Philip
I agree a bit of scepticism of a report of a bird way out of its range
is not unwarranted.
Greg Little
-----Original Message-----
From:
On Behalf Of Philip Veerman
Sent: Thursday, 13 September 2007 4:50 PM
To: David Stowe;
Cc: Birding-aus Aus
Subject: Rufous Owl Photos
What a curious story. Lucky that there are photos. I defend the act of
suggesting an alternate identification, as we probably have all made
mistakes in our bird identifications. I do not think that makes me a
"knocker". We can only go by the information we have at the time. Such
comments should be made and received in good faith (as in this time).
Sometimes they will be right and sometimes not. It certainly looks like
a Rufous Owl. The photo shows how much a Rufous Owl looks like a Brown
Goshawk in its plumage pattern, but not shape (not something I had
thought of before).
It is curious though that somehow this bit was now added which was not
mentioned at the start: "According to the photographer, it was brought
over from Queensland to the Wildlife Bird Park in Margaret River.
Apparently it escaped 2 years ago and from its appearance seems to be
coping quite well by itself." If that had been known from the start,
then there would be no need to question the record. (Maybe Amy did not
know then.)
That makes the story an interesting one really only as to the birds'
survival and also it is strange it had not been reported before.
I also agree with the comment: Actually, the next question is "shouldn't
the wildlife park now be held responsible for removing this large
non-native predator?" There is benefit for all concerned if such
establishments notify wildlife authorities and local bird groups of such
events, so that there is a greater chance of such animals being refound.
Philip
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