Proposition: That the visibility of
Latham's Snipe at Kelly Swamp has declined sharply over the last 6 years.
I base this on the seasons 1999-2003 when on
most mornings one could find up to 5 or so snipe feeding in view, often right in
front of and close to the hides, not disturbed even by shrill cries of 'wow,
look at the snipe!' coming from inside them. Now (2006-2009), a glimpse
of one or two snipe in the southern marshy area or the inlet channel is the
most one can expect. I do not assert there are less snipe, although this
may be the case, but they are certainly harder to see.
Here are some possibilities:
a) Snipe numbers overall are down. With all the
effort put into wader study, it should be possible to learn more about this,
perhaps from studies at the breeding sites.
b) Less snipe are coming to the Canberra area. I do
not know, and do not know how you could find out, whether that is so.
Certainly one or two snipe are regularly reported from elsewhere around the
suburbs. They might be favouring other spots (seed d. below), or there
might be more, or more reporting, observers. There was a report of 19
seen in the proposed JW refuge area in 2007-2008.
c) The snipe are more timid. Perhaps they are being hunted
somewhere along their migratory range. I do not know how you could learn
more about that.
d) Kellys is less attractive to snipe. I think this is
quite possible. However the conditions and the number of visitors seem
about the same. Without more information on a. – c., this seems to me to
be a credible explanation. Perhaps there is some factor at work we do not know
about. Perhaps the repeated drying-out spells have reduced the earthworm
population. I would not blame the cattle, present at all relevant times,
or the foxes, for the same reason. One possibility I would have on the
list is the number of swamphens and moorhens. These have bred up
noticeably and they are aggressive species (particularly swamphens) towards
birds the same size or smaller. They constantly patrol the shallows and
grassy verges that are the usual haunt of the snipe.
Although conveying a familiar impression of the
swamp, I should caution that this photograph, as the alert swamp-frequenter will
perceive, was subject to a teensy bit of addition to illustrate this
contribution.
From: Steve Holliday [
Sent: Friday, 13 February 2009 3:06 PM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Kellys Swamp
A midday visit to the wetlands, very few ducks, large areas
of exposed mud starting to appear, especially at the southern end, looks good
for shorebirds but 3 Black-fronted Dotterels, including a juvenile, and 2
Lapwings was all I could find. Plenty of White Ibis and at least 4 Royal
Spoonbills, a mix of young and adult birds.
At Crake Alley there is also some exposed mud appearing
amongst the reeds. Feeding on it today were Fairy-wrens, WB Scrubwrens, Little
Grassbirds (2+), Reed Warblers, Spotless crakes (2+), and a single Latham's
Snipe which didn't hang around. There was also an extended moorhen family with 3
adults and 4 young birds foraging in the area.
cheers
Steve
