EURASIAN HOBBY

This blog was going to be about migratory shorebirds and in particular Birdlife Australia's Shorebirds 2020 Project. The summer S2020 counts were undertaken the past weekend (6/7 February 2016), and I took part in completing counts at Bibra Lake and then South Lake. However, whilst walking down to South Lake to complete the counts, I ran in to what turned out to be a Eurasian Hobby, an absolute mega bird for Australia, so this blog is dedicated to that.

Whenever I'm out birding, I'm always on the lookout for rarities. You search through every bird you can see, identifying it, with the anticipation that one day, you might stumble on to something extraordinary. But there is always a huge element of luck involved as well, and I never really thought I would find a real mega, but on the weekend my time had come!

The full description of events is in detail below, this will form part of my BARC (Birds Australia Rarities Committee) submission for the sighting. Basically I parked up the car at the access point for South Lake, after having completed shorebird counts at Bibra Lake with Dan Mantle and Plaxy Barratt. To get to South Lake, you need to walk down a short track through remnant bushland for a couple hundred meters. About 30 meters from the car, a raptor flew from my left, crossing in front of me and landing at the top of a tree about 40 meters away. It's flight was typical Hobby, and as I was taking photos for my shorebirds blog, I thought this would be a nice addition, so I put down my scope that I was carrying, and had a look at the bird.

Instantly the striated breast and underbelly and rufous undertail and vent struck my as highly unusual. It did not resemble what a typical Australian Hobby looks like. Because it instantly looked odd, I only looked at it for about one second in the scope, before ripping my iphone out of my pocket and taking two photos through the scope, just as the bird flew off. The encounter was less then five seconds, and due to the brevity of sighting, left me a bit gobsmacked. I knew it was weird, but you often see odd looking colours and patterns on common birds, that make them look unusual. 

My initial iphone picture taken through my scope. The striations on the breast and underbelly and rufous undertail and vent are what instantly struck me as odd when I saw the bird.

The same pic as above, cropped and zoomed

I started walking down to the lake for the shorebird counts, and sent the photo to Plaxy and Dan, for their thoughts. I deliberately left off the source of the photo. The response came back, "looks good for Eurasian Hobby, where was this taken?". At which point I got on to google on my phone and looked up images of Eurasian Hobby, which seemed to fit perfectly, displaying the same key characteristics that I had noticed. I replied to Dan and Plaxy that the pic was mine and from South Lake! That was enough for them, they abandoned Yangebup and 10 minutes later we had met up at the spot were I had seen the bird.

It didn't look like it had flown far, so I was confident it could be re-found. I had to leave them to it at this stage, as I had Marley's first birthday party on today so needed to get home to help set up. Now we were satisfied of the ID as European Hobby, I put the word out to local Perth birders, and on the the Australian Twitchers Facebook page. Within a couple of hours, birders from all over Perth made their way to the site, and successfully re-found the bird. It appears to do regular fly bys at the site every couple of hours or so, it has been seen roosting in a number of nearby locations to my initial sighting. Some much better photos have been taken now, really showing the true beauty of this spectacular bird!

An excellent photo of the Eurasian Hobby perched, photo courtesy of Steve Reynolds

Flight shot of the Eurasian Hobby, photo courtesy of Steve Reynolds

This record represents the first mainland Australian record for the species. One previous record accepted by BARC exists, from Cocos Island. Therefore, a pretty significant sighting. The Eurasian Hobby is a migratory species, utilising the northern and southern hemisphere summers. It is found across Europe where it breeds April-September, the rest of its time they are making their way to and from Asia and continental Africa, and make it all the way down to South Africa. Long distance migrants are usually the species that turn up a long way away from where they are supposed to be, but if you look at the previous records map for the species courtesy of ebird, you can see our Perth record is approximately equivalent to the southern edge if its range in Africa. So it's not a totally unsurprising record, its just got its bearings wrong, by one continent. 

Previous Eurasian Hobby records from ebird. Note our Perth record is of a similar latitude to the southern Africa records, so therefore not too surprising, just one continent out.

Map of South Lake showing parking and sighting locations

Reflecting on the sighting, there was a long list of random lucky events leading to that moment. I took on the Bibra, South and Yangebup Lake counts as other people pulled out of them. Dan and Plaxy helped me out at relatively short notice, and after finishing Bibra, we split up to do South and Yangebup Lake separately. I'd never been to South Lake before so chose the north-west access point randomly. But it's impossible to make sense of these random events leading to a significant moment. And I'm pleased I performed well under pressure when it counted. 

