Papuan Frogmouths

A female Papuan Frogmouth Podargus papuensis sits in her daytime roost, watching out, as she was when I first detected her.

Then she smoothly adopted her concealment pose as I approached. By stretching out her neck and flattening against the branch, she looks just like another piece of branch.

In the two previous posts I described some of the birds that we caught when on a mist-netting bird survey in the Kutini-Payamu National Park in Cape York, northern Queensland, Australia. As I study Tawny Frogmouths in the Canberra area, I was always on the look out for frogmouths while on the trip. These are some photographs of the birds that I did see, there were probably many more that I missed, as they are rather tricky to spot.

A male Papuan Frogmouth peeks around a branch where he is sitting on his nest. The male frogmouths attend the nest during the day. The females, like the one above, spend the day roosting nearby, usually in a different tree.

The same male from a different angle, against a clear sky, which makes him a little more easy to spot. He was high in the rainforest canopy, about 20 m up, and these photographs were taken with a long lens. There are a lot of trees and many many branches to scan when looking for these birds. He is also a little more obvious as he is standing over the nest rather than sitting low on it in a concealment pose. It looked like he had very small chicks beneath him.

This is another male on a nest, which John Rawsthorne found while watching a flock of honeyeaters feeding on nectar in the flowers next to the frogmouth.

A pair of Papuan Frogmouths sitting through the day on a shady branch of a paperbark tree.

The same pair from a side-on view. They had chosen one of the lower more open branches in the canopy, but stayed in the shade. Their eyes were closed when I first found them as they were quite relaxed.

However, when I approached, they opened their eyes and seemed to scrutinise me. Was I a threat to them.

Neither bird adopted a concealment pose and they settled down, but the male still watched me through narrowed eyelids.

The female was a bit more cautious, and continued to watch me with wide eyes. Photographers might think that I was using flash to take these shots, because the birds are so well lit, for birds that live in shady trees. But no, I never use flash to photograph birds in daylight. I do not like the unnatural lighting effect. This bird is lit from underneath naturally. They were perched over water and the sunlight was reflected back up onto them.

It wasn't an aggressive stare, more watchful. Her face is not fully lit as it would be with flash. Rather, the reflected light has picked out details and the double highlight in her eye shows the sky and the reflected sun below centre. A very unusual effect, with delightful results.

Delightful birds.

Kutini-Payamu Kingfishers

Any readers of the previous post with a bit of knowledge of the birds of the Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) National Park in Cape York, north Queensland will have wondered why there were no photographs of any of the kingfishers that occur there. Well, that is because they are such spectacular birds that I have placed them here in a separate post.

Perhaps the most spectacular kingfisher in the area is the seasonal migrant, the Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher Tanysiptera sylvia. This bird migrates south from New Guinea when the wet season approaches in November and it breeds in the forests of north-eastern Queensland. Despite their long tail feathers, they specialise in nesting in holes they dig into ground termite nests. How do they look after such long tail streamers.

Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher. A profile of a bird's head showing the detailed feathering of the crown, and the typically curve-edged shape of their bill. 

Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher. A pointed end view of the bill.

Little Kingfisher Ceyx pusillus. The flamboyant Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher is probably the most readily seen kingfisher in the forest, and the Little Kingfisher is probably most difficult to see. They only weigh 10-16 grams and that bill which looks so large on the bird by proportion is only 30 mm long, about a quarter of the total body length. They also have very short tails, like most true fish-eating kingfishers, and not like that of the Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher, which hunts terrestrial prey.

Little Kingfisher. And yes, they really are that blue. A blue which complements the pure white of the breast. Stunningly beautiful birds.

Little Kingfisher. Another pointed end view along a bill. I wonder why they have those two headlight white spots between their eyes and their bill. They must have a purpose.

Azure Kingfisher Ceyx azureus. The other true kingfisher that occurs in the study area. This is a more widespread species whose range extends down the east of Australia as far as Victoria.

Azure Kingfisher. This pointed end view shows two pale orange-buff spots between the eyes and bill. Again, what is their purpose. Everything in nature has evolved for an advantageous reason. 

