Is his problem really with the fact that they eat baby birds, or that it pecked
him? I'd say his real problem is that people are feeding them, otherwise it
would have run for its life when he was still 20m away.
Peter Shute
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
> On Behalf Of
> Dave Torr
> Sent: Wednesday, 5 October 2011 11:02 AM
> To: David Stowe
> Cc: birding-aus
> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Predator most fowl
>
> Let's face it - an awful lot of birds (including honeyeaters and some
> parrots) eat other animals. But so long as they are "only"
> insects etc and
> not cute baby ducks no-one "cares"! I remember when I used to
> keep chooks in
> the backyard being most surprised the first time their
> scratchings uncovered
> a mouse nest - they really loved those baby mice!
>
> On 5 October 2011 10:54, David Stowe
> <> wrote:
>
> > Surely this is no different to so many birds that prey on
> living creatures
> > - particularly but by no means limited to raptors??
> > Square-tailed Kites take nestlings from other birds as
> their specialty - do
> > we call them mean?
> >
> > Cheers
> > David Stowe
> >
> >
> > On 05/10/2011, at 9:55 AM, sandra henderson wrote:
> >
> > I share his views - I've certainly seen a swamphen take a
> duckling - in
> > fact
> > I managed a pic of it (right place, right time). It's online at
> > m("N00/4200006390/","//www.flickr.com/photos/59388783");">http:
> >
> > It carried the duckling back to its own nest, pulled it
> apart and fed it to
> > its own youngsters. All quite gruesome, and mother Black
> duck appeared very
> > upset. this happened a couple of years ago in Norgrove Park
> in Canberra, a
> > small man-made wetland on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin.
> >
> > sandra henderson
> > canberra
> >
> > On Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 10:27 PM, Debbie Lustig
> > <>wrote:
> >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > In his Saturday Age column on 1/10, 'The case against the
> swamphen',
> > Robert
> > > Drewe described the Purple Swamphen thus:
> > >
> > > 'It's a tallish, bulky, gaunt bird...taller than the
> average rooster and,
> > > in a masked Darth Vader sort of way, more menacing in
> appearance...[It]
> > has
> > > sinister black feathers, which blend into an oily purple
> ruff around the
> > > neck. [Its head has] a red skullcap of plastic-looking,
> cartilaginous
> > stuff,
> > > which descends into a mask from which black eyes glint
> cunningly and a
> > > disproportionately large, horny beak.
> > >
> > > 'The swamphen has an edgy demeanour, skinny legs and
> three long, unwebbed
> > > toes...on which it strides and sprints across reeds and lily-pads,
> > > defecating heedlessly as it goes.'
> > >
> > > Next, about the swamphen's supposed lack of flying
> prowess: '[It] flaps
> > and
> > > flies about as high and successfully as a domestic chicken.'
> > >
> > > The real point of the piece comes after all this,
> arguably slanderous
> > stuff
> > > (can you slander a bird?).
> > >
> > > Drewe witnessed swamphens grabbing ducklings and cygnets.
> He claims to
> > have
> > > seen this at least three times. Then, recently, one bit
> him while he
> > tried
> > > to jog around it. Hence, the ugly, hate-crime rhetoric
> about its looks
> > and
> > > demeanour. (It's a very funny article.)
> > >
> > > Never having suffered an attack by one, I must leap to
> the defence of
> > > swamphens. They're fun to photograph with some bit of
> stuff in their
> > (long,
> > > unwebbed) feet. And they fly quite fast round these
> parts. Wandering
> > around
> > > on top of huge reed beds is pretty neat, too.
> > >
> > > Could it be time to start a Purple Swamphen Appreciation Society?
> > >
> > > Has anyone apart from (professional yarnspinner) Mr Drewe
> seen a swamphen
> > > grab a duckling or cygnet?
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ===============================
> > >
> > > To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
> > > send the message:
> > > unsubscribe
> > > (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
> > > to:
> > >
> > > http://birding-aus.org
> > > ===============================
> > >
> > ===============================
> >
> > To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
> > send the message:
> > unsubscribe
> > (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
> > to:
> >
> > http://birding-aus.org
> > ===============================
> >
> > ===============================
> >
> > To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
> > send the message:
> > unsubscribe
> > (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
> > to:
> >
> > http://birding-aus.org
> > ===============================
> >
> ===============================
>
> To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
> send the message:
> unsubscribe
> (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
> to:
>
> http://birding-aus.org
> ===============================
>
===============================
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
http://birding-aus.org
===============================
|
