G'day bird-observers
NB. I had trouble e-mailing some of the WTNT reports, so if you
missed out and want a copy, please let me know.
Hope you find this one interesting.
Mike
========
Pacific (Fork-tailed) Swift (Apus pacificus) Report for 2014/15 Season.
[Summary of 436 sightings sent to me or published where I could
find them]
This year 34 more reports were made than last year.
Unlike last year a flock of 200 (larger than usual) over-wintering
birds were reported by Joan Wharton in Qld during July. Also in Qld.
Len & Chris Ezzy saw two near Ingham in June. But three days earlier
12 had been seen in Vic. by Pauline & Peter Follet, & Christine
Dunstan. Three other observers saw 1 or more in July but did not
bother to count them! These were from SA, Qld & NSW. One bird
observed at Darwin by Golo & Micha Maurer on 20th Sept. may have been
a recent migrant Ric Elsel recorded 2, 20, & 1 at the Broome Bird
Observatory on 7th, 9th & 18th October, thus starting the influx of
migrants. A single bird seen at Altona Nth in Vic, 6th Oct. by
Chris Tzaros, may have been an over-stayer.
On the 8th Sept Robert DeCandido, counted 300-500 heading south
through Khao Dinso in peninsular Thailand. 400 were censused on 9th
and 500 on the 10th. Smaller numbers were counted in the following
weeks. These numbers were down on last year, and it appears more may
have stayed in SE Asia this season than is normal. There were
continuing sightings on eBird through the southern Summer.
The first sighting of large flocks was made by Peter Kyne on the
Adelaide River SE of Darwin, where he saw 1,000 12 Nov. It was 17th
Jan before another large flock was seen. This was 3,000 birds seen
by Rob Morris near Mt Molloy. 4,000 birds were seen by Dominic
Funnell in the Cairns district 18th Jan & 3,000 probably part of the
same flock were seen near the Cairns Airport the same day by Geoff
Walker. Len & Chris Ezzy, always on the lookout for swifts saw 1,500
near Townsville 24th Jan. Then on 21 Feb Martin Cachard saw 2,000
back near Cairns. 28th Mar. Chris Barnes saw 1,600 near Port
Bundaberg and Trevor Ford, saw 1,000 at Warra. So apart from the
first large sighting all the others were in Qld, where most sightings
were made this last season.
All told only 45 sightings were reported from WA (20 last year), 41
from NT (20), 219 from Qld (156), 84 from NSW (86), 2 from ACT (7),
33 from Vic (compared to 93 & 63 the 2 previous years). 11 sightings
were made in SA (17) & 1 in Tas (2). So were most of the birds in
Qld, or was it just that most observers with their eyes open were in
Qld this year?
The first Vic report that was most likely from new arrivals was of 5
birds seen near Wangaratta on 6th Dec. by Paul Jones. They were seen
again the following day, which is not unusual. The largest flocks
seen in Victoria were only of 50 birds. John Pearson saw one 7th
Jan. at Ocean Grove & Des Palmer saw one at Wanding on 7th Mar.
Steve Davidson saw two flocks of 30 near Mallacoota so saw 60 on 8th
Jan.
The first four SA reports did not give numbers, the first that did
were made by Claire Runge, being 14 birds at Oodnadatta and 150 on
the Oodnadatta Track on 6th Oct. This last sighting was the largest
reported flock for S.A.
One of the consequences these swifts face in feeding over the drier
parts of Australia is that the food supply quickly runs out and they
have to move on. This means unlike Needletail observations, very few
observers make more than three sightings. This means it is even more
important that each observer report their one or two observations, so
we can fill out the picture a little. Thank you all very much for
doing so, and reporting the numbers seen.
Observers who made more than three observations were: BARNES, Chris
(13), BBO (5), Bowra Bird Call (11), BRUCE, Niel (4), CACHARD, Martin
(6), CHAPPLE, Rory (4), CULICAN, Jo & Matt (4), DICK, Adrian (4),
DOUGHTY, Robert (10), EWERS, Glen (6), EZZY, Len & Chris (8), FIELD,
Mark (4), FISHER, Keith & Lindsay (6), FORD, Trevor (6), GARDNER,
Marc (7), GILLANDERS, Alan (10), HEAP, Colin (4), HERRINGTON, Doug
(8), JACKETT, Nigel (13), JACKSON, Micha (10), KOOISTRA, John (4),
KYNE, Peter (7), LARSON, Helen (14), McGREGOR, Russell (4), MOORHEAD,
Bill & Jack (6), MORRIS, Rob (4), PEARSON, John (6), RAWSTHORNE, John
(6), SHURCLIFF, Kath (7), SMITH, Ross (5), VANDERDUYS, Eric (4),
WALKER, Andy (5), WALSH, Adrian (8 ). That only four of these people
made more than 3 sightings in the last report also indicated
something of the mobility of these birds.
