Spotted Bowerbirds

Conflicting aging criteria?

While studying birds at Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary recently, Mark Clayton and I caught these two Spotted Bowerbirds Chlamydiae maculata and as we were not familiar with the plumages of the different ages and sexes, I photographed them. Now upon closer inspection I find myself confused by the literature and give my interpretation of their age and sex below.

An adult or young bird

An obvious feature of this Spotted Bowerbird's plumage - to a bird ringer/bander - are the bars through the pale rufous tips of the secondary coverts. According to the text of the plumage guide to aging these birds in the Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds, HANZAB, this feature identifies the bird as an adult. However, the other features of the bird's plumage indicate that it is a young sub-adult bird. Also, online images of apparent adult birds at bowers show birds with large nuchal crests, and there are no bars through the tips of their secondary coverts e.g. martinwillisphotographs.com.au. While those of apparent young birds, by their generally pale plumage and lack of crest (HANZAB), show birds with bars through the tips of these feathers.

The second bird shown below seems to be an adult as it has a large pink nuchal crest, a red iris and richly contrasting plumage of dark, almost black and rufous feathers (HANZAB).

This image illustrates the first bird's head, showing the small nuchal crest
 of pink feathers and a slate-grey back to the neck.

This image of the second bird shows a larger, adult-type nuchal crest
 and a similar grey back to the neck

The first bird has only a few pink feathers in its crest,
and the crown feathers are dull rufous/brown with faint dark edges

The second bird has a thick group of pink feathers in its crest,
 the crown feathers have a contrasting dark edges,
those in the fore have white tips.

I suggest that the first bird is more than one year old and not older than two, a sub-adult, 2- in the Australian aging category system. The feathers are generally of low contrast in tone and many of the coverts have pale tips. It is possibly a young male as the slate-grey feathers on the back of the neck are similar to those on the second bird, which by the same criterion seems to be a male. Females have white streaks through these feathers (HANZAB).

The second bird has a rich contrasting dark brown/rufous plumage and obvious pink nuchal crest feathers. I suggest that this bird is an adult male (2+) as it does not have any white streaks through the grey patch at the back of the neck.The bird was also beginning to moult its primary and tail feathers, which is typical of adult birds post-breeding, the period when we caught the birds, in March.

Bowra

A Major Mitchell's Cockatoo Lophochroa leadbeater flies over Bowra at sunrise

Last week I was at Bowra wildlife sanctuary in the Mulga lands of southern Queensland, which is owned and maintained by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy. The land was previously run as a cattle station (ranch), but there are large stands of natural vegetation, particularly of the rocky Mulga woodland on the low stony ridges, Gidgee woodland on the plain and long lines of River Red Gum and Coolabah trees along the watercourses. The sanctuary is several kilometres north west of Cunnamulla and has an excellent campsite and cottage accommodation around the old homestead. Numerous rough vehicle tracks wind around and through the the various habitats giving easy access for walking through the bush to look for wildlife.

Sunrise is the best time to look for wildlife as the animals are most active before the mid-day heat 

I was there helping with a co-operative bird-banding (ringing) study organised by John Coleman from Brisbane. This was the fifth year of the project and by setting nets at the same places each year we will gradually build up a picture of the various bird species' use of the different habitats and their demography. But more of that in a later post.

The old cattle run country of Gidgee woodland - sparse mulga trees and bushes. These plains flood after heavy rains and  grasses and herbs then cover the now bare earth.

The largest and most obvious animal in the plains is the Red Kangaroo, the largest macropod, and I saw three other species, the  Common Wallaroo, Western Grey Kangaroo and Swamp Wallaby. Emus were also abundant, with some birds leading parties of up to five juveniles. Unfortunately there are stray cattle about, as well as herds of feral goats. It is not easy to control these non-native species, but the habitats were in good condition overall.

Red Kangaroos Macropus rufus (only the large dominant males are truly red). Note the large ears for keeping cool

Most animal species were reptiles such as the gecko I found on the entrance gate when I arrived, the carpet python that was high in the canopy above our tents and the numerous small lizards. My main focus was on birds this trip, so I didn't have much time to identify most of the reptiles, although I grabbed a few pictures of a skink lurking under tree bark. It seemed to be hiding there, waiting for passing prey.

A Ragged Snake-eyed Skink Cryptoblopherus pannosus hides under the bark of a Gidgee tree. 

There are several pools of standing water scattered around the sanctuary and in an arid country, that is a big draw for wildlife. I saw Pied Cormorants, a Darter and a White-necked heron fishing in the larger waterways.

Gumholes Creek - standing water lined with ancient River Red Gums

There is an artificial waterhole in the middle of the camping ground, large enough to attract a Black Swan while I was there, as well as Yellow-billed Spoonbills, Red-necked Avocets, Black-winged Stilts, Masked Lapwings and Black-fronted Dotterel.

A Yellow-billed Spoonbill Platalea flavipes and two Black-winged Stilts Himantopus himantopus
- in the campsite waterhole

Another water site was the campsite toilet block, a great favourite of the Desert Tree Frog, with occasional visits from Green Tree Frogs and I would expect snakes looking for frogs, although I never I met any snakes there on my visits.

Night-time is best for looking for frogs in the dunny

As the sign in the loo states, don't mind the frogs they will survive the flush.

A Desert Tree Frog Litoria rubella in the loo

Bright yellow fungus

A cluster of the Yellow Houseplant Mushroom Leucocoprinus birnbaumii

There has been a long warm spell at the end of this summer in Canberra, with a several periods of heavy rain. All of which added up to warm humid conditions - perfect for mushrooms, such as this bright yellow fruiting species that popped up in a plant pot on the verandah.

This is a tropical/warm temperate species with a worldwide range, so the recent warm humidity must have encouraged this one to fruit. The weather in Canberra is not usually so warm and wet at the end of summer and early autumn. The fungus grows in moist, rich organic soils, so the conditions in the pot where a small orange tree grows were probably tipped in its favour as the humidity increased. This is the first time I have seen one in the garden. Although the mycelia can probably live in the soil it takes a period of warm humidity to induce them to fruit.

I saw the fungus sprouting one day and the next they had burst open.

DO NOT EAT

Visitors to the garden pond

A Red Wattlebird sits on the edge of the pond

I had a camera trap set up at our garden pond in Canberra over the summer to see what birds visit it for bathing and drinking. The temperature was up in the high 30's C in late February - early March, so the birds seemed to appreciate the ready supply of cool water. 22 species used the water, 19 native and three alien. See below for the full list, and I have included a link to a video to show several of the birds that came by. To watch the video click here.

The video opens with a group of Red Wattlebirds and Eastern Rosellas splashing in the water. Then it shows two Eastern Rosellas with three young Crimson Rosellas. A single adult Crimson Rosella has a good splash in the middle of the pond and an Australian Magpie calls while coming in for a drink, followed by a young male Satin Bowerbird. He lives in the area and occasionally brings in pieces of blue plastic, in early-learning attempts at building a bower in the garden.

The large birds seemed to come for a drink in the afternoons. A Sulphur-crested Cockatoo takes a drink followed by an Australian Raven. Then as the light began to fade the smallest birds came in. A grey Fantail flitted about nervously, and a White-browed Scrubwren took a few dips under the cover of the falling light while a flock of cockatoos call in the background as they settle to roost. It was almost dark by then.

A Sulphur-crested Cockatoo comes in for a drink

During the night, only the local Brush-tailed Possums came down, but I'll keep setting the camera up as one night something unusual might come in for a drink. Food scraps are easy for animals to find in suburbia, but clean water is not so easy to find.

The highlight of the session? That easily goes to the Giant Water Spider Megadolomedes australianus, although I never managed to catch a picture of her. She was magnificent - they grow to up to 18 cm leg span, and they can eat fish. What a spider.

