Hello Chris and the rest of the mob,
Recently Chris Corben wrote:
> Yesterday I decided to walk along the beach south of Ballina to see if I
> could find any dead birds. It hadn't occurred to me that I might be near the
> site of the original SIPO (South Island Pied Oystercatcher) until I got
> there, but I couldn't remember where the SIPO had been seen anyway. I
> checked all Oystercatchers I saw, and eventually found the SIPO about 2 km
> North of the Patch's Beach carpark.
>
> Can someone tell me if this is the original site, and has it been seen there
> lately?
>
> I was also interested to note that while nearly all the OZPOs (Pied
> Oystercatchers) were in active wing molt and therefore showed greatly
> reduced and sometimes missing wingbars, the SIPO showed no sign of molt at
> all. It did seem to me that the primaries and tertials looked old compared
> to the wing coverts and scapulars, so maybe it just hasn't started yet.
> There were a couple of OZPOs there showing no molt, but I couldn't see them
> well enough to draw any conclusions about their ages.
>
> I also noticed that every time I saw a pair of OZPOs, one had a markedly
> longer, pointier bill than the other. Whcih sex has the longer bill?"
I wonder if this SIPO is a 'new' individual or is one of the birds that has been
reported at two other sites in Australia over the past few years?
Or is it the one bird that is moving around for some reason?
How can we tell?
The last time I saw the SIPO at Pelican Park, SE Queensland, was in Nov 2001.
I, for one, would be interested in knowing if that bird has moved (returned?) to
Ballina.
Has anyone seen a SIPO in SE Queensland recently?
If the latest 'Ballina' SIPO is one that has been previously reported are we
observing the normal north/south migratory pattern exhibited by SIPO populations
in New Zealand?
Does this mean that it would be worthwhile for observers between Ballina (NSW)
and Redcliffe (SE Queensland) to regularly check the 'local' Pied Oystercatcher
populations for SIPOs?
It seems to me that an attempt should be made to mark or label SIPOs seen in
Australia to help solve this mystery by making it easier to track the movements
of this new-to-Australia (?) bird.
OZPO bill lengths:
According to HANZAB (Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds)
Vol 2, bills of female OZPOs are generally longer and sharper than those of
males.
However, bill lengths overall are longer in northern Australian birds compared
with southern Australian birds with the OZPOs in Tasmania having significantly
shorter bills than the others.
HANZAB also suggests that separation of the sexes should be possible in local
populations by the relative lengths of the bills.
However, my experience with the OZPOs in my area of SE Queensland would make me
cautious of this approach.
In my local area there appears to be a very significant variation in OZPO bill
lengths ranging from very short (which could actually be juveniles) to extremely
long.
The longest bills could, in fact, cause some observers to think that they are
looking at a SIPO.
My theory is that the location of my local observation area (the middle of the
east coast of Australia) is such that the normal north/south movements of
northern and southern groups of OZPOS includes this area and is thus likely to
provide a distinct mix of bill lengths.
It has been my observation that some OZPOs have sharpish bills but none that I
have observed have been as sharp and fine-pointed as that of the SIPO I have
seen.
Note: SIPO = South Island Pied Oystercatcher, Haematopus finschi
OZPO = (Australian) Pied Oystercatcher, H. longirostris
SIPO is an anogram that appears to have been in use for quite some time and is
used in "Shorebirds", Hayman, Marchant and Prater, a recognised reference on
shorebirds of the world.
OZPO is an anogram that appears to have been created to make life simpler when
discussing these two species.
I have used these terms in this and other articles for the sake of convenience
and simplicity.
Incidentaly, I use the pronunciation Sy- (rhymes with the 'i' in Island) po
(rhymes with 'go').
I have no argument with anyone who wishes to use a different pronunciation.
Hoping that this creates interest in this topic,
Cheers,
Bob Inglis
Woody Point
Queensland
Australia
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
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