Month: June 2013

Night Parrot Sighting.

Not wishing to rain on anyone’s parade as it is a great find, but I spotted Night Parrots in the mid 1980’s in the upper North East Simpson Desert, just wasn’t a birder then so didn’t actually know what I was looking at, we referred to them as “King Budgies” there were many pairs of them, they are around, just only seen after rain in that area.

Many people like me see them, just cant ID them! After-all it is sparsely populated country and birders are even sparser!

I do hope this sighting does not create a rush into their territory, remember most of the lands they inhabit are private property, so no trespassing please, ask first, or we will all get a bad name!

Once again Great Find, Have a great day, Happy Snappin’ Darren J Callesen ===============================

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Hi everyone

Firstly, I’d like to add my voice to those congratulating John Young on his outstanding achievement. This really is one of the greatest achievements in bird study anywhere in the world. It’s also a fantastic example of what can be achieved if you can somehow combine ALL of these elements: incredible self-belief; comprehensive knowledge; perseverance; years of painstaking searching and gathering of data; the highest level of bushcraft; and great mental toughness. I can’t imagine it could have been done if any of these had been simply ordinary.

It’s also a great relief to be able to mention Night Parrots on Birding-Aus! Some years ago, we had a serial nuisance who used the pseudonym Night Parrot. They initially weighed into the banding debate, but fairly quickly tired of that and from then on simply attacked individuals and tried to stir up petty squabbles. For a while I wondered whether or not it was worth trying to keep Birding-Aus going.

There have been very few other occasions where I considered shutting down the forum – that’s simply due to the nature of everyone on BIrding-Aus. There are so many generous people who post trip reports, ID hints, helpful suggestions and other useful bits of information; and so many good-natured people who enjoy sharing ideas on this forum. We are all very fortunate that we don’t have the bitter arguments and endless petty sniping that plague so many other forums. Let’s keep it that way!

There are always going to be a range of opinions on many topics; there are going to be some issues which polarise opinion; sometimes Birding-Aus contributors will be on opposite sides of arguments that may generate a lot of intense feeling and emotion. Can I please make the point that dragging up old issues that have been debated, argued and fought over is not likely to resolve them any better this time around? I don’t stifle genuine debate, but I will do whatever I can to prevent mud-slinging, bullying and abuse on this forum. Stirring up old arguments is unlikely to do anything but generate resentment and intemperate invective.

So let’s enjoy discussing Night Parrots for all the right reasons!

Russell Woodford Birding-Aus Founder and List Owner ===============================

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All

Following the success of yesterday’s trip (Paul will put the report out soon) – Paul has organised another trip for this coming Saturday -July 6th.

The reason for this trip is to see what the east coast low – which will affect us for the next few days, blows in. The conditions this week are similar to those last June when we picked up 3 light-mantled Sooty Albatrosses, white-headed petrel and good numbers of other albatross and cape petrels. Also note that slender-billed prion and common diving petrels were washed up in Ballina yesterday……

Email Paul if you like a spot – they won’t last long !

Cheers

Rob Morris

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This distraction was not of my making. I had no intention of entering the fray but a few people could not resist the temptation to drag up the past and assume that this wonderful discovery by John Young somehow atones for all in the past. Their gratuitous remarks required a response. You are dead right when you say that “some people just can’t help themselves”, but look to your mates on that score.

As for the Night Parrot, I agree with all that you say. It is a wonderful discovery and John Young deserves enormous credit for it. But that does not erase the past, and the record speaks for itself.

Greg Roberts

From: Ian May [mailto:birding@ozemail.com.au] Sent: Sunday, 30 June 2013 5:39 PM To: Greg Roberts Cc: birding-aus Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Night Parrot & John Young has done it.

This detraction of John Young is incomprehensible and I have to question why such a post was not moderated and removed from the list. It seems that some people just can’t help themselves. The way I see it, the slur against John is generated mainly by one person with a personal vendetta against him and who, as a self proclaimed journalist, is using the poisoning influence of his pen to draw ill informed observers into supporting his view. The victimisation against John under any circumstances on this forum is shameful.

