Hi Birders
The bible in respect to Cuckoo hosts is
the publication "Cuckoo Hosts in Australia" by M.G.& L.C. Booker, Australian
Zoological Reviews, No 2 1989 RZS of NSW.
Mr Booker says that there
are 21 species recorded as feeding juvenile Koels but only six species did
he identify as biological hosts, ie their eggs have been laid in the nest
of six species viz the four Australian Friarbirds, the Figbird and the Magpie-lark.
He points out that the Red Wattlebird is recorded as the usual host in Sydney
but he found no egg record! However, reports of Red Wattlebirds feeding
Koel Cuckoos did not appear in the literature until 1978, so that at the
time of this publication there was no record of a Koel Cuckoo egg in a Red
Wattlebird nest. The fact that there are fewer egg collectors these days
is not a benefit in this case.
However as both a Sydney
and now Central Coast resident, while I have never seen a Koel Cuckoo egg
in a Red Wattlebird nest, I certainly seen many small baby Koel Cuckoos
in RWB nests and have watched them being fed, and later on, have watched the
Koel parents feeding them after they leave the nest, along with the RWB
parents!
So it is obvious that
the main host for Koel Cuckoos in the Newcastle/Central Coast/Blue Mountains/Sydney/Illawarra/South
Coast area is the Red Wattlebird and
that this is a recent phenonema. More recently Little Wattlebirds have been
proved to be a Koel Cuckoo host.
Since 1993-2000, in the
NSW Annual Bird Reports, I have attempted to qualify the recorded hosts
of the Koel Cuckoos and the results are as follows; Red Wattlebirds 22,
Little Wattlebird 5, Noisy Friarbird 3, Blue-faced Honeyeater 2 and Noisy
Miner 1. The first observation of a juvenile Koel fledging from a Little
Wattlebird's nest was in 1999. In northern NSW Figbirds, Magpielarks and
Noisy Friarbirds are known to be the usual hosts but this is not borne out
by the records available to me. However, Regional Bird Reports, which is
where one finds more information about nesting Koels, are produced for mid
Central and South Coast NSW, whereas there are no annual regional reports
as yet for north-eastern NSW! The fact that Blue-faced Honeyeaters and Little
Wattlebirds also figure in my list probably indicates changing breeding
patterns for those species as well as the Koel. That Olive-backed Oriole,
Magpie-lark & Little Friarbirds do not figure in my summary is also
of interest.
As to how many eggs are laid in a season,
it is not known for any Australian cuckoo species although the European
Cuckoo is considered to lay from 10-12 eggs!
In addition to the above species known
to host the egg, HANZAB also mentions Spangled Drongo, Grey-shrike Thrush,
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike & Victoria's Riflebird (note no mention of
Little Wattlebird!). Species known to feed the young in addition to those
mentioned are Yellow-throated Miner, Yellow-tinted Honeyeater, Leaden Flycatcher
& Dusky Woodswallow (note no mention of Noisy Miner!).
There is still alot to learn about Australian
cuckoos and their hosts.
Alan Morris
