Bird of the Week: 9th December - bird/habitat relationships

7 posts / 0 new

Mon, 09/12/2013 - 14:43

Holly

Hi guys

Not sure what happened with the Bird of the Week thread last week and that error message. I will need to look into it - I couldn't open it either. Hopefully we have no such trouble this time round. This week, lets look at photos that demostrate an important habitat feature (whether that is water, a specific shrub, grass or tree etc) and the bird that uses it - so emphasising that important link between birds and habitat.

Tue, 10/12/2013 - 00:59

shoop

Kerry - Perth, Western Australia.

Tue, 10/12/2013 - 01:39

shoop

Bridled Tern, Penguin Island.

About 2,500 pairs of Bridled Terns migrate to the islands of Shoalwater Bay in spring to breed.

Kerry - Perth, Western Australia.

Tue, 10/12/2013 - 01:46

shoop

Little Penguin. Penguin Island.

Kerry - Perth, Western Australia.

Tue, 10/12/2013 - 21:50

Woko

This was originally a dam built by previous owners of our property. With no stock on our place it has become a water hole which contains water when we have a wet winter. It's been used by wood ducks, little pied cormorants & white-necked herons but it filled in 1992 when we had a very wet winter & early summer. Australasian grebes bred on it that year so Ms Woko & I were very excited about that, let me tell you. Because the soil is extremely porous the water drains quickly so the grebes had to be quick - which they were.

Aside from water birds there are always New Holland honeyeaters, superb fairy-wrens, white-plumed honeyeaters & assorted other bushland birds at or nearby the water hole with or without water in it. A nearby dead River Red Gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis with hollows is a breeding spot for galahs & Adelaide rosellas.

The banks & bottom of our water hole have been revegetated with Eucalyptus camaldulensis & allowed to regenerate with a variety of shrubs & large & small trees as well as ground covers & small native daisies. Our planting & regeneration & the accumulation of debris from the native plants has virtually halted the soil erosion which once occurred around the water hole.