A suggestion by the author of The Complete Guide to Finding Birds of Australia (CSIRO Publishing) inspired us to wonder, what are the best birding destinations in Australia? We had a crack ourselves but soon realised no one of us can possibly claim to have the answer.

So we asked Australian birders to list their TOP10 favourite places to watch birds. The response has been great. As more TOP10s have arrived, we’ve had to update the list, as second place is now shared between Gluepot (SA), Lamington National Park (Qld) and Capertee Valley (NSW). The resounding top destination however, is

- Western Treatment Plant, Werribee, Vic

The TOP10 was actually shared by 13 locations (marked on the map with gold pins).

#1 Werribee Sewage Farm (T-section; Spit NR)
#2 Gluepot
#2 Lamington NP (O’Reilly’s)
#2 The Capertee Valley
#3 Hattah/Kulkyne National Park
#4 Broome (including Broome Bird Observatory & Roebuck Plains)
#4 Cheyne Beach
#4 Chiltern (Green Hill Road Dam)
#4 Bruny Island
#4 Bowra Station
#4 Cairns
#4 Iron Range (Portland Road)
#4 Kakadu

Where further information is available, there are links to give you information about access and what’s been seen. You can also find who’s available as a tour guide. Don’t forget, you can check our ‘where to watch’ pages for more information, accessed via the menu bar above. Also, why not grab a copy of The Complete Guide to Finding Birds of Australia to take with you? Happy birding !

The Long List

In all, a total of 115 sites were suggested (as well as a few locations that are either adjacent to, or within these localities). This table lists the locations in alphabetical (left) and by state (right). We’ll try to update this page with links and more information in due course.

Acknowledgments

Thanks to everyone who sent in their TOP10: Geoffrey Jones, Grant Brosie, Geoff Price, Bob Cook, Frank O’Connor, Chris Watson, Rosemary Royle, David Kowalick, Carl Weber, Mark Carter, Chris Sanderson, Alan McBride, Josh Bergmark, Steve Murray, Max, Troy, Sandra Galienne (BrisBOCA), Stephen Ambrose, Kay Parkin, Michael Ramsay, ‘Gemfyre’, David Taylor, Laurie Knight and Justine Jansen.