OCCASIONAL NEWSLETTE R OF THE BROKEN BOOSEY 14 Edition February

CONSERVATION MANAGEM ENT NETWORK 2020

Turquoise Times andAustralia. qualityelsewhere in quantity declining rapidly is that habitat woodland essential providing floor, valley the Capertee box of consists Valley the region, Warbys our to Similar … of species 235 another to home being as i crit- the for site breeding Bird a is it as by (IBA) Area Important classified an as was International ValleyBirdLife Capertee woodland birds. endangered and threatened many for habitat important is Valley Capertee the surrounds, andregion Ranges Warby Like the east Victoria north in region Ranges Warby the with mon com- in little has world, the in canyon closed en- widest the and Sydney of west 135 north Valley, km Capertee the it, of face the On just just not can species these so important is it ing Australia, enhanc- and protecting towards contribution eastern along everyone and precious is habitat woodland is it Wherever habitat. hollow such requiring species other turquoise for place nesting additional an provides box this regions, Chiltern andthe Warbys in boxes nest the to boards).Similar tongueand old from (made above pictured is result The boxes. in- nest parrot requesting turquoise building on CMN structions Boosey Broken the contacted Park National Capertee to close is property whose Sue and Peter Landholders c

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Teenage Turqs Project area

The first weeks in the life of a Turquoise Par- rot chick are fast. After 21-23 days incubation, the chicks hatch and remain in the nest for around 30 days. A clutch of eggs can total anywhere from 3-7, so the nest can become quite crowded! As they grow, the chicks Juvenile Turquoise Parrot. Photo: C Tzaros prepare for fledging by climbing and flapping their way up and down the inside of the —or nest box— to the top, where they are met and fed by their parents. They then take the plunge from their hollow nest into the wide world, accom- panied by their dad who flies alongside or behind them, protecting and guiding them for the first week or so, until they learn to identify food plants and forage on their own. Several weeks later during late summer and autumn, the juveniles form their own flocks and move away from the breeding areas into the more open country — lightly timbered paddocks and pastures that are adjacent to or nearby to the safety and security of larger bushland areas. Paddock trees are im- portant in farmland, as they provide safety and stepping stones for the birds to travel to and from bushland. This is the time of year to keep your eyes open for juvenile Turquoise Parrots. They are not ‘bright’ in colour and sport a distinctive orange beak, making them quite easy to differentiate from their parents.

Nest Boxes for Neo comes to a close The Glenrowan, Warby Ranges and Chesney Hills are the focal areas for this project. After two years, the Broken Boosey CMNs Victorian Government funded Biodiversity on Ground Action grant Nest Boxes for Neo project is drawing to a close, meaning another 150 nest boxes have been built and installed in Turquoise Parrot country. The total nest boxes installed under all projects stands at 552. This is a great achievement and the result of the hard work of many parties! Neo is the sixth Turquoise Parrot project the Broken Boosey CMN has undertaken since OCCASIONAL NEWSLETTE R 2014, with the OF THE BROKEN BOOSEY aim of increas- CONSERVATION ing the amount MANAGEMENT NETWORK of breeding habi- tat available for For more information, the bird and in- creasing the please contact BBCMN knowledge and Coordinator: understanding of Janice Mentiplay-Smith the local com- PO Box 124, Benalla 3672 munity with re- gard to the plight of the Turquoise Phone: 57647506 Parrot and other [email protected] woodland birds facing similar Photo: C Tzaros challenges.

TURQUOISE PARROT TIMES FEBRUARY 2020