Newhaven - May 2008

Desert Oaks
2008 was a very dry year for Central Australia unfortunately we chose this year for our visit. We traveled north up the Tanami Track for a couple of hundred kilometers until we came to an access road. We took this road and drove for another 140km until we arrived at Newhaven Station. On the access road we saw our first Black-breasted Buzzard.
We chose to visit Newhaven as one of our Central Australian destinations as and we thought that being approximately 250,000 hectares in size we would be able to get well away from the normal tourist hordes, so we were very happy to be informed by the property managers that we were the only visitors currently on the property.
We chose to set up camp in the west camp ground and thought that it was luxurious with its toilet and shower, shady trees and isolation. Although not many birds visited the campground we were present one afternoon as hundreds of zebra finches came into drink from a water tray that was set up for them, we also saw Red-capped robins and Rufous Whistlers around the camp.
Danae and Josef the property managers have developed some excellent interpretation notes and tours that can be taken around the property to help with understanding and appreciating the different ecosystems at Newhaven and maximizing chances of seeing the birds. You can access the notes here http://www.awc.org.au/AWC-Sanctuaries/Newhaven-Sanctuary/Newhaven-Visito...
We took a number of these tours, the birding highlights of these are listed below.
Lake Bennet
The Lakes Tour: Rufous-crowned Emu-wren (near the airstrip), Crested Bellbird, Mulga Parrot, Hooded Robin, Banded Whiteface
Hillside Drive Tour: Many birds were seen around the flowering corkwood near Freshwater Bore including Crimson Chat, Major Mitchell's Cockatoo, Grey-headed Honeyeater, Singing Honeyeater, Brown Honeyeaters.
Dunes Tour: Nankeen Kestrel, Brown Falcon, White-winged Fairywren and Hooded Robin.
Newhaven was a beautiful place to visit but I would love to visit again after rain.
View from the Home Range