Australia Ramsar wetland
Blue Lake
108 bird species recorded; the most from January to February.
Stefan Karpiniec · CC BY 2.0
This month here
81 species in January.83 species in February.65 species in March.66 species in April.53 species in May.33 species in June.27 species in July.37 species in August.36 species in September.52 species in October.61 species in November.70 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
VU
VU
VU
VU
VUVUVUVUVUVU
VUVUVU- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
108 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 108Speciesrecorded more than once
- 56Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 3ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 4,364Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 1,885 mAltitudeabove the sea
- 9Raptors
- 1Owls
- 2Waders
- 1Gulls & seabirds
- 4Ducks & geese
- 7Herons, ibises & grebes
- 65Songbirds
- 19Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 108 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors9 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Nankeen KestrelFalco cenchroides
- Wedge-tailed EagleAquila audax
- Brown FalconFalco berigora
- Black-shouldered KiteElanus axillaris
- Little EagleHieraaetus morphnoides
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Brown GoshawkAccipiter fasciatus
- Australian hobbyFalco longipennis
- Black FalconFalco subniger
Owls1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- MopokeNinox novaeseelandiae
Waders2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Masked LapwingVanellus miles
- Japanese SnipeGallinago hardwickiiNT
Gulls & seabirds1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Silver GullChroicocephalus novaehollandiae
Ducks & geese4 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Pacific Black DuckAnas superciliosa
- Maned DuckChenonetta jubata
- Grey TealAnas gracilis
- Black swanCygnus atratus
Herons, ibises & grebes7 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
- Little Black CormorantPhalacrocorax sulcirostris
- Little Pied CormorantMicrocarbo melanoleucos
- White-necked HeronArdea pacifica
- Straw-necked IbisThreskiornis spinicollis
- White-faced HeronEgretta novaehollandiae
- Pied CormorantPhalacrocorax varius
Songbirds65 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Little RavenCorvus mellori
- Flame RobinPetroica phoenicea
- Brown ThornbillAcanthiza pusilla
- Australasian PipitAnthus novaeseelandiae
- Australian PipitAnthus australis
- Australian MagpieGymnorhina tibicen
- Australian RavenCorvus coronoides
- Pied CurrawongStrepera graculina
- Yellow-faced HoneyeaterCaligavis chrysops
- White-browed ScrubwrenSericornis frontalis
- SilvereyeZosterops lateralis
- Red WattlebirdAnthochaera carunculata
- Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Spotted PardalotePardalotus punctatus
- Rhipidura albiscapaRhipidura albiscapa
- Superb Fairy-wrenMalurus cyaneus
- Grey ShrikethrushColluricincla harmonica
- Striated PardalotePardalotus striatus
- Superb LyrebirdMenura novaehollandiae
- White-throated TreecreeperCormobates leucophaea
- Olive WhistlerPachycephala olivacea
- Grey CurrawongStrepera versicolor
- White-naped HoneyeaterMelithreptus lunatus
- Eastern WhipbirdPsophodes olivaceus
- White-eared HoneyeaterNesoptilotis leucotis
- PilotbirdPycnoptilus floccosusVU
- Welcome SwallowHirundo neoxena
- Australian Golden WhistlerPachycephala pectoralis
- Grey FantailRhipidura fuliginosa
- Crescent HoneyeaterPhylidonyris pyrrhopterus
- Willie-wagtailRhipidura leucophrys
- Striated ThornbillAcanthiza lineata
- Scarlet RobinPetroica multicolor
- Satin FlycatcherMyiagra cyanoleuca
- European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis
- Eastern Yellow RobinEopsaltria australis
- Rufous WhistlerPachycephala rufiventris
- Eastern SpinebillAcanthorhynchus tenuirostris
- Noisy FriarbirdPhilemon corniculatus
- Black-faced CuckooshrikeCoracina novaehollandiae
- Red-browed FiretailNeochmia temporalis
- Buff-rumped ThornbillAcanthiza reguloides
- Satin BowerbirdPtilonorhynchus violaceus
- Scarlet RobinPetroica boodang
- Magpie larkGrallina cyanoleuca
- Corcorax melanoramphosCorcorax melanoramphos
- Dusky WoodswallowArtamus cyanopterus
- SkylarkAlauda arvensis
- WeebillSmicrornis brevirostris
- Pink RobinPetroica rodinogaster
- Leaden FlycatcherMyiagra rubecula
