A Pair of Currawongs have made their home in the top of a Tree Fern near our apartment in Drummoyne. Interestingly, the bird has incorporated a large hoop of fencing wire into the construction of the nest. I am only new to birding and was wondering if this sort of behaviour has been described elswhere.
I'm not sure about currawongs in particular, but many birds incorporate human wire and other rubbish into their nests. To me, the most interesting aspect of this would be the fact that it is nesting in a tree fern, not something I'd have expected. But then, you don't get too many tree ferns around where I live...
Ryu
Canberra
Aiming for DSLR-quality shots with a bridge camera
tree fern is probably a cyathea cooperi based on abundance
not sure whether the nest will block out the light for future fronds (though they often accumulate considerable leaf litter in the crown in the wild) or whether new crosiers will force their way through the nest.
i've seen blackbirds nesting in other tree fern species.
As HelloBirdy says, birds use all sorts of human junk in their nests. I've seen electric wiring in a Little Raven's nest but no light bulbs were attached.
Indian Mynahs depend on human junk to build their nests so one way of discouraging them is to keep a tidy yard.
I don't think mynas actually depend on human junk to build their nests,they just strongly prefer shiny/colourful objects.
I've taken myna nests apart that were predominately sticks and feathers though. they also like incorporating green leaves.
Hmmmm. I've read several articles about Common Mynahs commonly using human rubbish in their nests. Perhaps I should change "depend on" to "incorporate...in".
Once I found a willie wagtail's nest made mostly from insulation batts. (it had been taking it from our shed without us noticing)
Opportunists!