Likewise here in Coburg, inner N Melbourne. The local population roosts in
palm trees near the corner of Bell St and Sydney Rd (becomes Hume Highway)
just adjacent to Coburg Shopping strip with thousands of cars, trams and ~ 5
bus routes. Before the lorikeets arrived some years ago this was the domain
of the Mynahs. I'm always intrigued to find the 2 species still share the
roost. The lorikeets go in first and the mynahs wait.
A friend recently told me of the experience of waiting for a bus on BUSY
peak morning Bell St in nearby Preston. Hundreds of Rainbows were noisily
and energetically feeding in and flying around flowering Spotted Gums in the
tiny strip (~1m wide) in the middle of the road. He watched in horror and
amazement expecting any moment the flying about birds to come to grief in
the traffic. This did not happen. Then a distress call went through the
group and they took off. He looked about expecting to find a raptor. Instead
a group of S C Cockatoos landed in the same trees - again without mishap
with the considerable traffic which included lots of trucks. The bullies had
little interest in the Euc flowers. They pottered about for a bit, some
snipped off some twigs of blooms and they too departed, unscathed.
Apart from the relative warmth of this locality due to the heat sink ('tar,
brick and cement') effect on this Rainbow roosting site; possibly the 2
long, large roads provide handy navigational aids to finding the roost. In
these sparsely treed suburbs the rainbows have to range far and wide to find
fruit and flowers on which to feed. They also seem to have favoured staging
points. I have a couple of tall Eucs in front of my place and they seem to
visit these (noisily) for grooming, socialising etc on there outward and
inward journeys.
Wendy
|
