Oh, I thought that was the term for a collection of birders!
McLaughlin, Duncan MR wrote:
An asylum of cuckoos.
Hi Stuart.
Great shots of the cuckoos! I'm so glad that you captured those images because
the ones I got were of such poor quality that even my mother wouldn't have
believed me (and she almost ALWAYS buys my lies!).
Your observations on feeding were "spot on" and seems quite different than
the other cuckoos I've seen, particularly the Pallids and Fan-tailed that
seem to "flycatch" more often.
I do hope that others get out to see this pair. What is an aggregation of
cuckoos called, by the way? A "cluster"?
Anthony Overs had asked for a little blurb for the newsletter. It would
certainly be more persuasive with your photos.
By the way, Martin Butterfield provided a Google map and I think the approximate
spot (assuming directions are true) is noted on the attached image.
Chip
Stuart Harris wrote:
Frank, et al
I followed Chip's Hot tip for the Black-eared Cuckoo this morning and
looked for it between 0915-1115 in the area described.
I didn't find one.....I found two! There were Horsfield's Bronze in the
area also and a very curious Tawny Frogmouth. The 'Cuckoos' all seemed
to be feeding on the same item, a grub which i deduce is the larvae for
a small orange moth which I discovered throughout the River Oaks (Casuarina
Cunninghamiana) there. The Cuckoos were actively feeding in the smaller
River Oaks close to the carpark, not the giant old ones towards the
river.
The Black-eared Cuckoos were quite feisty, making photography difficult
but i managed to get a few reasonable shots, some of which are posted
to my Flickr site:
m("N00/?saved","//www.flickr.com/photos/50364443");=1">http:=1
The Black-eareds seemed to have an insatiable appetite for the grubs and
flitted between brranches, flying or hopping no more than one metre at
a time. Sometimes they would invert. They did not seem to be to troubled
by my presence or that of a large mower in the area. No calls were heard
in the two hours there (other than one call from an immature Horsfield's
toward the end). On a few occasions the two Black-eareds would perch
together on a branch and chitter though no 'breeding nor courting-like
behaviour was noted.
Once again, thanks to Chip Scialfa for his diligence and awareness in
percieving this uncommon species to our area. Hopefully a few more COGsters
will have the opportunity to see the Black-eared before they move on (if
indeed they do).
Regards
Stuart Harris
"Everything is relative, everything is valid!"
> Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 09:34:55 +1000
> From: m("fwi.net.au","fantram");">
> To: m("ucalgary.ca","scialfa");">;
> Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] black-eared cuckoo at uriarra picnic
area
>
> I went out to Uriarra this morning at 5.30am for an hour and a half
but, unfortunately, no sign of your cuckoo. Both Horsfield's and Shining
were in the area, though. I would be interested to see your photos, Chip,
if you'd like to send them to me?
>
> Regards
> Frank Antram
>
> -----Original message-----
> From: Chip m("ucalgary.ca","scialfa");">
> Date: Tue, 09 Oct 2007 21:06:41 +1000
> To: m("canberrabirds.org.au","canberrabirds");">
> Subject: [canberrabirds] black-eared cuckoo at uriarra picnic area
>
> > I would like to report what I believe to have been a Black-eared
cuckoo
> > at the Uriarra picnic area today. The details are below. Although
I
> > didn't have my camera, as I was watching the bird a visiting
Japanese
> > professor walked by. I asked if he had a camera with a zoom
lens and he
> > did. Unfortunately, the two images he sent only show the body
and
> > undertail feathers. There is no face. They may still be useful
but are
> > rather large images so I won't attach them now.
> >
> > Oh, other birds of note were Brown falcon, Gray currawong, Satin
> > flycatcher (singing).
> >
> > Here are the details.
> >
> > Date: October 9, 2007
> > Time: 12:30 13:15 pm
> > Location: Uriarra picnic area parking lot, near the bathrooms,
in the
> > causarinas (sp?) between the parking lot and the river.
> > Lighting: Sun with partial cloud
> > Weather: 20 C, Fine with negligible wind
> >
> > Closest viewing distance: 4 meters at 30 deg gaze angle
> > Average viewing distance: 6 meters at 60 deg gaze angle
> > Optics: B&L 7X36 Elites
> >
> > Details
> >
> > Size: The size of a bronze cuckoo. Comparison species was YFHE
in same
> > tree. This bird was larger and seemed proportionately more chunky.
> > Tail: About the length of the body.
> > Primary projection: Considerably shorter than tail.
> > Bill: black, slightly decurved and slender. In fact, almost
delicate and
> > not at all conical.
> > Upper parts: Gray, including crown. Some downy feathers on scapulars.
> > Lower parts: White. No steaking or barring on breast, belly
or flanks.
> > Face: Black eye stripe extending from base of bill to auricular
area and
> > slightly decurved. Rather dirty border with a white supercilium
that was
> > of equal width.
> > Undertail feathers: Edged white with white barring on gray ground.
> > Underwing pattern: Not observed.
> >
> > Why not either likely cuckoo-shrike? Size, white supercilium,
thin bill,
> > lack of barring on breast and barring on undertail feathers.
> >
> > Chip Scialfa
> > Calgary and Canberra
> >
> >
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