Griffiths Island Muttonbirds
When the short-tailed shearwaters are on Griffiths Island, month by month, and how to watch the dusk fly-in.
Every spring one of the world's great seabird migrations lands on Griffiths Island, a short walk over the causeway from town. Up to 10,000–20,000 short-tailed shearwaters — muttonbirds — nest in burrows under the tussock, and fly in at dusk to feed their chicks. This is when to see them, month by month.
Stay on the paths, and leave dogs at home
Griffiths Island is a proclaimed conservation reserve — no dogs or cats. The burrows are about a metre long and just under the surface, so walking off the formed tracks crushes them and buries chicks. Don't pick up young that look abandoned (they can't be hand-reared); report any cats, dogs or damage to Moyne Shire.