Nursery swamp - unusual call [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]

["Whitworth, Benjamin - BRS" <>]

About the call. Initially I thought it was a begging bird, very low, rasping/slightly guttural and slightly metallic, very loud (the rocks may have amplified and deepened the call), and repeated off and on perhaps a currawong, but was not right. But I moved closer and it gave the call more often- so the other option was an alarm call. The fact that the animal could probably see me when it was calling, (even though I couldn’t see it), also backs this up. The call started when I rounded a rock and perhaps frightened it. It stopped calling when I went away, started again when I came close.

I was standing in nursery swamp, it was on the S edge, in thick brush, on a rocky rise (~2m high). When I moved towards it, it would move away silently, up to 20m back or sideways, then start calling again, after trying this 5 or so times I gave up.

It was at ground level, or at least within 1.4m of the ground.

 

I just have a hunch/feeling that this animal was guarding a nest or young. My guess is, some strange lyrebird alarm call, or satin bowerbird, or begging currawong. There were also tracks and wombat poo, so maybe a wombat, maybe a red necked wallaby, swamp wallaby, maybe a bunyip. I don’t think it was a glossy black, I have heard them beg. The fact it moved around reduces the chance of a frog, I think.

Benj

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From: [
Sent: Wednesday, 21 November 2007 12:02 PM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Nursery swamp - unusual call[SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]

Benj 

Your description of the "wraaa" call low and metallic is
quite a good match for Glossy Black Cockatoo. Your judgement on the intensity of
the call would help here. When considering the possibility of it calling from
within a nesting hollow it seems to be well worth following up.

cheers 
Richard

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