Night Parrot Presentation

Hi all, I got myself invited to John Young’s presentation this past week. It was fantastic to see the footage and a few [about 4] of his hundred images.

I thought you might be interested in some random notes i recorded in the evening [the presentation was 12 – 2 early in the afternoon] – didn’t have the sense to take notes while i was there. So here they are totally unedited – see what you can make of them; [Any errors are mine]

Habitat – SW Qld, Lake Eyre Basin, near gibber, remnant spinifex country, high unburned spinifex, recently seeded, c 5-6 ft high, ridges, sandy soils, few small shrubs and trees adjacent. Private land, grazing property however the land had little grazing pressure. Few other bird or mammal spp recorded at site. Behaviour – mixed reactions to playback. Sometimes [often] shut up for weeks. Very sensitive to disturbance. Many nights un-vocal. Other parrots heard at night flying around but Night parrot unreliable. Low to ground playback caused territorial reactions causing bird [male] to come into view. Bird walked between spinifex but puffed itself up and spread wings to look intimidating. Fast Hopping gate [c 20 -25 cm] jumps at a time. Calling – at night only – [bird strictly nocturnal?] – Immediately identifiable as a parrot however some similarity with Pied Honeyeater? Female had different call. Male / Female differences – male slightly larger, brighter, yellow further up breast under crop, brighter yellow on under tail coverts? Different calls between sexes. Different behaviours and responses to call – male reacted to call – banging head on the ground, raking the ground with feet, circling spinifex mounds with ‘increasing excitement’, puffed up posture “like an echidna” Male held a variety of roosting positions in different clumps of spinifex over different days – deep in Triodia clump – perched off the ground in the centre of the clump. Female besting deep within clump, thick nest made of broken spinifex, lined nest, again off the ground, some 15 feet at least from edge of spinifex. Nesting success confirmed by sound of young in nest. Perhaps two pair over the ‘greater area’. Sightings and sound of bird recorded over several visits. Photographic evidence achieved May 24, 2013. Partly insectivorous – moth wings, grasshopper legs adjacent to roost sites. Droppings very chalky / calcium filled with little evidence [although some] offering suggestion of herbage in diet. Bird possibly opportunistic regards diet like small mammals in arid areas. Again like small mammals bird gets water from eating insect / invertebrate prey. Lack of water dependence making strategy of staking outback water holes redundant. Searching for feathers in and around roosting and nesting sites [apparently without being too intrusive..] revealed only a very small number of feathers. Subsequently sent to WA museum for DNA testing. Details of searches by John Young – revealed strategies of following fence lines looking for feathers, searching lined nests for possible use of Night Parrot feathers., examining caves, baiting outback waterholes with seed, long nights listening. Last strategy was most successful. Recorded call which ultimately allowed all photography.

Management considerations 1/ Location kept secret to minimise disturbance from birders, visitors etc –and also because of wishes of land owner. Land owner apparently keen to conserve the birds but prefers anonymity. 2/ Control of feral cats and foxes – professional shooters in the short term plus examination of other methods such as baiting. [Further Research needed on control techniques for these two main feral predators. Consider the r’ship of dingo numbers and cat / fox numbers.] Anecdotally several people report high cat numbers in the outback generally. 3/ team approach at management – number of stakeholders needed. Details thus far very sketchy although a few organisations have offered assistance [Desert Channels?],

Research priorities Survey methods to be trialled at site where known birds exist to try to develop methods that can be used elsewhere; remote camers, call recording, response to playbacks [although John believes this is not suitable], infared, heat sensing equipment, night vision glasses etc Survey of habitat – floristics, soil types, vegetation structure, topography etc measured, fire history etc so as to facilitate plotting of like locations to assist in survey developments. Control of pest spp. Sniffer dogs [as used in Kiwi location] considered too invasive. Predator proof fencing deemed inappropriate at site.

Additional thoughts No word on when JY plans to publish any of his observations, information, photos ect. It is very important [I believe] to add his experience and observations to the literature. Some words mentioned about conservation groups wanting to use the footage etc for fund raising. As part of support conservation groups want a transparent open system however JY etc can not guarantee that as they have made pacts of secrecy with land owners.

Anyway cheers Ken ===============================

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