Despite never seeing a Eurasian Hobby before, I instantly recognised the features on this bird as unusual. I had my scope already fully set up with legs on the tripod extended at proper viewing height. My iphone was in my top left shirt pocket, where I keep it religiously. The iphone is awesome, you can record calls on it, take photos and video, access electronic field guides and the internet. My mate Nigel (the Warden) first started taking digiscoping photos through scopes using iphones a few years ago. Since he showed me this I've refined my technique enormously. I have the scope eye piece set at the right distance to allow the iphone camera to focus, zoom in my camera at the right distance to give a clear photo, and know where to position the lens of the camera on to the scope to focus straight away. All this practice came through to fruition when it counted.

Finding a mega is something I've been hopeful of for ages, so it was very exciting, and a great feeling. it has been twitched by many over the following days, which is great that others get to enjoy such an awesome bird, but bad for me as I don't have this special bird as a blocker on my list haha. Here's looking forward to me next Aus first, it might take me a while!

Circumstances and Description of Sighting

On Saturday 6^th February 2016 I was conducting shorebird counts for Bridlife Australia’s Shorebirds 2020 Project. After completing a shorebird count at Bibra Lake I proceeded to the next count location, South Lake. At approximately 8:50 am I parked my car at the north-west access point to the lake. I crossed over the fence and whilst walking south along the access track, a bird of prey flew at relatively short distance from me (approximately 40 meters) from my left, crossed in front of me and perched at the top of a dead tree to my right. I assume I flushed it from its roost position, due to the close distance and the fact that the bird perched again. The time was 8:53 am.

The time period of this flight observation I estimate was between 3-5 seconds. I immediately thought the bird exhibited typical Australian Hobby jizz, with pointed wings with relatively quick wing flap speed. There was an impression that the bird seemed a little bulky for Australian Hobby. When the bird perched again, it was approximately 40 meters from me. The sun was at my back so I had excellent viewing conditions. I was carrying my scope (Vortex Razor 20-60x85) attached to my tripod already at full leg extension and viewing height. As soon as the bird perched I put my scope down and got on to the bird immediately through the scope.

I instantly observed the white throat, breast and underbelly with strong black striations on the breast and underbelly, with a noticeable rufous undertail, vent area and trousers. These two characteristics immediately struck me as unusual. The size of the bird resembled the size of a typical Australian Hobby. I believe I looked at the bird for about one second through the scope, recognising the striations and rufous colouring as very unusual. Consequently I pulled my iphone from my shirt pocket and managed to take two photos digiscoping through the scope, before the bird flew off.

The bird flew away from me, then circled back to the left and disappeared behind trees. At this stage, the dark black cap contrasting with the white throat and black and white contrasts on the breast and belly led me to consider a Peregrine Falcon. However, as the bird flew away, I didn’t feel the flight was powerful enough for a Peregrine. Once the bird had disappeared, I checked my Morcombe field guide on my phone. As I suspected, the breast and belly pattern and incomplete black hood did not fit, plus small size and less powerful flight, led me to rule out Peregrine Falcon.

At this stage I was uncertain as to the ID of the bird, I felt an oddly patterned and coloured Australian Hobby was possible, except the bird did not look like a juvenile, which would be most likely to have atypical colour patterns. I was not familiar with what a Eurasian Hobby looks like. I had just completed the Bibra Lake shorebird counts with Daniel Mantle and Plaxy Barratt, who continued on to nearby Yangebup Lake whilst I went to South Lake. I know Dan as a very experienced birder, well travelled around the world and knowledgeable of birds outside Australia. I immediately sent a text message with the photo of the Hobby, asking Dan and Plaxy’s opinion, not stating the source of the photo. Dan’s response was that it looked good for Eurasian Hobby, and asked the obvious question where the photo was from. In which case I responded the photo was mine, and I had just seen the bird.

Dan and Plaxy then immediately left Yangebup Lake and joined me within 10 minutes. I met them at the location and ran through the sighting details. Dan was very confident on the ID as Eurasian Hobby. I had by then searched images on the internet from my phone of Eurasian Hobby, with the clear striated breast and rufous undertail showing clearly and matching the characters of the bird I had observed. I had to leave the site at this stage as I had to return home and prepare for my daughter’s one year old birthday party. At this stage I had sent a text message to a number of local Perth birders, and posted the sighting on the Australian Twitchers Facebook page.

At approximately 11:30 am, I received news that Dan and Plaxy had resighted the bird, and viewed it perched for some time in a large tree. Over the following afternoon and days, the bird was viewed on numerous occasions by many people, generally from the same areas as my initial sighting. It appeared to complete regular fly overs and perching in large trees, with sightings spaced between one or more hours. On the Saturday afternoon, Stewart Ford and others observed an active interaction between an Australian Hobby and the Eurasian Hobby, with the Australian Hobby actively pursuing and chasing the Eurasian Hobby. 

