Hi birders
I've just come back from a week of lazing about at Wye River in the eastern
Otway Ranges near Lorne,
SW Victoria. No deliberate birding occurred, but a general list from between
the house and the
beach (circa 500m) follows below. The usual highlights included Rufous
Bristlebirds in the back
yard, Koalas everywhere (highlight for the punters, lowlight for me - there are
way too many in this
area, and some trees are beginning to show it), Satin Bowerbirds in the garden
(including full
coloured male), King Parrots everywhere; etc.
The main birding highlight undoubtedly was the circa 500 White-throated
Needletails that were
milling overhead most of the afternoon on 13/12/03. Approximately a quarter of
them were obviously
in some stage of primary feather moult, with obvious gaps where the inner
primaries should be. They
were circling over and around Wye River from about 1100 when I first noticed
them, until about 1700
when I noticed they'd gone. The weather was overcast, mild-warm, unsettled
with an occasional wind
gust and light shower.
I'm writing here mostly to seek some feedback on interesting behaviour of Satin
Bowerbirds and Grey
Currawongs in a Feijoa (Acca [syn. Feijoa] sellowiana) tree. Nothing strange
about either species
being in a fruit tree such as a Feijoa - except that there was no fruit (it
usually comes later in
Summer). Both were eating petals from the flowers! The bowerbird was expertly
picking off petals
and swallowing them whole - the currawong somewhat inexpertly pulling off
segements of petal and
swallowing them. I tried one too - and found it to be slightly sweet and a bit
fleshy, but of
rubbery texture.
Question - have any other birders out there observed either of these birds
eating Feijoa petals (or
other flower petals)? ... or other bird species doing so? Satin Bowerbirds are
apparently known to
eat leaves as well as fruit, but I've found no mention of them eating any
flower parts. Likewise,
Grey Currawongs are fairly omnivorous and opportunistic - but I don't know
about flowers.
Apparently this behaviour is well known by birds in the Feijoa's home range
centred on Brazil, and
in New Zealand (which bird species??), and seems to be 'designed' to facilitate
bird pollination.
Cheers, Lawrie
Australian Wood Duck Chenonetta jubata
Pacific Black Duck Anas superciliosa
Australasian Gannet Morus serrator
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
Nankeen Kestrel Falco cenchroides
Masked Lapwing Vanellus miles
Pacific Gull Larus pacificus
Silver Gull Larus novaehollandiae
Crested Tern Sterna bergii
Common Bronzewing Phaps chalcoptera
Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus funereus
Gang-gang Cockatoo Callocephalon fimbriatum
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua galerita
Australian King-Parrot Alisterus scapularis
Crimson Rosella Platycercus elegans
Fan-tailed Cuckoo Cacomantis flabelliformis
Southern Boobook Ninox boobook
White-throated Needletail Hirundapus caudacutus
Laughing Kookaburra Dacelo novaeguineae
Superb Fairy-wren Malurus cyaneus
Spotted Pardalote Pardalotus punctatus
Striated Pardalote Pardalotus striatus
Rufous Bristlebird Dasyornis broadbenti
White-browed Scrubwren Sericornis frontalis
Brown Thornbill Acanthiza pusilla
Striated Thornbill Acanthiza lineata
Red Wattlebird Anthochaera carunculata
Little Wattlebird Anthochaera chrysoptera
Yellow-faced Honeyeater Lichenostomus chrysops
Singing Honeyeater Lichenostomus virescens
White-eared Honeyeater Lichenostomus leucotis
Brown-headed Honeyeater Melithreptus brevirostris
White-naped Honeyeater Melithreptus lunatus
Crescent Honeyeater Phylidonyris pyrrhoptera
New Holland Honeyeater Phylidonyris novaehollandiae
Eastern Spinebill Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris
Rose Robin Petroica rosea
Eastern Yellow Robin Eopsaltria australis
Golden Whistler Pachycephala pectoralis
Grey Shrike-thrush Colluricincla harmonica
Magpie-lark Grallina cyanoleuca
Grey Fantail Rhipidura albiscarpa
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike Coracina novaehollandiae
Australian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen
Pied Currawong Strepera graculina
Grey Currawong Strepera versicolor
Little Raven Corvus mellori
Satin Bowerbird Ptilonorhynchus violaceus
House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Red-browed Finch Neochmia temporalis
European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis
Mistletoebird Dicaeum hirundinaceum
Welcome Swallow Hirundo neoxena
Tree Martin Hirundo nigricans
Australian Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus australis
Silvereye Zosterops lateralis
Bassian Thrush Zoothera lunulata
Common Blackbird Turdus merula
Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris
Short-beaked Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus
Koala Phascolarctos cinereus
Sugar Glider Petaurus breviceps
Common Ringtail Possum Pseudocheirus peregrinus
Common Brushtail Possum Trichosurus vulpecula
White-striped Freetail-bat Nyctinomus australis
Gould's Wattled Bat Chalinolobus gouldii
Cool-temperate Water-skink Eulamprus tympanum
Pale-flecked Garden Sunskink Lampropholis guichenoti
Common Brown Heteronympha merope
Common Grass-Blue Zizina labradas
70 species
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lawrie Conole
17 Stafford Street
NORTHCOTE Vic 3070 AUSTRALIA
<> or <>
Ph 9486 4542 Mob 0419 588 993
Senior Ecologist
Ecology Australia Pty Ltd
88 B Station Street
FAIRFIELD Vic 3078 AUSTRALIA
www.ecologyaustralia.com.au
BH 03 9489 4191 Mob 0419 588 993
Fax 03 9481 7679
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
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