Bungalow Bay Koala Village, Magnetic Island, North Queensland

Island Wildlife

Your stay at Bungalow Bay Koala Village will offer you the opportunity to learn, discover and to provide you with the chance to see much native Australian wildlife native to Magnetic Island,. You will have the chance to see these and many more animals during your visit to Magnetic Island,.

Bush stone-curlew

Burhinus grallarius

Do you know an odd-bod who prefers to sleep in the day and work night-shift? Well, the bush stone-curlew is the odd-bod of the bird world. Listen for its loud, eerie wailing after dark.

Unlike most birds, this species hides during the day and feeds at night, looking for seeds, insects, spiders and small frogs and reptiles. During the day it squats on the grass, either alone or in a small group. When threatened, it will stay still or walk slowly away.

Also known as the bush thick-knee or southern stone-curlew, this unusual bird has long legs, knobbly 'knees' (actually ankles) and a small black bill. It has grey-brown feathers with black streaks, a white forehead and eyebrows, a broad, dark-brown eye stripe and golden eyes.

Koala

Phascolarctos cinereus (Phascol = pouched; arctos = bear; cinereus = ashy-grey)Koalas are among the most easily recognised of all Australian animals but often go unnoticed as they rest wedged in the fork of a branch, high in a gum tree.

From this angle, a koala may appear to be little more than a bump on the tree itself — but you have the chance to see this famous Australian animal in its natural habitat on the “Forts Walk”, located in Horseshoe Bay. This famous track will give you the opportunity to see between one and five koalas in the early morning or late afternoon. A 2o minute walk from the hostel

Common brushtail possum

Trichosurus vulpecula

Not shy, brushtail possums fight and feed in easy hearing of suburban residents in much of Australia.

During the day, brushtail possums stay in tree hollows or fallen logs. But at night they come out to feed, plundering flowers, fruit, buds and leaves of native plants. Mistletoe, one of their snacks, is a parasite that can kill gum trees, and possums help protect trees by controlling mistletoe.

The brushtail is a large possum with bushy tail and pointy ears. Usually silvery grey with a black band across the snout, they have a white to brownish-yellow belly. They breed throughout the year, and snarling and growling are common as they fight over mating or territory. They can also make a hullaballoo as they run across your roof, moving between feeding areas.

White Bellied Sea Eagle

Haliaeetus leucogaster

The White bellied Sea Eagleis Australia's second largest bird of prey (Wedge tailed Eagle is the largest). The tail is wedge shaped, mainly dark grey with a whitish tip Females are slightly larger than males.

Their hooked bill is dark and their legs are a creamy colour with long black talons which with tiny spikes in the soles of their feet they use in grasping slippery fish etc. Their voice has been described as "loud deep goose-like honking". Juveniles (young sea eagles) are a speckled brown.

Sea Eagles are carnivores (meat eaters), feeding mainly on aquatic animals such as fish, turtles and sea snakes. They also are known to eat birds, small mammals and reptiles and also dead carcasses along the edge of water, and sometimes force other smaller birds to drop their catches of prey. White bellied sea eagles can be seen alighting from their perch and gliding down to attack their often unsuspecting prey
http://australian-animals.net/seaeagle.htm