Little Stint, Albany Pelagic and the WA 400 Club

Last weekend represented a pretty full on and hectic birding and wildlife adventure. Within three days we twitched hard for a Little Stint, drove to Albany and back (850 km round trip) and did two boat trips out to the edge of the continental shelf and back. I also managed to scrape in to an exclusive club, the WA 400 club!

Day 1 saw an early departure from my house in Perth. The reason for an early departure was that this wasn't a lazy drive down to Albany to gear up for the pelagic, nope, we had a hard core twitch for a Little Stint lined up. Somewhat conveniently, a Little Stint had recently been reported in Denmark (approximately 50 km west of Albany) by a local birder. Now Little Stint is a tricky little shorebird, they are a migratory species, which usually don't occur in Australia. Well they may be more common then we think in Australia, we don't really know, as in non-breeding plumage, this species is very difficult to separate from the far more common Red-necked Stint. So you can imagine our excitement when photos came through, showing an individual in full breeding plumage, eliminating any doubt that this bird was in no uncertainty a Little Stint. The opportunity to tick a Little Stint with no question of the ID is way too good to pass up. Encouragingly, another twitcher made the journey from Perth just three days and earlier and had successfully got the Little Stint, so our confidence was high!

The breeding plumage Little Stint in all its glory. Photos as posted on Facebook by the original finder, Steve Elson. The top photo shows it in association with non-breeding plumage Red-necked Stint's, apart from the plumage, you see a slightly finer, longer and droopy bill, more rounded body structure and longer tibia-tarsus (upper leg)

Essential twitching road trip items

Rather then jump between stories, I'm just going to summarise our Little Stint search efforts here. We ended up putting in three really solid searches for the Little Stint, all to no avail. We first arrived at the site on Wilson Inlet approximately 11:30 am, which we proceeded to search the length of the beach (approximately 4 km in length). By 2:30 pm, with no sign of the Stint, we thought we would try the river mouth. Red-necked Stints were present, but again no hints of a Little Stint. We returned back to the original site which corresponded with the same tide height of when the bird was previously seen. Immediately it was clear there were more birds present, so our optimism lifted, unfortunately we were again unsuccessful.

We returned the following day, after a long day out on the boat. Again, there were plenty of shorebirds present, so we were hopeful. Not long after arriving we had some excitement with Graffy spotting a Ruff. This migratory species is regular to Australia, but only in very small numbers so is always exciting to see. The Ruff was roosting with some Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, which after a short time viewing flushed from their roost site, and flew off.

This action then must have flushed a Stint off the shoreline which we hadn't spotted previously in to the water, Stu was on to it and the call went up, "I've got a Stint in breeding plumage!". The inevitable scramble and urgency to see the bird then followed. Its such a funny moment, when someone is on to a mega bird, the intensity of others to get on to it is hilarious, if it wasn't so serious! Anyway, after initially spotting it, Stu had lost the bird. But while scanning the Stints I was on to it. There was confusion for s short period as the bird had moved from where Stu initially spotted it. After Graffy abruptly clarified where the location of the bird was (politeness goes out the window when a rarity lifer is on offer, this is a given), we all got our scopes on the the breeding plumage Stint.

The elation was immediate, we gasped, we cooed, we gloated, we fist pumped! We started looking closer at the finer details of this special, and started asking some questions. Why are the tertial feathers fringed rufous.... why is the primary wing projection so short.... and why are those legs so yellow? Yellow legs is diagnostically bad for Little Stint. We tried to dismiss the light legs as mud, i think we even tried Graffy's colour blindness as an excuse. But it suddenly became clear, we weren't looking at the breeding plumage Little Stint, we were in fact looking at a Breeding Plumage Long-toed Stint!!! The chances of encountering this relatively uncommon freshwater species in full breeding plumage at the same site were exceedingly low, but alas thats the way this twitch turned out, with a dip. It certainly wasn't through lack of effort. We had three big efforts, with six people, over about eight hours, thats about 48 hours of person search hours!

So we ended up dipping on Little Stint. It's not the end of the world, there will be more Little Stints to twitch in WA, but this was a great opportunity. But it was great to look hard at shorebirds, and Wilson Inlet is an awesome spot, and a breeding Long-toed Stint was a first for most of us, and was a stunning little bird. 

