A few years ago a bird of prey feared by my neighbourhood songsters stopped visiting my garden and I had my suspicions as to the reason why. At the time wildlife biologist Nick Mooney was warning that a new range of anticoagulant rodenticides were taking a toll on birds of prey. Mooney said that a more powerful second generation of the rodenticides which hit with a single dose had replaced a slow-acting earlier version. Both the rodenticides were still on the market, and … [Read more...] about Raptors face rat-poison peril
On The Wing
Passport to birdland
Birdland is a magical place where it’s possible to escape all the pressures and stresses of the environment of the city created and inhabited by one species – humans – and immerse yourself in a less one-dimensional world. Birdland is nowhere in particular, and does not have to be special or noteworthy. It could be in the wildest of wild forest, or in suburbia. It could be a pristine beach, a few hectares of eucalypt woodland, or a neatly manicured city park. It could be a backyard. That’s the magic of birds; they bring beauty and wonder to every corner of the planet, wild or untamed, and my On the Wing writing is their celebration.
Yellowthroat struts the stage
Right on cue, like an actor strutting the stage, a striking male yellow-throated honeyeater made his presence felt in the Waterworks Reserve. With the first snows of winter settling on kunanyi/Mt Wellington , the honeyeater always lays claim to a patch of exotic winter-flowering vegetation and he takes on all comers. The flowers of the “Ned Kelly” grevillea are a vital food source in the winter months and they are eyed enviously by other members of the honeyeater family … [Read more...] about Yellowthroat struts the stage
Dark Mofo enters the soundscape
The duel of the decibels – the chorus at dusk when birds try to outdo each other to dominate the air waves as light fades – was particularly vocal one mid-winter evening. The clinking of currawong, the caw of raven and the trilling of new Holland honeyeater was in competition with another, alien sound. As I walked the streets of South Hobart, I had forgotten that the Dark Mofo winter festival was about to start, even though the night before I had seen city buildings and the … [Read more...] about Dark Mofo enters the soundscape
Cuckoo reluctant to leave
The far-carrying, trilling call of a fan-tailed cuckoo rang out across the Waterworks Valley. It’s a constant refrain in the summer months but this was at the start of winter. Was it a fan-tail choosing to make an ultra-late departure for its wintering grounds on the mainland or one choosing to take its chances and brave the Tasmanian winter. Certainly a cold snap earlier in the month of May had given the cuckoo every incentive to leave. It’s not the first time I have … [Read more...] about Cuckoo reluctant to leave
Students tackle lorikeet menace
A group of students from Hobart College certainly demonstrated they were out to make a difference at a World Environment Day event earlier this month. Their “A Fair Go for Swifties” presentation attracted a big crowd at the Hobart Sustainability Learning Centre, during which the students laid out plans for not only monitoring populations of the critically-endangered swift parrot but an invasive bird species, the rainbow lorikeet More than 80 students at the college have … [Read more...] about Students tackle lorikeet menace