AND NATIVE PLANTS STUDY GROUP

Newslet te r No. 1 September 1983

+honks to Co\\een Werner Fs +he *h~ above drawing. Contents

Page I, Introduction

2, of the Newsletter- Eastern 4, Artificial Feeding

5* Plant of the Newsletter- aE!sias

85 About Books- "Grow Nativev1

Movements' by- Bell Yiners

9. fiext Newsletter Fe7.r ?.!embers, . , , . With about 20 members we now have the nucleus of a group, I have

' i'oula ~enbers~letters most interesting ma enthusiasm encouraging, we are most .,.... , fortunate to have =tist8 amongst us, we even have our first newaletterl

T!e general comment on the queation of wnether to restrict our

obsertratiom to 'oirdn or to include other wildlife has favoured the inclusicc of

all :.!ildlife, that is, mumais, reptiles and even the smaller residents,of ',ke . . -- . gardeo such a.~cateqillers and lerps. Perhaps then "Wildlife and Native Plartsl'

k~ouldbe a more suitable name for our group. A suggestion to look more fullg st .I .... ?... ::.::,:...... ioter~cticnssuch as shrike-tit - caterpiller - loose bark - eucalypt.1 Feel is - ....._,. -- -.:I,, ...- . . . good. Cement on whether to include non-native birds has been mixed, I feel %ey -i I I _ _ . :i 233 wortny of some mention for, if nothing else, they do.compete with native - 1 . . .. ,.,. . species for available resources. . ,- Now that we are becoming established I feel we should develop me _ . ,...... long term aims for our group. An activity Chat I feel would be feaaible,.mnd. . .' I :,-... ,. . '. . ' - .'

worthxhile ,would be to put together a Native Plant wildlife...... catalogue. By... -2is ...... - ...... * ...... i.::, . . I mean taking each native plaat- species individually and gathe.nn.8 together -. - --- -. . . infomation on the wildlife the plant supports or interacts with, and additidly . . < I,-!<::.-:...,',' -. ' . . . . -. . the nature of the .interaci;ions, If we could develog such a catalogue we could ...... ,' ky ...... then... draw from it further inTomation, combining knowledge of.c.dtivation ....:; .:. ! .. requirements with knowledge of wildlife interactions we should be able tq derive ...... -. .' t? . , . . . . '-'-;rigs such as lists of piants auitable for particular. areas grid situations. . h ..I . a:-.: .:, : .' cornb!imtion with the wildlife they might attract. Eventually, I feel it voulz be .,- ,.-1 ..'i.. .C...... worthwhile to put auch information together in a form suitable for distribut5.m ., . ,- :. :,;;; ,~<,. - . . -.. I to a -id.;r audkence than our own group. ,...... , -. ---...- .. - - At present I am keeping cards for each plant and noting down

~beern~ti~,~-of.. interactions, both ny own and those mentioned in members1 le.=tere...... If those interested keep their own cards and then annually we could put sU -,ie ' , ..:,,;:;, ,. , -.,.. icforztion together and publish it in conjunction with our newsletter.. &ch .....::: . ,. !- ; ...... :- ..hs=quent year we could then update our catalogue with all new observations

' zathered. Thus, in September next year, I shall put together our first crtkbgue. :I...... -I . Another long tern aim I feel we could achieve would be to produce an' - ... . - .. . ,...... : : ."... , . , .- audlovieual on native plant~and wilaife. A number of the other study @~ups .. have or currently are doing such thicgs. We nave a colourful area of study and it

should not be difficult to put together something both interesting and informative

. which could convey ideas crr" Sotn 'Ire-greeningt1and llre-wildlifingtl.'

