First Visit To Tamar Island Wetlands

Just 10 minutes drive out of Launceston in Tasmania is the Tamar Island Wetlands.  I was looking forward to a nice day out birdwatching, however, it turned out to be an extremely cold morning and with only a little sunshine that was very weak so I didn’t stay as long as I had planned.

Sign near the entrance to the wetlands

A great cormorant sunning itself with rather cold looking groups of various ducks

A section of the boardwalk

A black swan foraging

Looking back to the Information Centre

Australian Shelduck

A bird’s eye view for these Australasian swamphens

Australasian swamphen

Swamp paperbark trees along the path to the bird hide

Bird hide

My first sighting of a Bennetts wallaby. We surprised each other as I came out of the bird hide!

This swamphen was showing me the way!

Morning low tide looking back to the suburb of Riverside

Masked lapwing (plover)

White faced heron

Grey teals trying to keep warm in the cold

Further along the path, looking across the Tamar River on the left and the suburb of Riverside on the right

Great egret and a swamphen

Chestnut teals and grey teals trying to warm up in the early morning sun

More birds trying to keep warm. Who can blame them when it was only 6 degrees!

Grey teal

Female superb fairy wren

At this point I turned back as it was too cold for me. But I’ll be better prepared on my next visit.

The Tamar Island Wetlands is a great place to visit, whether it just be for a nice scenic walk or to try your hand at birdwatching. Entry fee is a few dollars donation and is definitely worth the small admission cost. Don’t forget to drop into the Information Centre there and chat to the friendly and helpful volunteers.

I can’t wait to visit again and see what wildlife I find! 🙂