BIRDS OF STRATHNAIRN ARTS PART 1

Article 1/2. Strathnairn Arts is on the north-western rural outskirts of Canberra, and as such we enjoy a myriad of native animals who share the property with us. Come out one sunny day, have a coffee or lunch and see if you can spot some of our native bird life. This article, which is the first in a two-part series, was kindly compiled by Rosemary Blemings.

CHICKENS - Gallus gallus domesticus

If you take a short walk south from the Strathnairn lawn and explore past the pizza oven you’ll eventually reach the “chook-pen”. There’s a range of plumage colours amongst the chicken just as the hens themselves represent a few of the possibilities of modern chicken breeds and their origins as descendants of Red Jungle Fowl. At first emphasis on breeding-up the wild birds was for cock-fighting in Asia, Africa and Europe. Their value as producers of daily eggs came later. Whether the Strathnairn chicken are still laying or are ‘pensioners’ I’m not sure. They would be out and about in the garden when the gallery isn’t open, scratching in the soil and amongst the fallen leaves for insects, seeds and small animals. In the chook-pen there’s water and grain for them as well as boxes where they lay their eggs.

Perhaps each morning the laying hens give voice to celebrate their achievement. The hens of some laying breeds may produce 300 eggs a year. The flowing tail-feathers, red combs and wattles around their beaks show the rooster’s status. They crow impressively to advertise their territory. With roosters a part of the flock the eggs may well be fertile and, if they have the chance to lay a clutch of about 12 eggs, each hen will “go broody” and incubate the eggs. As Strathnairn is so open to visits from foxes the chook-house gives protection at night. The regular food supplies for the poultry attract House sparrows. Some of the sparrows seem to be incarcerated when the poultry are ordered inside but they have their own small exit holes.

TURKEYS - Meleagris gallopavo

Meleagris gallopavo Domestic turkeys such as Strathnairn’s are descendants of North American forest birds whose ancestry is known from fossils up to 23 million years ago. The name appears to be linked to Guinea-fowl which became known in Europe after emerging from Africa and entering Europe via Turkey. Early American settlers saw a resemblance between the Guinea-fowl and the turkeys. The birds have a fleshy wattle hanging from the underside of their beaks and a snood hanging from the top of the beak.

The wild birds can run fast and modern turkeys can fly distances limited by their weight. Since domestication there’s been an emphasis on the birds’ weight and production of meat. Used to eating peacock and pheasant, the European aristocracy apparently came to prefer turkey meat as it was less ‘stringy’. Like chicken, turkeys are omnivores in the wild, eating seeds, berries, small birds, grubs and other invertebrates. At Strathnairn they enjoy foraging by scratching around the garden beds and dust-bathing under the old trees.

SUPERB FAIRY WRENS - Malurus cyaneus 13-14cm

We usually don’t have to wait long outside the homestead before a few blue-wrens come to check out the grass for tiny insects. They may rarely be regulars in our suburban gardens but here, in a cat-free environment, we have a good chance to enjoy their cheerful, pert movements and behaviour. We usually see matriarchal family groups with a dominant male and several non-breeding males who assist with raising their younger siblings. The males have their resplendent plumage colours during breeding months but moult to the more cryptic brown, with bluish tails, once their duties are over. The dense shrubbery at Strathnairn provides essential protection to for these small birds. There are large numbers at the Australian National Botanic Gardens where studies (giving each bird distinct leg-bands) have been on-going for decades. It’s been found that Superb Fairy Wrens are able to recognise and respond to other species’ alarm calls. For example, they know from calls whether the danger is one of the gardens’ snakes or a Currawong.

HOUSE SPARROW Passer domesticus 15cm

It’s said that House sparrows are the world’s most widely-distributed wild bird. It’s not surprising that they were introduced to Australia in 1863 (and to Queanbeyan by 1866). In those days, and earlier, settlers pined for animals and plants that were familiar, those that would remind them of home. In the sparrows’ case they may also have missed their cheerful chatter and squabbles as each group has complex hierarchies, seniorities and ‘pecking orders’. Sparrows are opportunists, seeking seeds and grain set out for other animals and harvesting or nest-building using hay and other grasses. Their sturdy beaks have evolved for seed-eating like those of other members of the large finch family.

