Torrens obs

["Philip Veerman" <>]

Hi Stephen,

 

You asked: "What is the average time for a red wattlebird from hatch to fledge?"

 

HANZAB might have that detail but from The GBS Report (relevant part in bold) although that may include stages before and after hatch to fledge:

"Red Wattlebird Anthochaera carunculata

Our most conspicuous honeyeater, it is noisy, bold, active and aggressive. This species being a resident and the largest and most rambunctious honeyeater, may take over a site that provides a rich food supply and exclude other species. It is among the most recorded species in the count and the breeding list. It is common all year. Over the years the monthly pattern has changed, with a reduced seasonal variation. The same happened with the Noisy Miner. For the first seven years seasonal variation was marked, with a strong autumn to winter peak and a summer minimum, then the next about eight years the extent of this seasonal pattern was reduced. Since 1995 the earlier pattern appears to be occurring again (see extra graph). When all years are combined, the monthly variation is minimal. From July to February is stable, then from March to May the abundance rises when this species migrates, it then declines in June. During migration, groups of up to 50 may be observed. Long-term the species has had a steady increase, its abundance has more than doubled.

There are some early observations of nest building or copulation in late June or in July but most breeding records start after early August. Most records are of dependent young, rather than activities at nest. From the few records that chronicle a whole breeding event, the duration is from 10 to 12 weeks. The breeding period is long and with considerable overlap of nest period and the time that young are dependent. There may be more than one breeding pair simultaneously at many sites, there is also a strong suggestion of double nesting. Mostly activities at nest have ceased by end of December with dependent young from late September till end of February with a few observations as late as early April.
Graphs on pages: 90 and 98, Rank: 6, Breeding Rank: 3, Breeding graph on page: 106, A = 2.00051, F = 97.36%, W = 52.0, R = 74.847%, G = 2.67."

If chicks have gone from the nest and you don't detect them as dependent young (which are quite conspicuous) then it is fairly likely that they were taken by a predator (such as PC).

Philip