A rare sight to behold Alison Bjork YELLOW THROAT On Thursday 13th July 2017, I was fortunate enough to spend time in the company of a flock of Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos that were feeding on the pines at the back of The newsletter of BirdLife Tasmania my property, near Takone, North-West Tasmania. I estimate that there were 70+ a branch of BirdLife Australia cockatoos and this stunning bird was amongst them. I noticed the flock at around 1pm Number 95, September 2017 leaving my trees and caught a glimpse of a yellow bird flying with them. I saw that some of the flock was circling back around and so rushed to get my camera. As they landed in some gums about 80m away, I realised that the yellow one was in fact a General Meeting for September cockatoo as well. They joined others in the pines where I could get within 10m of them and enjoy their antics. This beautiful bird appeared to behave and interact with other Life Sciences Building, UTas, flock members normally. A t around 1.40pm the flock flew off to feed elsewhere and left me feeling privileged to have witnessed such a rare sight. I hope I get that chance again. Thursday, 14 September, 7.30 p.m. James Pay will talk about the role of the Wedge-tailed Eagle, as apex predator, in maintaining the health and structure of Tasmania's ecosystems. As usual, the discussion will continue over tea, coffee and biscuits after the meeting. Meeting venue: Life Sciences Lecture Theatre 1, Life Sciences Building, University of Tasmania, Sandy Bay. Access and parking are from College Road or from the parking area outside the University Centre via the pedestrian bridge over Churchill Avenue. Thanks to Wynne Webber On behalf of all members, the BirdLife Tasmania Executive Committee wishes to express its sincere thanks to Wynne Webber, past Editor of YellowThroat for her remarkable efforts over more than 6 years. Wynne took on the role in January 2011, following the sudden passing of Don Jones, and since then YellowThroat has grown in size and increased in quality due to Wynne’s professional editorial expertise. We are delighted that Wynne will continue to edit the Tasmanian Bird Report. The Committee welcomes Sharon Moore as our new YellowThroat Editor and greatly appreciates her willingness to take on the role. Please support Sharon as you have Wynne over the years. Sharon’s details are shown in the Committee Directory on page 12. From the new editor… I have very competent shoes to fill, indeed! I took up professional editing after (too) many years of government policy work, including for the Antarctic Division and PWS/DPIWE. A long-time member of BirdLife Aus/Tas, my main interest in birds is for their conservation. I look out for birds wherever I go and am getting better with identification! I’m keen to receive articles and photos from members. Sharon Moore Leucistic Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo: photo by Alison Bjork. 1 Our special interest group is suitable for people with all types of photographic BirdLife Photography equipment. Advice is readily available to members or future members interested in bird Gary King or general wildlife photography and who are considering purchasing new or upgrading Do you enjoy taking photographs of birds? Are you interested in improving the quality of their photographic equipment. your bird photographs? If so, it is highly likely that joining Birdlife Photography can Our focus is to provide online educational resources and events to enhance your help you. bird photography and bird identification. We run regular themed photographic BirdLife Photography is a Special Interest Group of BirdLife Australia and competitions such as ‘black and white birds’, ’preening’ and ‘capturing the light’. These provides both a forum and resources for photographers, bird observers and the general competitions run at three levels, entry, intermediate and advanced, catering for all public to enhance their knowledge and appreciation of birds through the medium of photographic abilities. We run bird identification challenges which test our members’ eye photography. for detail and also publish a bi-monthly newsletter. Members can upload photographs to our online New Images Gallery. We have also recently established a critique gallery where members can submit images for review by fellow photographers; another avenue for improving your photographic skills. Every two years we run a 3–5 day event currently known as Digital Photography in the Bush. The last 3 events have been held at Ingham, Newcastle and Geelong. These events include local birding excursions and educational seminars focusing on ethical bird photography, post-processing of photographs, new equipment and how to get the best out of your equipment. This biennial event gives birdlife photographers from around Australia the chance to socialise and exchange experiences and technical knowledge. About 140 people attended the most recent meeting in Geelong. We have a separate website to Birdlife Australia which can be accessed through the following