That fills in another piece of the jigsaw. I have been visiting the Barraba
area for about 13 years and noted the eruptions of both these and Little
Lorikeets over the years. This often coincided with the Xanthorrhoea masts but
there has always been a steady number of Musk Lorikeets no matter what time of
the year and the Mugga flowering. So humidity is a factor.
-----Original Message-----
From: Greg and Val Clancy
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2016 2:49 PM
To: Peter Shute <>; Andy Burton <>
Cc: Birding Aus <>; Chris Lloyd
<>
Subject: Musk Lorikeets in Sydney and species diversity
The situation with the Musk Lorikeet in the Clarence Valley, north coast NSW,
is also interesting. When I moved to the area in the late 1970s sightings of
the Musk Lorikeet were almost non-existent. They would not be recorded for
many years then they would arrive in large numbers, sometimes staying for a
couple of years and then suddenly disappear. I was of the impression that they
were the classic nomad of the Australian bush moving to where food resources
were and then moving on again when they declined or when the attraction was
greater elsewhere. The species seems to be more regularly recorded at higher
altitudes in the north-east and as such may be just reflecting the preference
of a Bassian species. Many Bassian species only occur at higher altitudes in
the north-east of the state as the humid lowlands don't suit them.
Regards
Greg
Dr Greg. P. Clancy
Ecologist and Birding-wildlife Guide
| PO Box 63 Coutts Crossing NSW 2460
| 02 6649 3153 | 0429 601 960
http://www.gregclancyecologistguide.com
http://gregswildliferamblings.blogspot.com.au/
-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Shute
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2016 6:09 AM
To: Andy Burton
Cc: Birding Aus ; Chris Lloyd
Subject: Musk Lorikeets in Sydney and species diversity
This sounds like good news for Musk Lorikeets, but I'm wondering if the numbers
visiting increasingly attractive Sydney suburbs might also be driven by
deforestation elsewhere. That seems to be the situation with flying foxes.
Peter Shute
Sent from my iPad
> On 17 Dec. 2016, at 5:13 pm, Andy Burton <> wrote:
>
> Haha, I’ve been lurking Chris, and involved in other projects.
>
> Re the change in vegetation, particularly canopy:
>
> In the Lane Cove, Roseville, Lindfield, Killara area, especially
> around Fiddens Wharf Road, the timber getters had moved in during 1804
> and had taken all the timber that they wanted by 1819. After this
> there were various horticultural and animal husbandry projects set up by
> individuals.
> Post WW2, the ridges were built on and ridgetop birds e.g..,
> White-throated Gerygone, disappeared. Where I live, on the ridge
> overlooking the short Blue Gum Creek tributary of the Lane Cove River,
> there were three small dairies and a rifle range alongside the creek.
> It is still possible to see where the rifle range existed until it was
> decommissioned in 1965. At the risk of stating the bleedin' obvious it
> is not possible to have a rifle range in the middle of a forest, and
> so it was not until 1965 that eucalyptus regrowth commenced. That
> forest is now dense and quite mature, as are the areas where the
> dairies (and their
> cattle) were. At about the same time many of the tributaries of the
> Willoughby, North Sydney, southern Kuingai and Ryde municipalities
> were reserved allowing for the regeneration of vegetation along these
> narrow reserves of the valley bottoms. At about the same time a local
> nursery must have marketed Flooded Gums Eucalyptus grandis to the
> local populace and so in places, that species has joined the
> regenerating Blackbutts and Blue Gums.to create a new canopy. It is my
> belief that this is what has recently attracted Musk Lorikeets to the
> area and for a few years I have predicted that the species will become
> a common breeding resident throughout most of northern Sydney.
>
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