A newcomer to Ballarat, I had hoped that Roger - The Courier's Nature Notes columnist for almost 36 years - would have one or two seasonal tips for an enthusiastic, if not particularly knowledgeable, bird-lover.

During less than an hour wandering the wetlands around "convent corner", the discoveries came so thick and fast it was impossible to keep count.

There was the swallow, skimming low across the water: living, darting proof the species do not abandon Ballarat in winter. And a pair of bashful night herons, hiding amid the branches of a pussy willow. Not to mention the iridescent flash of the superb fairy wren and its rich, blue feathers.

But for Roger himself, there was no doubt of the highlight, which he pointed out just a few metres from the Steve Moneghetti Track. Around a dozen freckled ducks - a real rarity - were basking in the water.

"It's really quite incredible to see them here," he told me. "People travel up from Melbourne to see them - and they are just here, within metres of thousands of people who go past each day without even knowing they are there."

Roger is quite a guide to the rich ornithology of the lake. Now 66, he has been observing bird life on its waters for well over half a century.

As a Ballarat schoolboy, he would make the short walk from his home off Gillies Street to the shores, where his love for birds evolved. His classmates were more into fishing than bird life, but they would feed him tips on the more unusual looking species they spotted while casting their lines.

As we looped around the reeds, it was clear his enthusiasm shines as brightly as ever. Big birding trips are rarely for him. "I still mainly keep local," he said. "I have never lost interest in the Ballarat birds."

We saw or heard 21 species during a walk that lasted a little more than 40 minutes, Roger later confirmed. There are close sightings of magpie larks, distant views of little pied cormorants, the whistle of a fantail, and a pair of crested pigeons that wandered by ("lovely, gentle birds - they weren't around 50 years ago").

And for Roger, the sounds of the birds can be just as powerful a draw as seeing them. "I'm very keen on the bird calls. I love hearing them," he told me.

In all his years of observing nature, the lake remains his favourite spot for spotting water birds.

"There are very few cities with a lake as good as this," he said. I asked a little about its history, suggesting it must have been hard for bird-lovers when the waters dried up.

Not at all, he replied, recalling the unusual visitors that stopped by - including rare wading bird visitors, and a quail that stopped in the middle when the bottom was completely dry.

"That'll probably never happen again," he said wistfully.

One thing he does have to look forward to is the return at the tail end of winter of his favourite species of all: the reed warbler. "It just sings its little heart out among the reeds," he said.

He has conveyed so much knowledge and enthusiasm to The Courier readers over the years, and I wondered if he had passed on his love of birds to his own daughter.

"She's interested, but not such a fanatic," Roger replied. Then he corrected himself. "Actually, I don't like the word fanatic. I'm just very keen."

Interested in finding out more about Ballarat's birdlife? See birdlife.org.au/locations/birdlife-ballarat.

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