The well over 30 members and guests who joined me on this annual event were rewarded with 23 different species exhibiting nesting activity, close to 50% of the 50 species seen for the morning. The higher than expected breeding numbers clearly was the result of the good rains late October/early November, which was also reflected by the fact that much more of the activity than usual was associated with nest building, with a number of species seeming to be putting on the finishing touches prior to egg laying/incubating. Also different from previous years was that most nests were found in a line running roughly NW/SE through the horse crossing, a few hundred metres east of the depression area where the “hot spot” has been located previously.
Highlights included two pairs of Leaden Flycatchers busily building nests within 20 metres of each other, one in an atypical spot on a relatively open bare dead branch without the usual live branch just above, Varied Sittellas putting on the final touches to a small dainty nest typically wedged in an upright fork of a small dead branch, both gerygones nest building (and for those who stayed later a completed White-throated Gerygone nest with its hooded entrance and long pony tail), as were a pair of White-winged Trillers and the related Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrike. Great views were obtained of the latter in a typical position on a horizontal fork, as well as of a pair of Weebills entering a dome-shaped nest through a concealed side entrance, possibly due to its relatively open position, and a pair of Spotted Pardalotes before they flew to the opening in a shallow bank.
A Dusky Woodswallow was seen on a typical untidy nest against a tree trunk where the bark had peeled away, and a Magpie-lark was sitting on a nest which appeared nearly as big as the nearby White-winged Chough’s nest. We suspected it had been taken over, though on closer inspection it clearly had been built in several stages, perhaps recommenced when the recent rain had made mud available again. We also found what we suspected was an Olive-backed Oriole’s nest which was a wool-lined deep cup similar to but smaller than the nearby Noisy Friarbird’s nest, but in a surprisingly open position at the end of a dead branch with only a few spindly twigs, which may have been the reason it had been predated as there were two broken eggs underneath. Close examination of these with the various books led to the conclusion these were oriole, possibly the pair nearby that seemed to be restarting building again. However, for me the undoubted highlight was the male White-winged Triller, which at first chased a female and then led her to a likely nest site where he displayed and then kept very close by with his wings fanned while she examined it.
Once again a very successful event with 5 of the 10 basic nest types observed. This is now a permanent fixture on the COG program and continues to be very popular. My thanks go to Steve Holliday and Prue Buckley for both finding nests for me during the week and then helping me by taking half the group when numbers suddenly swelled mid-week, and to Con Boekel who came early and also located a number of nests for the group, as well as a number of others who provided nesting intelligence by E-mail.
Jack Holland