Month: December 2017

Pecking order: how John Gould dined out on the birds of Australia

No doubt. Still it is ironic that: “A conservationist, despite his propensity to shoot everything from wandering albatross to emu wrens, Gould lamented the loss of species as a result of the white man’s invasion.”

> On 31 Dec 2017, at 9:31 pm, Brian Fleming < flambeau@labyrinth.net.au> wrote:
>
> I think it hardly surprising that early collectors ate their specimens after skinning them! They were camping out, often with limited supplies, and fresh meat was very welcome. Not just birds either. Gould writes with great feeling of the excellence of a large Red Kangaroo which sustained his whole party when they had run out of food in South Australia.
>
> Anthea Fleming
>
>
> On 31/12/2017 10:19 PM, Laurie Knight wrote:
>> Early ornithologists like to eat their subjects – see
>> www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/dec/30/pecking-order-how-john-gould-dined-out-on-the-birds-of-australia
>>

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Pecking order: how John Gould dined out on the birds of Australia

I think it hardly surprising that early collectors ate their specimens
after skinning them! They were camping out, often  with limited
supplies, and fresh meat was very welcome.  Not just birds either. 
Gould writes with great feeling of the excellence of a large Red
Kangaroo which sustained his whole party when they had run out of food
in South Australia.

Anthea Fleming

On 31/12/2017 10:19 PM, Laurie Knight wrote:
> Early ornithologists like to eat their subjects – see
> www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/dec/30/pecking-order-how-john-gould-dined-out-on-the-birds-of-australia
>

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To change settings or unsubscribe visit:
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> This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
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Powerful Owls at Buchan, East Gippsland

Hi all

Since 2014 we’ve been seeing Powerful Owls at Buchan Caves Reserve, East
Gippsland. Sightings have been increasing, and we are now seeing them on
50% of visits, and sometimes 2 birds.

They’ve been seen with a range of prey items including Common Brushtail,
Sugar Glider, Koala and Australian Magpie.

I’ve written an article about them, what, when and where we’ve seen them,
with photos and maps.

Please feel free to share or comment: www.echidnawalkabout.com.au/
powerful-owls-buchan-east-gippsland/

Len, Jack – there are plenty of records of PO in the mountain country of
East Gippsland on ALA, a couple on Birdata but few on eBird – is it lack of
visitation or are the birds declining do you think?

Jenny – I have mentioned you in the article. I saw online that you’d seen
them too. Can you add your observations to this?

All the best, Janine

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Kookaburras

I wonder if you could help me with a mystery?

I have read a lot of pieces about kookaburras now on the internet but am
still confused about some behaviour I recently saw in a number of places in
the Dandenong Ranges. At intervals of perhaps 1 kilometer (on made paths) I
found larger groups of kookaburras (too many to be typical family groups)
congregating together doing trapeze flights and singing and vocalising in a
wonderful various way. Individuals seemed to be “establishing contact” with
one flying to perch beside another (which often relatively quickly
withdrew). I assumed this was all some kind of courtship process in which a
number of families joined as unbonded young ones paired up, but nothing I
have found on the internet confirms this assumption. Have you seen the same
behaviour? Can you explain to me what is going on?

I contacted Marc Anderson (who writes on kookaburras), but he was not sure
about how to explain this behaviour and suggested I contact you instead.

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Cuckoos

So it’d be more about habitat destruction &/ climate shifts across the entire ranges of the cuckoo spp., & the effects of these upon population numbers, forage, & breeding, of all the cuckoos & all their hosts. For example, what if there are less small or bush birds here? Or what about abrupt habitat changes north of us. Or climate extremes on migration. Or decoupling of forage/prey life cycles with those of the birds’?

To our superficial gaze the affects & effects of interactions or agonistics might be misunderstandings in passing.

Judith
SEQ 500m

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Night parrot Stories

Experiential. Art. Yes, vanishings, melancholy, vestiges, & the essence of the country. Though even I, who so like it, did find the MH370 strand pushed the envelope too far.
Not sure of the date of this film? Perhaps it was finished soon after John Young’s labelled feather was publicised from “Somewhere in South West Queensland”… during a time of more controversy than acceptance?
Who were the outback birding blokes?
Judith
SEQ 500m

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Fw: Pelagic trip reports Oct-Nov-Dec (Port Stephens and Swansea, NSW)

Hi everyone,See below. I hope the links forward through ok.Many thanks to Brook Whylie for getting these reports up.Cheers Mick

—– Forwarded Message —–
From: Mick Roderick < mickhhb@yahoo.com.au>
To: Hunterbirding < hunterbirding@googlegroups.com>
Cc: Allan Benson < aejsbenson@bigpond.com>
Sent: Wednesday, 27 December 2017, 13:46
Subject: Pelagic trip reports Oct-Nov-Dec

Hi all,
Merry New Christmas Year and all that.
The SOSSA website was having a few problems but they’re now sorted and the past few pelagic trip reports from Port Stephens and Swansea have been uploaded. Here are the links below:
Friday 6th October 2017 (Port Stephens; run for the Bellingen Birders)
Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Friday, 6th October 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia

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Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Friday, 6th October 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia
bird birds boat shelf shearwater southerly water drift petrel long | |

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Sunday 15th October (Port Stephens)
Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Sunday, 15th October 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia

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Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Sunday, 15th October 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia
boat birds pelagic bird shearwater petrel heads albatross water back | |

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Sunday 12th November (Port Stephens)
Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Sunday, 12th November 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia

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Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Sunday, 12th November 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia
bird birds petrel boat shearwater port water heads inshore pelagic | |

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Sunday 26th November (Port Stephens)
Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Sunday, 26th November 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia

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Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Sunday, 26th November 2017, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia
boat birds bird shearwaters drift shearwater shelf heads pelagic trawler | |

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Friday 8th December (Swansea; organised by Allan Benson)
Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Friday, 8th December 2017, Swansea, NSW, Australia

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Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association Inc. (SOSSA) – Friday, 8th December 2017, Swansea, NSW, Australia
boat bird shelf birds shearwater tern albatross return long miles | |

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CheersMick

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