link: www.birdlifephotography.org.au Crescent Honeyeater, New Town, Tas. Photo: Gary King Even though we are one of four special interest groups sitting under the umbrella of Birdlife Australia and have about 700 members we are not that well known among the thousands of members of Birdlife Australia. While most members of Birdlife Photography are also members of Birdlife Australia, being a financial member of Birdlife Australia is no longer a prerequisite for joining Birdlife Photography, as from the first week of August 2017. The annual membership fee is currently $15 per annum and our membership subscriptions are processed by Supporter Services at Birdlife Australia. Scarlet Robin, Risdon Dam, Tas; Photo: Gary King 2 Whilst a non-member can view our various galleries, you must be a Birdlife Report 35, 2013). In addition, we are working with Sorell Council about weed Photography member to upload images, and access our website’s considerable array of management on the Sorell Causeway, as boxthorn, mallow and fennel are returning after resources and events. Our total membership exceeds 700 and yet only 14 are from several years following earlier control measures. It is expected that further weed Tasmania. As I live in Hobart I would love to see this number increase to a level so we management would occur following the current breeding season. could potentially hold Birdlife Photography events in our State. If any members of Birdlife Tasmania would like to find out more about Birdlife Photography I will be Community events – a call for assistance pleased to try and answer any questions. As I am likely to be photographing birds in north Queensland during the spring my best contact is either email or my mobile. Every year, and particularly in the Spring, Summer and Autumn months, BirdLife Tasmania is approached by councils and numerous community groups to attend a Gary King, Membership Coordinator, Birdlife Photography community events and engage with participants. The 2017/18 season is no different, and [email protected] 0414757924 the Executive Committee would welcome any offers of assistance by members to represent BirdLife Tasmania at the following events. Further events will be listed in the next YellowThroat. If you are interested, please contact our Secretary, Amanda Blakney. BirdLife Tas news and views… • Blooming Tasmania 15 – 17 Sep, statewide Silver Gulls at Sorell • HCC Dogs’ Breakfast 30 Sep, Sandy Bay Beach BirdLife Tasmania is examining the long-term data for the Silver Gull colony at • Tasmanian Wildlife Fair 14 Oct, Nubeena Sorell to provide analyses and advice to the Department of State Growth for its ongoing • Clarence Seafarers’ Festival 22 Oct, Bellerive management of the colony. The colony established in the late 1970s and has been present • Kingborough Extinction Matters Bioblitz 3-4 Nov [To be confirmed] annually since. BirdLife Tasmania has been monitoring the colony for some years to • Taroona Seaside Festival 11 Nov, Taroona High School assess breeding population size and colony phenology (see report in Tasmanian Bird • Tarkine Bioblitz 22 - 26 Nov [To be confirmed] Sorell subdivisions BirdLife Tasmania has made representation to Sorell Council about proposed rezoning of land adjacent to Pitt Water-Orielton Lagoon Ramsar Site that could see extensive subdivision and increase risks to the wetlands and the migratory shorebirds and waterbirds that use the site. We have been alerted to a proposed subdivision adjacent to Orielton Lagoon to which we will be making a submission. With the rapidly increasing human population at Sorell (and associated household pets), our concerns centre around disturbance, predation, light spill and water quality. Robbins Island (1) windfarm With the increased interest in renewable energy, the proposed windfarm on Robbins Island in far northwest Tasmania has re-emerged. BirdLife Tasmania has been in preliminary discussions with the consultants working on the project, in which up to 200 turbines are proposed for the island. We have had serious concerns about the development since it was first proposed more than 10 years ago, as the Robbins Photo by Eric Woehler Passage/Boullanger Bay wetlands support up to 25,000 migratory and resident shorebirds, many of which are protected under the federal Environment Protection 3 (Biodiversity Conservation) (EPBC) Act. The wetlands are a nationally- and Little Penguins (2) Bruny Island internationally-significant site, recognised for the shorebird populations present. BirdLife Tasmania continued to liaise with the Department of State Growth and their contractors in the lead-up to the road and car park construction at the Neck on Robbins Island (2) aquaculture proposal Bruny Island. Every burrow in the construction footprint was checked before The Tasmanian Government’s recent “Draft Sustainable Industry Growth Plan for construction commenced and just one pair of penguins was present; the birds were the Salmon Industry” proposes to allow for the expansion of the salmon aquaculture relocated by PWS to ensure their safety.