Azure Experience

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Azure Experience

WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY KELLY BUDGEN

During a recent fishing trip with my over enthusiastic partner we set out to explore the wilds of the Upper Brisbane River and what it had to offer.

After a steep decent down the river bank we successfully boarded the somewhat unstable canoe. Armed with fishing rods and my trusty SLR Camera our adventure began. Admittedly, our first and only goal was to catch our dinner but to my excitement, one hour into the trip we came across the most beautiful feathered creature known to man—the Azure Kingfisher Alcedo azurea.

With plumage in full display this Azure flitted from one low lying branch to another keeping a sharp eye on the waters. Curiously watching for shoals of guppies and gudgens intended for its next meal the Azure Kingfisher plunged from overhanging perches into the water to catch its prey.

Whilst observing its eating habits that day it became obvious that this particular kingfisher wasn’t only eating for one. It seemed that there must be a reason for this unusually extreme appetite. After following the Azure slowly and stealthily up the river about 500 metres our questions were answered. There, in amongst the dead branches of a recently fallen iron bark, was to our delight the first of the Azure Kingfisher young we would sight and photograph that day.

After observing the parent bird continuing to fly back and forth to this particular young one feeding on demand, we started to wonder whether there was more than one fledgling. This one seemed to be rather young with its quills still yet to unroll on top of its head. Could there possibly be another?

It is a known fact that the Azure Kingfisher generally has clutches of 5−7 eggs with two clutches a year. Azure Kingfishers form monogamous pairs that defend a breeding territory—breeding season is September to January. Both parents share the task of incubation and feeding the chicks. The Azure nest is unique as it is usually at the end of a burrow, dug out of soil in a riverbank.

Sure enough, after watching the same parent bird for some time it eventually diverted its usual feeding path across the river to another secluded safe area covered and surrounded by vegetation. It was a second chick, this one was older—the plumage more vivid than the first and all feather quills were unrolled and in full bloom. The young chick was calling intently to the parent bird seeking its next meal.

This was a truly amazing sight, nature’s beauty at its best. Hopefully we will experience more wonderful sightings like this in future adventures.

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Get Your Finches Ready for the Cooler Temperatures

Monday, May 11, 2009

Marcus Pollard

Winter has made its presence felt in Tasmania lately, which means it is time for breeders to remove the shadecloth from the aviary roof and finish all those chores to get our finches ready for cooler temperatures. Whether you are locking down or gearing up for a spot of winter breeding – hop to it!

The cold should see the number of birds imported from the mainland slow down at least. Few people are demented enough to import birds during winter unless they want to winter them in their houses. Me? Okay, I’ve done it just the once.

Meanwhile, finch lovers in far north Queensland love this time of year because they use it to import their finches safely in milder temperatures.

Whether you are importing finches in cold or mild temperatures, you can prepare them for travel by supplementing their diet with an electrolyte mix. A touch of Glucodin™ and Troy Vita-B™ is good to give approximately a week before you send your finches off.

This is also suitable for use when your new charges arrive at your premises before entering quarantine.

I also have a mix great for topping up vitamin D3 without using water-based treatments. I call it my Polly’s Calcium Mix and it has proved to be a real winner with our finches down here, particularly the Gouldians!

Basically, take a container of Dr Colin Walkers (Australian Pigeon Company) PVM powder (or Bio-cal™ or a mixture of both) and combine it with a liberal amount of Canundra shell or very fine shell grit. Mix thoroughly and place it into a container.

Sydney’s Elenbee Seed Company, has all the ingredients you need to make your own Polly’s Calcium Mix – tell them Marcus sent you.

Still on the topic of importation, Tasmanian wildlife authorities have introduced a new system where all finches proposed for import into Tassie must have an Environmental Impact Statement prepared for them. They must then go through a panel before being cleared for import.

Apparently the reasoning behind it is to prevent species from going feral and overpopulating Tasmania. Hmm. I’ll keep you updated!

Marcus Pollard

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Stolen Blue and Gold Macaw

Friday, May 11, 2012

A 6 year old male Blue & Gold Macaw was stolen on Friday 21/4/2012 from FORBES PARROT FARM in New South Wales. Police have been notified.

The macaw is microchipped, closed rung and registered with AAR. If anyone has information regarding the safe return of this bird please contact the owners Warrick & Christine Whitney on (02) 68516583 or 0418625001.

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Repticon 2012

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

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Up to 900 tropical bird species could 'go extinct'

Tuesday, March 06, 2012

Up to 900 tropical bird species could 'go extinct'3.

By Anna-Louise Taylor Reporter, BBC Nature News

The finding is modelled on the effects of a 3.5C Earth surface temperature rise, a Biological Conservation Journal paper shows.

Species may struggle to adapt to habitat loss and extreme weather events, author Cagan Sekercioglu says.

Mountain, coastal, restricted-range, and species unable to get to higher elevations could be the worst affected.

Depending on future habitat loss, each degree of surface warming could affect between 100-500 species, says Mr Sekercioglu, assistant professor of biology at the University of Utah.

"This gives us a clear big picture. The problem is most species in the world are highly sedentary... the public perception is most birds are migratory and so climate change is not a problem for them," he says.

Mr Sekercioglu says tropical mountain species are among the most vulnerable. He says bird species will need to be able to adapt physiologically to changes in temperature and be able to move to higher altitudes if they are to survive.

He says cooler, more humid forests could recede higher up mountains and combined with human settlements at higher altitudes, forest habitat could "get pushed off the mountain".

This would create "an escalator to extinction" he says.

"Coastal species are also vulnerable - as coastal forest can be sensitive to salinity, and these forests can get hit harder by hurricanes and typhoons, and these events are also expected to increase."

Birds in extensive lowland forests with few mountains in places such as the Amazon and Congo basins - may have trouble relocating, while tropical birds in open habitats such as savanna, grasslands, scrub and desert face shrinking habitats.

Tropical birds in arid zones are assumed to be resilient to hot, dry conditions, but they could suffer if water sources dry out.

Mike Crosby, senior conservation officer in Asia at Birdlife International says: "We know that quite a lot of tropical birds are not very good at dispersing so this could be a big issue in the future if the suitable climate moves several hundred kilometres or even tens of kilometres, some of the birds might not be able to move their ranges sufficiently quickly in response to that.

"We might have to take novel conservation measures in the future such as translocation of birds from one site to another."

The study looked at how manakins, of which there are 45 species in the neotropical region, would cope. Results showed that manakins limited to the lowland habitats of the Amazon and Cerrado in Brazil, would be most affected as they could lose up to 80% of their habitat; as many as 20% of the Cerrado manakin species are expected to go extinct.

Cagan Sekercioglu says: "Manakins show the importance of having a wide tropical area of mid-elevation forests, and being able to move to higher elevation forests."

He says while overall "birds are one of the least threatened groups of animals" by climate change, "they are the 'best case' scenario".

"The findings are likely to be much worse for all other groups of animals," he says.

"We need to be planning protected areas with higher elevations in mind and leave breathing room for endangered species in higher elevation areas," says Mr Sekercioglu.

Mr Crosby says: "We've got to prepare ourselves to be measuring temperature in protected areas, and measuring rainfall, and monitoring what's happening to species, so that we can respond in the appropriate way. It's very difficult to predict very precisely what's going to happen."

He adds that visitors to the region could help protect the birds they travel to see.

"People who go bird watching in the tropics can gather very useful data, given that the current data that we have is basically pretty poor in many parts of the world. Amateur bird watchers can really make an important contribution."

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/17212765

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Azure Experience

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