ISSN 0314-8211 canberra Volume 33 bird Number 3 December 2008 notes Registered by Australia Post − Publication No. NBH 0255 CANBERRA ORNITHOLOGISTS GROUP PO Box 301 Civic Square ACT 2608 2008-09 Committee President Chris Davey 6254 6324 (h) Vice-President Secretary Sandra Henderson 6231 0303 (h) Treasurer Lynley Rees 6242 4517 (h) Conservation Jenny Bounds 6288 7802 (h) Field trips Anthony Overs 6254 0168 (h) Newsletter Sue Lashko 6251 4485 (h) Webmaster David Cook 6236 9153 (h) Sales desk Beth Mantle 6287 7860 (h) Member Tony Lawson 6161 9430 (h) Website www.canberrabirds.org.au Email contacts Canberra Bird Notes: [email protected] COG membership: [email protected] Conservation inquiries: [email protected] Gang-gang monthly newsletter: [email protected] GBS coordinator: [email protected] General inquiries: [email protected] Sales: [email protected] Unusual bird reports: [email protected] Website: [email protected] Other COG contacts Databases Paul Fennell 6254 1804 (h) GBS coordinator Martin Butterfield 6238 2637 (h) Rarities Panel Barbara Allan 6254 6520 (h) Records officer Nicki Taws 6251 0303 (h) Waterbird survey Michael Lenz 6249 1109 (h) If members wish to access the COG library, please contact Barbara Allan on 6254 6520. To borrow equipment, please contact the field trips officer. Canberra Bird Notes 33 (3) December 2008 A RECORD OF THE FIRST BIG YEAR FOR THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY Alastair Smith 6 Henderson Street, Garran, ACT 2605 Abstract: This article documents the author’s planning and conduct of a ‘Big Year’ in the Australian Capital Territory. In the 2006 calendar year he observed 208 bird species within the geographical boundaries of the ACT. Introduction So, where had this Big Year started? A quest to see 200 birds, in a I was watching a Royal Spoonbill calendar year within the Platalea regia flying over the geographical boundaries of the ACT grassland paddocks to the north of … Jerrabomberra Wetlands, when I turned to Milburn, and jokingly said, ‘I Background think I saw a yellow bill’. I desperately wanted a Yellow-billed Spoonbill My father is a birdwatcher, so it was Platalea flavipes for my Big Year list, not surprising that as a boy I should and I was willing every Royal become interested in birds. While I Spoonbill we saw that morning to cannot remember where or when it morph into the required species. We all started for me, I recently found were at the Wetlands specifically to the logbook for my Duke of follow up a sighting of Yellow-billed Edinburgh Award which stated the Spoonbill from the previous day. purpose for my bronze award Milburn’s reply was a nonchalant, ‘I expedition (as a 16 year-old in 1979) don’t think so’ but less than five was ‘to observe birds’. minutes later, there it was; great views as a Yellow-billed Spoonbill flew over On leaving school I joined the Navy the two of us in amongst a flock of and served from 1982 to 1996. Australian White Ibis Threskiornis During those formative years birding molucca. I was ecstatic - for me this largely took a back seat. I never let was more than just a sighting - it was on that I was a birder for fear of bird number 199 for calendar year being ridiculed by my colleagues, 2006. One to go , or so I thought.1 who I could hear saying ‘yeah, I like birdwatching too … not the feathered ones … ha ha’. 1 I recall the account of the Spoonbill as a It was only after leaving the Navy later reconciliation of my count would and moving to Canberra in 1996 that indicate that it was this bird and not the my interest gradually reawakened Glossy Ibis that was bird number 200. and birdwatching became more than just a passing hobby. It still took me 125 Canberra Bird Notes 33 (3) December 2008 a few years to realise the birding Twitch’ – a goal of 700 Australian potential of Canberra, but by 2000 I species in calendar year 2002 was no longer in denial and I was (Dooley 2005), or (b) leave myself in actively birdwatching again. It was the lap of the gods and just see what that year I joined the Canberra total I had achieved by year’s end. I Ornithologists Group (COG). reasoned that the goal of aiming for a total would provide my quest with In 2004 I accepted an offer from the much needed impetus. The question Navy to teach leadership for 12 was then, ‘just how high should that months at the naval college at Jervis total be?’ Bay. I continued to subscribe to the Canberrabirds discussion forum and According to the most current read about a great year for vagrants revision of the COG checklist (COG and rarities in the ACT, with my 2003a), some 282 species of birds birding contemporaries adding many have been recorded in the ACT.2 A new species to their totals. I also read a supplementary list documents a number of books about twitching further 38 species that have been which included Mark Obmascik’s The recorded in the ACT but are Big Year, Kingbird Highway by Ken generally considered to have been Kauffman, Call collect ask for escapees, birds deliberately released Birdman by James M Vardaman and (both native and feral) or Arrivals and Rivals by Adrian Riley. misidentifications. I maintain my bird sighting records in a ‘Birdinfo’ When I returned to Canberra in database3 and I have 290 species January 2005 I was keen to make up listed in my personal ACT checklist. for lost time and I birded steadily, adding 22 new species to my ACT list. To help me decide on a total, I The idea of a Big Year had its genesis extracted from my database all six during this 11 months of intensive years worth of sightings and ‘coded’ birding and I made this announcement the birds. Code One were birds that I public when I reviewed Sean Dooley’s had been seen at least five years out The Big Twitch in Canberra Bird Notes with the words, ‘as for me after reading the book … I am attempting 2 my own big year in 2006, within the Two records in the supplementary list are seabirds - one a White-faced Storm- ACT … stay tuned (Smith 2005). Petrel Pelagodroma marina found on the road to Kelly’s Swamp and the other a Planning for a Big Year Wedge-tailed Shearwater Puffinus pacificus found at a petrol station. I am not aware of any previous attempt Anecdotally, I have heard that the at an ACT Big Year and so there was remains of a jaeger were found in a no total for me to challenge. I had to Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus nest. decide to either (a) aspire to a 3 These records are exported to Birds hypothetical total like Sean Dooley Australia on an annual basis and later had done in his Australia-wide ‘Big extracted by COG for its database. 126 Canberra Bird Notes 33 (3) December 2008 of six – I had a near certain chance of Several years of severe drought and seeing these 108 birds in 2006; Code below average rainfall in eastern Two were birds that I had seen at least Australia had helped gradually three years out of six – a pretty good increase the total number of species I chance of seeing these 38 birds; birds I have observed. This weather pattern had seen only once were labelled Code has seen an easterly movement of Three – it would be much more species not normally recorded in the difficult to add any of these 71 birds to ACT, illustrated by the Painted my list. The most unlikely or difficult Honeyeater Grantiella picta, a very birds for me to see were Code Four - rare vagrant in the ACT. Normally birds that I have not previously confined to western NSW and observed in the ACT – my list southern Qld, between 1951 and contained 73 Code Four birds. 2002 there were only five published records of single birds or a pair. From my coded list I concluded a total During an influx of the species in of 200 species was a nice round 2002 (thought to be because of an number that sat agreeably between my abundance of mistletoe in our local highest annual total to date (183 region and drought conditions species seen in calendar year 2005) further west), I recorded seven and my ACT regional total of 216 individuals on three occasions in species.4 Additionally, 200 species October that year. Since this influx, was a number at the very top end of all only two subsequent sightings have probabilities. At the time my annual been endorsed. I certainly was average number of species over the hoping - but not counting on - seeing previous six years (including the big this bird in 20067! total in 2005) was just 139 species per year. Indeed, the 2003-2004 annual The final requirement for my Big bird report (COG 2005) reported an Year was a set of rules for me to annual average of only 215 species5 follow. I had to see (visually acquire) recorded in the whole COG area of each bird, within the geographical interest (AOI)6 by in excess of 100 boundaries of the ACT and the birds 8 birdwatchers. had to be alive and wild. A final rule was that birds had to be positively identified by me - I could 4 My record of sightings placed me some 7 A Painted Honeyeater was seen by way behind the top ACT lister, Milburn, birdwatchers looking for the Black who had recorded 246 species.