A male spotted pardalote (Pardalotus punctatus ) pauses while excavating its nest at Brookfield Conservation Park, South Australia. Spotted pardalotes construct nests at the ends of self-excavated earthen tunnels up to 5 feet (1.5 m) long! (Photo by Allison Johnson, used with permission. Check out more of Allison's beautiful photos and illustrations at her website!)

On birds and Brookfield (Part 2)

This week I'll be introducing a few of the resident bird species from the field site, and sharing a bit about the location. In part 1, I wrote about the park itself, and we met its most well-studied avian inhabitants, the fairywrens.

Pardalotes

The dainty, elegant pardalote is a treat to see foraging amongst eucalyptus leaves high in the canopy. Because of their small size and habit of staying in the treetops, pardalotes can be difficult to detect until you learn to recognize their call. It is only then that you might realize just how abundant—and vociferous—they are.

Like fairywrens, pardalotes are insectivorous. They forage primarily by gleaning small insects from leaves in the tops of trees, and are especially important in the control of psyllid insects. Psyllid larvae exude protective honeydew casings called "lerps" that have become a favored foodstuff of pardalotes, honeyeaters, and people alike for their high energy content and sweet taste.

 

Adult psyllid insects and lerps on the underside of a red gum leaf. Lerps are a sugar-based protective casing produced by larval psyllids, and are an important dietary component of pardalotes and several other Australian animals. (Photo by Scot Nelson, licensed for use in the public domain)

Both striated (Pardalotus striatus) and spotted (P. punctatus) pardalotes breed at Brookfield Conservation Park. Like other pardalotes, both species are cavity nesters. The spotted pardalote constructs its nest at the end of a 2–5 foot-long (0.5–1.5 m) tunnel it excavates in banks or gently sloping ground. While the striated pardalote is also known to create burrows, it is also often seen nesting in tree hollows and other natural cavities, or in nest boxes in backyard gardens or urban parks. Breeding is typically by monogamous pairs, with both sexes sharing in nest-building, incubation, and brood-rearing activities.

 

Striated pardalotes ( Pardalotus striatus) nest in tree hollows and commonly inhabit nest boxes in urban gardens and parks. This individual is engaged in a competition over access to a nest box in Strangways, Victoria. (Photo by Patrick Kavanagh licensed under CC BY 2.0)

Robins

Australasian robins (Petroicidae) are spunky, charismatic insectivores occupying a variety of wooded habitats across Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, and other Pacific islands. In spite of their name, the Australasian robins are not closely related to either the European robin (from the family Muscicapidae, or Old World flycatchers) or the American robin (Turdidae, or thrushes).

Of the four species of robin that breed in Brookfield Conservation Park, the most abundant and most conspicuous by far is the red-capped robin (Petroica goodenovii). The rolling rattle (chuk-a-whurr...chuk-a-whurr.........chuk-a-whurr...chuk-a-whurr) of the male red-capped robin is a commonly-heard refrain throughout the mallee. The songster is seldom difficult to locate in his scarlet cap and breast. He is frequently seen perched on a low, exposed branch, from which he may sally out to catch insects in the air or pounce down onto beetles on the ground.

 

The vibrant red hues of many Australasian robins, like this male red-capped robin (Petroica goodenovii) make them easy to spot for birdwatchers and predators alike. Red coloration like this is the product of carotenoid pigments, which the birds aren't able to synthesize directly. Instead, they must be obtained in the diet. This can make red plumage markings an honest signal of mate quality for females looking for a partner, as brighter or more intense reds might be indicative of an individual better able to secure scarce resources. (Photo by Laurie Boyle, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0)

Breeding red-capped robins maintain territories ranging in size from 0.6 to 3 acres (0.25–1.2 ha). A pair may successfully rear up to four broods during a single season, so that in autumn and winter groups of 8–10 individuals are possible. Some members of the family, like the white-breasted robin (Eopsaltria georgiana) are cooperative breeders. As in the fairywrens, one or more young, sexually-mature individuals may remain on their natal territory for multiple years and help with the nesting attempts of their parents.

The hooded robin (Melanodryas cucullata), jacky winter (Microeca fascinans) and southern scrub-robin (Drymodes brunneopygia) also occur in Brookfield.

 

A female jacky winter (Microeca fascinans) waits patiently for her eggs to hatch. Like most other Australasian robins (with the notable exception of scrub-robins, which lay one or two eggs in a loose nest of twigs on the ground), the jacky winter constructs a tidy little cup of fine grass and rootlets in the crook of a tree. Adorned with bits of lichen and affixed with spiderweb, the nest is remarkably difficult to spot when unoccupied. (Photo by the author)

Further reading

• Birds SA maintains a checklist of the 139 species of birds that have been reported in Brookfield Conservation Park.

• Tim Siggs has some spectacular close-up footage of a male spotted pardalote. It's a great look at the species' beautiful colors and uniquely compact body.