Noisy miners and egrets and the like (part 2)

["Chris Sanderson" <>]

Hi Philip and Colin,

 

While in Broome I was told of a very simple experiment conducted on a beach of Roebuck Bay.  A simple kite was flown above near a flock of migratory waders, and this sent them into a panic that saw them move away down the beach.

 

The waders of Broome are very used to raptors and their various shapes - I even observed an Osprey fishing amongst a flock of waders without causing distress (it plunged into the water only 2 metres from the edge of the flock!).  I have also observed an Osprey fly over during a bright midday when it would have been only a silhouette, and the entire flock of 5000 went up.  So I think for waders at least it is a combination of how well they can see the object, and how familiar they are with it.  A flock will eventually become desensitised to the presence of observers with scopes, but if you poke your head too far above a hill when the birds haven't seen you yet, expect them to panic.

 

How this applies to Noisy Miners and Egrets is totally hypothetical (we are talking different families with very different habits), however the Miners were probably either unfamiliar with the Egret, had only a very poor view of it so they thought it might be a danger, or perhaps a third option is the Egrets in your area have learnt to take Miner chicks from nests and the Miners now percieve them as a danger?

 

All hypothesis, you can only solve something like this through extended observation I feel.

 

Regards,

Chris

Brisbane, QLD