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Australia Australia Important Bird Area

Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area

93 bird species recorded; the most from November to January.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec80at the peak
Species recorded in each month · tap a month

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data), CC BY 4.0, with relief shading from Copernicus WorldDEM-30

This month here

80 species in January.

The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.

Pacific Gull
Pacific GullLarus pacificusSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Silver Gull
Silver GullChroicocephalus novaehollandiaeWinter visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Cape Barren Goose
Cape Barren GooseCereopsis novaehollandiaeWinter visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Sooty Oystercatcher
Sooty OystercatcherHaematopus fuliginosusSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://tiny.jjharrison.com.au/t/MYSZyn8jStDTY47t ) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Common Starling
Common StarlingSturnus vulgarisSummer visitormarsupium photography · CC BY-SA 2.0
Great Crested-Tern
Great Crested-TernThalasseus bergiiSummer visitorNoodle snacks · CC BY-SA 3.0
Welcome Swallow
Welcome SwallowHirundo neoxenaSummer visitorBenjamint444 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Caspian Tern
Caspian TernHydroprogne caspiaSummer visitorMdf · CC BY-SA 3.0
SilvereyeZosterops lateralisSummer visitor
Pied Oystercatcher
Pied OystercatcherHaematopus longirostrisSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Forest Raven
Forest RavenCorvus tasmanicusSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Masked Lapwing
Masked LapwingVanellus milesSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
House Sparrow
House SparrowPasser domesticusSummer visitorDiliff · CC BY-SA 3.0
Eurasian Blackbird
Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merulaSummer visitorKahvilokki · CC BY-SA 4.0
Black-faced Cormorant
Black-faced CormorantPhalacrocorax fuscescensSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 2.5
White-fronted Chat
White-fronted ChatEpthianura albifronsSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
European Goldfinch
European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelisSummer visitorPierre Dalous · CC BY-SA 3.0
Black swan
Black swanCygnus atratusSummer visitorTarnishedPath · CC BY-SA 4.0
Swamp Harrier
Swamp HarrierCircus approximansSummer visitorJude from New Zealand · CC BY-SA 2.0
Superb Fairy-wren
Superb Fairy-wrenMalurus cyaneusSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
White-faced Heron
White-faced HeronEgretta novaehollandiaeSummer visitorRuss · CC BY 2.0
Little Grassbird
Little GrassbirdMegalurus gramineusSummer visitorGlen Fergus · CC BY 3.0
Australian Shelduck
Australian ShelduckTadorna tadornoidesSummer visitorChristian Ursilva from København, Danmark · CC BY-SA 4.0
Puffinus tenuirostris
Puffinus tenuirostrisPuffinus tenuirostrisSummer visitorJJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0
  • Resident all year
  • Summer visitor comes to breed
  • Winter visitor comes for the winter
  • Passage migrant in spring and autumn

In numbers

93 species, counted.

60out of 100

Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).

  • 93Speciesrecorded more than once
  • 73Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
  • 3ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
  • 1,246Recordsopen records within 6 km
  • 7Raptors
  • 1Owls
  • 12Waders
  • 11Gulls & seabirds
  • 8Ducks & geese
  • 8Herons, ibises & grebes
  • 37Songbirds
  • 9Other birds

From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.

The checklist

All 93 species.

By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.

