How has the bird population on Dunk Island changed over the past 100 years? Dunk Island is a tropical rainforest several miles from the Queensland, Australia, coast and protected by the Great Barrier Reef. It is an important stop for birds migrating along the coast. Fortunately, we know what the population was 100 years ago. We are sponsoring the "Birds of Dunk Research Project" to answer this question. First we are cataloging all the birds on Dunk today and comparing that with the population in 1900, and second, we are studying changes in the island environmment that may have caused the changes in the bird population. Check out our home page. We invite you to participate in our research project by recording your bird observations with our team. Please e-mail Tom Hopkins (thopkins07@DunkIsle.com) to discuss the project.
Dunk Island was the home of famous author and naturalist, Edmund J. Banfield. Banfield had an international following and in the early 1900s, he popularized the idea of dropping out and living in a tropical paradise. He was also an enthusiastic bird-watcher and one of the first naturalists ever to carefully catalog the fauna and flora on a tropical island. In his book, Confessions of a Beachcomber, he chronicled 129 birds that he had observed on Dunk Island in the first eleven years of his residency (1897 to 1907). You can help continue Banfield's pioneering work.
The following is the list of birds observed by Banfield:
 Sparrow-Hawk. |
Birds of Prey White Goshawk, Goshawk, Sparrow-Hawk, Wedge-tailed Eagle, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, White-headed Sea-Eagle, Kite, Black-shouldered Kite, Black-cheeked Falcon, Grey Falcon, Black Falcon, Kestrel, Fish Hawk or Osprey, Boobook Owl, Rufous Owl, Lurid Owl (De Vis) |
 Noisy Pitta. |
Perching Birds Pied Crow-Shrike, White-winged Chough, Manucode, Yellow Oriole, Yellow-bellied Fig-bird, Drongo, Magpie Lark, Brown Shrike-Thrush, White-bellied Cuckoo-Shrike, Little Cuckoo-Shrike, Barred Cuckoo-Shrike, Caterpillar-eater, Pied Caterpillar-eater, Northern Fantail, Rufus-fronted Fantail, Black and White Fantail, Leaden Fly-catcher, Blue Fly-catcher, Pied Fly-catcher, Shining Fly-catcher, White-eared Fly-catcher, Spectacled Fly-catcher, Black-faced Fly-catcher, Tawny Grass-Bird, Rufous-breasted Thickhead, Sun-bird, Dusky Honey-eater, Yellow White-eye, Varied Honey-eater, Fasciated Honey-eater, Yellow-tinted Honey-eater, Friar Bird, Helmeted Friar Bird, Flower-Pecker or Mistletoe Bird, Black-headed Diamond Bird, Eastern Swallow, Swallow, White-rumped Wood-Swallow, Shining Starling, Noisy Pitta |
 Little Kingfisher. |
Picarian Birds Large-tailed Nightjar, Roller or Dollar-Bird, Bee-eater, Blue Kingfisher, Little Kingfisher, Leach Kingfisher, Sacred Kingfisher, Mangrove Kingfisher, Bronze Cuckoo, Koel, Channel-bill, Coucal |
Parrots
Red-collared Lorikeet, Glossy Cockatoo, White Cockatoo, Red-winged Lory
 Barred-shouldered Dove. |
Pigeons and Doves Rose-crowned Fruit Pigeon, Purple-crowned Fruit Pigeon, Purple-breasted Fruit Pigeon, Allied Fruit Pigeon, Nutmeg Pigeon, Whiteheaded Fruit Pigeon, Pheasant-tailed Pigeon, Barred-shouldered Dove, Ground Dove, Little Dove, Little Green Pigeon |
Game Birds
Brown Quail, Scrub Fowl, Bald Coot, Little Quail
Rail
Pectoral Rail
Crane
Crane or Native Companion
 Masked Plover. |
Plovers, etc. Stone Plover, Long-billed Stone Plover, Turnstone, Pied Oyster-catcher, Black Oyster-catcher, Masked Plover, Redcapped Dottrel, Black-fronted Dottrel, Red-necked Avocet, Curlew, Whimbrel, Barred-rumped Godwit, Common Sandpiper, Greenshank, Snipe |
Sea Birds
Crested Tern, Brown-winged Tern, Sooty Tern, White-shafted Ternlet
Black-naped Tern, Noddy, White-capped Noddy
Ibises
White Ibis, Straw-necked Ibis
Herons
Plumed Egret, White Egret, White-fronted Heron, Reef Heron, Little Mangrove Bittern, Yellow-necked Mangrove Bittern
 Lesser Frigatebird. |
Pouchers Little Cormorant, Darter., Masked Gannet., Red-]egged Gannet, Brown Gannet (Booby), Lesser Frigate Bird, Pelican |
Divers
Black-throated Grebe
Ducks
Black Duck, Grey Teal
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We invite you to e-mail our study organizer, Tom Hopkins (thopkins07@DunkIsle.com). |
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