Lord Howe Island is one of only four island groups to be inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list for the global significance of its natural beauty and heritage. It is located about 700 km off the North Coast of NSW in the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the world's southernmost coral reef.
It certainly is a relaxing place to visit due to the lack of crowds, with only about 300 locals and only 400 visitors able to visit at any one time. The pristine areas are great for birding and the lack of tourists made it a very comfortable place to be!
No locks on doors, no mobile phones, hardly any cars, no crime, hardly any people. The locals that I met were all very kind, thoughtful, friendly and very helpful. They are trusting and went out of their way to help me get as many birds as possible. If only all of society could be like this, the world would be a much nicer place.
Lord Howe Island is stunningly beautiful with remarkable geology, plants, marine life and birds.
What I came here for were the birds of course and within 48 hrs of arrival I had managed 12 lifers!!
Before I got off the plane on arrival I had my bins around my neck and camera in my hand. As the little Dash 8 landed I had my nose squoosed against the window & I could see all these waders feeding on the airstrip outside. I was desperate to disembark and was very tempted to literally jump over the 15 other passengers on-board in order to get out onto the tarmac!
The airport - a great place for waders
My lift had arrived to collect me and had to wait while I checked every bird on the airstrip to see if there was a lifer amongst them. Sadly there wasn’t, but there were some lovely coloured Pacific Golden Plovers, Bar-tailed Godwits, Whimbrel and Ruddy Turnstones.
Pacific Golden Plover
Ruddy Turnstone
I stayed at the Hideaway which is located up the top of Middlebeach Road – a steep 5 minute walk from Joys Shop & the museum. Located in a lush garden surrounded by birds, the self contained 1 bedroom apartment was comfortable and perfect for my needs. My hosts, Val and Neil are lovely and very kind and helpful. I would certainly recommend Hideway as a great and affordable place to stay!
After checking in the first thing I did is go for a walk. 2 minutes later I saw 2 Lord Howe Woodhens mating on the side of the road! Incredible considering this endemic bird were almost extinct in the 1970’s (with only about 20 individuals left). Thankfully due to a recovery program, including captive breeding, banning cats, eradicating the wild pigs and extreme control of dogs there are now over 200 Woodhens on the island and can be found relatively easily.
I also noticed there are a high number of Buff-banded Rails on the island and they are easily viewed. Quite tame really! Just in the garden I had Pied Currawong which is quite different from the mainland bird – the bills is much thicker and is has a different call, Silvereye ( which locals call Lord Howe Whiteeye although it is not split in IOC), Golden Whistler – the female looks more yellow on the breast than on the mainland, Emerald Dove and Buff-banded Rail..
I also noticed there are a high number of Buff-banded Rails on the island and they are easily viewed. Quite tame really! Just in the garden I had Pied Currawong which is quite different from the mainland bird – the bills is much thicker and is has a different call, Silvereye ( which locals call Lord Howe Whiteeye although it is not split in IOC), Golden Whistler – the female looks more yellow on the breast than on the mainland, Emerald Dove and Buff-banded Rail..
Stoked with the Woodhen under my belt I went to the lagoon and found the gorgeous White Terns nesting. These birds are beautiful and have interesting breeding habits. They lay one egg but do not make nests, they simply balance the egg on the branch of a tree and sit on it. When it hatches they sit on the nestling for a few days until it grows too big and then the parent just sits next to it. Thankfully the nestling have adapted to this and grow nails quickly to hang on to the branch. However, things can and do go wrong. For example, if it gets too windy the nestlings can get blown off the branch even if they are hanging on. The poor little blighters can then be seen hanging by their feet upside down. Luckily the locals here take very good care of the White Terns and after a storm dutifully go to the lagoon and search for the young terns either on the ground or hanging by one foot from the branches and carefully put them back up on the branch.
On my last morning here I found a Chick on the ground.
I managed to reach up high enough to place it on a branch where it scurried to a section where it was able to grasp onto.
I advised a few locals so they could check it later in the day to ensure the parents would find it. I was assured that someone would add it to their Tern Orphanage if the parents did not come back.
On my last morning here I found a Chick on the ground.
I managed to reach up high enough to place it on a branch where it scurried to a section where it was able to grasp onto.
I advised a few locals so they could check it later in the day to ensure the parents would find it. I was assured that someone would add it to their Tern Orphanage if the parents did not come back.
I hired a bike as it was dawning on me that I would be covering a lot of distance each day and a bike would save me time -time better spent photographing birds. The best way to explore is on foot or by hiring a bike as you get to observe things along the way to your destination. I hired a bike for $50 and had it for the 9 days of my visit. Doing business on the island is stress free. The locals are really lovely, helpful, genuine and very trusting. For example, when I hired the bike I simply handed them the cash and selected a bike and helmet. No contracts or paperwork, just “leave the bike in the driveway on your way to the airport on you last day”. That is the trusting, casual culture here; wonderful.
