Australia Part 6 - Cairns

After our short but very productive stay in Darwin we flew down to Cairns where we stopping four nights. We had a fair amount planned for Cairns, a gondola up to Kakadu and train back down, the Botanical Gardens and of course a trip out to the Great Barrier Reef.

We loved Cairns, the waterfront and esplanade are brilliant, the green space between the sea and the bars, restaurants and cafes is wonderful and full of bird life (bonus!) We arrive just after lunch time so we had the afternoon to get our bearings a go for a walk along the front.
The front and swimming lagoon.

 The view from our hotel, you can clearly see the green area between the sea and the town.

Our first little walk provided us with a few birds too...
Australian Figbird,

 Peaceful Dove,

 White-bellied Cuckooshrike,

 Yellow-spotted Honeyeater,

 Common Myna,

 Varied Honeteaters,

 Rainbow Lorikeet,

 Australian Pelicans,

 Black-fronted Dotterel,

 Australian Pelican, giving me the eye!

On our first full day we took the bus out to the botanical gardens, there are two sides to the gardens, the more formal gardens and a forest area with mangroves and a freshwater and saltwater lake. Sadly I wasn't feeling too well that day and as the gardens are vast we didn't get to the saltwater lake, but went back to the cafe in the main gardens, mainly to get out the sun and be close to the bus stop back to town. Having said that we still had a good time and did manage a few birds and interesting flora.
In the scrub in the forest an Orange-footed Scrubfowl showed a few times, but it was pretty dark in the undergrowth and I only managed a very fuzzy photo.

 Terrapin, sorry don't know the species, it's not in our Australian Bird Field Guide!

 Pacific Black Duck,

 Great Egret,

 Raja Shelduck,

 Magpie Goose,

 Helmeted Friarbird,

 Crab!

 Australian Brushturkey,

 another Helmeted Friarbird,

 Black Butcherbird,

 yet another Helmeted Friarbird.

One thing of note, opposite the bus stop in Cairns for the Botanical Gardens there is a bat roost to keep you entertained while waiting for the bus.
Spectacled Flying Fox

Both before and after the botanical gardens we had a little walk along the front and had some decent sightings.
Rainbow Bee-eater,

 More Australian Pelicans

 Red-capped Plover,

 Whimbrel,

 Black-fronted Dotterel,

 Pelican in action,

 Gull-billed Tern,

 Eastern Curlew,

 Torresian Imperial Pigeon,

White-bellied Cuckooshrike,

Spotted Dove,

White-breated Woodswallow,

Varied Honeyeater,

Australian Pelican and

 Masked Lapwing.

Some of the flora.....don't ask me what they all are!