Birds Life In Australia

Birds Life In AustraliaTheir Habitat, Nests And Food

Five Types Of Australian Birds:Apostle BirdAustralasian FigbirdAustralasian GannetAustralian Brush-turkeyAustralian King-Parrot

Apostle BirdThe Apostle bird has earned its name because it is highly gregarious, usually seen in groups of up to 30 birds. Early settlers believed that these groups always comprised 12 birds, and likened these to the apostles of Jesus Christ. Apostle birds often associate with another gregarious species, the White-winged Chough, and both species build distinctive nests from mud, though the Apostle birds nest is smaller. Although this nest provides a sure indication that the species is present, Apostle birds are usually conspicuous, giving a wide range of calls and calling often.

HABITATS

The Apostlebird is found in open dry forests and woodlands near water. It may also be found in farmlands with trees, as well as along roadsides, in orchards and on golf courses.

Nests

The nest is a deep cup-shaped structure made of grasses held together with mud or sometimes manure in a tree fork up to seven or eight metres above the ground.

Most group members help construct a mud nest, share in incubation of the eggs, and defence of the nest.

All members of the group keep the nest clean.

FoodThe Apostle bird usually eats seeds and vegetable matter, insects and other invertebrates and, sometimes, small vertebrates. In autumn and winter, it will move to more open country, where seeds become the more important part of its diet. The Apostle bird forages on the ground in groups, often in association with the White-winged Chough.

Australasian FigbirdAs its name implies, the Australasian Figbird predominantly eats figs, although a wide variety of other fruits are eaten as well. Figbirds usually forage high in the canopy, sometimes in the company of Olive-backed Orioles. Large flocks may congregate noisily at prolifically fruiting trees, and remain until the supply of fruit is exhausted. The seeds of the figs often pass undigested through the gut of figbirds, so they are able to germinate, though in some cases they provide pigeons with a convenient source of food.

HABITATSThe Figbird lives in rainforests and wet sclerophyll forests, but is often found in urban parks and gardens, particularly those with figs and other fruit-producing trees.

The Figbird occurs across coastal regions of northern and eastern Australia from the Kimberley region in Western Australia around to the New South Wales/Victoria border.

Nests

The Figbird nests in small, semi-colonial groups, with nests often quite close together.

The flimsy saucer-shaped nest is made from plant-material, and usually placed relatively high in a tree.

Food

Figbirds feed in flocks, often of around 20 birds that are prepared to fly to isolated trees that are suitable for foraging. Figs are a particularly popular food item, although they will feed on most soft fruits and berries in canopy trees. Insects are also important components of their diet.

Australasian GannetAustralasian Gannets are common throughout the year over inshore waters in eastern, southern and south-western Australia. They breed in noisy colonies, usually on islands or artificial structures, such as beacons. However, a colony at Point Danger, near Portland in south-western Victoria, is situated on a promontory that protrudes from the mainland. There are just two other mainland colonies, both in New Zealand. Gannets forage by plunging headlong into the water from great heights to catch fish in their bills, before resurfacing to eat their prey.

HABITATSTheir breeding habitat is on islands and the coast of Victoria and Tasmania. They normally nest in large colonies on coastal islands.

Australasian Gannets are found throughout southern and south-eastern Australia, to New Zealand.

Nests

Australasian Gannet normally nest in large colonies on coastal islands. In New Zealand there are colonies of over 10,000 breeding pairs each at Three Kings Islands, Whakaari / White Island and Gannet Island.

They perform elaborate greeting rituals at the nest, stretching their bills and necks skywards and gently tapping bills together.

Food

Australasian gannets mainly eat fish, particularly pilchards, Australian anchovies, barracouta, garfish, mackerel and horse mackerel. Other recorded prey includes New Zealand piper, saury, flying fish, yellow-eye mullet, a puffer, and also squid.

Australian Brush-turkeyThe Australian Brush-turkey does not incubate its eggs using the conventional method of sitting on them. Instead, Brush-turkeys cover their eggs with a large mound of rotting vegetation in which the heat generated by the composting action encourages their eggs to hatch. Using their huge feet, they to rake the leaf litter together into a pile, and scrape it on and off to regulate the temperature within too cool and the eggs wont hatch, too hot and they would cook!

HABITATSThe Australian Brush-turkey inhabits rainforests and wet schlerophyll forests, but can also be found in drier scrubs. In the northern part of its range, the Australian Brush-turkey is most common at higher altitudes, but individuals move to the lowland areas in winter months. In the south, it is common in both mountain and lowland regions.

Nests

They build large nests on the ground made of leaves, other combustible material and earth

The same nesting site is frequently used year after year, with the old nests being added to each breeding season.

They will nest in suburban gardens, and in search of material for their nests will patiently remove enormous amounts of mulch from neighbouring gardens.

Food

Brush-turkeys feed on insects, seeds and fallen fruits, which are exposed by raking the leaf litter or breaking open rotten logs with their large feet. The majority of food is obtained from the ground, with birds occasionally observed feeding on ripening fruits among tree branches.

Australian King-ParrotThe red-and green Australian King-Parrot is seldom seen flying above the tree tops of the dense forests which it inhabits it prefers to fly below tree level, weaving in and out through the tree trunks instead. When they are disturbed by a person, they usually fly off with a harsh screech, and often do not land until they are lost to view. Their flight is swift and strong, characterised by deep, rhythmic wing-beats and regularly punctuated with rapid twists and turns.

HABITATSKing-Parrots are usually found in rainforests or wet sclerophyll forests.

Australian king parrots range from North and Central Queensland to Southern Victoria. They are frequently seen in small groups with various species of rosella. Further from their normal eastern upland habitat, they are also found in Canberra during winter, the outer western suburbs and north shore of Sydney, and the Carnarvon Gorge in Central Queensland.

Nests

King-Parrots lay their eggs on a bed of decayed wood-dust at the bottom of a deep hollow in the trunk of a tree. Often the entrance is high in the tree (10 m) but the eggs are near the ground (0.5 m).

The King-Parrot mostly forages in trees for seeds and fruit.

Food

The King-Parrot mostly forages in trees for seeds and fruit.

Saakshat MalhotraClass: 6th ERoll No.: 28SRA Public School