Derek Engel

Deryk has been bird watching his whole life but got serious in 2010 after a friend gave him Sean Dooley’s ‘The Big Twitch’. Having read it, the same friend asked, ‘so what’s your life list?’ Upon tallying his list, Deryk was shocked at how few of Australia’s birds he had actually seem. That set him on a course to get to know Australia’s birds, their Gizz (General Impression, Size and Shape), behaviors and the diversity of habitats they occupy, better. He’s able to recognize a large number of birds by their call, but admits some still baffle (or as we say in Australia – stump) him.

Deryk has now birded throughout most parts of Australia, its off shore islands and oceanic environments. He hasn’t seen all of Australia’s about 800 plus birds, but that’s a good thing as it allows for lots more opportunities to go birding.

As he lives in Bundeena, a town tucked into the Royal National Park (locally known as ‘the Royal’), Deryk regularly birds his local patch. The Royal is a conservation reserve that’s covers an area of about 15 thousand hectares, this (technically!!) being the second oldest National Park in the world and the first to use the term ‘National Park’ to denote a conservation reserve. The Royal encompasses a wide variety of habitats from rainforests, to heathlands, sandstone escarpments and wetlands. Within this area is the only endemic bird to NSW, the Rock Warbler (Origma solitaria), this one of the 300 plus birds known for the Royal. The Royal has a large number of resident birds all year round, as well as migratory species that occupy it during the Spring and Summer months such as the Sacred Kingfisher (Todiramphus sanctus), Oriental Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis) and Rufous Fantail (Rhipidura rufifrons).

A generally eBird list for the Royal can be found here https://ebird.org/hotspot/L921604.

Depending on the season, a days birding in Royal can see between 70 to 80 species.

When not guiding, Deryk is a self-employed Environmental Consultant that conducts ecological studies for a variety of government agencies. As part of this work, Deryk gets the opportunity to combine his career with his love of bird watching. As his works take him to all points of the State, Deryk has had the opportunity to bird a lot of habitat types.

Deryk has previously been a guide for Bird Pal, and has had the opportunity to introduce overseas guests to a number of our local birds.

Our tour rate is $300 per person for a full day (minimum 6 hours). During our tour we will visit a number of habitat types. Within each habitat, we will spend about an hour, walking and spotting birds. We will not be doing long walks, but will be traversing natural environments that will mean stepping over logs, dodging shrubs and avoiding patches of mud.

Sturdy shoes, long pants and a hat are highly recommended. During the winter months, a jumper and carrying a raincoat in a backpack should also be considered.

Upon request, I can provide binoculars if needed, but I note that they wont be the top of the range items.

I’m happy to start your tour whatever times suits you.

I will provide a vehicle that can accommodate up to 5 birders, a scope, tea, coffee, water, soft drinks, drinking water, snacks, insect repellent and sun block. We will break for lunch at a local cafe (cost to be covered by guests).

If you have a bigger group size, and your own vehicle, use of that is an option or, with a bit of advice, we can accommodate this (i.e. travel convoy style).

Spotlighting tours to target those nocturnal raptors present in the Royal available upon request (at a fee of an additional $100 per person).

Our costs at a glance.

Our services	Our costs (AUD) (incl GST)
Tour cost	$300/person
Nocturnal survey	$100/person
Accommodation – weekdays (Monday to Thursday)	$250/night
Accommodation – weekends (Friday to Sunday)	$425/night
Catering	$150/per/night

 

Payment via direct deposit is requested. Once all is confirmed, we’ll email you our bank details. We will ask you to deposit 50% of the cost when booking your tour and any additional requirements. If you cancel up to 3 weeks before your tour, we will refund 75% of your deposit. Two weeks to one week before we will refund 50%. No refunds are available if you cancel within a week of your tour.