This poor bird flew into my window. I actually saw it happen; it was being chased by another bird. I guess that it why it was going so fast and I am pretty sure it died instantly.
The bird chasing it was a small one (possibly a thornbill?) and after this bird hit the window and fell to the ground the smaller bird kept nagging it and nipping at it. Then I intervened, hoping the bird would recover, but it had no chance.
Does anyone know why the smaller bird would have been chasing it?
Here are some pics. I think it's a cuckoo.
- soakes
Cuckoos lay their eggs in other birds' nests, and the other birds try to chase cuckoos away. I reckon that's what you saw happening - very interesting.
And yes that looks like a Shining Bronze Cuckoo (or perhaps Horsfield's?).
Aww, poor little bugger.
Yep, Bronze-Cuckoo is as far as I can go as well....
Scott.
A shining bronze cuckoo, I'd say. The frontal bars on Horsfield's bronze cuckoo don't meet. This bird's bars do.
If this bird *was* trying to lay in another bird's nest, does that mean it is a female ... and might have eggs inside? :-|
- soakes
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia
Yep, definitely a [link=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shining_Bronze_Cuckoo]shining bronze cuckoo[/link].
Strangely, [link=http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/]this site[/link] doesn't have it?!
- soakes
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia
Also Horsefield's BC has a stripe across its eye. Poor thing. :-(
[q]If this bird *was* trying to lay in another bird's nest, does that mean it is a female ... and might have eggs inside? :-|[/q]
Soakes, from what I understand, each egg takes about 22-24 hours to be produced with the shell being produced only on the last stage. If the cuckoo has laid an egg in anothers nest it would not have one inside the reproductive tract in the form we think of as an egg. The following link shows the process which I found quite interesting.
[link=http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww36eiv.htm]The process of forming an egg[/link]
Alison
~~~~~~
"the earth is not only for humans, but for all animals and living things."
Call me a bit stupid(?) How long it takes for an egg to form in the reproductive tract, has nothing to do with the fact, that the birds ,who's nest the Cuckoo tries to lay the eggs in,, will chase them away. I have seen it today! I noticed the Fan-tailed Cuckoo, because those tiny birds were chasing it away from their nest. So, I don't buy the idea, they don't have a clue where those eggs come from. Otherwise they wouldn't attack the Cuckoos..?
M-L
G'day Araminta, I don't think that anyone was saying that the length of time taken for the egg to form is associated with the fact that other birds chase cuckoos away.
I think Soakes was just saying that it would be sad if the bird did have eggs (i.e., more than one bird was killed).
And yes isn't it interesting to watch the other birds chase them away? Like you, I have been made aware of cuckoos (Channel-billed Cuckoos) because of the noise made by other birds.