The downside to cycling of course is that if you have a big heavy camera like mine you have to put it in your backpack while on the bike. So, if you see a bird only briefly you risk dipping on a photo. So I occasionally put it in the backpack but also risked the camera on occasion by having it unprotected in a wire basket on the front of the bike.
White Tern
White Tern
Neds Beach produced nice views of Sooty Terns including a few immature, Ruddy Turnstones were also running along the beach. As I had this paradise to myself I was free to sit and watch them undisturbed and they soon felt safe enough to ignore me and walked right up to me, too close to be photographed with my 400mm lens.
Juvenile Sooty Tern
Ruddy Turnstone
I then waded into the glorious aqua water to view the coral and was greeted by large schools of fish. People feed them here so they surrounded me hoping to be fed. They were disappointed as I did not feed them.
A quick check of Middle Beach provided another lifer – Black-winged Petrels were courting and flying fast, banking and turning aerobatics over the low shrubs. Very difficult to photograph due to their speed and constant changing of direction but I gave it a try!
Black-winged Petrel
The lagoon
I've been in touch with a local birder Jack Shick for a while now. He takes fishing charters out and so was really pleased to finally get to join him on his boat. We ended up doing 2 trips in the same day. In the morning we headed out with 2 fishermen on a fishing charter and within a few minutes had Red-tailed Tropicbird, Masked Booby, Grey Ternlet and Wedge-tailed Shearwater.
Grey Ternlet
Black Noddy
Masked Booby
Raft of Providence Petrels
We were then graced with lovely views of White-necked Petrel. NICE!
One of the 2 fisherman got crook and couldn’t continue fishing so I ended up taking over his line and caught a King Fish.
Jack caught the big one!
We went back into shore and the green-gilled fishermen went on their way. We had time for lunch before a small group of birders, being led by Local birder/ field naturalist Ian Hutton, joined us and we were off again. We headed out to Balls Pyramid, located 27 km south of Lord Howe Island. This is the world’s largest rock stack standing 551m tall.
Again we had Red-tailed Tropicbirds, Grey Ternlets, Providence Petrels, White-necked Petrel, White-bellied Storm-petrels – including a few dark phased individuals.
Providence Petrel
Wedge-tailed Shearwater
White-bellied Storm-petrel
I was feeling anxious and edgy – I was sitting on 599 birds – the next lifer would be my 600th bird for Australia! The boat was travelling fairly quickly, 19 knots and I was hanging out over the side, getting covered in spray, straining to find something new when FINALLY, as we got closer to the Pyramid, there it was……Kermadec Petrel! It was a light phased bird flying low, on its own. It turned and circled and left as quickly as it came but it was my 600, never to be repeated. What an awesome 600th bird! Stoked!
Kermadec Petrel
Kermadec Petrel
As we continued closer to the pyramid we had plenty more Kermadec Petrels, Black Noddy’s were also flying about with the petrels along with Grey Ternlets and Red-tailed Tropicbirds.
The water here is 4 km deep and when you get close the rock it becomes really obvious just how tall it really is!
Red-tailed Tropicbird
The water here is 4 km deep and when you get close the rock it becomes really obvious just how tall it really is!
On the way back I got 601 - Little Shearwater! We saw 2 of them within a few minutes of each other. With the first one I was sitting at the back of the boat next to the engine staring out at the horizon so couldn’t hear Jack up the front – he was yelling to me as he knew how much I wanted this bird. I was mindlessly looking at it thinking “that’s different, what the hell is it”. We were travelling fast and the bird was also flying fast, away from us – not a tickable view. I was devo!!! Thankfully a few minutes later another one flew past the boat! This time we were going slower and I had time to get onto it properly for a decent view! TICK!
As we continued to steam back to shore we then had a Gould’s Petrel fly past! A rare sighting for Lord Howe. Only my second sighting of this species so I was VERY happy to see it. A seriously AWESOME day!
White-bellied Storm-petrel
In that one day at sea I got the following birds – most of which were lifers…
Red-tailed Tropicbird
Masked Booby
Grey Ternlet
Sooty Tern
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Wedge-tailed Shearwater
Providence Petrel
White-necked Petrel
Black-winged Petrel
Kermadec Petrel
Black Noddy
Goulds Petrel
Little Shearwater
White-bellied Storm-petrel
The snorkelling at Lord Howe Island is fantastic. This coral reef is in amazing condition. It is considered more pristine than the Great Barrier Reef, due to it’s healthier coral. The diversity of fish – over 500 species, was stunning, along with stingrays, plenty of reef sharks and turtles. A few Black Noddys flying overhead topped the afternoon off nicely.
Black Noddy
A walk to Little Island at the base of Mt Gower in the late afternoon provides amazing views of Providence Petrels as they start circling lower down the mountain. A wonderful sight!
