The 5 best birdwatching spots in Australia

Twitchers fly from all over the world for a day, or even a week, of bird spotting in the World Heritage-listed Daintree Rainforest. As the world’s oldest continually surviving rainforest, it’s home to more than half of Australia’s bird species, with more than 430 types to tweet about. Many wing watchers come to Australia’s birdwatching capital in search of the elusive Southern Cassowary, of which less than 5,000 remain in the wild. You’ll also have the chance to spot 13 local endemics, including Macleay’s honeyeater, pied monarch, lesser sooty owl and Victoria’s riflebird.

Best time to visit: October to November, when the migrant birds fly into the region

Voted Australia’s number one birdwatching destination by Australian Geographer, this World Heritage-listed wonder is what tweet dreams are made of. Kakadu National Park is home to a whopping one-third of Australia’s bird species, with at least 60 diverse species found in its wetlands alone. Popular birdwatching spots in the park include Mamukala Wetlands, Yellow Water Billabong, South Alligator River, Jim Jim Billabong, Nourlangie Rock and Burrungkuy (Nourlangie). 

Best time to visit: September and October for Kakadu Bird Week, which features activities, talks and specialised tours

Located on the paprika-red shores of Roebuck Bay, this wildlife lovers' playground is home to possibly the world’s largest diversity of shorebird species. While shorebirds are the most abundant, more than 330 other species can be spotted within a 70-kilometre radius of Broome Bird Observatory, including yellow chats, Australian bustards, black-necked storks and the critically endangered eastern curlew. These flappers feed on the bay’s nutrient-rich tidal mudflats, which are thought to be one of the world’s richest food sources, full of molluscs, crabs and fish. You can head to the observatory’s visitor centre to learn more about these amazing habitats, or join a guided birdwatching tour, such as the Shorebirds Tour, Mangrove Tour, Bush and Plains Tour, Coastal Tour or Yellow Chat Twitch.

Best time to visit: March to May, when tens of thousands of shorebirds depart for their annual migration

This tiny, croissant-shaped island off the NSW coast isn’t just one of the world’s most beautiful destinations, it’s also a birdwatching paradise. While there are more than 230 permanent and migratory bird species to set your sights on, it’s the migratory seabirds that draw the most twitchers across the ditch. From sooty terns and masked boobies to providence petrels and flesh-footed shearwaters, these rare seabirds nest and breed on Lord Howe during the warmer months, from October to March. Many of the colonies can be easily spotted along walking tracks, roads and even on the sandy shores.

Best time to visit: October to March, when the seabirds are nesting and breeding

This ancient Gondwana rainforest in Queensland is home to Australia's largest variety of sub-tropical birds. Whether you’re strolling along the forest floor or wandering along the 16-metre-high treetop canopy walk, you’re bound to see and hear a diverse range of birdlife. Around 250 species have been recorded in the 200-square-kilometre national park, including Albert’s lyrebirds, glossy black cockatoos and Australian king parrots, plus rarer species like powerful owls, marbled frogmouths and superb lyrebirds.

Best time to visit: September to November, when birds are mating and chicks are hatching