OUTING REPORT Dingo Mountain Park, Crows Nest, Sunday 19 July 2020

Dingo Mountain Park, Crows Nest, Sunday 19 July 2020 (Deb Ford)

Twenty-three members and twenty-three visitors met in Chasely Park, Crows Nest, at 9.00am on a beautiful sunny morning, eager to enjoy the Club’s first outing since the beginning of March. Our guide for the morning was Steve Plant from Crows Nest Community Solutions. A long time Crows Nest resident with extensive knowledge of the local flora and fauna, Steve has been working on conserving this large area that represents a unique ecosystem type occurring only on sandstone near Crows Nest. 

Our morning commenced with Steve providing an overview of the extent of the park and neighboring Hart-mann Park and the Bungaree section of the Crows Nest National Park. He gave us a brief history of how the land was acquired and future plans for the park. Before European settlement this area was traversed by Abor-igines travelling from the east to the Bunya Mountains to take part in the triennial Bunya Feasts. Post European settlement (c.1848) the land was used variously for timber getting, grazing, cropping, and pig and chicken farming and as we walked through the park remnants of some of these activities were visible. 

We followed a path down to Crows Nest Creek, passing beside tall Grey Gums (Eucalyptus biturbinata) where Koalas (Phascolarctus cinereus) are often seen, but not on our visit. Spotlighting along this section at night will frequently reveal Greater Gliders (Petauroides Volans), Sugar Gliders (Petaurus breviceps), and Feathertail Gliders (Acrobates pygmaeus). Crossing the Crows Nest Creek, remnants of the old weir are visible, built in the 1930s to augment the town water supply. A permanent water hole is flanked on one side by an attractive sand-stone cliff. 

Leaving the creek, we walked up into Dingo Mountain Park following a track to an ephemeral waterhole, admiring a very large Forest Grasstree (Xanthorrhoea johnsonii) along the way. This first part of the walk was over land previously grazed and, sadly, African Lovegrass (Eragrostis curvula) and Blue Heliotrope (Helio-tropium amplexicaule), both environmental weeds, are well established. Stopping at several places, Steve described the historical use of each place, pointing out items of interest. Leaving the waterhole, we followed a track up the side of a long ridge that rises above the surrounding area. We meandered our way through attractive woodland to the ridge top, skirting sandstone boulders and admiring the many grasstrees. 

Queensland Silver Wattld (Photo: Mike Ford)

With such a large group, and so many questions and explanations, progress was slow but once we reached the ridge top, we were rewarded with 360^o views of the surrounding countryside.  Retracing our steps, we returned to the shelter at Chasely Park around midday for a late morning tea/early lunch. With only the morning at our disposal we were unable to visit other areas of Dingo Mountain Park, which we hope to do at a later stage.

Here is a selection of some of the flora encountered along the way:

Acacia granitica GRANITE WATTLE, Acacia podalyriifolia QUEENS-LAND SILVER WATTLE, Angophora leiocarpa RUSTY APPLEGUM, Angophora subvelutina BROAD LEAVED APPLEGUM, Angophora woodsiana SMUDGEE APPLEGUM, Baeckia diosmifolia FRINGED BAECKIA, Banksia oblongifolia DWARF BANKSIA, Banksia spinulosa HAIRPIN BANKSIA, Breynia oblongifolia BREYNIA, Caustis flexuosa CURLY WIG, Chloanthes parviflora, Grevillea floribunda RUSTY FLOWERED GREVILLEA, Kunzea flavescens YELLOW KUNZEA, Leptospermum polygalifolium WILD MAY/ TANTOON, Leptospermum brachyandrum, HARLEQUIN BARK TEA TREE, Petrophile canescens CONESTICKS, Pimelia linifolia SLENDER RICE FLOWER, Pomax umellata, Stylidium laricifolium TREE TRIGGER PLANT, Persoonia sericea GEEBUNG, Xanthorrhoea johnsonii FOREST GRASS TREE.

(Report by Deb Ford)

Bird List compiled by Francis Mangubhai

Kookaburra, Noisy Miner, Striated Pardalote, Spotted Pardalote, White-throated Gerygone, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Lewin’s Honeyeater, Currawong, Noisy Friarbird, Magpie, Pied Butcherbird, Little Lorikeet, Rainbow Lorikeet, Bar-shouldered Dove, Grey Shrike-thrush, Superb Fairy-wren, Red-backed Fairy-wren, Rufous Whistler, Whipbird, Galah, Torresian Crow, Rose Robin, King Parrot, Brown Treecreeper, Grey Fantail, Brown Thornbill, Yellow Thornbill, Fan-tailed Cuckoo, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike.

During Dingo Mountain walk (Photo: Francis Mangubhai)