Providence Petrel
One of the highlights of the trip for me was climbing Malabar. I had to wait for a sunny morning as it a steep climb on a cliff edge. I enjoyed the seclusion of this climb which took about 45 minutes to go up. It is fairly steep and you need to be fit enough to negotiate climbing over boulders and wet tree roots.
This hike is certainly not suitable for people who are scared of heights (or Orb spiders)! The effort is well worth it though with crippling views of Red-tailed Tropicbirds. There are no safety rails on this cliff, and the cliff is unstable in places so caution is definitely required, it’s a 200 metres straight down!
This hike is certainly not suitable for people who are scared of heights (or Orb spiders)! The effort is well worth it though with crippling views of Red-tailed Tropicbirds. There are no safety rails on this cliff, and the cliff is unstable in places so caution is definitely required, it’s a 200 metres straight down!
Red-tailed Tropicbird
I stayed up there for a couple of hours which allowed for some good photo opportunities. A Red-tailed Tropicbird landed in a bush right next to me to feed its chick!
Red-tailed Tropicbird with chick
Blackburn Island opposite the lagoon has a nesting colony of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters on it. I was fortunate to find a Skipper kind enough to drop me there for a few hours and he even remembered to come back and collect me again!
Wedge-tailed Shearwater Chick
Wedge-tailed Shearwater
I did another trip out to Ball’s Pyramid later in the week and we were graced with another Little Shearwater, this time with better views but again failed to get an identifiable photo. Bugger!
The pelagic was great with awesome views of Providence Petrel & Grey Ternlet. Crippling views of White-bellied Storm-petrel right at the back of the boat, Masked Booby roosting and overhead, we were surrounded by Kermadec Petrels at Balls Pyramid allowing much improved photos along with Black Noddy and after searching all week Ian and Jack took pity on me and assisted me to find and finally photograph a Wandering Tattler on the rocks on the way back in! Thanks guys!! J
Wandering Tattler
I had a great deal of assistance during the week from Ian Hutton. He is helpful & very knowledgeable about Lord Howe having produced 13 books and as a photographer he has also produced numerous DVDS which are available at the Museum. He gives lectures a few evenings a week on natural history which are very interesting and definitely worth attending. I would suggest you contact him if you are planning a birding trip to Lord Howe as he is extremely helpful.
The Museum
At the end of my trip I was very fortunate that my flight on Saturday was cancelled due to mechanical failure! So, I managed to stay and extra night courtesy of Qantas! Therefore I spent the afternoon snorkelling at Neds Beach enjoying Lord Howe’s very own version of Clown Fish, reef sharks, clams, corals, sea cucumbers etc
As I had another night on the island my hosts Neil and Val arranged for me to go owling with a local who knows alot about Masked Owls on the island. So after my complimentary dinner (thanks Qantas) Clive collected me and we went spotlighting. Flesh-footed Shearwaters were all over the place, on the roads and at their burrows.
Woodhens were more easy to see as they are nocturnal.
I now understand why these signs are here and the speed limit for the few cars on the island is 25 km/h
Clive was a wealth of knowledge and entertained me with stories of his adventures during his life on the island. He explained that Masked Owls were introduced onto the island to control the pest Black Rats but unfortunately the owls are responsible for killing off the Boobooks which had occurred here naturally. They also prey on the other birds. The island decided to cull the introduced Masked Owls and that process was undertaken over a 7 year period. The Owls numbers are now much reduced but we found a lovely large female Masked Owl hunting at the Bowling Club and I got good views of her in the spotlight as she flew into the pine trees. Awesome! Lifer 605.
My final morning consisted of a few more photos of Woodhens and Black-winged Petrels at Middlebeach prior to complimentary breakfast at the Anchorage Restaurant (thanks Qantas). A short stroll at the lagoon and the rescue of the White Tern chick kept me busy until Neil arrived to drive me to the airport.
White Tern chick who won my heart...
The locals depend on the fortnightly visit of the Island Trader for their supplies!
Lord Howe Island is a well kept secret. A birders paradise with awesome views and truly lovely local people who are happy to share their paradise with you.
A special thank you to Ian Hutton & Jack Shick . You guys rock my world!
Ian your kindness, generosity with your time, sharing you wealth of knowledge and including me into your busy schedule this week when you were already so busy with your group was very much appreciated.
Jack, thank you so much for taking me out on your boat so many times and for assisting me to find so many pelagic species. I really appreciate the way you took the trouble to position your boat especially to assist me to be able to get decent photos. Thank you also for teaching me how to fish (ha ha ha) and for taking the time to google my camera settings for me!
Ian your kindness, generosity with your time, sharing you wealth of knowledge and including me into your busy schedule this week when you were already so busy with your group was very much appreciated.
Jack, thank you so much for taking me out on your boat so many times and for assisting me to find so many pelagic species. I really appreciate the way you took the trouble to position your boat especially to assist me to be able to get decent photos. Thank you also for teaching me how to fish (ha ha ha) and for taking the time to google my camera settings for me!