Any other suggestions of either long term or short term aims for our

' group are most welcome.

astern Soioebill (~canthorhgnchuatenuirostris)

The Eastern Spinebill (Es), one of the smaller members of the :hweyeater

family, is characteri~edSg its long slender curved beak. It is a sexually dimorphic

species, the male having a glossy black crown and the female a grey one. The bill of

the female is also slightly shorter (about 23 mm for the female as opposed to abodt

26 mm for the male). 1n juveniles the heed is olive and underparts fawn; , . . A staccato piping trill is often the first indication of the bird1s presence, being a verbose bird to say the least. The ES gives an impression of being a bird on the move, generally flitting about in rapid steps between flowering plants. . . It appears appreciative of a bird bath or shower in the hose in dry times, . - . . . . Tfie ES1s main food is nectar, though, like other , it consumee

insect8 to meet its protein requirements and feeds.insects, including.flies,,'rather

than nectar .to its .young. Its long curved bill and extendable brush tongue allow it .. to reach nectar at the base of long tubular flowers, a food resource often . . . unavailable to the larger shorter-biiied honeyeaters. %e ability to explo%t such resouic& allows the ES to co-exist with larger more aggressive honeyeatera, such . . as wattlebirds, wh'ich will chase it off the rich nectar sources such as-banksias.

The honeyeaters co-exist by &rtitioning the available'resources, the ES -. to survive on the poorer nectar resowces.

Whilst probing for nectar the ES's small size allows it to perch at the flower thowh occasionally it feeds whilst hovering. Probing ac tior& beneath

4. . bark of tree8 mag be in search of honeydew from scale insects, Inaeet~are Ig'enerally taken by hawking. I The local abundance-of ESs seems to correlate with the abundance

of nectar-producing flowers. In north-eastern N.S.W. (New &&md National Paxk) . -. the other side of the ridge, reappearing some time later in the bach.garden, Now,

three years and seventy grevilleas later, he &?d his family spend all day in our -, ...... * garden, oblivious of bird ~atckers~~.(from 3Iargare t '~omalin). . . !he bird's probing action whilst feeding at flowers makes it likely

that it would play a role in pollination. It has Seen recorded as carrying the

pollen of msia spp, , @acri6 sp., nistletoe (I4uellerina and spp. ) and

Streptothamnu 6p. 111 species such as Iambertia formosa introduced bees will' take

nectar from the flowers by drilling holes at the flower base. Such a feeding action .J does.not effect pollination aqd hence oo seed is set. Such a plant requires .

honeyeaters such as the ES to compete successfully with the introduced bee to

enwe its survival, ... :. . . The ES builds a cup-shaped nest of gram and libroru; plant Ate&. .., .'I., . which it lines with grass or hair. The nest is usually built into the fork of a ',,I_. .,. . . " . .. .:i . small tree and two to three eggs.are laid. -.

. - Plants in which the ES has been noted feeding include :- . .

Acacia falcifads, A. teminalis (flowers and leaf glands), Adenanthoe teminalia, - - . - . . Albizia e,,Animzanthus flavfdus, & Wglee2i, Angophora costata, floribunda,

intemifolfa, -B. marginata, B, ornata, & serrata, B. spinulosa, Brachy1om ericoides, CalUstemon macronmc tatus, Commereonia f raeeri , Correa backhouaiana., C. baeuerlenii ,. ... . -. . a -C. B&ttls Red, L plab&, C, maaii,' & Marion's Marvel, -C. Poorinda ~ailtasy,L . . pulehs3la, -C. reflex., C, schlechtenddii , 9omhora sassaf ra?,' Jhal~pkus,@. omera* E. basistaana, E, cae~ia,E. edneideniana, & cosmophylla, & cmell&arw, E, elata, - - -E, faaeiculosa, E, globoideet , ", 'fera, -E, leuco~lon,E, odorata, -E, longifolia,

-G. Boongala Spinebill, .G.- ~anterbukyGold, 5 Crosbie Morrison, lavandulicea, 1 . "i ' -0. mucronata, -G. Poorinda Beauty, 5 Poorinda Queen, S, Robyn Gordon, $&a ptiolaris '-,. Tarnbirtia Pomosa , Lyeiana exoe-i , Helateuca hypericif olia, ~uellerihcelestroidae , .-. .. . I . - H, eucaLgpto$des, Pandoma -dorm, Phabalium wthersii, Pittosponun undulat~, . . '. ,' Streptothamnue beckleri, Synoum phdulom, .Yanthorrhoea aemiplana. quite tame. It is possible to encourage them intd the garden with appropriate planting6

and their presence in the garden is ample reward for the effort.

My article lacks information on nesting materials and sites. If anyone can

supplg information abaut which plants provide the nesting materials and in which

trees or shrubs nests are built, I would be grateful. Any additions to .the l&t of

food plants would Lsd be welcome.

Artifiaial Fesdiaq From Margaret Tomalin .... , . "The mynahs are encouraged by indiscriminate feeding and the local birds discou&ged. ,i by' the mynahs. Also, my sister in &gland tells me that a general warning ha8 been..

issued there not to feed bread to birds at breeding time because the lfwoolly" bread . . that is made now (no crumbs) can cause the death of the fledglings if the parent

birds feed it to them. It forms into a gummy lump in their crops. We seem to have'

incr'eased 0.u population by the planting.,of honey bearing native piants

and .I fe'el that is better than providing bottles of &de-u~ stuff and so. . on. Waker seems to be much appreciatad for. . drinking and for bathing in the hot weather." From Norm Bone .... ttDuring the cold weather I use an artificial nectar which I make from water'and . . raw sugar and the birds love it. They do their beet to .tell me when the supply ha6

run out and once I refill the small "coke" bottle$ they de~cendfrom every... tree .and . .-.. . ,- shrub. ,A lot of pe ple are of the opinion that this method'of feeding ie not nata

and that the birds become too dependent on it but-I do not find ' this to -be so. If I

decide not to fill the bottles for a week or so they jut go back to getting nee'tar . . ... from-the garden." From Val Maher- ...... "At first I fnstalled two nectar feeders for honeyeatera but after two years I

obeerued the small and-red watflebirds go first to the &evilleas and then to the .. . - . ! feeders 6io ah discontinued the artificial feeding. At preeent I put out a small

%. quantity of fbely cut cheese each morning. AB soon as I get up I open the back gl+iae

door kdwhistle. The yellow robin flies into the kitchen and sits on 'the chopping

board while I cut up the cheese. Three yellow robim and five kperb blue wrens

breakfaet at the back door. One striated thornbill and one grey thrush ahare thel I a male blackbird into retrea=," . . An article in journal of Zoology VoLme 31 Number 2 1983 on llThyamine

deficiency and winter mortality in Red 'dattlebirds Anthochaera caruuculata (Aves:

Meliphagidae) in suburban Kelbo~rne~~Sy D. C. Paton, D. F. Dorward and P. Fell.

The article describes eorne re~earchdone i3 order to determine why Red wattle bird^

were being found dying in convulsions in suburban Melbourne in winter. The authors

. . ,suggest that the catme of death could be a thymine deficiency. Ihe article tells how

originally in Melbourne there were few native plants suitable for wattlebirda

flowering in winter. In autumn the birds accumulated fat and in.wintei? moved dorthward

along the N. S. W, coast and into the drier mallee areas of Vtctoria. These areas

are :.:Emer, less wqt adinsects nore abund=t. It is from these imecta rather than

nectar that thramine is obtaizled. The authors hgpothesise that Ifin the :lm,t two

decades many exotic native plants, particularly various species of , have

.' been planted in Melbourne. These flower in winter and,. along with sugar .solutions

auppli.ed in,feeders by humans, provide a new food supply attracting Red Wattlebirds

, to -thk. suburbs, and perhaps keepicq them in areas where other essential food i.Cems

are sometimes ecarce." .. .

. Hkve you any -further co&nents to make about aitificial feeding or experiences

. , to relate on the mcitter? ..

.* -.,.. . . .- Uias .. . . Of the 60 or so different species of bankias most are native to W.A.. Their

'flowei; possess a remarkable ability to produce readily acceseible pollen and nectar

in enormou quantities. 'Ihis feature, coupled with their fairly long flowering periods,

which often extend over the winter months, makes them a real haven for birds, small . - , -.

~namml5,ksupials and insects. , . -. The tlflowerstt are actually pups of about 500 sessile flowera. The individual --. flower? are tightly clustered and are strongly attached to the woody epikes. The > . .

, flowers open sequentially on the.spike, starting from either the top or the bottom.

