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Hello all,
On 17/8/2000 I posted a list of birds I recorded recently at Cowans Ponds,
Grafton, NSW.
One bird on that list, Torresian Crow, has been queried.
I think the query is quite reasonable and would like to give some more
details.
Also, I would be interested in other people's records of corvids at this
site.
The suggestion is that I was really looking at Australian Raven.
My identification was based on my perception of the call and the appearance
of the bird.
The call seemed to me to be somewhat 'different' to any of the many calls
that the Torresian Crows in my backyard at Woody Point, SEQ, make.
I felt it had more of the 'raven' quality to it; it seemed more drawn
out.
Admittedly, I did hesitate at first but I felt in the end that it was more
likely to be a 'raven' call than a 'crow' call.
I don't feel that size is a reliable feature when identifying crow/raven as
the crows around my way vary in size quite markedly.
Some of 'my' crows are enormous while others are seemingly quite
small.
The size of the corvids I was observing at Grafton were 'average'.
However, I did observe what I considered to be obvious
throat-hackles.
This feature, I feel, can be a bit of a problem for some observers as both
species often display throat-hackles to some degree or another.
A-Raven has the longest and most obvious throat-hackles but T-Crow does
have smaller throat-hackles which can have one wondering.
I am sure that this has led to some of the claims of A-Raven from my local
area; I have never seen A-Raven anywhere near my local area.
My theory is that if you only 'think' you see throat-hackles you are
probably not looking at an A-Raven.
A-Raven throat-hackles 'hit-you-in-the-eye'.
Having said all that, I would be willing to admit I was wrong.
(I am easily lead in these matters and I definitely would never get into an
argument on the subject :-})
I may have been influenced to a degree by my interpretation of the
distribution maps in my field guides.
It seemed to me that Grafton was just outside the normal distribution range
for T-Crow.
However, having consulted The Atlas, I now believe that Grafton is just
inside the recognised distribution range for T-Crow.
It seems that both species have been reported from the area.
Is this correct?
Has anyone else recorded Australian Raven from the area of Cowans Ponds,
Grafton, NSW?
One species I did not include on the list was thornbill.
I did observe, fleetingly, a thornbill species that I could not positively
identify.
I believe it was either a Buff-rumped or a Yellow-rumped.
There was only one bird.
The light was not good and I could not get a good look at the head but I
felt it was not spotted as in Yellow-rumped.
However, the rump appeared to have more yellow than Buff-rumped.
The call was a 'tinkling' one.
The bird foraged about a metre above the ground.
Has anyone recorded either species at Cowans Ponds?
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