- Olive-backed OrioleOriolus sagittatus
- Red-browed TreecreeperClimacteris erythrops
- Spotted Quail-thrushCinclosoma punctatum
- Yellow-rumped ThornbillAcanthiza chrysorrhoa
- Brown-headed HoneyeaterMelithreptus brevirostris
- Crested Shrike-titFalcunculus frontatus
- Southern WhitefaceAphelocephala leucopsisVU
- Lewin's HoneyeaterMeliphaga lewinii
- Jacky-winterMicroeca fascinans
- Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merula
- Chestnut-crowned BabblerPomatostomus ruficeps
- Brown TreecreeperClimacteris picumnus
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Tree MartinPetrochelidon nigricans
Other birds19 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Crimson RosellaPlatycercus elegans
- Gang-gang CockatooCallocephalon fimbriatumVU
- Yellow-tailed Black CockatooZanda funerea
- KookaburraDacelo novaeguineae
- Needle-tailed SwiftHirundapus caudacutus
- Sulphur-crested CockatooCacatua galerita
- Fan-tailed CuckooCacomantis flabelliformis
- Stubble QuailCoturnix pectoralis
- Australian King ParrotAlisterus scapularis
- Wonga PigeonLeucosarcia melanoleuca
- GalahEolophus roseicapilla
- CootFulica atra
- Eastern RosellaPlatycercus eximius
- EmuDromaius novaehollandiae
- Brush CuckooCacomantis variolosus
- Sacred KingfisherTodiramphus sanctus
- Common BronzewingPhaps chalcoptera
- Horsfield's Bronze CuckooChrysococcyx basalis
- Eastern Spotted DoveSpilopelia chinensis
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species from January to February.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan26°/12°67 mm
- Feb24°/11°82 mm
- Mar21°/9°74 mm
- Apr16°/6°60 mm
- May11°/3°58 mm
- Jun8°/1°80 mm
- Jul7°/0°73 mm
- Aug8°/0°80 mm
- Sep12°/2°70 mm
- Oct16°/4°82 mm
- Nov20°/8°95 mm
- Dec23°/10°81 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Blue Lake.
Cirque lake in New South Wales, Australia
Blue Lake is a wetland of international importance (Ramsar) in Australia, 1,885 m above the sea.
108 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 4,364 open records.
The most recorded are the Little Raven, the Flame Robin and the Brown Thornbill.
35 species come for the summer, 19 for the winter and 2 only pass through.
3 are threatened worldwide, including Gang-gang Cockatoo, Pilotbird and Southern Whiteface.
The most species are recorded from January to February.
Get there and watch
- WIlkinson's Creek Campsitecampsite · 6.2 km · 7 within 10 km
- Kosciusko Chaletplace to stay · 3.8 km · 17 within 10 km
- Kosciuszko National Parknearest town · 22 km in a straight line
- Cooma Snowy Mountains Airport (OOM)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 60 km in a straight lineCar hire at ABX airport (East Albury)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 6marked trails within 4 kmAustralian Alps Walking Track, Main Range Walking Track, Mount Kosciuszko Summit Walk and 3 more
- 7viewpoints within 5 kmBlue Lake lookout, Charlotte Pass Lookout, Main Range Lookout and 4 more
- 7campsites within 10 kmWIlkinson's Creek Campsite, Moiras Flat, Ngarigo Campground and 4 more
- 17places to stay within 10 kmKosciusko Chalet, Bella Vista Staff Lodge, Illawong Lodge and 14 more
- bird hides within 6 km
- observation towers within 6 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
- car parks within 3 km
- restaurants and cafés within 3 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Blue Lake.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas77 mountains within 25 kmMount Twynam2,195 m · 1.1 kmCarruthers Peak2,145 m · 2.2 kmMount Townsend2,209 m · 4.8 kmMount Tate2,068 m · 6.9 kmEtheridge Ridge2,180 m · 7.2 kmMount Kosciuszko2,228 m · 7.4 km↗Rams Head2,190 m · 10 kmGungartan2,068 m · 16 km
Lakeyas1 lakes within 15 kmGeehi Reservoir0.3 km² · 11 km
Darkskyas2 dark-sky places within 30 kmMount TownsendBortle 2 · 4.6 kmMount KosciuszkoBortle 2 · 7.4 km↗
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Blue Lake
Australia
- 58Birdyas Score
- 108Species
- 56Migrants
- 3Threatened
Cape Howe Marine National Park
Australia · 192 km
- 75Birdyas Score
- 199Species
- 76Migrants
- 7Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q4929321) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 4,364 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Peakyas, Lakeyas, Darkskyas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit