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While Michele has described the efforts of our local Satin Bowerbirds in attracting a love interest, in the surrounding forest another Bowerbird, the Golden Bowerbird (Prionodura newtoniana), is also busy constructing bowers that are the largest of the all the Australian bowerbirds, and they are made by the smallest species. Despite its diminutive size, the Golden Bowerbird creates twin towers of twigs that can be up to 3m tall. It decorates them with lichen and pale cream flowers and places a horizontal stick between the base of the towers to serve as a display perch.

It takes a fair bit of work to make these bowers and it turns out that other males (including young males still experimenting at bower-building) are prone to stealing material and ornaments from other bowers to build their own. Immature males sometimes build small bowers close to a more established structure in the hope that they can distract a female over to its more humble edifice while the dominant male is away foraging or stealing from other bowers. If a mature bower-owning bird dies, his bower is usually taken over by another bird in matter of days. One recent study used game theory to determine at what point the pay-off from raiding other birds bowers exceeded the risk of abandoning a bower to other marauding males (distance between bowers was a key factor). The competition and intrigue is worthy of a Game of Thrones plot-line.

Last week, while photographing one of our local birds, I observed a small dull bird flitting ever closer to the bower through some dense foliage. I thought it might be a female, but I was able to get a shot of it as it took off from a branch just behind the bower and this clearly showed the yellow tinges to the wing that are diagnostic of an immature male. This immature male then went straight to the perch between the two towers of the bower and began inspecting the ornamentation. In a flash the mature male bower owner dived down and the two birds tumbled off into the ground foliage behind the bower in a flurry of feathers and screeches that lasted several seconds before the birds flew off in different directions. The younger bird was not seen again, but I can’t help but feel it is out there somewhere awaiting another chance to steal the throne and the females.

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Don Battersby is our local bird-whisperer -actually it’s more of a shout, but the birds certainly come flocking to his call. When I told him about my observations he regaled me with a complete history of this particular bower, which has occupied at least 4 different positions over the last decade or so, having been abandoned due to damage by tree-falls or in response to over-enthusiastic bird photographers. He was also kind enough to show me a small satellite bower near the site where I had witnessed the altercation. This might well have been built by the immature male that I had seen.

Don knows where virtually all the bowers, and some of the nests are. He is exceptionally generous with his time and is known nationally and internationally amongst “birdos” as the person to visit if you want to get good views and photographs of our rainforest birds. Thanks Don!

Text and photos by Jamie Oliver

Over the last few weeks, increasing numbers of Pied Currawongs, Strepera graculina, have arrived in Paluma. The onomatopoeic name currawong reflects the liquid, ringing tone of their call, heard all day throughout the village.

The currawong is a large, (42-50 cm long), handsome, black and white bird, with yellow eyes and a lilting, liquid warbling call. But do not be beguiled by the good looks and melodious carolling. Beneath the beauty lies a rapacious nature. Currawongs plunder the nests and feast on the chicks of other birds. The cruel beak says it all.

Currawongs are similar in appearance to magpies and butcher birds, and were once known as crow shrikes or bell magpies. They are found throughout eastern Australia from North Queensland to Victoria in diverse habitats including woodlands, coastal to alpine forests, rain-forests, scrublands and farmlands. They often form large flocks and are seasonally nomadic, ranging over large distances. In the breeding season, from July to January they are mostly seen alone, in pairs or in small family groups.
They tend to move into Paluma from the west as the weather becomes cooler. Sometimes a flock of fifty and more will move into the area. Today, I disturbed a gang of seven or eight on the roadside plotting their next raid.

Pied currawongs’ diet includes small lizards, insects, mice, caterpillars and berries. They also take large numbers of small and young birds. Larger prey, up to the size of a young possum can be taken and birds will sometimes hunt as a group. Prey may be stored in a tree fork or crack to be eaten later. It has been reported that pied currawongs eat more vertebrate material during the spring breeding season than they do during autumn and winter when berries are available. A pair may kill about 40 broods of small birds (up to 2 kg) to raise one brood of their own.

Raising young is a joint effort. Both sexes gather the material, sticks, grass and other soft vegetation, for the bowl-shaped nest which the female builds high in a tree fork. She incubates the eggs while he feeds her. The male supplies food to the female for the first week after the chicks hatch and she feeds them. Incubation time is 21 days and there are usually three chicks.

The dishes and trays of fruit put out by residents for the honey-eaters, rifle birds and other small birds have become fair game for the currawongs who swoop in, terrorising the other birds and taking all the food. They seem to be afraid of humans however and fly off as soon one appears. Perhaps they have a collective memory of being shot at or stoned by people! It was amusing, and surprising to see therefore, two rainbow lorikeets at my bird-feeder yesterday driving off a currawong. The attack was quite vicious with lots of pecking and screeching until the bigger bird retreated.

It will be no surprise to know that pied currawongs are not on the endangered species list: on the contrary, their numbers are increasing. They have adapted well to living in urban areas and their growing numbers have been implicated in the decline of smaller bird species.

Some information sourced from Google entries from Australian Museum and Birdlife

Text by Colwyn Campbell; Photos by Brian O’Leary