On Sunday 8 August the first Noisy Friarbirds (that I've been told of)
returned to Canberra; this is a week or two earlier than average, and gives
us hope for spring! There is also a report of groups of moving Red
Wattlebirds. This is indicative but a bit harder to be certain of, as RWBs
are only 'partial migrants' in that a large part of the population stays on.
It makes sense for the big birds to be among the first back, in terms of
body heat loss. It's been a mild winter here (relatively!) and lots of
Yellow-faced and Fuscous HEs have stayed on, which happens in such years.
I've been away a lot, hence the lack of Canberra Hotline Highlights; I'm off
yet again in a couple of weeks, but on returning in late September I'll
resume the reports. Meantime I'll make ad hoc reports on migrant returns.
Cheers
Ian
Ian Fraser, Canberra
Environment Tours; Vertego Environmental Writing Consultancy
GPO Box 3268, Canberra, ACT 2601
ph: 02 6249 1560 fax: 02 6247 3227
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