>2) Does anyone know why Eastern Yellow Robins cling to the side of small
>trees, bushes, etc as oppose to perching "upright" on a branch while
>foraging? Any thoughts on this would be welcomed.
I don't know, but I have always assumed that birds that perch this way (and
other robins do it too) may be surveying for a different range of insects
from those that perch upright on branches - particularly for insects of
lower strata and trunks. The extreme of this behaviour may be the
"flushing" actions of Pied Monarchs.
>3) In terms of the number of people who have seen fairy-wrens which
>species is the most commonly seen across Australia? I would guess that
>the Superb Fairy-wren is because it resides in the more populated regions
>of the country.
Surely the Variegated Wren (in its many forms) is the most widespread
geographically - but as the Superb is the species of areas like Sydney and
Melbourne it may be the one seen by the most people.
>4) Granted that fairy-wrens look different from each other, but do they
>also have commonly known differences in behaviour across species or do all
>species act pretty much the same? There is much written about the Superb
>fairy-wren, but I have failed to find information on the behaviour of the
>other species.
There are a number of papers on the behaviour of other fairy wrens by such
authors as Ian Rowley and Robert Payne; look in recent issues of THE EMU,
including the guide to literature supplement published jointly with the
American and British Ornithologists' Unions.
--
Ronald I. Orenstein Phone: (905) 820-7886
International Wildlife Coalition Fax/Modem: (905) 569-0116
1825 Shady Creek Court
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada L5L 3W2 Internet:
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