The full bird list for the garden pond:

Native species:

Crested Pigeon
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
Australian King Parrot
Eastern Rosella
Crimson Rosella
Grey Fantail
Superb Fairy-wren
White-browed Scrubwren
Brown Thornbill
Red Wattlebird
Noisy Friarbird
Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Eastern Spinebill
Silvereye
Magpie lark
Australian Magpie
Pied Currawong
Australian Raven
Satin Bowerbird

Introduced species:

House Sparrow
Common Myna
Common Starling

Mystery Bird

Ken Bissett's photograph of the mystery bird posted on the chatline

There was a recent request for help with the identification of the above mystery bird in the local Canberra Ornithologists' Group chatline (http://canberrabirds.org.au/). The query was by Ken Bissett of a small bird he had seen at Mulligan's Flat Nature Reserve, an area of woodland north of Canberra. The first online suggestion was that it might be a juvenile Brown-headed Honeyeater Melithreptus brevirostris, and another was a juvenile Western Gerygone Gerygone fusca. It is now early autumn and there are many young birds about, with confusing plumages. The latter is correct and I present below a selection of images to help explain the reasoning for this conclusion.

A first-year Brown-headed Honeyeater

Both species are woodland birds with light greenish/grey upper-parts and pale under-parts, and they are similar in size, about 100 mm in total length. However these are relative colour comparisons which can vary between individuals at different times of the year, so it is better to refer to specific features.

The same Brown-headed Honeyeater in profile

Ken's bird has a pale grey crown and dark grey legs and feet whereas a young, first year Brown-headed Honeyeater has a pale brown crown as pointed out by Mark Clayton, and pale yellow legs and feet, as pointed out by Richard Allen, in replies to the query. This Brown-headed honeyeater also shows a faint buff/yellow line across the nape.

An adult Brown-headed Honeyeater

For comparison between young and adult Brown-headed Honeyeaters, note the dark bill in the adult and the dark greyish-brown crown and side of head, with a clear white line across the nape.

A first-year Western Gerygone

A young, first-year Western Gerygone has a grey crown with no line across the nape (there is no such line on Ken's bird). It has a white eyestripe, emphasised by a dark line between the eye and the base of the bill. This is faint on Ken's bird, but it is there.

The same first-year Western Gerygone seen from the rear

When seen from the rear, the gerygone has obvious white markings on the tips of its tail feathers, which the honeyeater does not have. An alternative, old, name for the gerygone is the White-tailed Warbler, so that is a good feature to look for.

An adult Western Gerygone

There is no ambiguity between the adults of the gerygone and honeyeater. The adult Brown-headed Honeyeater has bold dark head markings and yellow legs and feet. The adult Western Gerygone has no bold head markings, only the small eyestripe. Its main distinguishing features are its red eye, grey legs and feet, and a dark band across its 'white-tail'.

The same adult Western Gerygone seen from the rear

First year plumage

I was out west over last weekend catching birds as part the long-term study at The Charcoal Tank Nature Reserve, which is a cooperative site and the trip was organised by Mark Clayton. The most noticeable trend that I noticed amongst the birds we caught and banded was the high proportion of young birds. It is the end of the breeding season for the passerines and most of the young were free-flying and independent, although some were still being fed by attending parents. The other point I noticed was the different strategies of moult that the various species have adapted to suit their lifestyles. Below are only a few examples.

A first year Sacred Kingfisher Todiramphus sanctus

This young Scared Kingfisher was in perfect condition with a full set of fully-grown flight feathers, all with fine clean edges. This is a single brooded migrant species and the adults had probably flown north already. The buff tips to this bird's crown and covert feathers indicate that it is a bird hatched in the recent breeding season. So, this bird was ready to fly north probably following innate properties to guide it to its winter quarters in the north of Australia or perhaps Papua New guinea.

