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Hi Birders,
There has been some speculation that
the SIPO at Patches Beach, South Ballina could be the same bird as being seen in
SE Queensland. I doubt that this is the case, because this same SIPO has
frequented the long beach between Ballina & Evans Head, usually somewhere on
Patches Beach from the 6th November 1998 up to the present. While the reporting
rate has dropped significantly since 1999 when the bird's presence was first
publicised, the bird has been regularly reported at the same site ever since
then. At the time the bird was regularly being reported at Ballina, the other
SIPO (s) were being seen near Brisbane.
Banding and colour-banding of Pied
Oystercatchers has been taking place throughout the world for a long time. In
fact for many years (as I remember) the oldest known banded bird was a Pied
Oystercatcher (UK species) that had been banded 29 years before. This longevity
record has now been eclipsed by Australian Magpies, Wandering Albatross and
other species but other people know more about this than I do.
Alan Morris
records Officer, Birding
NSW
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