Canberra birds in Vanuatu

[martin butterfield <>]

In a recent post I referred to the plague of Common Mynas near the Australian High Commission in Port Vila.  They are still there, and everywhere else in the town.

On a happier note - if dispersion of an intriduced species can be happy - another bird found in Canberra - the Red-browed Finch - also seems to be establishing itself more strongly in Port Vila.  The best bird book for the area "Birds of the Solomons, Vanuatu and New Caledonia" by Chris Doughty, Nicholas Day and Andrew Plant comments that there had been a 'surprise sighting of a small flock' of this species in Port Vila in 1988.  It is no longer surprising to me since one small flock hangs out in a vacant plot next to the Hotel I stay in and another is easy to find near the container terminal (about 1.5km away in a straight line)