canberrabirds

INDIAN MYNAS

To: "'Canberra Birds'" <>
Subject: INDIAN MYNAS
From: "Geoffrey Dabb" <>
Date: Sat, 28 Feb 2009 09:09:41 +1100

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.

 

Bruce Lindenmayer

 

 

 

 

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