Hi all, Some 400 + free flying Magpie Geese arrived at Serendip, near Lara, south-west of Melbourne in mid May. Before about 1910 Magpie Geese were not uncommon in Victoria but due to habitat loss and hunting they were all but wiped out until reintroduced to Serendip Wildlife Reserve in 1964 and Tower Hill, west of Warrnambool, in 1974 (HANZAB Vol 1 part b). Checking on Birdline, from 2004 to 2010 there were regular sightings in Vic of from 1 to 50 birds in wetlands across the west of the state. In 2011 there was a flock of 1000 + at Yambuk, in the south-west of the state and in 2013 a flock of 2000 + was seen at Lara. This year the flock size near Lara is so far approx 400 birds. Checking Birdline for NSW between 2006 and 2014 there were regular reports of flocks of 5 to 100 birds, and some breeding took place in the north of the state, but no flocks of 400 + were reported. I have heard that there are large numbers seen at Macquarie Marshes but I cannot find details. Magpie Geese in the Northern Territory are known to disperse at the end of the wet season as wetlands start to dry but, according to HANZAB, the movements are mainly “local”. The first of the big flocks reported in Vic coincide with the end of the drought in Oct 2010 – March 2011 so the birds have probably arrived due to continuing good conditions in the state. So, to my query(ies). Where do flocks of 400 – 1000 + Magpie Geese in Victoria come from? NSW? Qld? NT? WA? And as they appear to arrive as a complete flock, why are there no reports from north of the Murray in the days and weeks before they arrive in southern Victoria? Has anyone seen flocks of 400 + Magpie Geese in NSW or SA this year and if so are they still there? I am fascinated that flocks of a very large black and white goose can travel across multiple states without anyone seeing or reporting them. Is it possible that they travel at night and only spend a limited amount of time on the ground during the trip? Is it possible they do a non-stop flight? cheers Jenny http://jenniferspryausbirding.blogspot.com.au/ _______________________________________________ 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
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2 responses to “Magpie Geese in Victoria query”
Hi Jenny and David, The Magpie Goose recolonised New South Wales in the early 1980s and I documented this in a paper in the Australian Birds journal. We have had Geese in northern New South Wales ever since but there have been short periods when they have been hard to find. In the early days we did get flocks of 400+ but in recent years a maximum flock of 120+ has been normal. This number usually includes recently fledged juveniles as the species breeds regularly in the Coldstream Wetlands near Ulmarra. At the same time as the species was naturally recolonising New South Wales captive bred birds, apparently originating from the Victorian captive population, were released at the Wetlands Centre at Shortland, in the Hunter Valley. This was unfortunate as it muddied the water with respect to monitoring a natural recolonisation event. Captive breeding and release is not always the best method to recover populations of fauna. It should only be used when all other in-situ actions have been taken and have failed. It is also useless releasing captive-bred fauna into areas where the impacts that caused the extinction are still present. Anyway I will stop my rant now on that topic but as you may have gathered I was bitterly disappointed with the release at such a critical time. Regards Greg Dr Greg. P. Clancy Ecologist and Birding-wildlife Guide | PO Box 63 Coutts Crossing NSW 2460 | 02 6649 3153 | 0429 601 960 http://www.gregclancyecologistguide.com http://gregswildliferamblings.blogspot.com.au/ —–Original Message—– Sent: Wednesday, June 04, 2014 9:16 PM Cc: birding-aus Jenny Goose Lagoon near Yambuk got its name from the flocks of Magpie Geese that lived there. I just read through Harry Frith’s Magpie Goose chapter and he doesn’t mention their travel habits. However, he does mention fifteen irruptions to southern Australia between 1888 and 1967, each following droughts in the Northern Territory. Interestingly, he discusses the attraction of concentrations of geese and the tendency of groups to follow other groups to night time roosts. Cheers David
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Jenny Goose Lagoon near Yambuk got its name from the flocks of Magpie Geese that lived there. I just read through Harry Frith’s Magpie Goose chapter and he doesn’t mention their travel habits. However, he does mention fifteen irruptions to southern Australia between 1888 and 1967, each following droughts in the Northern Territory. Interestingly, he discusses the attraction of concentrations of geese and the tendency of groups to follow other groups to night time roosts. Cheers David _______________________________________________ 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