Chatters and Tweeters,
My wife and I have an opportunity to bird Australia for the month of August and would greatly be appreciative of information that you might have about the following general areas. We would land in Brisbane, head to Alice Springs, then on to either Broome or Perth, and end the trip in the Sydney area. We have a month and unfortunately have to set up flights before we go. We've birded before in Cairns and Darwin and did pretty well on the birds in those areas. We'd be glad to see them all again, but would like to try to focus on other species. So here's the questions:
How long would you recommend in each of these areas?
Which spots in particular would be best in those recommended sites at that time of the year?
We would rather steer clear of really bad weather (after an awful winter here in Seattle, we're hoping to not experience the same in August) so with that in mind, what does that eliminate?
Are there pelagic possibilities?

As always, we depend on the kindness of strangers, but old friends are always welcomed to chime in. Other cultural or not to be missed natural spots would also be appreciated.
Thanks.

Barry Levine
Seattle, Washington
levineb at bsd405.org