Allan my interpretation is slightly different.
Yes I think it is an orthopteroid insect. I agree about the sexual
appendages however I think the ventral surface is being held away from the
bird. The first joint of the hind leg is there but no abdominal
segmentation is showing so I take it that these are the wings along the
length of the body. From this I think that while it may be a grasshopper or
stick katydid a stick insect or a mantis is more likely.
Regards,
Alan
--------------------------------------------------
From: "Allan Richardson" <>
Sent: Sunday, January 08, 2012 7:41 AM
To: "Philip Griffin" <>
Cc: "birding-aus" <>
Subject: Southern Emu-wren prey item i.d.?
Hi Phil,
Looks like the back end of a grasshopper to me. It looks like one of the
slender species, the gaping section at the end representing the
reproductive parts, the flap section closer to the birds bill, the small
growing wings suggesting the animal was at one of the nymph stages of
growth. Most birds eat prey items very close to where they've caught them
unless they they are a species that has a favoured anvil (e.g. Pittas) or
butchering site (e.g. Butcherbirds) to deal with their prey. When a bird
carries a food item any distance it usually indicates the feeding of a
mate or chicks. In this case, I'd suggest that the Emu-wren is feeding
chicks and is on the way to their location. As such, the absence of legs
is no real issue, since parent birds often prepare prey items for chicks
by taking the legs off insects like grasshoppers or the wings off moth
species.
Kind Regards
Allan Richardson
Morisset, NSW
On 08/01/2012, at 5:00 AM, Philip Griffin wrote:
Greetings,
Whilst at Cheynes Beach (SW WA) recently a friend and I took some photos
of a male Southern Emu-wren on top of a bush.
Subsequent examination of his photos show some sort of food
in the bill.
I've uploaded one of his photos to
http://tinyurl.com/emu-wren
in case anyone here has an idea what the prey item might be.
I think I've ruled out Aardvark and Tapir so far, but could perhaps
be persuaded otherwise...
Many thanks
Philip
Philip Griffin
philipgriffin at gmail dot com
Auckland, New Zealand
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