Spikes starting from the to^ have hooked styles (except&- nutans) and those from,the

bottom straight'styles. Rooiced styles have been found to transfer more pollen to . .

visitors, perhaps this is their fuslction, . . again abundant suppl;7. APloweriag b.e?ksias are really s top drawcard. The following + have been noted feeding at Baoksia lowers :- -B. grandfa : red wattlebird (3'41, 'Uttle wattiebird (L'rij, New IIolland honeyeater (MIFIE), xdesten spinebill, yellow-throated miner, honey possum

RV, vnite-cheeked ELE (WCHE), XIHE, blue-faced IFE (-1, noim miner,

rainbol. lorikeet (Z) -B. intearlfolia : ES , UEBg, WCHE, INHHE. RW, LW, BRIE, .scarlet BE, brorn 'He, little friarbird, noisy friarbird (NF), scaly-breabted lorikeet,

--Z. robur : WW

Bd aemula : silvereye, spangled drongo, NF, WCHE, RL II- , . Most bahksias are morphologically adapted for cross pollination. Pollination is

effected when pollen is deposited on the stigm while the flower is being probe&,

The. . flowers exhibit characteristics associated with a vertebrate mode of pollinationm The sty1e.i~Agid and anthers 6re on stiff filamenta-hence resisting damage and

displacement.by large ~fvi.sitsrs".The large stigna-nectary distance and the fact that , - most banbias flower over winter, when insects are iot very ablindant and active,

suggests that vertebrates play a more imprtant role in pollination than do

invertebrates. The flowers are open and releasing nectar during day and night &d

hence are attractive to both day'and night feeders. Some, such as B, attenuata and -B. littoralis, have strong odours, a characteristic of mammel rather than bird pollicatian.. Banksia pollen has been found to be carried by both birds and mammals

and there is debate over their relative importance as agents.of pollination.

. m.e woody fruiting cone is also a food source, In W,A. the wnite-ta5.led bln.~!;

cockatoo finds food by ,excavating the seed-eating weevil1 (Al~hitopsisnivea) from

young fruits of & attenuata. .The flat-winged seeds find a place in the diet of

aome larger birds, e.g. B, attenua-ta - snort-billed form of white-tailed black

: cockatoo, B,intsqrifalia - eastern rosella, -B, marqinata - yellow-tailed black , - 8 -. cockatoo, B, esrrata - red-tailed black cockatoo. Down fron the cone is used as a neat lining material by some birds.

The foliage of banksias is varied. It provides a neating site for birds such as the whi te-cheeked honeyeater (9.- serrata) and the ii ttle wattlebird (& inteqrif~lia). The feliage harjours imects 2cr insect~vorousbirds scch cis silvereyes, superb

fairy-me-, vari~gated fa:,-;.--tens, re5-backed :airj-vrens and brown thornbills.

Other emall mmmls recorded visiting banksia flowers include the dibbler,

brcwn antechinus, eastarn pig~yposaui, sugar gE0er adfeathertail glider.

. . - In such em attractive $an- ih~re are cc doubt ~muyncre interactions to be

found. Any additions to the above ~.

birds taking dam from the coces?

The propagation and cultivation of banksias is well covered in the literature.

Eas anyone any particular methcds or hints to aid rmcceas?

- xi cq3 gdsz xua kte s fl~e~peoi@aoz of 23akd.a adaapprarimatrlj . . 'I taa pa-s old and st- sbat 4 mBma hip&. This tzae ia oloaalj related to Edcsfa serpaka: fke onlg mal difference beiw the stigma

, .whioh is eoniaal md blunt zczpared *i+Athe longer ylindriod sti-e of B. serra"Yar BajksSs amla is'noor considered to be the carreat naru for thin spedes dohis often called 2adcsia serratif~lia~ Earraked Tearas up to 2Qca long d 1-"L &wide, ars shiny green oa top and a ligh3er 21.211 green aziexsat5, %

