Summer Mixed feeding flock

In Winter it is quite common to find mixed feeding flocks comprising birds of many species apparently travelling around together.  There seem to be two aspects to this phenomenon:
  • many eyes find more food; and
  • as one species finds food items not to its liking, they become available to other species with different preferences.
This morning at the end of our dog/exercise walk we encountered a Summer Mixed Feeding Flock in the North Eastern corner of the place.  As I had committed a Major Sin (going round the property without binoculars) I had to jog back to get bins and camera.  In the next 10 minutes I observed these birds:
Brown-headed Honeyeater 2
White-naped Honeyeater 2
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike 4
White-winged Triller 3
Red-browed Finch 4
Diamond Firetail 1
Yellow-rumped Thornbill 8
White-throated Gerygone 1
Rufous Whistler 2
Superb Fairy-wren 3
Dusky Woodswallow 8
I am working on a theory that the prolonged dry weather is having a similar effect as Winter, in that food resources are scarce and thus the benefits of a mixed flock are obtained at 30C as well as 30F.

It was interesting that these birds were moving along the ridge of a spur between two creek lines.  This seems to be a reasonably commonly used passage for birds moving from the Molonglo Valley and the higher country to the West.

The White-winged Trillers were a male and 2 Dependent Young (DY) revealed by the young birds being fed by the adult.  Here is an image of one of the juveniles (the adult was too active, having to search for food for the kids).
The Dusky Woodswallows were also feeding dependent young.  Here is an adult.
 The Yellow-rumped Thornbills were very obliging in posing for photographs in various positions.

This final thornbill image is included as showing the thorn-like shape of the bill:
It would also show the facial pattern rather well, if some Kunzea ericoides hadn't got in the way.

Comments

Denis Wilson said…
Without an adult Triller present (as you obviously had) I would not have recognised the juvenile.
Your Yellow-rump was very co-operative.
Denis
25 January 2013 at 11:20:00 GMT+11
Flabmeister said…
Me neither. I have in the past had lots of difficulty with Trillers other than the males. My mind boggles at the mis-identifications I might have made of this one in other circumstances!
25 January 2013 at 13:24:00 GMT+11
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