home of the renowned Coffin Bay Oysters. The area is of outstanding beauty, world famous Oysters and is home to a variety of important species of flora and fauna. There are no other comparable systems of bays and inlets in such compact form anywhere on the coast, which is why this area is classified as a maritime wilderness area. We meander out to the Coffin Bay National Park, which offers some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in South Australia, ranging from ancient granite, limestone and sandstone cliffs to long beaches bordered by white sand dunes. Framed by the sea, the parks slender peninsula resembles the shape of a giant spur jutting out from the mainland. A place of amazing contrasts, which reveals rugged headlands, limestone cliffs and islands shaped by the relentless Southern Ocean. Wildlife is plentiful throughout the 31,000 ha National Park with Western Grey Kangaroos, Emus, Goannas and Snakes and Dolphins in the Bays. There are plenty of stops for photographic opportunities and you get to breath in the fresh aromas of sea air and stretch out on one of Eyre Peninsula’s best and picture perfect, golden sandy beaches. There is an abundance of birdlife here (150 different species in the park) with active Osprey Nests and where White-Bellied Sea-eagles can be seen fishing along the cliffs and sandy white beaches. The area is also home to Caspian Terns, Hooded Plovers, Red Capped Plovers, Red Necked Stints, Golden Whistlers, Masked Lapwings, Emu, and Wedge Tailed Eagle. Lunch will be in Coffin Bay at 1802 Coffin Bay Oyster Bar. After your gourmet seafood lunch, save some room as the oysters are a must-try on your journey. Enjoy a 1.5-hour tour with a Coffin Bay oyster farmer on his oyster cruise. Set against the scenic backdrop of Coffin Bay, you'll explore a picturesque oyster lease while learning about both Pacific and Native Angasi oysters. This tour provides an inside look at a typical operation responsible for the 60 tonnes of oysters shipped out of Coffin Bay each week. The farmer will walk you through the entire oyster-growing process, offering insights into the dedication required to produce these world-class delicacies. You'll even get to sample these freshly harvested oysters straight from the rack, experiencing first-hand why they are served in the finest restaurants around the world. Our next stop is at Big Swamp where a bird hide is available for viewing where you may see - Black Swans, Grey Teal Ducks, Chestnut Teal Ducks, Pink Eared Ducks, Musk Ducks, Black Winged Stilts, Banded Plovers, Common Greenshank and Cape Baron Geese.