Bush Stone-curlews (Was: Errors in statistsic)

Hi Laurie, As someone who has done a little bit of work, including banding and flagging, on Bush Stone-curlews in north-east New South Wales I have often pondered your question. The prevalence of foxes is the most likely answer as these invasive predators get scarcer the further north you go. The fact that the Stone-curlews breed around humans may reflect the lack of, or low number of, foxes in these areas. There has been an apparent increase in the population of this species in northern New South Wales, in particular the Tweed and Clarence Valleys, but it is not known whether this increase is real or whether it is a result of greater observation effort. The control of foxes may also help to explain the increase as fox control has been carried out by the National Parks & Wildlife Service (as part of their Fox Threat Abatement Plans) and local councils in the area (and probably by the Local Land Services as well). 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—– From: Laurie Knight Sent: Saturday, October 25, 2014 11:16 AM To: Grahame Rogers Cc: Birding Aus Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Fwd: RE: Errors in statistsic It would be interesting to know what is really behind the decline in Bush Thickknees down south. They are doing quite well in Queensland – they are regulars in inner Brisbane, and back yards on the Bay Islands, so they can handle suburban environments. I’ve been watching a nesting pair in the inner city – one chick hatched a few days ago, but the adults were staying put, which I guess means there was another one yet to hatch. That is interesting, as I would have thought the eggs would have hatched around the same time. Regards, Laurie. On 25 Oct 2014, at 6:57 am, Grahame Rogers <gwrogers@bigpond.com> wrote: > FYI > > Regards > Grahame Rogers > > > >