There should be no detraction from the significance of this Night Parrot discovery. It is the greatest Australian ornithological find that has happened in my life time and John Young has done it. With limited information known about the subject, he intentionally targeted the species, and then searched relentlessly for years under the most difficult of conditions. He persevered where many others would have given up and through sheer determination; he eventually found live wild birds. There was no dumb luck associated with this discovery. It is a testimonial to his generosity and stoic character that after all the intentional denigration, that he could or should ever consider sharing his information.

This monumental achievement is all in a class of its own.

Ian May St Helens, Tasmania

_____

Greg Roberts wrote:

It is a pity that the well-deserved accolades being heaped on John Young for his Night Parrot discovery are tempered by the sort of reference we see here from Geoff.

For the record, there were sound reasons for raising serious doubts about some of John’s previous pronouncements, most notably his claim to have discovered a new species of fig-parrot. I won’t go over old ground but those reasons are detailed here: http://tinyurl.com/nzytmlu. I invite anyone with a dispassionate interest in that affair to carefully consider the facts. I raise this matter now only because Geoff, Lloyd and others have done so in a derogatory way.

It is not a case of “eating humble pie”. I and other critics have always admired John’s considerable expertise in the field and I made that point at the time. John Young is a bushman and birder par excellence and that has never been in doubt in my view. What was always a puzzle to many of us was why some of these ploys of times past ever came into play.

I have no doubts about his current Night Parrot record and congratulate him warmly on his exciting discovery. But be assured that the circumstances surrounding this discovery are a world away from other matters I have referred to.

Message: 11

Date: Sat, 29 Jun 2013 10:22:42 +1000

From: “Geoff Jones”

To:

Subject: [Birding-Aus] Night Parrot

Message-ID: <000f01ce745e$c6dd41e0$5497c5a0$@bigpond.net.au>

Content-Type: text/plain; charset=”us-ascii”

Congratulations to John Young Maybe a lot of his detractors will grovel and

eat humble pie now !

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I would like to attend John Young’s media release which is to be held on Wednesday. Can anyone inform me about how I can RSVP or obtain any information regarding the meeting. Would be great to be there in person to see the evidence and hear John story.

Brendan Cook Senior Wildlife Biologist Avisure 0414323090 bcook@avisure.com.au

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Yes it doesnt get any bigger then this ever. Congratulations to John and the biggest of discoveries. Ever since i learnt about the story of the Night Parrot i have been fascinated with the twists and turns of the story.

I know its very early in this development but i agree with Scott. The call was always the key to the puzzle. I would think that it would be critical for the ongoing surveying and detection (and protection) of this species, that surveyors be aware of what the call is.

Cheers Bruce

*To*:birding-aus *Subject*:Night Parrot -where to from here?*From*:Scott Baker *Date*:Sun, 30 Jun 2013 11:56:50 +1000

I too would like to congratulate John on his extraordinary find. Have been a number of sight records in the past but never previously backed up with high definition photographic evidence. Must admit was extremely excited but slightly devastated to see one of the last great birding mysteries had been solved -or has it? As far as I’m concerned am none the wiser. We already knew these birds have been living and breeding in the SW Queensland region in recent years and based on the responsiveness to playback of their coastal cousins was a fair assumption Night Parrot could also be located this way. I know I’m not the only person to have wandered around likely looking spinifex habitat in the evening playing Ground Parrot calls.Anyhow at the risk of being lumped with the “hordes of salivating twitchers stomping over each others heads to tick a new species off” -I would like to see this bird. At this stage all I have is further confirmation that it still exists. Perhaps fair enough t he precise location has been suppressed but I do hope the audio recording is made publicly available. This one piece of the puzzle could at least assist us mere mortals to survey some of the vast inland areas this bird may inhabit and perhaps locate further populations -information that could prove critical in preservation of the species.I guess more will be revealed on Wednesday. Once again – well done John Young. ===============================

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Hi all,

On Friday Joy, Helen and I went down to Hamilton to have a look at Steve and Jenny Clark’s Morepork. Both Steve and Jenny have been extremely friendly and helpful and I thank them for all the emails and phone calls to help us see the bird. The Morepork was snoozing quietly in the hakea in the back yard and we had wonderful views of it as it hid on its ivy covered branch.

