The Diamond Firetail is nearly extinct in the Mt Lofty Ranges & environs.
Last year we had a pair on our property for some months beginning about March. This year we've been fortunate to have a pair visit this week. It's wonderful to know that the skin of their teeth is enabling them to hang on. For how much longer is diabolically problematic given the horrendous housing developments, with their native bird-destroying gardens, that's occuring in the ranges. Ms Woko & I will continue promoting the growth of native grasses to enhance the resilience of the skin on the Diamond Firetails' teeth. We live in hope!
The same sad story as the cockatoos at my place... when my mother was my age 13, there were hundreds of cockatoos, now there’s nun at all. Until, one day at school, I was tarsked to observe the countless amounts of flying birds. out of the galahs and corellas a I picked the graceful flight of the cockatoo. Since then, they are increasing, along with other birds, and I’m begging to see many birds that haven’t been seen here in years. Robins, wrens, pardalotes, rainbow lorikeets the list goes on. And a massive decline in invasive animals. ( I did make a big fuss about pigeons, it worked).
Wimmera mally region, Vic.
Were these Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos, Lightuningbird? And isn't it great to have lots of birds around!
Are you making a connection between the decline in invasive animals & the appearance of lots of bird species? What has caused the decline?
Also, I'm interested to learn about the pigeon fuss you made & which species of pigeons they were. I'm also interested to read about what you're being taught at school that meant you were given the job of counting birds. These things sound very interesting.
There sulphur creased coackatoos, but it is posable that wellow tail blacks will make there way here.
As fore the invasive animal decline, this is dew to multiple reasons. The amount of foxes and cats is in decline, this is because of the amount of people have life stock around here, that or chickens or some other animals, who do there best to eradicate any Fox or cat that touches them. There people include my family, who one chickens and several finches and budgies. I am doing my beast to control sparrows, which, it quite hard and the starlings have long gone. These are animals that would attack\commpeat with the native birds.
The pigeons...well, dewring class we had to make an argument about what you would improve in the community. Mine was pigeons, (the feral homing pigeons that is) the amount of pigeons was unbearable. Blocking up things with their nests, littering water tanks will droppings, the constant cooing and all the diseases they carry. So, my argument was sent of to who ever deals with thing like this, I don’t know what they did, but the pigeons have gone down in number. And the local peregrine is dealing with the rest.
at school we have a biodiversity class, in which we are taught about biodiversity. In one of the classes we had to see how many animal and bird species there are. Being interested in birds, I was tarsked with counting birds and bird species. We also set up cameras, and found we had several local wallabies. We also take care of the gardens, and the section of the creak be hind the school, montering the plants and animals life as well as creating it of rubbish. The school also has chickens, grows it own vegetables and planted a heap of trees (about 100 I recall).
i have now left that school and gone to high school, but we still do a very simmler thing at high school. We reasently removed a massiv sugger gum, as it was interfering with one of the building, but there were 10 box gums planted in its place.
(sorry if there’s any spelling mistakes, I’m not great at spelling.)
Wimmera mally region, Vic.
I notest a white faced Herron today, it was in the paddock...feeding, no idea what it was eating tho...
Wimmera mally region, Vic.