Graffy, Dan and Plaxy searching for the Little Stint at Wilson Inlet, Denmark

Part of our search encompassed a river crossing. The south west received some very unseasonal heavy summer rainfall just days before our arrival. We speculated that following this heavy rainfall and change in water levels, the Little Stint may have moved on.

We found plenty of Red-necked Stints, a close relative of the Little Stint and the common Stint in Australia.

Where is the Stint?!

A Ruff added excitement to the twitch, It can be seen in this photo front and centre with the roosting Sharp-tailed Sandpipers. It is approximately one third larger, has a pale dull patterned head and pale pinkish legs, to separate it from the Sharpies.

Our elation upon finding a Stint in breeding plumage turned to despair when we realised it was a Long-toed Stint, not our heavily sought after Little Stint!

Despite our disappointment, we were still excited to see this species in full breeding plumage, rarely seen in Australia. 

Whilst the Little Stint dip was disappointing, the pelagic was the main aim of the game. There's a saying within the birding fraternity that "real birders are sea birders". Sea birds can be really tricky to identify, as the diagnostic features of a bird are often small and non-descript, which is amplified by trying to look at the bird through binoculars on a rocking, swaying boat, with the bird often at distance and zooming past the boat, disappearing behind the crests of waves etc. So it can be a challenge, which is certainly one of the attractions. I'm a complete pelagic rookie, with this trip being my first ever dedicated pelagic bird boat trip. I've been unlucky with previous trips I've been booked on being cancelled and clashes with work trips. So I was really excited to finally be heading out to the blue yonder!

The start of the day consisted of gathering at the boat ramp at Emu Point at 5:30 am. Eighteen bright eyed and optimistic birders gathered with binoculars strung around necks and DLSR cameras with large lenses over shoulders. Pleasantries were exchanged between pelagic veterans, whilst rookies such as myself stood around, not really sure what to do. Graffy is the organiser (and does a great job just quietly), so he summoned the troops and with that we made our way on to the charter boat and we were heading out of the harbour by 6 am.

The pelagic birding concept is pretty simple. You motor out in a large fishing charter boat past the edge of the continental shelf. Off Albany, thats about 50 km offshore and between 500-1,000 meters deep. Once you stop, you deploy your chum which hopefully the birds smell and come in to the boat for a free feed and a sticky beak. SO two main methods to see the birds, either randomly intercept them whilst motoring out, or attracting to the boat once drifting. The reason to head out to the shelf is that this is where nutrient rich cold water upwellings occur as it hits the shelf edge and forces cold water (and food) towards the surface. So it is generally an area of high sea bird activity.

A lovely sunrise the on the first pelagic morning in the boat harbour

Gathering sea birders with pelagic veteran Stu Ford front and centre. Cameras at the ready!

The view from the back of the boat, out of the entrance of the sound in to the southern ocean

Pelagic rookie sporting poor pelagic attire in boardshorts, thankfully the weather was fine and sunny justifying my decision.

Our chum was attentively put together according to strict ratios. A fine blend of burley pellets, tuna oil, shark liver, suet (fat from animal internal organs), popcorn and a pinch of love ;)

Tube-nose species are the main targets, these species are the true pelagic sea birds; Albatross, Petrels, Shearwaters, Storm-petrels etc. Unfortunately, overall the weekend was fairly quite, with nine tubenose species recorded on the Saturday, and just six on the Sunday which is an all time low record off Albany. It was somewhat of an experimental trip, having never completed a February pelagic trip off the south coast. The species composition varies significantly according to the time of the year, so it was a big unknown (and still is) what can be recorded this time of year. 

Heading out of King George Sound we encountered Crested Terns, Australasian Gannets and a few Arctic Jaegers (Skua type birds). Nige also spotted a Little Penguin on the Sunday. Our first Flesh-footed Shearwaters, by far the most common tube-nose species encountered, started to follow at the back of the boat. As you exit the sound and hit the actual ocean, you pass an area of increased bird activity, which results in a heightened anticipation on the boat. We recorded Hutton's Shearwater and Wedge-tailed Shearwater (a first off of Albany) in this area on the first day. There's then a long gap in activity until you hit the edge of the shelf, a time period of approximately 90 minutes.

On the way out on the first day a couple of distant Long-tailed Jaegers were spotted flying off in to the distance. This species was a lifer for me but the views were no good so couldn't count that. Thankfully, upon stopping out at the shelf I spotted a bird flying towards the front of the boat which flew over the op and out the back, giving the half decent views I needed to tick a Long-tailed Jaeger. This lifer also brought the number of birds I had seen to 399 in WA. Shortly after starting our first drift, the call went up for Great-winged Petrel. This species looks similar to the common Fleshies, except for a smaller and all dark bill. Another lifer for me and bird number 400 for me in WA (and 499 in Australia). Although there's nothing too hard about seeing 400 birds (WA birding twitcher legend Frank O'Conner is on 501...), it's a relatively small club as you need to have travelled to most parts of the state, and seen most of the birds in those areas as well. So I'm very happy join the WA 400 club!

