November 2008

In November 2008, 84 species of birds have been recorded in the catchment area of the Gazette, including the species reported by observers in Hoskintown, Whiskers Creek Road and Stoney Creek Place.   We have also added 3 species to the list: Black-winged Stilt, Rainbow Bee-eater and Fairy Martin. I have underlined breeding birds (where there has been evidence of this). An unusual breeding record is a domestic goose adopting some Australian Wood Duck ducklings!  A very pleasing breeding record is the brood of 3 Black-fronted dotterels at a farm dam off Whiskers Creek Road.

Waterbirds: Purple swamphen; Australasian Grebe; Little Pied Cormorant; Masked Lapwing; Black-fronted Dotterel; White-faced heron; White-necked Heron; Australian Wood Duck; Pacific Black Duck; Grey teal.

Birds of Prey: Brown Goshawk; Wedge-tailed Eagle; 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;  Southern Boobook;  Tawny Frogmouth; Dollarbird; Laughing Kookaburra; Sacred Kingfisher; Rainbow Bee-eater; Pallid Cuckoo; Brush Cuckoo; Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo.

Honeyeaters:  Brown-headed honeyeater; Eastern spinebill; Yellow‑faced honeyeater; White-eared Honeyeater; New Holland Honeyeater: Noisy Miner; Red wattlebird; Noisy friarbird.

Flycatchers and similar species: Welcome swallow; Tree Martin; Fairy Martin; Grey fantail; Willie wagtail; Leaden flycatcher; Golden Whistler; Rufous whistler; Grey shrike thrush; Magpie-lark

Other, smaller birds: Black-faced cuckoo-shrike; White-winged Triller; White-throated gerygone; Western gerygone; Weebill; Striated thornbill; Brown thornbill; Buff-rumped thornbill; Yellow‑rumped thornbill; White-browed scrubwren; Rufous Songlark; Superb Fairy-wren; Dusky woodswallow; White-throated treecreeper; Mistletoebird; Spotted pardalote; Striated pardalote; Silvereye; Richards Pipit; Olive-backed oriole; Common blackbird; Skylark; House sparrow: European goldfinch;  Common starling.

Other, larger birds: White-winged chough: Pied Currawong; Grey currawong: Grey butcherbird: Australian Magpie; Australian Raven; Little Raven

Bird of the Month

From the Greening Australia book “Bringing Birds Back.  Comments in brackets are by this author.  

White-eared Honeyeater:  Lichenostomus leucotis

Appearance:  Distinctive olive-green honeyeater with black hood and large white ear patch.

Voice: Variety of calls including loud, full ‘beer-brick, beer-brick’ and rapid but mellow machinegun call.

Habits: Ususally seen singly, active and bold, forages amongst leaves and under bark.  Rapid flight with distinctive “flop-flop’ sound. 

Food:  Insects and other invertebrates, also nectar but less than other honeyeaters.

Nest:  Deep cup of grass and bark shreds bound with spider web, lined with hair and wool; slung from small branches amongst foliage, 1-3 metres high

Occurrence in Revegetation:  Recorded at least once in 32% of sites . Found in small and large sites from 3 years of age onwards, but not recorded in the narrowest windbreaks.

(Garden Bird Survey: This Survey, run in the gardens of members of COG, records this bird as moderately common, being observed in about 40% of sites, and every week of the year.  However it is unusual in the urban area other than in Winter, and most of the records for the rest of the year come from the area covered by this blog.)