African Olive

Hi All.

I was woken predawn at Avoca Beach NSW on Sunday by a remarkable chorus of contented whistles, chortles, clicks, snaps, rasps, hiccups, short songs and other bird noises emanating from a huge old African Olive outside the bedroom window. It was laden with small fruit, unripened green and ripe black.

I identified Satin . . . → Read More: African Olive

More sunny days, but Arctic air in Tromsø

 A SETBACK TO SPRING IN tROMSØ, N. NORWAY

In Norwegian we have an expression: "How long was Adam in Paradise?" which we use in cases of somewhat unexpected setbacks after a promising development. Last time I wrote to you we had temperatures in . . . → Read More: More sunny days, but Arctic air in Tromsø

Bruny Island Bird

Jamaican Birding Report

Dear Birding-Aus Members,

Just thought I’d share a blog post I just wrote:

badbirding.jpolak.org/2019/05/05/bad-birding-goes-to-jamaica/

It is about the trip my wife and I just took to Jamaica, in case anyone is interested in going there (there is relatively little information on Jamaica compared to Australia). We went unguided for 9 days, and had a great . . . → Read More: Jamaican Birding Report

Melbourne ‘parakeet’

Dear all Thank you for the identification suggestions (posted on the forum and sent directly) for the Melbourne 'parakeet' that I posted. After checking some images on the Internet, I think the suggestion that the bird was an escaped female Superb Parrot is correct.

— Regards Richard . . . → Read More: Melbourne ‘parakeet’

Peregrine chicks

Watching the Baltimore skyscraper nest-cam? Really amazing. And the nest pair history (recapped in the Comments) is quite surprising. Judith – https://explore.org/livecams/falcons/peregrine-falcon-chesapeake-conservancy

— JudithLA

Melbourne ‘parakeet’

I wonder if anyone can assist with an identification as my reference books are not accessible. This morning a green 'parakeet' flew over and landed in a nearby tree. It was green overall. The bill was pinkish red, the head green, no collar was evident, chest and belly green suffused brown (not as clear . . . → Read More: Melbourne ‘parakeet’

“Phylogeny of the monarch flycatchers …”

Thanks, all. Here we go! – still current, apparently, for those with access through Science Direct – Andersen, M.J.; Hosner, P.A.; Filardi, C.E.; Moyle, R.G. (2015). "Phylogeny of the monarch flycatchers reveals extensive paraphyly and novel relationships within a major Australo-Pacific radiation". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 83: 118–36. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2014.11.010.

— JudithLA

. . . → Read More: “Phylogeny of the monarch flycatchers …”

Magpie-lark … taxonomic history

The limited history in my house of this species’ classification is summarised in Simpson & Day 1988 – as ATTACHED – where Magpue-larks are grouped among Australian mud-nesters & just before the Corvids (where Cayley had associated it), “in a new Family with the New Guinea Torrent-lark”; & with a footnote pointing towards possible future . . . → Read More: Magpie-lark … taxonomic history

white faced heron

Driving between Wilmington and Melrose SA yesterday I observed a white faced heron standing next to a kangaroo carcass. I did not see the heron eating the carcass but that was the distinct impression formed as to why it was standing there. It did not strike me as haphazard or coincidental behaviour. We are . . . → Read More: white faced heron