I was hopeful of getting a Wandering Albatross during the weekend, but we dipped on this iconic species. We ended up with just the two Albatross species, Indian Yellow-nosed and Shy, impressive birds none the less. Our complete species list for the two trips is below. Even though the boat trips were a bit quite bird species wise, I enjoyed them a lot, and learnt heaps from some really experienced and knowledgeable birders. Its always great being out on a boat, my fishing legs held me in good stead and I didn't get crook, but can't say the same for all that were on board haha. I'm looking forward to my next pelagic adventure :)

A pod of Common Dolphins put on a great display jumping out the water and surfing the wake of the boat on the way back in. 

The call went up for "Shark"! But I knew instantly it didn't look right and countered with "No, Sunfish"! I've never seen one in the flesh before so was really excited to watch this awkward looking fish flap around in the water with its giant fins.

A Flesh-footed Shearwater in flight. This is the most common tube-nose species off the south coast, diagnosed from other shearwater species by its black tipped pinkish bill. This photo turned out much better then i thought it would.

Hutton's Shearwater. These species are so fast through the air, absolutely hooking past the boat. Unfortunately we didn;t see any Little Shearwater which are faster again. What a long bill these guys have.

An Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross sitting at the back of the boat after a bit of chumming action.

A Shy Albatross that came and did some laps around the boat on one of our drifts.

A White-faced Storm-petrel. Everyone loves "Stormies", they are tiny little birds that look a little out of place out on the massive ocean. Affectionately known as "Jesus Birds", for their habit of fluttering just on the surface of the water, looking like they are walking on water.

The scene out off the continental shelf on a pelagic drift. Hundreds of  Fleshies and a few Yellow-nosed Albs.

Sea Bird Species List:
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross
Shy Albatross
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Hutton's Shearwater
Wedge-tailed Shearwater
Short-tailed Shearwater (this would have been a lifer for me but I had very poor views so this one is left un-ticked for now)
White-faced Storm-petrel
Wilson's Storm-petrel
Great-winged Petrel
Arctic Jaeger
Long-tailed Jaeger
Crested Tern
Bridled Tern
Australasian Gannet

Bilby Blog

I've been really lucky over the past couple of years to be involved in conducting targeted searches and monitoring for the Greater Bilby. And even more lucky to have had some success in finding them! They truly are a bizarre and unique looking animal, one of Australia's most iconic species. In one incredible moment, I was fortunate to observe a true wild Bilby, in what was, and still is one of my greatest wildlife moments. I've also been lucky to have been involved in unexpectedly catching one in a large Elliot trap (trigger plate box trap with bait), so have actually felt and held one, a true honour! But to find Bilbie's, you don't look for animals, you look for their evidence...

The Greater Bilby (Macrotis lagotis), is called the Greater Bilby, because just 50 odd years ago, there used to also be a Lesser Bilby (Macrotis leucura). Smaller, but otherwise similar in resemblance and ecology, the Lesser Bilby was last seen in the 1960's in remote South Australian deserts. The Lesser Bilby unfortunately falls in to what is termed the Critical Weight Range mammal group, a group of arid dwelling Australian mammals between approximately 35-5500 grams, that have made up the majority of the 30 mammal extinctions since european settlement (the worst mammal extinction rate in the world, by the way). The reasons are generally attributed to introduced predators (cats and foxes), increased competition from feral species (rabbits), habitat degradation from farming and cattle, and changed fire patterns. I've always found it almost incomprehensible that so many species have gone extinct, literally within one or two generations. I distinctly remember looking through my dads "The Mammals of Australia" text book, and having a genuine sadness and confusion about page after page of illustrations (because there are no photos) of extinct mammals, and that pale blue range map that illustrated the vast areas they used to occupy. That same feeling still sticks inside me.

But no point dwelling on the past too much ey! The Greater Bilby certainly hasn't escaped unscathed, they have undergone a serious range contraction. They are now restricted to two disjunct populations, one in south-west Queensland, and the other throughout the Tanami and Sandy Deserts of NT and WA, west to the Pilbara and north to Dampier Peninsula near Broome. What is hard to consider is that Bilbies used to be present right where I live now, in the Jarrah and Wandoo woodlands of the darling scarp near my home of Perth. And where i grew up as a young fella down in Bridgetown represents just about their former south west range limit. In what is unlikely to be a coincidence, their range now appears to almost directly resemblance where foxes are absent. This range contraction and continued threatening processes has led to the Greater Bilby being listed as Vulnerable under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999), Australia's federal threatened species protection law.