The eaves, roof-cavities and outbuildings of homesteads and farms offer potential nest-sites and farms’ chicken runs provide regular food. Strathnairn’s bird-bath is popular even in winter. Sparrow numbers in and around the Act’s suburban gardens have fluctuated over the years but there’s been a gradual decline in this species in the last 25 years. With its dense shrubs and rangy-bushes, Strathnairn is probably a haven for sparrows though there are raptors around to control the population.

COMMON BLACKBIRD Turdus merula 25-26cm

Strathnairn offers ideal habitat for blackbirds with dense shrubs as nest sites and other common garden plants providing seeds, fruit and insect prey. They would scratch and probe amongst mulch and litter on garden beds, seeking worms and other invertebrates. The females have brown plumage. The males are renowned for their song and doubtless their singing was missed by the first settlers who would have welcomed the European birds being introduced into their young colonies. Melbourne first saw blackbirds in the 1850’s and they gradually spread into coastal and inland regions of south-eastern Australia. In bushland they can compete with native birds. Blackbirds can be pests around orchards, vineyards and market gardens.

RED-BROWED FINCH Neochmia temporalis 11-12cm

Small flocks of these finches may pass through the lawn and garden areas moving from dense shrubs near the carpark to other leafy or thorny bushes. Strathnairn’s ‘farm-garden’ is ideal for them and there’s even one or two stands of blackberry to provide year-round shelter from predators. They eat ripe or green grass-seed sometimes from the top of the stems but more often from the ground. So mown- grass or kangaroo-grazed paddocks are preferred. The ‘Red-brows’ are more flighty than the wrens and will whirr away from danger showing-off their scarlet-red rumps (the origin of the ‘fire-tail’ in their previous name). Sometimes they join other small-bird species to form mixed-feeding-flocks. Each species eats their specific food from the area they are visiting and many eyes keep a lookout for predators.

YELLOW-RUMPED THORNBILL Acanthiza chrysorrhoa 11-12cm

These small ground-feeding birds check out the lawn and other grassed areas regularly. Sometimes they are so intent on feeding and so un-fussed about humans that we can almost walk over them before they will fly up into nearby bushes showing the bright yellow feathers that give them their name. They seek insects, spiders and seeds with a fine, sharp thorn-like bill. Their calls make a cheerful tinkling sound. The species is often one of those present in mixed- feeding-flocks. Perhaps they even give other species confidence whilst foraging.

SILVEREYE Zosterops lateralis 11-13cm

Silvereyes have a clear ring of white feathers around their eyes. They’re gregarious birds which will pass through Strathnairn’s garden area gleaning insects, aphids and berries from the homesteads hedges, bushes, low trees and shrubs. They have been known to damage soft-fruits and grapes but others cite their preference for nectar over grape-sugars. We prefer not to blame them for eating and spreading Cotoneaster berries but they’re just as likely to eat these fruits as the easily disliked Currawongs. They are the most abundant, widespread small birds in our region. Some remain, resident in the ACT, and may be part of mixed-feeding-flocks. Others make long, migratory journeys including flights from Tasmania north towards and into Queensland usually at night. Large flocks can assemble in winter noisily noticeable by their cheerful contact-calls.

KOOKABURRA Dacelo novaeguineae 40-47cm

Kookaburras belong to the Tree-Kingfisher family though they are also more likely to be seen on wires than anywhere near water. They operate on a perch-and-pounce principle so Strathnairn’s power cables and deciduous trees are often their look-outs. They’ll be looking intently for lizards, mice, small mammals, large insects and, in the bush, snakes. They call to advertise their territory. Perhaps we’re more likely to hear them than see them from the lawn. As they need large tree hollows for their nests it’s possible their Strathnairn territory is quite extensive. There may be older siblings or “aunts” and “uncles” in a breeding group, helping to improve the nestlings’ survival chances.