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I first spotted 2 pairs of nesting Topknot Pigeons
in Mapleton Forest on 1st February. Mapleton Forest is 20 km west of
Nambour which is 100 km north of Brisbane. I managed to see them because
the males were still bringing twigs whilst the females were
sitting.
On 15th February, both females were firmly
ensconced on the nests, with no other Topknots in sight. On 29th
February, one nest was abandoned - do not know whether the egg was infertile or
predated, though the nest looked perfect still - and the other nest clearly
had a nestling, with the female firstly off the nest, then later
sitting.
On 14th March, the second nest was empty, and
I feared the worst. However, after much searching, I found what I
took to be the juvenile hundered down in a tree further back. I think if I
had left it one more day, I would not have known what had happened.
[The view of these nests was not great, and this final view even
worse!]
Either the birds laid well before the final touches
were added to the nests, or the rearing of young is quicker than the books
suggest! This was 6 weeks precisely from the day I thought the egg
was laid until the young had left the nest.
Can anyone shed any light on this????
Robyn
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