Previous and current Greater Bilby distribution

The Greater Bilby is part of the family Thylacomyidae, of which there are just the two species (Greater and Lesser). They are most closely related to the bandicoots, and exhibit a number of similar features. They are of course marsupials, giving birth to poorly developed babies which develop in a pouch. They loooove to dig, and in a classic evolutionary adaptation, have a backwards opening pouch, to prevent all that pesky sand getting in your pouch as you dig your burrows. They are purely nocturnal, sheltering in their burrow during the day. Individuals may utilise up to 12 burrows at once. They are an opportunistic omnivore, feeding on seeds, bulbs, fruits, fungi, invertebrates and their larvae and small vertebrate fauna. They have long, pointed noses, for nosing around, and large ears for seeing well... wait... thats not right, what do they use those ears for?? (hint: read on).

So how do you find Bilbie's? This rare and cryptic species doesn't give itself up easily. Unlike many other mammal species, they are unreliable to trap. They are either too trap shy, or bait just doesn't appeal to them. So it is unusual to capture one in a trap, even when you know individuals are present (although not impossible, as proven below). So you need to look for diagnostic signs instead. In order of most commonly encountered, signs you are likely to encounter are; diggings, followed by tracks (depending on soil substrate), scats and finally burrows. 

When I'm in the field looking for Bilbie's, it almost feels like I'm trying to crack some criminal case. You need to build the evidence. First you will find a digging, but is it a Bilby? If it is, you need to search more and compile the evidence. Expand the search radius, diggings will become more frequent as you hone in on its key home range. Search for scats in the spoil heaps of diggings, if you can find their diagnostic scats, then you have confirmation. If you keep looking and the soil substrate is right, then you might be lucky to find some tracks. Then burrows start appearing. The final step is setting up motion cameras on the burrow and hoping to capture a photo. But it is important not to confuse the secondary evidence of Greater Bilby with other species, so below are some tips.

Diggings
Diggings are the most frequent form of evidence you will find, but can easily be confused with other species. The main confusion species include varanids (goannas), macropods (kangaroos and wallabies) and echidnas. Tips to separate from these species include:

• Varanids (goannas): Typically Bilby diggings are more frequent and higher density, so single and isolated diggings lean towards varanids. Varanids leave a similar pointy, conical shape, but often have a peak in the middle of one side of the burrow rim. This is because varanids dig by excavating with their legs in a sweeping motion either side of the body, opposed to Bilby which is more compact in their digging action (more like a rabbit).
• Macropods (kangaroos and wallabies): Generally a larger and messier digging, done in isolation or lower frequency in the immediate area.
• Echidnas: Can produce very similar small conical burrows. If you compare the noses of the two species, you can understand why as they are very similar. However, typically diggings are shallow and don't extend below nose length, compared to Bilby which often excavate much deeper diggings. Echidna diggings can also be far more messier, and its common for an entire square meter or more of ground surface will be disturbed, this would be unusual for Bilby.

Another hot tip to separate Bilby from the rest is if the digging is located at the base of shrubs. If you find diggings at the base of shrubs investigate further, if the digging goes in to a root and you can feel or see the root has been opened up, then you are 99% on to Bilbies. More on this in the habitat section.

Bilby digging at the base of an Acacia setallaticeps shrub. If you find diggings like these at the base of a shrub in to the roots, it's almost certainly a Bilby

Single isolated Bilby digging and scat. Scat is not always this easy to find.

A confusion species digging. This was done by an Echidna, typified by more 'messy' diggings over a larger area.

Scats
The scats of Greater Bilby are diagnostic and unlikely to be confused with any other species, so try hard to find them. They are small to medium in size, smooth and dense and cylindrical in shape. They can consist of a single pellet, or can be part of a string of pellets (sometimes joined). They are most commonly found in association with diggings (but you may have to search 60+ diggings first). Confusion species include macropods, but these are usually squarer and have a small point on one side, and also typically contain vegetation and are much lighter. Bilby scats are mostly dirt so are denser and heavier. I've heard Spectacled Hare-wallaby scats are quite similar, but are more laterally compressed. Don't think there is too much more out there to confuse with.

Greater Bilby scat. This one contains multiple pellets but single pellets may be found. Scats are cylindrical, smooth, and relatively dense as they contain lots of dirt.