A first year Yellow-plumed Honeyeater Lichenostomus ornatus

This young Yellow-plumed Honeyeater is clearly very young, as it still has a yellow gape - the flap of skin at the base of its bill. Therefore, this bird was from a late brood, perhaps a second or even a third reared by its parents. Unlike the kingfisher, this is less critical as it will not have to fly far very soon. At most it will probably range locally or nomadically in and around the breeding region. This bird will join a flock of its species, probably a mixed flock of several honeyeater species, unlike the kingfisher which will live singly until it returns to breed.

The same Yellow-plumed Honeyeater - face on

The plumage details which discern this bird as a youngster are: the brown feathers on its back and crown, the incompletely-grown wing coverts, some of which are still in quill, the yellow base to its bill, the pale brown streaks on its throat and breast and the thin yellow line across the side of its neck.

An adult Yellow-plumed Honeyeater - face on

The plumage details which discern this as an adult Yellow-plumed Honeyeater are: the bright yellow crown with no brown feathers, the yellow plume feathers standing out from the sides of its neck, the heavy black streaks on its throat and breast, and the lustrous black bill.

A first-year Restless Flycatcher Myiagra inquieta

The young birds of the two previous species were both similar in plumage pattern to the adults, only less brightly marked. However, this young Restless Flycatcher is different from the adult birds, it has an orange/buff breast, the adults have almost pure white breasts. These flycatchers live singly when not breeding, or at most in pairs if they stay in their local area, but very little is definitely known of their non-breeding movements. They are also multi-brooded, so any young birds from early broods have to share habitat with breeding pairs, and those pairs would not be their parents if they move from their natal area. Therefore, by having a distinctly coloured breast any adult birds can identify them as youngsters and not regard them as a threat to their breeding, So they are less likely to attack the young birds and the immature birds can live unobtrusively with less harassment. This young bird has a fully grown set of fight feathers, but the primaries and their coverts are a dull dark grey, these are shiny black in the adults. Although, shiny black is not a true appraisal of this wonderfully coloured bird's plumage. The dark feathers have a rich metallic blue lustre, and when they raise their crest as in the image below, they present a very vivid frontage. This young bird has not quite grown all the lustrous feathers on its crown, some still have dull tips. But by next year's breeding season, they will be truly magnificent and offset by a bright white breast. A handsome bird indeed.

The same Restless Flycatcher - face on

Too hot sometimes

Meadow Argus Junonia villida

When I came home this morning there was a butterfly sun-basking on the wall next to the front door, which faces east. It had clearly found the wall a perfect place to catch the morning sun for its daily warm-up. However, by the time I returned it was sitting with its wings closed to avoid the ever warmer sunshine.

The shadow cast by the butterfly was so clear

Then, as I walked past the butterfly I noticed how it seemed to be in a rather awkward pose. It was aligned askew with the wall.

A minimal shadow

But as ever, things make sense in nature. The butterfly had aligned itself along the direction of the sunshine, and angle, so that it cast the smallest possible shadow.

It was holding itself perfectly, all in line with the sunshine by leaning and twisting its body

I took a look from its front, and I was impressed by how it held itself stationery, although I expect that it had moved ever so slightly to re-align as the sun rose and arced across the sky.

Very well adapted - the butterfly was even tilting its body to minimise exposure to the sunshine

As for the species, a Meadow Argus, I usually only see them in the nearby forest glades, often feeding on ground cover weeds, and they are usually much to flighty to photograph. I have seen them in the garden over the past few weeks, but this is the first one I've managed to grab a picture of.  This is a freshly emerged example, note its clean complete and un-frayed edges. My butterfly guru, Suzi Bond, tells me there has been a noticeable emergence in recent weeks.

A spider jewel

A female jewel spider Austracantha minax

It's late summer, spider time.

I have been busy at the desk for most of January, hence the shortage of recent posts, but that is all part of my seasonal behaviour. When the sun is out at this time of year in Canberra, it is not much fun walking about in the hot bush, so I use the time to catch up on writing and editing photographs. Meanwhile, as the summer has progressed, the spiders have been more active and I found this little beauty spinning her web this morning, before it was too hot - for me that is not her.