Most of us did not make that many observations but I still thank all
these contributors:
ALCORN, Richard & Margaret (1), ALLEN, Mark (1), ALLEN, Richard (1),
ALLSOP, John (2), ANDERSON, David (3), ARMSTRONG, Doug. (2),
ATTEWELL, Chris (3), AUERBACH, Nancy (1), AW, Lai (1), BALDWIN, Nick
& Nicola (1), BAXTER, Richard (1), BAWDEN, Tim (1), BEARDMORE, Roger
(1), BERGMARK, Joshua (1), BELL, Andrew (2), BENSON, Alan (1),
BILLINGTON, Tim. (1), BISCHOFF, Tony (1), BISHOP, David (2), BLACK,
Bob (1), BLACKWOOD, Jane (1), BOOTH, Cliff (2), BORTOLUSSI, Greg (2),
BOYLE, David (1), BRABY, Michael (1), BRECKENRIDGE, Max (2), BRIGGS,
Allan & Steve (1), BRUNSWICK Valley Birdwatchers (1), BUCKBY, Mark
(1), BURCHER, Paul (2), BYSOUTH, Mike (1), CANTON, Alexandra (1),
CHAD, Warren (1), CHAPLIN, DOMINIC (1), CHARLEY, David (3), CLANCY,
Greg (1), CLARKE, Rohan (1), CLAYTON, Mark (1), CLELAND, Evan (2),
COMAN, Frank (1), CONNOR, Mike (1), COWAN, Ian (2), CURRAN, Cheryl &
Paul (1), CURSTON, Clive (1), D. Christine (2), DAGG, Jeff (1), DALY,
Gus (1), DENHAM, Lian & Mark (1), DICKSON, James (1), DOECKE, Michela
(1), DOOLEY, Sean (2), DUNSTAN, Peter & Christine (1), DUNWIDDIE,
Peter (1), DURBRIDGE, J. (2), ELSEL, Ric (3), ENGEL, Deryk (1),
FAWCETT, Adam (3), FERGUSON, Alex (1), FERRY, Helen (1), FITZSIMONS,
James (1), FOLLETT, Pauline (1), FORSTER, T. (1), FREEMAN, M&B (1),
FRIESEN, Jude (3), FRY, Adam (1), FUNNELL, Dominic (3), GARDNER, Rod
(1), GARLAND, Clive (2), GEELONG Filed Nats (1), GERRISH, Claire (1),
GILLER, Roger (2), (1), GOODFELLOW, Denise (1), HAMILTON, Rob &
Vicki (1), HASTINGS Birdwatchers (2), HAVENS, Maria (1), HAYNE,
Curtis (2), HEATH, Paul (1), HILLER, Lewis (2), HIRSCH, Catherine
(3), HOGG, Andrew (1), HONEYMAN, Mike (1), HUDSPITH, Nerida (1),
HYNSON, Robert (1), ILLAWARRA BirdersJAGO, Russell (1), JENSEN, Andy
(3), JOHNSON, Lorne (1), JONES, Paul (2), KEARNS, Michael (2),
KEATES, Mrs S (1), KELLING, Steve (1), KERR, Steve (1), KIESKAMP,
Helga (1), KING, Des (1), LARMOUR, Kim & Geoff (1), LARSON, Jeff (2),
LEE, Sue & her Dad (1), LEWIS, George (2), LILLEYMAN, Amanda (3),
LISHMUND, Owen (1), LISTER, Marie (1), LONG, Douglas (2), M, Clare
(1), LOWIK, P (1), MARTINSON, Svante (1), MAURER, Golo (1), McCART,
Roger (1), McCONNELL, Pat (1), McWHINNIE, Alex (1), MEADOWS, Clive
(1), MELROSE, Christine (1), MESSER, Cec (1), MORGAN, Peter & Bev
(3), MORRIS, Alan (1), MORRIS, Tim (2), MURKIN, Cheryl-Ann (1),
MUSTAFA, James (1), NAT, Falla (2), NEALON, Clive (2), NEILL, Greg
(2), NICKHOLDS, Tim (2), O’CONNOR, Graeme (1), PALMER, Des (1),
PARKIN, Fiona (1), PASCOE, Scott & Jenny (2), PATERSON, Luke (1),
PAYET, Rosemary (1), PICKERING, Stuart (2), PEARCE, Ceri (1), PIERCE,
Ed (1), PRESTON, Ivor (1), REED, Rob (3), REYNOLDS, Ivan & Sandra
(1), REYNOLDS Steve, (1), RICHARDSON, Allan (1), RID, George (1),
RINGMA, Jeremy (2), RODERICK, Mick (1), ROGERS, Danny (1), ROLLAND,
Viv (1), RONAN, Michael (1), ROWE, Karen (1), ROWER, Michelle & David
(2), RUDDER, Ashwin (1), RUSER, Nathan (1), RUNGE, Claire (2),
SANDERSON, C (1), SCHMIDT, Angus (1), SCHMIDT, Leigh (1), SCHUTZ,
Anna (1), SHEEAN, Brendan,c Scott, Dee & Darcy (1), SILCOCK,
Alastair (1), SKIPSEY, Roger (1), SKOWRONEK, Leo (1), SONNENBURG, Roy
(3), SPRY, Jenny (1), STOGDALE, R & A, (1), STRONG, Michael (1),
STUART, Alan (2), SULLIVAN, Brian & Steve (1), SZUCS, Lorand (1),
TOLHURST, Wes (1), TULLOCH, Stefan (1), TURNBULL, Ray (1), TZAROS,
Chris (1), VALENTINE, Peter (1), VICKERS, David (1), WAANDERS, Peter
(1), WALDON, D (1), WALKER, Geoff (1), WARING, Richard (2), WEBSTER,
R (1), WEEKS, Matt (1), WHARTON, Joan (2), WILEY, Chris (1), WILSON,
Tom (2), WOOD, Mike (3), WYLLIE, Patrick (1), YONG, Russell (1),
Information Sources
animalfineartbycheryl-ann (1), Australian Birds (1), Birdlife Atlas
(16), Birding-Aus (9), Birdline (36), birds Qld (1), birdswa (2),
cairnsbirds (2), Contact Call (1), Direct e-mail (184), eBird (212),
FSCB (2), hunterbirding (4), ntbirds (10), ntnaturalist (2), Plains
Wanderer (1), The Twitcher (2), toowoombabirdobservers (1),
===================
Michael Tarburton
===================
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