Ah, Bruce, if we were certain of what was relevant and what was
not relevant we would know everything.
Invasive? A curious charge by the most invasive species on the
planet. The Common Myna was taken from its homeland and deliberately transplanted,
eventually to Canberra. It has taken advantage of unattended pet (and
stock) food, mis-managed compost heaps and overflowing trash bins, and enters
the countryside only when tempted by town land-fills and the remains of Big
Macs thrown out of car windows, hence its progression along a few of the
more-used highways.
From: Bruce Lindenmayer
[
Sent: Friday, 27 February 2009 10:04 PM
To: ; 'Canberra Birds'
Subject: [canberrabirds] INDIAN MYNAS
The
discussion on the COG chat line, in my view, has missed a few vital points and
has taken the discussion in an irrelevant direction.
Dealing
with the second issue first, there has been quite a bit of discussion
about Indian vs Noisy Miners. Clearly, both Noisy & Bell Miners
have adverse impacts on other native bird species, and several
studies have demonstrated this. But why this should be related to Indian
Myna threats is puzzling. We could talk about lots of other pest species in the
same context!
The
Indian Myna has been classified by the IUCN as one of the World's 100 Most
Invasive Species and Australian National Vertebrate Pests Committee as an
"Extreme Threat". Anyone who has birdwatched in Cairns, Fiji or in
the leafy suburbs and urban parks in Melbourne is confronted with massive
populations, which clearly have excluded almost all small native birds. In
Cairns I understand, populations of between 500 & 1000 per sq km have been
observed. Studies in Canberra Nature Parks in the 1990s have confirmed
agressive displacement of native birds and mammals from nest hollows.
CIMAG
has never pretended to have all the answers on Indian Myna threats,
and we are strongly supporting the work of Chris Tidemann & Kate Grarock to
ensure that the best science underpins our activities.
