Birdwatchers share rare sighting of red-backed kingfisher on NSW Far South Coast

On Monday, October 2, a red-backed kingfisher was spotted at Tathra and photographed by resident ecologist and bird-lover Steve Sass.

Steve said the red-backed kingfisher is normally found in the arid woodlands and shrublands of inland Australia.

"Every now and again, either driven by extreme weather including winds or long-term drought, we occasionally see them on the coast," he said.

"However, records are usually well north of here.

"Just yesterday, a number of birds were recorded in the ACT and in and around Sydney.

"But normally, you won't see a red-backed kingfisher east of Griffith, about 600km west of the Bega Valley!"

Steve was first alerted to a potential sighting on the Facebook group NSW Rare Bird Alert, when a friend tagged him.

So, armed with camera, he decided to check it out.

After about 30 minutes of searching both around Tathra Headland where the original report was from, to around all Tathra streets and lanes, the bird was finally spotted near the Tathra Newsagent.

"When Brendan and Guewen spotted me carrying a large camera lurking around the front of the newsagent, they were intrigued!"

No doubt, bird watchers from around the region will descend on Tathra in the coming days, wanting to catch a glimpse of this bird.

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Steve, the director and principal ecologist of EnviroKey said this species certainly didn't live in the Bega Valley on a permanent basis.

"This phenomenom is not unknown in birds, and we know that extreme weather has resulted in landscape scale bird movements," he said.

"Previously, birds like the noisy pitta and crimson chat have turned up after east coast lows, and long-term drought."

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