Every year I make a list of all the birds I can see in my garden.( there could be more, but I haven't seen them?)Is anyone else doing the same? This year it looks a bit like this: birds I haven't seen, but were there last year,hope they haven't disappeared: Rufous Fantail, Grey Fantail, Golden Whistler, Scarlet Robin, Grey Butcherbird. Less in numbers: Eastern Spinebill, White-throated Treecreepers, Yellow Robins. Some have increased in numbers: Fairy-wrens,and the Southern Boobooks.(that's great!) And, I have one nesting pair,that has not been here before, Spotted Pardalotes. For those, who don't know,(I keep pointing it out, maybe to often?),I live outside of Melbourne, next to the Bunyip State Park,still recovering from the fires,but getting there. One animal I'm missing, are the Goanas, They did not do so well in the fires.
living in town i dont get too many birds which makes me sad , honeyeaters, lorikeets, channellbills that about it :(
Hey Araminta, that is sad that they are missing. Do you think it will take a few seasons till there is enough food and protection for them to want to return or migrate from other areas? What is the word on bird behaviours post fires anyway?
I don't get many small birds actually in ,my garden but they are nearby where there is cover and in all the bits of bush and undergrowth in the area.
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Hi Araminta. I have been keeping a list this year, the birds I see are similar to yours but on a 20Ha farm with a creek I see more birds. I have been seeing more birds in recent years, I try to manage my property for biodiversity. In winter and spring I see birds passing through on their migrations.
In 2003 Parks Victoria burnt out a large part of our farm. At one site there was a huge colony of Yellow Breasted Robins and they all died. It was not until August 2007 that l recorded a YB Robin and that sighting was over 2km from the burnt area. The next recorded sighting was in my garden in April 2009. There is a small group of YB Robins now settled into a site approximately 2km from the burnt area - not the same site as mentioned first - these seem to be breeding well.
I think all the YB Robins that have been sighted since 2003 have come via open farmland as our neighbours (Parks Vic and DSE) were totally burnt out beside us.
After the fires in 2003 the only birds that really breed were the Wedge Tailed Eagles (plenty of carrion). The bush was very quiet for a long, long time and the Lyrebirds still haven't returned along the back fence. That's 8 years in January.
Holy crap mtck.... how sad is that? that is one long cycle after devastation. it really makes you think doesn't it?
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Hi all, sorry, but I couldn't thank you for responding to my post, my computer wasn't working, and Telstra let me down badly.You would not believe it, but in the last weeks, thanks to all the rain we had, all our native shrubs have lots and lots of flowers.Some of the birds I listed,are back in numbers.Something Holly pointed out to me, because of the abundance of food,birds tolerate each other better. The Wattlebirds don't chase the Honeyeaters that much. I have large numbers of Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, Lewin's HE, and I just saw some Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters. I think, as pessimistic as I am about some birds, somehow things are looking better for others. Talk to you soon, glad to be back
M-L
Hi Araminta,
How lovely to have the birds back in your garden!
I have a bird diary in which I record all my notable sightings. I love looking back to the previous year and knowing that a certain month is likely to bring sightings of a certain bird. Something to look forward to.
And what do you mean - Telstra let you down? No way! :-) Hee hee. Glad your computer / internet is sorted out now.
Kind regards,
Andy.
Hi Araminta,
We have been keeping a list of the birds that have visited our property over the last year. We managed to get over 50 different birds last year (and a few more we couldn't identify).
We have seen a couple of new birds this year that didn't appear last year such as the shelduck and the leaden flycatcher. We have also heard lots of boobooks in the area and nightjars, but have not seen one yet.
How close were the fires to you?
morning Edward, how close is close? The distance people can cope with means different things to different people! Let me put it this way, for 2 weeks we lived behind road blocks,picked up embers, and from time to time ran the roof-sprinklers.(the pumps and hoses on standby)I'm connected to a weatherstation on a hill,so I can see the wind spead and direction, from that and my CFA scanner,we make (informed decisions).The distance was about 5-10 minutes with a wind change.So, you judge, is that close or not? We stayed.
M-L
Er... that is close Araminta from the rest of Australia's uninformed perspective!!!
But well done you for protecting and surviving !
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Hi Araminta,
That sounds pretty close. Would you do it again after seeing what could have happened?
We have a 160 acres of bushland and our current plan is to not be there on Severe and Code red days. Our current house is a fire trap, but we are replacing it with a dwelling that meets the new bushfire standard. Even so, after seeing the devastation and talking to survivors in our area (we are near Kilmore east), I am still not sure I would stay to defend.
Well done.
Hi Edward, thanks for reminding me,there are still a few things we have to do, to be prepared for fires. Only a few hot and dry days, and, you never know.. What you said has sent my mind racing, good, I'm on my toes again! Got all the maps out,(walking maps are best,because they show all the names of little tracks by names,the brigades will use to name fires.) I rely on maps, not the internet,when the power fails,(inevitable)you still have to know where the fires are!But the most important tool is the scanner, a must have!Put all the frequencies into it, you can find them on radarcomm.com.au/id5 !Now to what you said about the plan to leave,it's pifferent for everyone.One fact though is, you have made a decision by buying a property where you did.(And there is no safe house!) The best information is vital!And the best firefighting equipment you can get.Even if your plan is to leave, you have to be prepared to stay! You might not get a chance to leave, fires start at night, or just behind you.During the last fires we took it in turns to listen to the scanner at night, mostly my turn. I could go on and on, but it's all up to you. One thing is certain, you love where you live, and it's where you want to be! You can not live in fear and panic every summer, so do the best you can, and enjoy your beautifulproperty!
M-L