Having, during March, come upon several Latham’s Snipe foraging, over some weeks, at the mown edge of a roadside dam *at c 400m asl.* in SEQ, I became curious about most current Australian reports of the species being from lowlands & coastal areas. Also, mown ground, & roadside foraging, seem generally contra-indicated in the accounts — though there are exceptions in the sources. Sightings’ altitude, however, seems related to publication date. The yearly data available publicly for March (the middle month of the northerly migration leaving Vic/Tas annually in Feb & passing out of northern Australia each year in April), a month that becomes significant at the end of this email, includes the roughly transcribed notes below (& related maps etc to be found at the BA Atlas site & eBird webpages). These compared with older sources lead me to wonder if the recent data barely records at-elevation sightings because there’s less effort, or less expectation now of seeing the birds in the ranges — or if the non-breeding/migrating birds are now rarely using our higher waterbodies. RECENT sources: — BirdlifeAustralia’s online profile: “in freshwater wetlands on or near the coast” — HBW Alive, members online: “[Breeding habitat … from coast up to 1400 m] … Erratic movements in non-breeding quarters, probably in response to rainfall and food availability. S Australia vacated in late Feb, and birds move gradually to N Australia … … sensitive to disturbance by humans and grazing cattle, although sometimes inhabits wetlands prone to disturbance, e.g. …along roads…” — The composite-March maps from Birdata & eBird show predominantly lowland sightings when zoomed-in. — However, many of the “Flats” etc named in birding-aus sightings are unfamiliar locations to me, so I wonder if I’m under-reading recent reports at elevation? OLDER sources, however: — Garnett & Crowley’s 2000: “Action Plan for Australian Birds” (hardcopy!): “the species readily occupies artificial…swamps. Mowing of habitat during summer can render habitat unsuitable for months at a time.” — Pringle’s “Shorebirds” volume of the National Photographic Index: ” *alpine* bogs… Australia generally, coastal and inland, *including highlands*” — The original “Atlas of Australian Birds” (also a book!): “lives singly or in small groups *at all altitudes*” — HANZAB (References till about 1993): Habitat included “*alpine, subalpine* …heath”… “sometimes recorded in wetlands prone to disturbance, e.g. …next to roads…” Distribution included “Qld E. coast and *tablelands* … Tas…Central Plateau … SA…occasionally…*Mt*Lofty Ras”. Non-breeding movements also included references to seasonal movements / relating also to rain & food availability, between low & *high*country in Tas & Vic late in the year, & in NSW prior to emigration. The stomach contents of (a startling number of) birds were studied around Cooma-Jindabyne. Perhaps significantly for the birds in relation to the altitude questions of this email were the Weight findings, showing the birds gaining considerably the most weight at staging points during northward migration through eastern Australia around March, in “central-n. NSW” & “n. Aust”. — Beginning around Feb in 2002, a discussion on birding-aus included various remarks about the paucity of “*alpine*” bird spp. (even during summer), and included the first correspondent’s surprise, like mine, at seeing Latham’s Snipe recorded at elevation. — Rowley’s “Birds of the Australian High Country”, however, seems to discuss Latham’s Snipe at Canberra-height, & not in the mountains nearby (e.g. Cooma-Jindabyne, whereat Frith is cited in HANZAB). My conclusion is that highland waterbodies may be important for Latham’s Snipes’ migratory weight-gain in March, but that the birds may be under-observed at these sites. This could be due to cumulative disappearance of this habitat from our local Latham’s Snipe searches/literature/awareness. What do you think? Cheers, Judith. jlukin01@postoffice.csu.edu.au eBird– [image: pastedGraphic.pdf] [image: pastedGraphic_1.pdf] group site ibamy data the atlas maps+lists custom lists help home login [image: pastedGraphic_2.pdf] *LOADING* Map tools: *Bird Distribution Layers | **Legend* *Reporting Rates* *Atlas old* x *Atlas new* x *Optional Layers* graticule rainfall contour reserves(land) *Atlas Distribution Maps* Currently displayed: Atlas no. 168 *Latham’s Snipe* *Gallinago hardwickii* [image: pastedGraphic_3.pdf] (c) Robert Mancini View species profile@ Birds in Backyards Filter records by month: Mar [image: pastedGraphic_4.pdf] *LOADING* Map tools: Zoom In *Bird Distribution Layers** | Legend* *species* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_5.pdf]present *site* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_6.pdf]survey site *rainfall* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_7.pdf]isohyet mm *road* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_8.pdf]major road *watercourse* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_9.pdf]river *waterbody* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_10.pdf]lake, estuary *wetland* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_11.pdf]swamp: marine, fresh 2. [image: pastedGraphic_12.pdf]subject to inundation *urban* 1. [image: pastedGraphic_13.pdf]built-up area 2. [image: pastedGraphic_14.pdf]park _______________________________________________ Birding-Aus mailing list Birding-Aus@birding-aus.org To change settings or unsubscribe visit: http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org
