Coincidentally, a large noisy flock of
Little Corellas – perhaps 100 birds – was wheeling around above my
house at 445pm. These are surely out-of-town birds, possibly very
recent arrivals.
From: [mailto:]
Sent: Tuesday, June 27, 2006 2:42
PM
To:
Subject: RE: [canberrabirds]
Verges of Griffith
Hi all,
The largest flock of
Little Corellas I have seen in Canberra was 111
birds feeding on the grass beneath trees on the median strip on Parkes Way, between
the foot bridge from Allara Street
to Commonwealth Park and Coranderrk circle pond, on 23
March 2005. Amongst this flock there were also 5 Long-billed Corellas –
also the largest number of this species I have seen in Canberra. The long-bills were clearly
dominant over the littles whenever a dispute occurred!
Harvey
Harvey Perkins
CRC Programme
ph (02) 6240 7103 fax (02) 6123 5525
-----Original Message-----
From: Geoffrey
Dabb [
Sent: Tuesday, 27 June 2006 12:14
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Verges of
Griffith
There are a lot of white cockatoos
around Canberra
streets, perhaps more than in the usual winter. Each morning they
are at work on the nature strips around Red Hill, Narrabundah and Griffith, sometimes
eating acorns under the pin-oaks, sometimes attacking the roots of the
plentiful weeds on the neglected verges. They are mobile. This
morning at 10 am there were more than 300 along about 500 metres of Sturt Street;
by 1030 there were only a dozen or so. You can easily approach to within
a couple of metres of these birds that are so wary in open country. About
12 Little Corellas, possibly our town birds, were spread throughout the
congregation, mainly in isolated pairs and not flocking together. In past
years I have seen as many as 70 corellas in a single-species flock, and I think
that represents a passing influx of a different kind. I noticed one
long-billed, forming a pair with an obviously young little corella.
In Canberra, I
have never seen more than 2 long-billeds at the one time, although I know
others have reported groups. About half the time the long-billed I see is
banded; one around here has a wide metal band, and the one seen today has a
narrow one (below). The long-billed had a distinctive feeding technique,
using its long bill to excavate holes deep enough for its head to disappear
into them. It appears to be seeking the little bulbs that grow at the
base of some urban weed, and indeed can be seen tossing one in its mouth in one
of the below snaps.
