In late May to the end of June 2008, 68 species of birds
have been recorded in the catchment area of the Gazette, including the species
reported by an observer in Hoskintown. The most exciting (for me at any rate)
sighting was a pair of Brown Treecreepers near the Foxlow Bridge and I’d
welcome any other reports of them (or other interesting birds). Last month I reported a Tawny Frogmouth at
our house and I have seen it, perched in our big Yellow Box, on several
occasions since then.
Water
birds:
Australasian Grebe; Little Pied Cormorant, Black Swan, Australian Wood
Duck; Pacific Black Duck; Grey Teal, White-faced heron, Musk Duck, Masked
Lapwing
Birds
of prey: Wedge-tailed Eagle, Brown Goshawk, Brown
Falcon; Nankeen Kestrel
Parrots
and relatives: Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoo:
Gang-gang Cockatoo; Sulphur-crested Cockatoo; Galah; Crimson Rosella; Eastern
Rosella, Red-rumped Parrot.
Kingfishers
and other non-songbirds: Brown Quail, Common
Bronzewing; Crested Pigeon; Feral Pigeon; Laughing Kookaburra; Tawny Frogmouth
Honeyeaters:,
Brown-headed honeyeater; White-naped Honeyeater, Eastern spinebill;
Yellow-faced Honeyeater; White-eared Honeyeater; Noisy Miner; Red wattlebird;
Flycatchers
and similar species:
Welcome swallow; Grey fantail; Willie Wagtail; Scarlet Robin; Flame
Robin; Golden Whistler; Grey Shrike‑thrush; Magpie-lark,
Other,
smaller, birds:
Weebill; Southern Whiteface, Brown thornbill;
Striated Thornbill; Buff-rumped Thornbill; Yellow-rumped Thornbill;
White-browed Scrubwren; Superb Fairy-wren; Brown Treecreeper, White-throated
Treecreeper; Spotted Pardalote; Striated Pardalote; Mistletoebird, Silvereye;
Diamond Firetail; Red-browed Finch Common Blackbird; Skylark; House Sparrow;
European Goldfinch; Common Starling
Other,
larger, birds: Satin Bowerbird, White-winged chough;
Pied Currawong; Grey Currawong, Grey Butcherbird; Australian Magpie; Australian
Raven; Little Raven
Bird of the Month
This is based upon material in the
very good book “bringing birds back” published by Greening Australia. Comments in brackets are by this author.
Yellow-faced
Honeyeater: Lichenostomus
chrysops
Appearance: Plain
olive-grey honeyeater, with a yellow line bordered by black extending
horizontally across the face.
Voice: Cheerful ‘chick-up, chick-up, chick-up’; in
flight a short ‘chip’.
Habits: Singly or pairs but in autumn migrates from
the region in flocks of 10s to 100s (these flocks can add up to several
thousand passing through a site over 2 or 3 weeks). Feeds actively amongst foliage: rapid darting
flight.
Food: Nectar,
insects, other invertebrates.
Nest: Deep but
thin cup; of grass, bark, moss, and sometimes lichen, slung from horizontal
fork.
Occurrence in Revegetation: Spring/summer migrant usually leaving the
region in April –May returning in late August-early September. Some birds occasionally over-winter. When migrating the birds will utilise any
shrub or tree cover to move through the landscape including small narrow
windbreaks. Recorded in 48% of sites
from 5 years of age onwards.
(Garden Bird Survey: This Survey, run in the gardens
of members of COG, records this bird as common, being observed in about
three-quarters of the sites each year.
It is usually recorded in at least 1 site nearly all weeks of each year.)
