Thanks Mark for the history lesson and your spin on it and I agree with it
all. I think we cannot really hope for the 'urban forest’ idea. Even if
they did replace the old Eucalypts in Gungahlin Town Centre, isolated from
their environment they are unlikely to add much habitat for birds. I
suppose the only thing that makes me hopeful is places like Percival Hill.
If more land is set aside as Nature Reserve (which is what Percival Hill N
R legally is) and replanted to be woodland by government authorities, or,
failing that, by good people like land care, then we will have at least
some pockets of habitat close to suburbia.
On 2/08/2014 1:20 pm, "Mark Clayton" <> wrote:
>In the late 1960's, early 1970's Superb Parrots were a common species in
>the
>area that is now covered by the suburb of Fraser. I used to know people
>who
>owned a property there and Superb Parrots commonly bred in some huge old
>Yellow Box trees. There was also what was probably Canberra's last colony
>of
>Grey-crowned Babblers present on site. The parrots then appeared to die
>out
>for quite a while and it is only in the last decade that they appear to
>have
>made a comeback to the northern part of the ACT. How long they will stay
>remains to be seen as they do tend to follow food resources around. The
>breaking of the drought has probably had quite a bit to do with the birds
>return. On the other hand the ACT Government has done nothing to help them
>by clearing large areas of suitable habitat for housing. From memory,
>someone once said that of the 95 mature Yellow Box and Red Gums in the now
>suburb of Crace, 80 were removed for housing. Several years ago I
>travelled
>along the road that borders Mulligan's Flat NR and was horrified to see
>that
>every tree up to the reserves' boundary had been flattened. As I pointed
>out
>to Chris Davey at the time he was doing surveys to record breeding sites
>for
>the parrots, it is a totally useless exercise to find nests if all their
>food trees are being knocked over. This is what is happening with Regent
>Parrots along the Murray River. They breed in the River Red Gums and feed
>in
>the mallee which is still being cleared for agriculture. They are having
>to
>move further and further to find feeding sites.
>
>I will be interested to see what happens with the Superb Parrots as
>Canberra
>continues to move into critical habitat in the newer Gungahlin suburbs.
>The
>ACT Government plans for so-called "offsets" is a farce and so is their
>so-called "solar orientation "policy which is one of the reasons the trees
>in Crace were removed. All the old Eucalypts near the Gungahlin Town
>centre
>will be dead within the next 50 years and nothing appears to have been
>done
>to start potentially replacing them. As soon a building goes up near them
>they will be removed as potential hazards.
>
>The older I get the more cynical I become about governments and their
>"environmental" policies. I don't think any of them really have a clue!
>
>Mark
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: John Harris
>Sent: Saturday, 2 August 2014 12:18 PM
>To:
>Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] 30 superbs at the mosque
>
>
>
>It¹s gratifying to see the Superbs becoming more visible in Gungahlin.
>They have been nesting here in Mulligans Flat for years but were rare in
>Gungahlin suburbia until the last couple of years and now quite large
>flocks
>this year. They visit Percival Hill now in numbers and I put it down to
>the
>maturing of the trees planted by landcare folk in the late 1990s which are
>now virtually a mature woodland environment.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>On 2/08/2014 11:57 am, "Peter Ormay" <> wrote:
>
>>Hello Chris
>>
>>Yesterday 1-8-14 I watched about a maximum of 30 Superbs near the 3
>>large Yellow Box trees E mell. at the South end of Kate Crace St from
>>9.20am to 10.30am feeding on the ground mainly in native dominated
>>vegetation in strong cold west wind. I could not see what they were
>>feeding on due to the height of the grass.
>>
>>It included a female-looking bird with yellow flecks on its back.
>>
>>The numbers fluctuated as flocks of 8 to 15 SPs flew off South and NE
>>but seemed to return. They seemed skittish while on the ground,
>>possibly due to the strong wind, flying up into the adjacent Yellow
>>Boxes at any disturbance such as a Wood Duck nesting in the Eastern
>>Yellow Box flying over them but they soon came down again.
>>
>>They were feeding mainly between the northern fence (with plain wires)
>>and the inner (with 2 barbed and 3 smooth wires) fence. They also fed
>>south of the inner fence but all within 20m of the Yellow Boxes
>>
>>Peter Ormay
>>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Bill & Raelene
>>Sent: Sunday, 20 July 2014 12:22 PM
>>To:
>>Subject: [canberrabirds] 30 superbs at the mosque
>>
>>Gungahlin Town Centre survey with Angela Plant today. 30 Superbs
>>0910-0930 in large eucs beside mosque site , sth end Kate Crace St.
>>Feeding on the ground, noisy, hanging about, roosting site? Low morning
>>sun gives them a startling, flouro green glow. Total 21 species.
>>Bill Graham
>>
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