From 4.15 this afternoon, we
attempted to count the Swifties as they came through. We had 21 definites, and
possibly as many as 30 over a period of about three quarters of an hour.
Flocks of 6 and 15 were settled in trees at the same time, and we suspect another
small group flew in during this period. Twenty minutes after this lot
disappeared a group of 5 flew through, whether these were some of the same
birds as earlier is uncertain, but I suspect they were different. Although most
settled in trees near the water at some stage, none were seen coming down to
drink.
Far fewer currawongs in the area
than when Geoffrey made his observations, so little interacting Not so with
several Noisy Miners which were quite aggressive towards the Swifties, one in
particular spent a lot of time chasing them
Cheers
Steve
From: Geoffrey Dabb
[
Sent: Thursday, 24 April 2008 1:53 PM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Swift Parrots and UM Galah
At the overflow gully this morning there
were only infrequent views of small groups of SPs, about 6 flocks in 2 hours
(7-15). They were being relentlessly chased by currawongs and did not
descend below the treetops. One currawong engaged in a prolonged aerial pursuit
of a single SP. This behaviour was a contrast to the relatively relaxed
and confiding flocks of 2005 - some of which are on the YouTube
video Frank has drawn attention to.
Nearby was a tagged and banded UM (‘unhappy male’?) Galah feeding on
the ground, if anyone is looking for such. So far as I can make out the
band says in part (top line) ‘DUF6 (or DUFS)’
and under that ‘200’ or ‘20D’.