After I got home I started doing a bit of research. On the IOC website the current check list (v3.3) shows the Morepork to be a separate species (Ninox novaeseelandiae leucopsis), split from the Southern Boobook. On the Proposed Splits/lumps page it shows that they are now looking at splits from the Boobook (Ninox boobook). They are proposing to have Southern Boobook (*Ninox boobook*); Spotted Boobook (*Ninox leucopsis*) and Red Boobook (*Ninox lurida*). It is all a bit confusing to me and I will be interested to see the outcome if the splits are accepted. I then went back to my 1958 edition of *What Bird is That? *and it appears that if the splits are accepted we will be reverting to the situation as it was then and earlier with Boobook, Spotted Boobook and Red Boobook.

I also want to thank Jenny for putting me onto The Old Bakery in Dunkeld, it is nothing to do with birds but as I do enjoy finding good food outlets when I go birding this one needs a mention. They stock a really delicious Blue Vein cheese from Apostle Whey Cheese. It is called Bolte’s Bonanza with a classic cartoon image of Henry’s face on the label – but you need to be a Victorian of a certain age to remember that crinkly old face and get a laugh from it (smile).

cheers

Jenny http://jenniferspryausbirding.blogspot.com.au/ ===============================

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Hello, I would like to thank Greg Roberts for writing about the ‘elephant in the room’.

Everybody in the Australian birding community has respect for John Young in regards to his knowledge, his bushcraft and, as his latest sighting and photography of the Night Parrot demonstrate, his tenacity. I can’t imagine anyone not wanting to congratulate John for this significant discovery.

It is upsetting and irrational for some birding-aus members, however to use John’s latest discovery as an opportunity to denigrate well intentioned and reasoned critics of some of John Young’s prior behaviour and claims. This ‘suck eggs’ [excuse the avian pun] attitude, demonstrated below, is not helpful.

“Congratulations to John Young Maybe a lot of his detractors will grovel and eat humble pie now!” “he copped a lot of unfair criticism – mostly from jealous people I suspect” “instead of knocking his efforts (as a small group who had never met the man unfairly did some years ago)”

That John Young is right now does not mean that he was always correct in the past or that he will be in the future. And that of course stands for every single person.

John Young and others should be judged not by simply their claims but by the evidence that they produce.

Cheers as I begin to barricade myself, Ken Cross

I too would like to congratulate John on his extraordinary find. Have been a number of sight records in the past but never previously backed up with high definition photographic evidence. Must admit was extremely excited but slightly devastated to see one of the last great birding mysteries had been solved -or has it? As far as I’m concerned am none the wiser. We already knew these birds have been living and breeding in the SW Queensland region in recent years and based on the responsiveness to playback of their coastal cousins was a fair assumption Night Parrot could also be located this way. I know I’m not the only person to have wandered around likely looking spinifex habitat in the evening playing Ground Parrot calls.Anyhow at the risk of being lumped with the “hordes of salivating twitchers stomping over each others heads to tick a new species off” -I would like to see this bird. At this stage all I have is further confirmation that it still exists. Perhaps fair enough t he precise location has been suppressed but I do hope the audio recording is made publicly available. This one piece of the puzzle could at least assist us mere mortals to survey some of the vast inland areas this bird may inhabit and perhaps locate further populations -information that could prove critical in preservation of the species.I guess more will be revealed on Wednesday. Once again – well done John Young. ===============================

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Hi Friends,

If anyone has an interest in bird taxonomy, you might like to take a look at my new birdlist, under the hearing New 2013 Birdlist on my website http://www.worldbirdinfo.net. It also lists all the sources I used.

Enjoy!

Dr John Penhallurick

86 Bingley Cres

Fraser A.C.T. 2615

Australia

email:jpenhall@bigpond.net.au

Phone: Home (612) 62585428

Mobile:0408585426

sunt lacrimae rerum et mentem mortalia tangunt Aeneid Book 1,line 462 “The world is a world of tears, and the burdens of mortality touch the heart.”

Magna est veritas et praevalet Vulgate, Book of Edras

The legitimate object of government is to do for a community of people whatever they need to have done, but can not do at all, or can not so well do, for themselves-in their separate, and individual capacities. Abraham Lincoln

“It’s good to look beyond the bounds of accepted ideas” James Peebles,Princeton University

Please visit my website: http://www.worldbirdinfo.net http://www.worldbirdinfo.net/

Please visit my blog: http://jpenhall.wordpress.com/2011/04/02/john-penhalluricks-blog-1-evidence- that-the-ipccs-case-is-a-fraud/

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