Centennial Park in Sydney, retains its status as a people’s park – it’s a spectacular recreational space for adults and children of all ages and is one of the few inner city parks in the world to offer horse riding facilities. It is also home to diverse flora and fauna and many significant tree plantings, including spectacular Port Jackson figs, Holm oaks and Norfolk Island pines dating back to the early 20th century.
Centennial Parklands is a diverse natural environment that includes reed-fringed freshwater ponds, relatively wild areas with long grass, shrubs, and trees, and swamps. This habitat is ideal for many native species including mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, spiders, fish, and frogs.
The Sydney basin turtle (Emydura macquarii), and the snake-necked turtle (Chelodina longicollis) are the most commonly seen of the five native species recorded in Centennial Parklands.
Up to 130 species of land and water birds have been recorded in Centennial Parklands
Bird watching across the seasons in the Parklands can be a very rewarding pastime. It is possible to follow the lifecycle of species such as Black Swans, Coots, Swamp Hens and Moorhens as they breed.
The Crested Pigeon is a member of the Bronzewing family, which are ground-feeding pigeons with iridescent patches in their wing feathers. The iridescence is most striking when the sunlight falls on them, as well as during their bowing courtship display.
Superb Fairy-wrens are extroverted little birds with long brown tails, which they usually hold cocked-up. There can be quite a mix of different plumages within a group. The females and young males are mousey-brown colour with a whitish throat and breast, while their bill and area around their eyes is red-brown. When the male is not breeding his plumage is much like the female’s except his bill is black and his face is grey-brown.
Channel Billed Cuckoo being the largest in both Australia and in the world. They are big, heavy birds with a wingspan of up to one meter and a tail that is long and distinctive.
Sitting in the park and watching all the birds and their antics in the pond when i heard this glorious melody playing out through the park, then i spied this gentleman playing his saxophone, what a pleasure.
We have seen two types of owl in the park, the Powerful owl with their juvenile and the Eastern Barn owl.
There is also a pair of Tawny Frogmouths in the Lachlan swamp, we were so priviledged to see the male on the nest with a newly hatched chick.
One of the rarer ducks we have seen in the park the pink-eared duck.
There are so many happenings in the park from various birds feeding their young up in the trees to the cockatoos and little corella that abound, both in the trees and in the air.
Not forgetting the flowers this kangaroo paw was making a beautiful show.