Yellow-billed Kingfisher Syma torotoro. another trans Cape York - New Guinea species, which in Australia, only occurs in the Cape York peninsula. This is one of those kingfishers that seems to have a very large head compared with the whole body. These birds are another dry ground hunter, well not in the wet rainforest, and they dig nests in arboreal ant nests. 

Yellow-billed Kingfisher. That bill is about 40 mm long and although the crest appears to be big too, that is all feathers and less structural. 

Yellow-billed Kingfisher. The pointed-end view. The bird's crest is blowing off centre in the wind.

Yellow-billed Kingfisher. A rear head view. Compare this with the previous shot from the front. Those two dark spots on the back of the head look so like eyes. Are they a method of protection from potential predators. If a goshawk were to see that it might re-consider attacking a bird that seems to be looking straight at it.

To end this page here is a short video of the Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher display. The male is calling, he has pure white tail streamers. The female flies in, she has pale blue edges to her tail streamers. Click to open the video in full screen. The call and the depth of the foliage in the film give a fine feeling for the ambiance of the rainforest.

I would like to again thank Jon Coleman for organising this trip as part of a long-term study, back in late November-early December 2020. 

Bird Banding in Cape York, Australia

Although many people elsewhere in the world have been in some form of lock-down or another due to Covid, I have been busy in the field most of the past year as Canberra has been relatively free of the nasty bug - so far. In consequence, I am only now catching up on cataloging last year's photographs. This set is from a bird-banding trip to Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) National Park in Cape York, north Queensland, that was organised by Jon Coleman, back in late November - early December. This was all done as part of a long-term study by various people over the years of the birds in rainforest in the area, so it was good to be able to fulfill this year's effort and maintain the continuity of the study. The first survey in this study was done in 1990, and a total of 5988 birds have been banded, including 712 birds in 2020. And 54 birds were re-trapped in 2020 from earlier capture in previous years. 618 birds have been re-trapped in the whole study. I do not aim to detail all the species banded/ringed in this post, merely portray a selection of species that we caught, some of which are only found in that part of Australia.

Frill-necked Monarch Arses lorealis, a flycatcher which in Australia is restricted to the wet forests in Cape York. Like many of the species caught in this study, this species' range is between far north-east Australia and New Guinea.

This is an adult male, females have pale lores and do not have a black chin.

White-faced Robin Tegellasia leucops. One of the more commonly seen rainforest birds in the study area. Mostly because they hunt in typical robin style of perching on low branches then pouncing on prey on the ground. It might be commonly seen, but only locally, as in Australia it is restricted to the Cape York peninsula.

White-faced Robin. Yes it has white face.

White-streaked Honeyeater Trichodere cockerelli. A true Cape York bird as it endemic to the area. We watched these birds feeding on nectar from flowers in the high canopy of the forest.

White-streaked Honeyeater. As with so many birds, the details that can be discerned when in the hand give a different impression of the bird seen in the canopy. Here the elaborate spiky white feathers on the throat show how the streaked effect is formed. And those subtle yellow tufts are exquisite. 

Tawny-breasted Honeyeater Xanthotis flaviventer. This is another trans Cape York - New Guinea species, although it isn't restricted to rainforest as it can be found in other wooded habitats. The wavy white line below the eye is a diagnostic feature on this otherwise generally brown coloured bird.

Grey Whistler Pachycephala simplex. This is another species whose range extends over northern Australia and New Guinea. Small green-grey birds are easily overlooked in a forest.

Magnificent Riflebird Ptiloris magnificus, adult female. There are three species of Riflebird (members of the BIrds of Paradise family) in Australia, all separate in their ranges and this is the most northern one, which ranges between Cape York and New Guinea.

Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo Cacomantis castaneiventris. A cuckoo of dense rainforest, hence in Australia mostly confined to the Cape York peninsula, close to its main range throughout New Guinea.

Little Bronze-Cuckoo Chalcites minutillus. This of the minutillus sub-species as recognised by the wide black and white markings on the outer tail feathers. This sub-species ranges across northern Australia, the archipelago of Indonesia and New Guinea, and south east Asia.

