Stephen,
You wrote:
>
> It would be interesting to know if the lyrebirds that were introduced into
> Tasmania from the mainland in the 1930s & '40s continued to mimic calls of
> some mainland bird species that aren't present in Tasmania (if they did so
> beforehand), or if they readily began to mimic local bird calls instead.
HANZAB entry for Superbs, Volume 5, page 158:
"LEARNING FROM CONSPECIFICS VERSUS LEARNING FROM OTHER SPECIES: At
Poowong, Vic., continued to mimic the calls of species that had left the
area 15 years previously, and did not mimic the calls of newly arrived
species (Cook 1916). In Tas., where species was introduced from the
mainland, birds continued to mimic Pilotbirds and Eastern Whipbirds which do
not occur in Tas.; mimicry of Whipbird was still clearly identifiable in
1963, although mimicry not perfect (Sharland 1944; Fleay 1952; Wall &
Wheeler 1966), and was barely recognisable by the 1980s (Reilly 1988; Smith
1988; Robinson & Curtis 1996). Mimicry of Tasmanian endemic species, such
as Green Rosella Platytcercus caledonicus and Black Curawong Strepera
fuliginosa, was occurring by 1950, in an area close to which mainland birds
were released in 1934 (Wall & Wheeler 1966); a later report adds Yellow
Wattlebird Anthochaera paradoxa, Yellow-throated Honeyeater Lichenostomus
flavicollis, and Black-headed Honeyeater Melithreptus affinis (Smith 1988).
Cheers
Syd
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