Tracks
The tracks of the Greater Bilby are typical quadrapedal gait which includes all other dasyurids (carnivorous marsupials), that means their two back legs stay together but front feet overlay one in front of each other (slightly offset). Because they are larger then all other native species left in their range, their size distinguishes them from the rest. However, that wascilly wabbit (introduced European Rabbit) happens to exhibit very similar tracks in size and shape. If the soil substrate is soft then you can not distinguish between the two species, so you need to search for more evidence. If the substrate is firmer, then Bilby will leave a narrower foot pad in the track, and you may be able to see the diagnostic toe structure of the Bilby, compared to the softer and wider foot pads of Rabbits. In good tracking soil substrate, you should be able to track an individual some distance, hopefully leading you to their burrow.

Very fresh Bilby tracks from the night before in river sand after rainfall showing excellent track detail. You can clearly see the toe details in the hind and front feet, The tracks lead to the right.

Bilby tracks in soft sand showing no toe detail. These tracks could potentially belong to the European Rabbit, so if both species have potential to occur at the location you need to search for more evidence. Bilby heading to the right.

Sequence of tracks of Bilby in soft river sand. Bilby is heading to the left.

Burrows
Bilbie's live in burrows, and due to their large size can be the most conspicuous form of evidence to find. However, typically it takes longer to locate a burrow then other evidence if there is a Bilby in the area. Other burrowing species to confuse with are usually varanids (goannas) and rabbits. A Bilby burrow is almost perfectly round, and if anything is vertically elongated. Goannas in contrast, like all reptiles, have a horizontally compressed burrow entrance. Rabbits are more similar, but tend often be more trenchy, where as Bilbies are a nice hole leading straight in to the ground. Bilby burrows also often curve to the side once inside the entrance. DO NOT stick your hand down a burrow, I have seen many other fauna species (via motion cameras) such as venomous Mulga Snakes entering Bilby burrows, so use a spinifex seed head or similar if you want to poke something down the hole to see if it is open. When looking for burrows (and diggings) a useful give away is looking for a change in soil colour. The soil that has been excavated from sub-surface is typically a different colour, so it can be seen for some distance through vegetation that otherwise obscures a burrow. 

Active Bilby burrow from the Kimberley. Note the change in soil colour at the entrance of the burrow, a useful feature to look for whilst scanning through vegetation.

A very recently constructed Bilby burrow from the Pilbara. This one is at the base of a termite mound.

Motion cameras
One of the great technological advancements in biological studies of recent times has been the development of infra-red motion cameras. Even though once you have found Bilby evidence and an active burrow and therefore confirmed their presence, topping off the evidence with a motion camera photo is always nice. Below is a selection of photos and videos of some Bilby action from motion cameras that have been set up on active burrows.

This big male Bilby was captured on a burrow appropriately named "Big Hole"

A smaller Bilby (female or juvenile) from "Big Hole"

A large Bilby re-entering the burrow. Interestingly this photo was captured during twilight hours of 5:26 am. The Bilby is regarded as strictly nocturnal so this photo challenges that to some degree.

Habitat associations
One of the really important components of finding Bilbies is recognising and identifying suitable habitat. My experience is restricted to the Pilbara and Kimberley, so can't speak for the inland sandy desert regions. But in the areas I am familiar with, I am now very confident in identifying suitable habitat. Its typical of being able to find many threatened species, get your eye in for their specific habitat requirements, target those areas and consequently your success rate in detecting threatened species will go up. The other critical component is hard yakka! You need to put in the effort to find these guys, that means getting out there and walking. Some days I do well over 20 km stomping through potential habitat, and I'm definitely convinced the more ffort you put in, the more reward you get.

Being a burrowing species, soil substrate is a critical habitat attribute. Soil needs to be soft enough (typically sandy) to facilitate ease of digging, but not completely lose so a burrow won't hold its structure. In the Pilbara region, I have found a strong association of Bilby occurrence with minor drainage systems with fringing sand plain habitats. A dominant and key plant species at these locations is Acacia stellaticeps. Whilst in the Kimberley, I've had strong success in detecting Bilbies within stands of mature Acacia tumida woodlands. Although these two habitats don't appear overly similar, they provide similar structures. Firstly, a relatively open ground surface is available, I believe this allows the easy locomotion of Bilbies, so tehrefore is preferable. I have never found Bilbies in areas that contain dense spinifex or other grasses. Next, some aerial protection is provided by the canopy. Although not obvious in the below photo, Acacia stellaticeps is a shrub narrow at the base which spreads out providing an open ground layer with closed in canopy in dense growth areas. Finally, the presence of Acacia spp. shrubs are always present....

