4 September 2022 Sunday – Christmas Island day 6

Sue takes us on a crabbing & Brown Booby tour this morning & our first stop is not that far away, just near the residence of the Christmas Island Administrator. The big house & garden all remarkably well kept compared to most of the other homes & tourist lodges. We take a precarious walk along a concreted storm water drain to try & find some red-tailed tropic bird nests on the cliff top. We see a few red-tailed tropic birds landing, however, too far away to see any nest or chicks. On the way back one of our group hears some strange bird noises coming out from under a pandanus & Sue dives under the bush to see what it is. She discovers two wedge-tail shearwaters sheltering, they are migrating vagrants & not usually found on Christmas Island.

Our next stop is again not that far down the road at the former Casino Manager’s residence. (there is no casino as the licence was cancelled, thank heavens for a bit of sense). There is a concreted rock area out on the shorefront & here we find some red-tailed tropic birds nesting & some chicks. The views along the coast are fabulous & we spend a bit of time here admiring the birds & the views. On the way out Sue explains the workings of the cat trap at the start of the track & the strategies for the feral cat eradication program. No new cats are allowed & all existing cats must be de-sexed. Apparently there are now only around 40 domesticated cats on the island. Previously there was a huge problem with feral cats roaming the settlement, not to mention the rest of the island.

Lily Beach is our morning tea location & here there are lots of nesting Red-footed Boobys in the trees. Lily Beach is a very narrow beach with surf coming in over a rocky reef. On the left side of the beach on the cliff faces there is a colony of nesting Common Noddys, they are very difficult to see as they blend in so well with the colour of the cliff. We see some feeding their chick but have to be mindful all the time to not get wet feet with the waves rolling in. At morning tea a very cheeky Christmas Island Thrush flies onto our table looking for a feed, completely unperturbed by our presence.

After morning tea we climb the stairs to the headland & walk the boardwalk around to a breeding colony of Brown Boobys, nesting on the bare soil after scraping together a few sticks to make a very poor nest. There is a fair collection of birds & nests, with the parents being very protective of their territory. In the distance at the next cove we see the old failed Casino buildings, apparently being renovated to be converted into an upmarket tourist accommodation. The boardwalk stops at a nice viewing platform & there are more Red-footed Boobys nesting in the trees.

Sue then takes us out to Grants Well to have a look at a collection of Robber Crabs grouped near a large tree. She explains their life-cycle then picks one up to show us the large smell sensory organs that are so adept at finding food, the antennae that they feel with & how the females hold their eggs under their tail. All very interesting. These Robber Crabs are very large & Sue explains the strength of the grip that they have, amazing.

On the drive back to Lily Beach for lunch we spot some Wood Sandpipers on the road feeding & stop to look & photograph. These again are rare vagrants to Christmas Island, stopping on their migration path between South-east Asia & Australia.  Our lunch is again buns with cold meats & salads & again fresh & tasty. After lunch Sonia & Annette venture down to the edge of the water to photograph the Common Noddys nesting & get caught out by a wave, they get soaked up to their waist & struggle out of the surf.

Our next stop is the nearby Ethel Beach & here Sue shows us the many hermit crabs crawling around the broken coral & stones on the beach, they are everywhere. Sue tells us about this beach being a prime spot for migrating red & blue crabs to spawn. There are also Red-footed Boobys nesting in the trees fringing the beach & more Common Noddys on the cliff faces. It is a very scenic place & amazingly there are a few very adventurous people snorkelling along the reef out the front of the beach. Back to town a little bit early & I go for a walk down to the jetty at Flying Fish Cove, taking photos of murals & buildings I find interesting on the way. There are some very talented artists here & the art work is stunning. There are a few sailing boats moored in the cove as well as the Australian Border Force ship. Dinner tonight is at the Noodle House, again a selection of Malaysian food & it is very tasty, though the squid is not as superb as it was last time, still very nice though. Another great day.