I have been an "unofficial" member of the Coxen's Fig-Parrot Recovery Team
over the past four years, and have been working closely on the project with
Dr. Ian Gynther who heads the effort in S.E.Queensland.
Over that period we have gleaned a lot of information relating to the
local race "maclaeyana" which is quite common in the Wet Tropics lowlands.
With Ian we have taken video of birds plus their nest sites for the sake of
familiarity by the team.
In the following paragraphs I will examine the diversity of known food
resources used by the local sub-species and also a sadly missed opportunity
with a firm breeding record of the Coxen's Fig-Parrot.
Known food resources (maclaeyana):
Obviously the twenty plus local species in the genus "ficus" are used
regulary as food and interestingly some fruit twice a year. Other plants
important to them are mistletoe when feeding young, native (Moluccan)
gooseberry and lantana fruit. They take seeds from native sarsparilla and
melaleuca in open forest. They use larger eucalypt blossom as well as those
of the Silver Quondong. Occassionally the will chew into arboreal termite
mounds seeking termites for protein. Because of these foods I have seen
Fig-Parrots in some very unexpected situations.
Coxen's Fig-Parrot Breeding Record.
The location was near Ettrick, west of Kyogle in north-eastern N.S.W. In
November 1979 a relative in the process of cutting posts for fencing cut
down a dead eucalypt about twenty metres in height. The tree had been dead
for a few years.
Upon inspection of the outer limbs he found a Coxen's Fig-Parrot deceased
along with a newly hatched chick and broken egg. They had come out of an
escavated nest hollow.
Aside from the missed opportunities here I think that it is very important
to give a description of the actual location.
The nest site tree was in an open area seventy metres away fron the
closest tree with foliage (personal comment). And also a kilometre from the
closest "scrub" with fig trees. This actual record was documented with the
Recovery Team soon after it's formation in 1993.
The location of the nest poses some questions:
Why would this bird need to venture into an open area to nest? Are they
restricted to rainforest areas that may have specific types of softwood
trees that may be more suitable for nest excavation? Only time will tell.
The Fig-Parrots in the Wet Tropics are very difficult to show other
observers if they are feeding in a fig any more that ten metres from the
ground....and that is in a Small-leafed Fig (ficus benjamina). I should
imagine that it would be nigh impossible to see one in a huge tree like a
Moreton Bay Fig.
Interestingly in June of this year I described observing 53+ fig-parrots
fly into a huge fruiting fig, in an area where I would have thought that
they were scarce.
Recognition of the Coxens' call may in turn be an acquired ability as
the only guides that I know have heard then come from the Wet Tropics.
I hope that this information may be of help.
Regards,
Del. Richards, Mossman, NQ.
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