canberrabirds

Choughs

To: John Layton <>, "" <>
Subject: Choughs
From: Peter Cranston <>
Date: Sun, 19 Jul 2020 00:13:59 +0000
Ron Heinsohn provided some background in relation to chough domestic violence. I'm sure he'd agree to share the insights, including drought as a factor.

>>Yes choughs can be cruel, usually to other groups but sometimes to their own group members. This depends on how the group was formed. If the younger birds are all the offspring of the breeding pair life within the group is usually pretty peaceful. This happens after long periods (several years) of good weather with the groups just getting bigger and bigger, but united by their shared genetics.

But if the group is composed of two or more factions of relatives that joined forces then there can be big power struggles within the group for the breeding positions. This type of group formation happens most during the drought years when lots of birds die and groups break up and reform. The power struggles tend to be won by older choughs who dispersed with offspring or others from their previous group. Those that disperse by themselves have more trouble finding a breeding spot. So what I suspect is that your poor lonely bird was a disperser who tried to join up with other unrelated birds but didn't have the support it needed to consolidate its position in the new group, and was ultimately kicked out. A lone chough, calling plaintively, is a sorry sight I agree.<<

pete cranston


From: John Layton <>
Sent: Sunday, July 19, 2020 5:38 AM
To: 'Susan Robertson' <>; <>
Cc: 'Constanza León' <>
Subject: Re: [Canberrabirds] Choughs
 

Going on my observations of chough behaviour such a large gathering indicates that perhaps two separate groups have happened upon one another. Such chance encounters are accompanied by noisy agonistic behaviour and, as you suggest, courting behaviour may also occur. I’d further postulate that if one group is short of members then it may be seizing the opportunity to inveigle birds from the opposing group to join them.

 

John Layton

Holt.

 

 

From: Susan Robertson [
Sent: Saturday, 18 July 2020 12:36 PM
To:
Cc: 'Constanza León
Subject: [Canberrabirds] Choughs

 

There were 30 – 35 choughs in Glebe Park near the entry from Amaroo Street today.  There is one nest in a willow about 100 metres along that path with some choughs visiting it..  Is it unusual to have such a large number of choughs?  Quite a bit of courting behaviour going on with several of them.  Perhaps the group will split up?

Susan Robertson

 

 

 

 

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