' nowar spike8 a up io 23ca iore. ~as~a$ a fmih ail~~~men -lour whi& fabe .thro'~qllysllom ta bmbr :di;frq3p. %tare cones show ' . 1- sid tapd&UP hiaiin mne~ththe gwienainsx* oi the fioinra. OUE +rse ham been floerering ofnos April and si;iZI Bae 'orrda appeoziag in Axgutat. hpagatioa fa from aeed nipid gemi~ateseasily. Bark 5s a lowu rough dak *Ath or- sbauiag -iAraugh from underneath and is mosf attractih. Zaarded dragons seen to' like to re& >a %he brandme* Sfrd8 -05 a3 ~ttrzote6%o this barkria inolade rainbow lorikme+m, lsatherheade, tonege3tera and ailusregee. Thsy wreh on the flouara srd. are a delight to yateh as thap sip the oeotar. The spangled d-o alclo aaes '+Jhistme brt seams to pwfer the grovillea~.&ioh grow alongride it. Edsdc: aeda is a comaon p1sn.t on muca of the cant;;.d ad soathorn coast of Quoenslend and oc Baser Idd. The esndy coaprtal beatha am co-nly borw 53 Caeensland a3 "5b wallnan, an Aboriginal name far thin baaksia. Hany of our deiightfbl~wildflowers grow in wmpaaj. with tb. dl- bankoics, Bankda aada,- *oh erfsads eoatb along the mast sa

. far.. . 88 swattjr* ...... Yifh its attraotivm 'IzsrrF, foliage, adthe oolourn of flowsrs. and . -nee at dii'ferent atcgso of davolopmsnt, Sanlcsia mmula is a fine apeaiman free d -73 valuable f3r aktraoti~nativs birds to aosstal ?.. One book I enjoy for the quality of writing as well aa the information contained

is "Grow NativeMby Sill !402;lzux published by CtDanovan Pty. ~td.-(it is in

pap;rback at $6.95). Cyatlzg fzom tiie cover "Bill M. Iavites us to see the bush

as few have bothered to xotlce it; lo d1 itts variety, subtley, abundant colour and

peace .If

Praccic~z~inforaaticc includes ~ho~f,easily read sections on landscaping,

selection of plants ts cr~zte?risual peace, ior fragrance, seasonal flowering and to

create a 'haven for birds, kosher chqte- deals with tiny city gardens'and container -. . - grown plants. One import~itzspect ~zlicovers is the density of plants. FoPlowing

his dzscription ::a discover that 6 eucalypts, say E, caesia or E. scowria, can be

---73ysd'in an a=.oa h 'py 4m f~ra graceful effect, because of their light canopy, .. . . allowic~the nienia to srox beneath them.

\!avid =y,-cae ela~like t3 suegest a rslevant and worthwhile book or publication?

?fa*refienis '?y 3e?l .:!icsrs -- -, -. Zsrlicr this year a colony cZ 5ebl nLners estnblishe2 itself in ah area of

Slealy~tusde=if forest a'; Sb5ingtiood (aSou; :~Z:;_':.JLX~u2- the Blue ~ts.). The birds

are familiar on the. easter- er;sar-?.e-lhf the G,-zat Dividing Range in this area but

" ;s not uad to find them as far vest. 'The be31 mixers live in dense colonies

which they defend noisily. The reason€ why a c9lcny mcves to a new area are unknow~

It has been sugccsted locaiig that destmction a2 the former habite has forced them

to seek oew areasav0nthe south coast of NSW miner colorries seem to invade disturbed sdpeo~+ areas of Corest whichA= dense mderstorej- =d large populations of lerpa, an zl-,';r~;:'.,

focd

disturbance, It would be interestin? to how the red reasons why colonies migrate,

::hat cakes an area aftracti~ecz othc.,rwise to them. %s anyone any observations or

othsr theories about the novenents or general requirements of the.birda?

Areas in which oainions/infor~aticn have besn sought by embers I

'I) -Cats Have you found cats to be a problem, if sot how, or how do you attempt,t6 discourage them?

r \ . ArtJ.fieiul---- .reoti~.-?:iL$s,-, ?,,;. 11f)20w logs, boxec- have you had any successes 3) Ne~tiqfrom Lp Williens "concerning this macter fo nesting, I'd like to'lmow as time goes by, whether certain bird6 prefer soft brushes or .prickly ones."

Any opinions?

. - Next Newsletter !

Due to be eent out late Janmy. An7 contributions by Juuary 10 pleaee. Norm Bone ha6 very kindly written about the dLACK-CHINNED HONm'PER for US. I I have chosen ALBSZIA ah. for the plat of the newsletter. hy information that could I 'i be-included with these articles would be appreciated. ! 1 would anyone like to write about .z particular bird or plant for the foAowing ! (May) newsletter? Again, all contributions on any matter are moat welcome.

Zudy Smith .,