m("callista.com.au","Peter.Fuller");"> wrote:
My grandfather who has lived at
Drysdale on the Bellerine Peninsula for most of his life, said to me
the
other day that he often gets red tailed cockatoos feeding in his pine
trees
from time to time. (its a great place for YTBC which can consistently
be
seen there at the moment). I'm unsure if these would be red tailed
black cockatoos or glossy black cockatoo's, but both are out of range
according
to simpson and day - not sure what the atlas says.
Can anyone comment on which species
would likely to occur in this area? Being migrating species as Tony
has commented, i guess that both are possibilities?
Hi Peter
As I understand it Yellow-tails (YTBCs) are (i) the only black cockies
found in the greater Geelong area; and (ii) YTBCs are the only black
cockies in Victoria with the biomechanical means to open cones of
exotic pines such as Radiata Pines, i.e. the right shaped beak and
ability to open up to a wide enough gape. Many birders have seen what
YTBCs can do with that long strong beak - to tree trunks, banksia and
pine cones, etc. The Red-tail (RTBC) ssp graptogyne is a
specialised feeder on the cones of Buloke (Allocasuarina luehmannii)
and the fruit of stringybarks (Eucalyptus baxteri and arenacea).
The Glossies (GBC) that occur in far eastern and north-eastern Victoria
are, I believe, specialised feeders on the cones of Droopoing Sheoaks (A.
verticillata). Neither RTBCs or GBCs feed on introduced pines in
Victoria to the best of my knowledge.
In days of yore (i.e. circa 200 years ago and before), RTBCs
of the ssp graptogyne may have ranged across as far east in
Victoria as the extensive stringybark forests between Geelong and
Ballarat. There is at least one 20th century record from the Otway
Ranges as far as I can recall. I've come across some circumstancial
evidence from Aboriginal faunal vocabulary to suggest that GBCs may
have occurred somewhat continuously through the Drooping Sheoak
woodlands on the Victorian western district plains (thus just about
connecting up with the GBC outliers on Kangaroo Island in South Aus.)
at settlement. However, there is no convincing evidence to suggest
that either RTBCs or GBCs occur anywhere in central-south Victoria
these days.
Some YTBCs show a hint of orange in their yellow tail feathers, and I
can only conclude that this leads to the odd claimed record of anything
other than YTBCs in the centre-south of Victoria.
L.
--
=================================
Lawrie Conole
Senior Ecologist
Ornithology & Terrestrial Ecology
Ecology Australia Pty. Ltd.
Flora and Fauna Consultants
88B Station Street
FAIRFIELD VIC 3078 Australia
E-mail: m("ecologyaustralia.com.au","lconole");">
Internet: http://www.ecologyaustralia.com.au/
Ph: (03) 9489 4191; Mob: (0419) 588 993
Fax: (03) 9481 7679
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