As today is World Migratory Bird Day, it’s a good time to celebrate Kiama being home to a very wide range of birds, including some that migrate thousands of kilometres each year to breed.

World Migratory Bird Day is an international awareness-raising and education program that celebrates the migration of bird species along all the major flyways of the world. This year's theme is Sing, Fly, Soar - Like a Bird.

Rose Valley’s Ken Sandy, a Greens candidate in the local election with a lifelong interest in birds, says you might have already noticed some of our regular visitors, both cuckoos (which lay their eggs in other birds’ nests for them to raise) with very distinctive calls.

“As a clear sign that Spring is here, we can look forward to the arrival of two easily identifiable migratory birds,” says Ken.

“The first is the Eastern Koel, indigenous name Toowong, a cuckoo which flies to Australia from New Guinea, Indonesia and possibly the Philippines. They usually arrive in September. You’ll probably have heard your first Koel before today.

The Eastern Koel

“The male Koel is easily identified by its entirely glossy black plumage, tinged with blue and green, and striking red eye. Adults are rather shy and they are heard much more than seen.

“The second bird, the world’s largest Cuckoo, is the Channel-billed Cuckoo, indigenous name Kurrakurraja, sometime called the Storm-bird because it starts migrating south at the start of the wet season in northern Australia.  

“It can have a wingspan of over a metre. The Channel-billed Cuckoo migrates to northern and eastern Australia from New Guinea and Indonesia between August and October each year.”

The Channel-billed Cuckoo

He recommends the Barren Grounds Nature Reserve is a birdwatcher’s paradise, with around 180 different species of birds, including the threatened ground parrot and eastern bristlebird.

“I started bird watching nearly 50 years ago when I joined Birdlife Australia and I’m still a member. I first came to Kiama in the late 80’s and was immediately struck by the abundant bird life. 

“31 years later, having constructed two lakes and planted more than 6000 native trees to create a biodiversity corridor from the escarpment to Werri Lagoon, I am now very fortunate to live in an environment which is home to a wide variety of beautiful birds,” he says.

“We need to do everything we can to conserve, protect and enhance our unique environment by encouraging appropriate local actions which aim to achieve these outcomes. I hope Kiama Council will prioritize legislation and activities related to nature conservation as part of the worldwide trend towards nature awareness.“