She is a Jewel Spider, otherwise known as a Christmas spider as they are abundant from then on, or another name is spiny spider. I like that last name as it is so apt. They have six spines set around the hind edge of their abdomen. And the jewel name is apt too, as their glossy bodies catch the light, with all those little pin-spots of colour on the abdomen. Most of those are white on the dorsal, top, side and yellowish orange on the ventral, belly side. This spider is hanging upside down as she was walking along her silk threads, and as she has such a heavy abdomen, she was belly up.

They are only about 7-8 mm long and the abdomen is so large in proportion to the rest of her body that the cephalothorax can barely be made out in these photographs. Her legs are also quite long, and in the top image, the two hairy black pedipalps can just be made out at the front, between the legs. This spider was busy spinning a new web, a circular orb-type, suspended between some grasses about a metre tall. It was nice to see a bit of colour, in the dusty sunshine.

Hot summer

A female Cabbage White Pieris rapae feeds on a dandelion flower

It's January, mid-summer in Canberra, and it's hot. So, I have been a little quiet recently, keeping cool and getting back into working at the desk. I try to take short sorties into the local bush, but most days I'm happy to sit on the veranda and watch the birds come and go in the garden. Then, while sitting there I counted six species of butterfly flitting between the plants, searching for food plants for themselves or to lay eggs on. So, I thought I might grab a few quick shots. No, the sunshine is so hot that the butterflies are all flying almost non-stop and at speed. They are not easy targets.

A female Common Grass Blue Zizina labradus feeds on a clover flower

The male cabbage whites were chasing one another through and over the bushes, then I spotted a female feeding on the dandelions on the lawn. One down. Next the blues, but they are so tiny and they really chase one another, fast and in unpredictable twisty flight. Fortunately this seems to take its toll on the males as they stopped every now and then to sun up and re-charge. No chance of close approach though, a long lens shot only. Similarly for the one female I saw and captured as she supped from the clover.

A male Common Grass Blue takes a short break to bask in the sun

The butterflies are certainly pretty to see, from our perspective, but the most stunning lepidorteran in the garden at the moment is a great big caterpillar, a Batwing Moth caterpillar. This one has grown to over 10 cm and the adult when it emerges has a wingspan well over that. They will emerge from their cocoons at the end of the summer, early autumn.

Batwing or White Stemmed Gum Moth Chelepteryx collesi.. Every spine hurts if it sticks into a predators skin

It is a few years since I saw one of these in the garden, which is good and bad news. Good for me as these insect larvae are protected by a mass of spines which break off into our skin if touched. And they are very irritating when they do, as they are very difficult to see and remove. A bit like pieces of very fine glass. But, then bad for the caterpillars as their main food plant in the garden, the tall red gums have been rather sickly in recent years, due to dry weather and an infestation of lerps (Google that, they are a fascinating life form and a rich source of food for birds).

Six true legs stretch forward, searching for a hold

These caterpillars have such dense spines/hairs around their thorax and head that it is difficult to discern exactly where the head is. It is a tiny section set low, beginning somewhere just in front of the legs. The best clue is their tiny black eyes which catch in the sunshine. But their mouth-parts are so swarmed by hairs, not much else can be made out. Then, of course, like so many caterpillars it is tricky to tell which end is which, as the tail resembles the head, or is it the head that resembles the tail...

A tiny beady eye looks out from beneath all those hairs

This one was not on a gum tree, but wandering across some old cut branches. I reckon that it had fed enough for that stage of its life and it was looking for a place to tuck into while it metamorphoses into an adult moth. Their cocoons are also prickly as they push those spines out thorough the casing. That is a very annoying habit for anyone like me you tends to climb trees. The cocoons are well camouflaged and too easily laid hands upon. Ouch.

So, til autumn....

Now which end was which again?