North Head is a mainland island at the entrance to Sydney Harbour, joined to Manly CBD by a sand spit. Approximately 385ha in area, North Head was the site of Sydney’s historic Quarantine Station, the North Fort defence site and the Former School of Artillery, and now forms part of Sydney Harbour National Park. A number of vegetation communities exist on the headland, with Sclerophyll Woodland, Coastal Heath and Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub (an endangered ecological community - NSW TSC Act 1995) dominating the vegetation mosaic. The land is managed by the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust (SHFT), NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, and the Royal Australian Artillery National Museum.

North Head is isolated from surrounding bushland by Sydney Harbour and urban development. The lack of vegetation connectivity is detrimental to the site’s conservation value, though its strategic geographic location in Sydney Harbour National Park provides vital remnant bushland for species in transit, and as nesting habitat for birds in an increasingly urban environment. The North Head Bird Surveys project is helping us understand these interactions to help tailor ecological planning for the habitat at North Head.

In August 2005 Birds Australia was contracted by the SHFT to conduct research on species richness and relative abundance of birds on North Head, and to make recommendations on the best practice for improving bird habitat quality. A series of 2ha sampling sites have been set up throughout the headland on SHFT and other lands to monitor bird activity over the seasons. The surveys are conducted by a number of dedicated volunteers each month. Without the dedication and altruism of our volunteers, this project would be unachievable.

96 species have been recorded at North Head over the past 50 years, and 82 within the twelve months of this project. The most abundant group of birds are nectar and insect eating honeyeaters, wrens and parrots, with 12 species accounting for up to 85% of observations. A number of less common species have been observed including Brown Quail Coturnix ypsilophora, Common Koel Eudynamys scolopacea, Fan-tailed Cuckoo Cuculus flabelliformis, Olive-backed Oriole Oriolus sagittatus, Spotted Pardalote Pardalotus striatus and Red-browed Finch Neochmia temporalis. Twelve species have been recorded nesting at the headland, including a number of migratory species, and an additional 15 species are suspected to breed there.

North Head also presents a unique viewpoint for seabird observations. When southerly and south-easterly winds prevail, a number of seabirds are brought into the heads of Sydney Harbour and can be viewed from any of the lookouts on the headland. Australasian Gannets are common, as are a number of Shearwater species, while occasionally one may be lucky enough to see Pomarine, Arctic and Long-tailed Skuas (Stercorarius spp) and White Terns Gygis alba.

The information collected during this study is vital to ecological management of North Head and is increasing our knowledge of bird responses to habitat alteration. It is being developed in preparation for a larger restoration plan to restore North Head into an urban sanctuary for a variety of threatened flora and fauna that inhabit the headland.

If you are interested in becoming involved in the observations, or simply wish to be kept up to date, please contact Project Officer, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it on (02) 9647 1033.

North Head, Botany Wetlands, Ku-ring-gai Newsletter July 2008 (167kb) 

Birds eye view of North Head © Sydney Harbour Federation Trust

North Head revegetation © Mark Branson

North Head habitat © Mark Branson