FOR birdwatching visitors from the southern states, it is interesting to note what species are NOT present in Cairns. For starters (and this is just my observation, during the month or so I spent here at the start of spring in 2011), there are no galahs, rosellas, noisy miners, magpies, crows, topknot pigeons and other familiar friends from down south. I came across a small flock of metallic starlings near Cairns Base Hospital, one bright morning. With their red eyes and shiny blue/black appearance, the metallic starling is a New Guinea native which also inhabits north-eastern Australia. Under the tree, spice finches grazed on the grass. Or at least they were spice finches. They are an introduced species, but they seemed to be a part of the urban Cairns experience, flitting across the lawns like sparrows...
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