Raptors7 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Swamp HarrierCircus approximans
  • Brown FalconFalco berigora
  • White-bellied Sea-EagleHaliaeetus leucogaster
  • Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
  • Wedge-tailed EagleAquila audax
  • Brown GoshawkAccipiter fasciatus
  • Nankeen KestrelFalco cenchroides
Owls1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • MopokeNinox novaeseelandiae
Waders12 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Sooty OystercatcherHaematopus fuliginosus
  • Pied OystercatcherHaematopus longirostris
  • Masked LapwingVanellus miles
  • Red-capped PloverCharadrius ruficapillus
  • Red-necked StintCalidris ruficollisNT
  • Far Eastern CurlewNumenius madagascariensis
  • Hooded DotterelThinornis cucullatusNT
  • Curlew SandpiperCalidris ferrugineaVU
  • Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresNT
  • American golden ploverPluvialis dominica
  • Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
  • Banded LapwingVanellus tricolor
Gulls & seabirds11 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Pacific GullLarus pacificus
  • Silver GullChroicocephalus novaehollandiae
  • Great Crested-TernThalasseus bergii
  • Caspian TernHydroprogne caspia
  • Puffinus tenuirostrisPuffinus tenuirostris
  • Blue PenguinEudyptula minor
  • White-fronted TernSterna striataNT
  • Black-browed AlbatrossThalassarche melanophris
  • Fairy TernSternula nereisVU
  • White-faced storm petrelPelagodroma marina
  • Australasian GannetMorus serrator
Ducks & geese8 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Cape Barren GooseCereopsis novaehollandiae
  • Black swanCygnus atratus
  • Australian ShelduckTadorna tadornoides
  • Chestnut TealAnas castanea
  • Pacific Black DuckAnas superciliosa
  • Musk DuckBiziura lobata
  • Grey TealAnas gracilis
  • Maned DuckChenonetta jubata
Herons, ibises & grebes8 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Black-faced CormorantPhalacrocorax fuscescens
  • Australian PelicanPelecanus conspicillatus
  • White-faced HeronEgretta novaehollandiae
  • Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
  • Little Pied CormorantMicrocarbo melanoleucos
  • Little Black CormorantPhalacrocorax sulcirostris
  • Western Cattle EgretBubulcus ibis
  • Hoary-headed GrebePoliocephalus poliocephalus
Songbirds37 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Welcome SwallowHirundo neoxena
  • Forest RavenCorvus tasmanicus
  • SilvereyeZosterops lateralis
  • Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
  • Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merula
  • White-fronted ChatEpthianura albifrons
  • Superb Fairy-wrenMalurus cyaneus
  • European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis
  • House SparrowPasser domesticus
  • Little GrassbirdMegalurus gramineus
  • Rhipidura albiscapaRhipidura albiscapa
  • Grey ShrikethrushColluricincla harmonica
  • New Holland HoneyeaterPhylidonyris novaehollandiae
  • Australasian PipitAnthus novaeseelandiae
  • SkylarkAlauda arvensis
  • Yellow-throated HoneyeaterNesoptilotis flavicollis
  • Grey FantailRhipidura fuliginosa
  • Black-faced CuckooshrikeCoracina novaehollandiae
  • Tasmanian ThornbillAcanthiza ewingii
  • Black CurrawongStrepera fuliginosa
  • Brown ThornbillAcanthiza pusilla
  • Australian MagpieGymnorhina tibicen
  • Crescent HoneyeaterPhylidonyris pyrrhopterus
  • Olive WhistlerPachycephala olivacea
  • Australian Golden WhistlerPachycephala pectoralis
  • Tree MartinPetrochelidon nigricans
  • Striated PardalotePardalotus striatus
  • Dusky RobinMelanodryas vittataVU
  • Flame RobinPetroica phoenicea
  • European GreenfinchChloris chloris
  • Scarlet RobinPetroica multicolor
  • Australian PipitAnthus australis
  • Eastern SpinebillAcanthorhynchus tenuirostris
  • Black-headed HoneyeaterMelithreptus affinis
  • Striated FieldwrenCalamanthus fuliginosus
  • Tasmanian ScrubwrenSericornis humilis
  • Dusky WoodswallowArtamus cyanopterus
Other birds9 species
JFMAMJJASOND
  • Yellow-tailed Black CockatooZanda funerea
  • Brown QuailSynoicus ypsilophorus
  • Brush BronzewingPhaps elegans
  • Green RosellaPlatycercus caledonicus
  • Pallid cuckooCuculus pallidus
  • Fan-tailed CuckooCacomantis flabelliformis
  • KookaburraDacelo novaeguineae
  • Western SwamphenPorphyrio porphyrio
  • Needle-tailed SwiftHirundapus caudacutus

Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.

When to go

The most species from November to January.

Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.

  1. Jan8019°/16°46 mm
  2. Feb3520°/17°43 mm
  3. Mar4119°/16°60 mm
  4. Apr1417°/14°53 mm
  5. May115°/13°60 mm
  6. Jun214°/11°74 mm
  7. Jul313°/10°70 mm
  8. Aug112°/10°75 mm
  9. Sep3613°/10°65 mm
  10. Oct3514°/11°58 mm
  11. Nov7616°/13°62 mm
  12. Dec7918°/14°59 mm
  • Bar: species recorded that month.
  • Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
  • Rain: monthly total.

The place

Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area.

Important Bird Area in Tasmania, Australia

Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area is an Important Bird Area (BirdLife) in Australia.

93 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 1,246 open records.

The most recorded are the Pacific Gull, the Silver Gull and the Sooty Oystercatcher.

65 species come for the summer, 4 for the winter and 4 only pass through.

3 are threatened worldwide, including Curlew Sandpiper, Dusky Robin and Fairy Tern.

The most species are recorded from November to January.

Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area seen from above (Sentinel-2)
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data), CC BY 4.0, with relief shading from Copernicus WorldDEM-30

Get there and watch

Plan the visit

A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

From above

The place and its surroundings.

The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.

Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area seen from above (Sentinel-2)
Seen from above: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 6 × 6 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Around, in OpenStreetMap

  • 3places to stay within 10 kmPartridge Farm, Furneaux Tavern, Yaringa Holiday Units
  • bird hides within 6 km
  • observation towers within 6 km
  • marked trails within 4 km
  • visitor centres within 6 km
  • viewpoints within 5 km
  • car parks within 3 km
  • restaurants and cafés within 3 km
  • campsites within 10 km

Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.

In our other atlases

Around Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area.

The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.

Peakyas22 mountains within 25 km
Mount Munro715 m · 12 kmStrzelecki Peaks782 m · 13 kmMount Belstead · 13 kmMount Kerferd · 21 kmMount Hauland · 22 kmLittle Mount · 23 kmMount Chappell · 24 kmFlat Rock · 25 km
Coastya3 beaches within 10 km
Watering Beach · 4.9 kmWhite Beach · 9.5 kmYellow Beaches · 9.6 km

Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.

Other places nearby.

Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area

Australia

  • 60Birdyas Score
  • 93Species
  • 73Migrants
  • 3Threatened

Logan Lagoon

Australia · 15 km

  • 59Birdyas Score
  • 91Species
  • 56Migrants
  • 4Threatened

See the guide

Little Waterhouse Lake

Australia · 82 km

  • 66Birdyas Score
  • 147Species
  • 44Migrants
  • 7Threatened

See the guide

Lower Ringarooma River

Australia · 72 km

  • 60Birdyas Score
  • 114Species
  • 46Migrants
  • 5Threatened

See the guide

Where these figures come from

Name and typeWikidata (Q5491838) · CC0
Birds1,246 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology)
See these recordsgbif.org
SpeciesGBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons
AltitudeCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
Temperature and rainNASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2)
What is around© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons
Sister atlasesPeakyas, Coastya

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

The family

Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?

Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.