Living as I do in a block of flats in a part of Melbourne
with scarcely
a native avifauna to talk about (Ascot Vale), a new bird for
the garden
list is a red letter day. The garden is spartan, but does
contain a
large Hawthorn (Crataegus sp.) tree which has a number of
Creeping
Mistletoe (Muellerina eucalyptoides) plants in it. The
mention of
mistletoe probably gives away the element of surprise ...
but this
morning amongst the incessant chirping of Tree Sparrows I
heard a
MISTLETOEBIRD. That begins to even up the feral:native
ratio of birds
in my garden slightly.
On any given day the birds of the yard are generally Tree
Sparrows with
the odd House Sparrow and Greenfinch joining in; Song
Thrush, Blackbird,
Common Mynah, Spotted Turtle-Dove; White-plumed Honeyeater,
Little
Wattlebird, Magpie-lark, Willie Wagtail. Little Raven,
Magpie and
lorikeets (Rainbow, Musk, Little) fly over regularly.
Things improve
slightly in the local parks (add Red Wattlebird, Spotted
Pardalote, Grey
Butcherbird, Welcome Swallow, Red-rumped Parrot, Eastern
Rosella, etc.),
but not much!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lawrie Conole
2/37 Myrnong Crescent, Ascot Vale Vic 3032 AUSTRALIA
AH 03 9370 3928 Mob 0419 588 993
Senior Zoologist
Ecology Australia Pty Ltd
88 B Station Street, Fairfield Vic 3078 AUSTRALIA
www.ecologyaustralia.com.au
BH 03 9489 4191 Mob 0419 588 993 Fax 03 9481 7679
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
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