I mentioned in previous posts the juvenile Koel that the host peewees have been raising. They were feeding it grubs, moths, insects etc. however a forum member advises me that its native diet is actually berries and fruit.
The peewees bought it right up to our back door for hand feeding before abandoning it, so we continued the same incorrect diet.
We stopped feeding it last week as we went away for a few days. On our return it is not to be heard or sighted. Hopefully it is self feeding and on its way north.
The same peewee prents have been duped by the Koel mother for the last 3 seasons, so I look forward to September for their return and maybe another chick.
My husband took some pics of the Koel on the ground feeding. Copy and paste the link below to go to the web album.
Not sure if this works.
Hey Susan1949. Thanks for the photo. I guess at a certain point the Koels instinct kicks in at it heads for the native fruit trees.
Nice experience/interaction with the pee-wees for you both. That Pee Wee behavior really does suggest an underlying intelligence and reasoning power normally only attributed to higher mammals, doesn't it?
VJ