Classic Bilby habitat from the Pilbara, sandplain adjacent to minor drainage line with Acacia stellaticeps shrubs

Classic Bilby habitat in the Kimberley. Dense Acacia tumida woodland.

After a while of finding a strong correlation of Bilby diggings and Acacia species shrubs, the curiosity was building as to what the food source was. Was it the roots, or a fungi association, or some sort of insect larvae? Feeling around in the diggings showed the roots had been pried open, with a hollow cavity left inside the root itself. Then it was observed some funny insect shell casings were seen at the base of some of these shrubs. I needed to know more! So we started digging at the base of some of the shrubs and in one glorious moment all questions were answered, when we extracted the biggest, juicest, most ridiculous Witjuti grub I had ever seen. In that one fleeting moment it all became so obvious, Bilbies eat Witjuti grubs, and lots of them. And when you see the size of these things, its really not surprising why! Check out the size of that grub!

A bit of research shows Witjuti (also spelt Witchetty, but i like the indigenous spelling) is the larvae of the Australian Wood Moths, belonging to the genus Endoxyla. There are many species throughout the arid regions of Australia, which occur in association with various Acacia species shrubs. The hit rate of Bilbies per grub appears incredible. I reckon every digging i investigate at a shrub reveals the tell tale sign of root excavation and the cavity inside the root where a grub has been extracted. Remember those big ears? I reckon they must be used for listening for Witjuti grubs at night time, as they slowly bore and grind wood from inside the roots. Must be like the dinner bell ringing in their ears I reckon. I have confirmed Witjuti grub and Bilby diggings at the following shrub species; Acacia stellaticeps, Acacia bivenosa, Acacia trachycarpa, Acacia orthocarpa, Acacia collei and Acacia tumida. And if you want my opinion, those grubs actually taste pretty good....

Shell casing of a Witjuti grub that has exited from the shrub and metamorphosed  in to a Wood Moth

A seriously large and juicy Witjuti grub extracted from an Acacia trachycarpa shrub (below). No wonder Bilbies love these things, check out the size of it!

Acacia trachycarpa which the above Witjuti grub was extracted from

DNA scats analysis
An interesting development I have been recently involved in is the collection of Bilby scats, which consequently undergo DNA extraction and analysis, allowing for individual Bilby identification. One of the challenges with Greater Bilby is that they are completely unreliable to entice in to a trap. I can confirm the ineffectiveness of trapping, I've had cage traps all over a site that has multiple Bilbies present, confirmed through motion cameras and DNA analysis (as below), with zero captures! Thats not to say they are impossible to trap...


Anyway, the DNA scats analysis method has proven invaluable in being able to determine exactly how many individuals are present. Activity alone is a poor indicator of population numbers, as individual Bilbies can occupy up to 12 burrows within their home range. What I've found interesting is that the scats analysis is generally showing more individuals are around then you would expect. 

Bilby encounters

Finally, the really good part of the blog, actually seeing a Bilby! We were lucky enough to actually trap a Bilby a few years ago. It was completely unexpected, and had managed to cram itself inside a large elliot trap. Thankfully, she was unharmed. After taking some morphology measurements, a tissue sample from the ear and numerous photos, she was released. I was surprised at how soft and silky their fur is. 

The trap capture was good, but spotlighting one and watching it go about its business was better. In fact it is right up there with the best wildlife moment I've ever had. Never had I really thought I would ever see a real wild Bilby, so when it happened it was a surreal, but incredible moment. We had motion cameras set up on a burrow, whilst checking the camera during the day a Bilby had entered the burrow early morning, and appeared to have not come out, so we were confident there was one in the burrow. So we staked it out at dusk. 

The stake out was ridiculously short. I felt we got there too late and I was flustered, thinking we should have been there 30 minutes earlier prior to sunset, to allow our disturbance to settle. Regardless, we sat down and no more then 5 minutes later out popped a Bilby, unbelievable! I'm very thankful I had my new Canon 650D with me and chose to video the moment, because it allows me to relive the moment whenever I want. However I wish I had have bought a tripod at the same time! The combination of holding a headtorch, camera and trying to take it all in resulted in a slightly Blair Witch feel to it all, but I still enjoy it and hope you do to, I will never forget that moment!

ps I've had to chop the videos down in length to get under 100 mb...

An unexpected trap capture, a female Greater Bilby. A unique and slightly odd looking animal no doubt, but an absolute pleasure to hold and a great experience.

Getting to process a Bilby, very lucky chap!

One of my greatest wildlife moments, the pleasure to see and observe a wild Greater Bilby. I only took three photos, as I was focussed on video and taking in the moment. I''m glad this pic turned out the way it did :D