We took a trip to Winton Wetlands recently to follow up on previous sitings of Swift Parrots. We returned to 11 Mile Creek Woodland (part of the Reserve) hoping to see them again, but they had moved on. There have been further reports of Swifts in the adjacent Warby Range National Park in recent days.
A male Flame Robin looking spectacular against the dry grassland before we got to the woodland. Apologies for the distance view, he still looks great. We saw a number of these Robins amongst the weedy grassland in this section along with many Eastern grey Kangaroos. This location is out of the potential wetland flooding zone.
An Eastern Shrike-tit investigating the bark of the red gum, it has a large strong beak compared to its body size. They are specialists in finding insects under bark, often located before you see one by the scratching sound of bark pulling. On this occasion we saw 2 birds foraging close to the track.
A White Winged Chough. They have this eerie looking red eye plus its call is quite wonderful. They are always in family groups of 10-12 or more. Often foraging on the ground. Nests are large mud structures often communal. https://ebird.org/species/whwcho1
These Welcome swallows are common across NE Vic and the Wetlands. Specialist in catching insects on the wing.
This view with the track shows part of a monoculture of Red Gum (eucalyptus camaldulensis) that was direct seed planted back in the 1990s, I remember this when I was with the Conservation Department. I think it was part of firewood plantation proposal. It is a very dense stand now with lots of small stems competing for moisture. The birds love it.
All my photos taken on a iPhone 15pro or now a Panasonic Lumix DC-FZ80D digital zoom (bridge camera), it’s light to carry without needing a tripod usually. All images had some editing in Lightroom.
Overall a grand day out amongst the river red gums at this site, worth a visit.
Walking Glenrowan and Beyond 
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