I reply to a couple of messages concerning the behaviour of nesting
pardalotes. In my view (and I stress this is only my opinion) it does not
seem likely that such stereotypic behaviour is actively looking out for
predators, however this is likely to be a secondary and major reason for the
observed behaviour. What I beleive is the primary reason is so the bird does
not draw attention to the nest site, for if flying straight to it numerous
times an hour would advertise the nest hole to predators thereby increasing
the risk of its destruction. I am unsure whether this behaviour is uniform
among pardalotes, I have observed Spotted Pardalotes descending a tree to a
nest hole but was not able to note if it was predictable each time. Also I
have seen nesting Striated Pardalotes use the aerial of a house before
flying into the nest hole.
These observations only reinforce our limited understanding of the birds
around us.
Dean Portelli (Sydney)
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