Dear Russell,
To take up your suggestion, this is some very impressionistic stuff
about spring migrants from my database of bird records from Bayside,
south-east Melbourne. It includes published and unpublished records
(back to the mid 1800s) but is not comprehensive.
As far as species go I don't think there's been much change in the last
20 years: Brown and Rufous Songlark, Singing Bushlark, Olive-backed
Oriole all still turn up every few years. Satin Flycatcher and
White-winged Triller seem to have appeared more often in the last 5
years: an artifact due to the level of recording ?
The big change was about 40 years ago when Rufous Whistlers and Welcome
Swallows started to decline and Pallid Cuckoo became a passage bird. The
latter are still around but numbers may be a tenth of what they were.
Development, pesticides, drainage.... ??
An oddity this year is Goldfinch. Scarcely a day goes by without one or
two flying over northwards.
Also new last dates (since the 1970s) for both Boobook and Grey
Shrike-thrush (both of which seem now to be only cold weather migrants
to the area). Bassian Thrush found dead last week (and one was netted at
Braeside Park three weeks ago).
Michael Norris
Michael Norris
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