Port Hacking Shorebirds and Woodland Birds - Guided Bird Walks from Bonnie Vale to Deeban Spit via Maianbar in 2026 and 2027

In conjunction with Friends of the Royal, BirdLife Southern NSW is hosting a free of charge guided bird walk program to showcase the woodland birds of Bonnie Vale and the special migratory and resident shorebirds of Deeban Spit in Port Hacking. Participants will gain insights into the inspirational lives of these birds. Here are the dates for each bird walk:

• Saturday 26th September 2026

• Saturday 24th October 2026

• Friday 13th November 2026 (in conjunction with Friends of Royal)

• Saturday 12th December 2026

• Saturday 16th January 2027

• Saturday 13th February 2027

• Saturday 13th March 2027

Each bird walk starts at 8 am from the boomgate at the entrance to the Bonnie Vale Campground.

Each walk takes in the woodland bird habitat of Bonnie Vale lagoon, along the track west to Maianbar crossing the Basin waterway and then onward to the Deeban Spit foreshore habitat. We will then return the way we came or, if the tide makes it shallow enough (below the knees), we will wade across the Basin waterway from the south-eastern end of Deeban Spit directly back to the campground starting point.

The goal of each bird walk is to identify as many native bird species as we can and to demonstrate how citizen science birders record the results via Birdata, BirdLife Australia's bird survey app. The walk is ideal for people of reasonable fitness. Children over 10 years of age accompanied by an adult are welcome.

In the event of the need to cancel this event due to bad weather, participants will be notified by text message by 7 am on the day of the walk if not earlier.

For further inquiries, email: southernnsw@birdlife.org.au