Irony

[Anthony Overs <>]

Hi Rob

Yep the two oystercatchers occupy different habitats. Essentially the Pied is a beach nesting bird, foraging on sandbars, estuaries and tidal mudflats. Sometimes grassy areas too. A pair at Moruya Head (south) likes to stay on the intertidal flats but occasionally goes over to the grassy areas including the airport. The Sooty is a rocky shore bird and breeds on offshore islands. Sometimes each species can be found in the habitat of the other. Any rocky headland, look for Sooty; any estuary, look for Pied.

Anthony

2009/10/9 Rob Geraghty <>

--- On Fri, 10/9/09, Anthony Overs <> wrote:
> My favourite personal example was seeing a Sooty
> Oystercatcher on Fraser Island. A rocky shore bird standing
> on the largest sand island in the world. The bird looked
> more puzzled than I did...

Is the habit of the Sooty Oystercatcher different from the Pied?  I remember the first time I went to Fraser back in about 1984 there was a pair of Oystercatchers every 200m along the whole of the main beach (and Cooloola) - mostly Pied, but some Sooty as well I think.  There's not present anymore and I suspect that fishermen eliminating the pippies are the main reason, aside from the sheer quantity of vehicles on the beach.  So at least in Qld I've seen Oystercatchers on beaches more often than on rocks.

Rob