Meat Eating Rainbow Lorikeets

["Philip Veerman" <>]

Yes indeed, then there is the item that it is "quite common" or at least several independent reports for cockatoos in aviaries to routinely bite the heads off sparrows that poke their heads in through the wire of the enclosure when they are trying to get in and get momentarily stuck before being able to pull back out when they find they can't get through. Though I'm not sure if the heads are then eaten.

In this case it is of course unknowable if the lorikeets would identify the red stuff on the tray as animal protein.

 

Philip

 

-----Original Message-----
From: John Harris [
Sent: Tuesday, 24 March 2015 8:39 AM
To: Philip Veerman; 'kym bradley'
Cc: ; 'COG chatline'
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Meat Eating Rainbow Lorikeets

Yes it is strange but not baffling. The expert whose name I missed on ABC Radio this morning seemed quite amazed that a parrot should eat meat. 

Caged birds do for a start. I had a pet galah and I regularly gave him a chicken bone. I eventually moved him into a cage with some parrots who quickly learned to envy his bone and it caused a lot of squabbles. 

Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos near-destroyed a remnant yellow box tree on Percival Hill ripping the branches up and eating the wood grubs.

I think that the bird psychology going on here is that a lorikeet would not normally RECOGNISE that meat was food or that they might like to eat it. But in certain cicumstances they learn this – from other birds or in this case, just the fact that meat and seed may be put out together.

 

 

From: Philip Veerman <>Date: Monday, 23 March 2015 11:31 pmTo: 'kym bradley' <>
Cc: "" <m("griffith.edu.au","d.jones");">>, chatline <>
Subject: RE: [canberrabirds] Meat Eating Rainbow Lorikeets

What is ironic about the article is that it does not identify that the bird they have ousted from the feeder is a butcherbird. Sure it is odd if they are preferring to eat meat over normal food.They are taking processed food in a situation where they presumably also get fed seeds.  I suggest that "baffling" is a bit over stated, as captive held other parrots may eat meat and this is an almost equally artificial situation. The Kea is a predator of sheep and eggs & young of shearwaters.

 

Philip

 

-----Original Message-----
From: kym bradley
Sent: Monday, 23 March 2015 6:53 PM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Meat Eating Rainbow Lorikeets

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-23/rainbow-lorikeets-eating-meat-baffles-bird-experts/6337984