Little Bronze-Cuckoo. The tail pattern is diagnostic between the various species of Bronze-Cuckoos. The metallic lustre on the bird's back and coverts show why they are named Bronze-Cuckoos. 

Lovely Fairy-wren Malurus amabilis. Adult male on the left, female on the right. These birds inhabit the edges of the forest, sticking to the scrub along the edges of clearings. They are known hosts of the Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo, above.

Yellow-breasted Boatbill Machaerirhynchus flaviventer, adult male. 

Yellow-breasted Boatbill, adult female. 

Yellow-breasted Boatbill - this shows why they are named boatbill. This is a flycatcher and I have watched them catch insects in the air, but I do not know the advantage of the unusual bill shape.

Noisy Pitta Pitta versicolor. This is a common species of rainforest or wet forest gullies all along the eastern fringe of Australia, but that does not detract anything from the privilege to see them up close. They are predominantly green, yellow, brown and black so easily missed when foraging on the forest floor. Although the lustrous blue on their wings and rump shine must shine when they flash them.

Shining Flycatcher Myiagra alecto, adult female. 

Shining Flycatcher, adult male. 

Shining Flycatcher, adult male. The blue plumage shines in the dappled light of the forest, especially that on the crown and throat.

Shining Flycatcher, adult male. The bright orange of the inside of the bird's bill is so vibrant in contrast to the shining blue of its plumage that it must be an important component of their display.

I find the colours and forms of all birds fascinating, when considering their purpose, and in the dark understorey of rainforest, little details help the birds shine and be seen by their con-specifics. 

I always see something new when I visit rainforests, and on this trip I saw rather a lot. My thanks to Jon for organising the trip.

Best Photograph 2020

Lumholtz's Tree Kangaroo Dendrolagus lumholtzi, Atherton Tableland.

We all know 2020 has been a terrible year and I have noticed that I have posted much fewer articles this year than most. This is a result of me not having traveled so much this year, none internationally. But in November the state borders opened in Australia and I was able to go on a field trip to Cape York, stopping for a few days on the Atherton Tableland in north Queensland. And that was where I spotted this lovely animal high up in the rainforest branches.

These are not the sharpest of shots, but not bad for a hand held long lens in dull light. It is the back-lighting on the fur and leaves that I like, and the pose. The kangaroo could not have held a better pose for me. And I like the detail of the mosses and ferns on the branches, a true wild shot of an animal in its natural habitat.

Although, as it sat there looking down at me, completely at ease in the branches, I was reminded of a similar scene from the movie Predator. I only saw this one kangaroo, I must have missed more. Real life is better than fiction.

Tawny Frogmouths are busy

Many of the tawny frogmouth chicks I have been studying this year have fledged in the past two weeks, like these two above, flanked by their parents. The family were sitting in a tree about 30 m from their nest tree. All were sitting quietly in the partial shade. Mum adopted a defensive hiding pose, adopting a posture to resemble a broken branch. Dad sat quietly, he had seen me often before and probably recognised me as no threat. The chicks were curious.

The chicks, like so many frogmouth fledglings, were so curious of the observer that they never adopted a defensive pose. They stared down at me as if determining what I was, and whether I was a threat to them. They were probably trusting in their parents for guidance. But they simply sat quiet and didn't give any soft alarm calls. Did the chicks feel safe because their dad wasn't alrmed?

Dad maybe looked calm, but I am sure he was ready to react were I to make any wrong move towards them.

There are numerous frogmouth pairs that did not seem to breed earlier, in september, as usual. But I have seen several new nests and birds on eggs in the past week, at the same time as most are fledging. This might be because there was limited food over winter and not all birds were in condition to breed in spring. Now though, with most pairs rearing two chicks, and some pairs rearing three, and it has been a wet spring, it looks like there is abundant food. I found this frog below one nest, and if this is an example of the prey available, that is a substantial meal for a frogmouth chick.

And I found this centipede below another nest. The kinks in the animal's body indicate where a frogmouth had grabbed it. I wonder what they taste like?