NEWSLETTER No 52 - September 1998
Editor: Stein Boddington e-mail <newsletter at absa dot asn dot au>
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Members' attention is drawn to the changes that have been made to the Mist Net Service discount policy, changes forced on us by the downward fluctuation of the Australian dollar over recent months. We are unable to maintain the previous discount, and from now on, the discount will be 10% for all mist nets, Pesola scales, Salter scales, colour bands, callipers, rulers and pliers.
Since time immemorial, ABSA has appointed State reps - individuals in each state who carry on the business of the Association in that state, who feedback to the Association the concerns of the members in that state, and who act as on-site publicity officers, organisers and general dogsbodies. Well, that's the theory, anyway. The Committee has decided to review the roles of the State reps, and attempt to re-vitalise what could be a productive facet of the Association. The main idea floated was to regionalise their role, so that it becomes geographically possible. A complete review of their duties will also be made, and eventually we will call for people to fill the positions. If you have ideas on how they should operate, do not hesitate to contact the Secretary.
We welcome the following new members to the Association:
ABSA Workshop and Campout - 1998
Capertee Valley Regent Honeyeaters - 3rd to 9th October, 1998
As previously advised, this workshop will be conducted over the week Saturday 3 to Friday 9 October. Participants may attend for the long-weekend only, or stay the entire week. Accommodation will be on the property "Goollooinboin" with a limited number of beds available in the cottage but plenty of camping space available around the cottage. A cost of $10 per day, with a maximum payment of $50, will cover accommodation.
The goal of the workshop will be to individually colour-band both breeding and non-breeding Regent Honeyeaters in different habitats, and to gather data on local movements, breeding behaviour and time budgeting. This data will be workshopped during the week, and subsequently written up. Extensive searches will also be made for other previously colour-banded Regent Honeyeaters. If required, participants may be asked to assist in a project currently looking at the nesting association between Regent Honeyeaters and Noisy Friarbirds in the Valley by an Honours student from Charles Sturt University, Bathurst. It is not essential to be a bander to attend the workshop.
(contact details deleted as out of date)
Karen Bayly has taken on the job of Publicity Officer of the Association. She has a background in both Public Relations and Biology. Prior to doing her first degree, she worked as PR for the NSW Grain Corporation.
Whilst completing her degree at Macquarie Uni, she worked as a bush regenerator. Currently she works in the Ecology Lab at Macquarie Uni as a research assistant investigating possible changes in insect/host plant interactions under a changed climate and CO2 regime. She is also doing postgraduate study at Macquarie into avian vocal communication and its relationship to male reproductive success.
She says she has been into birds for as long as she can remember, probably from having her mother's budgie sit on her bottle when she was a baby - clearly a case of premature homo-psittacine bonding! Karen believes ABSA already has a reputation as Australia's foremost bander-support organisation. She is keen to build up ABSA's membership and thinks that ABSA is well-positioned to extend its profile by offering training programs and projects encompassing a wide range of bird study techniques. Her aim is to promote ABSA as an organisation providing professional training and encouraging high quality standards in amateur research. She would like to see the ABSA of the future as an intermediary body where amateurs and professionals can work together towards a greater understanding of Australian avifauna.
We wish her well in her endeavours, and ask members to negotiate with her any great ideas you have for promoting ABSA. Contact through the ABSA postal address, or direct on 02 9850 8191 (bh).
At the last committee meeting it was decided to increase our membership rates from January 1999. This will take our normal membership rate up to $40. All other rates will also increase by $5. While we do not like increasing rates we believe membership of ABSA is still very good value particularly when compared to other avian organisations. The last increase was in 1996 and since then we have had to incur significant cost increases in postage charges while other costs such as printing have also increased.
Members may not be aware that the profits from the Mist Net Service go into our revenue stream and effectively subsidise the membership rates. Based on the last financial results this subsidy amounted to approximately $20. Therefore, members are encouraged to use the Mist Net Service as the profits directly benefit members.
Of concern has been a steady decline in our membership renewals. A number of ex-members have stated that the reason for not renewing was that as the Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme (ABBS) now charges an annual licence fee, they have given up their banding activity, and see no reason to continue to be a member of the Association. Some members also seem to confuse ABSA with the banding scheme.
Firstly, I would like point out that ABSA is an association dedicated to promoting ornithological research. It does not have any connection with the ABBBS which is a Federal Government scheme run from within Environment Australia.
Secondly, while bird banding is often an important component of ornithology, it is not essential and many very important ornithological discoveries have been achieved without the marking of birds. While many of our members are banders, it is not a criterion for membership, and I would think the majority of our members probably do not have banding licences. Therefore I find it a little disappointing that members are not renewing their membership because they no longer band birds.
With all the rain that at least NSW and southern Queensland have had, it should be a good breeding season particularly for waterbirds - great opportunities for research.
Graham Fry President
Taxonomy
We look forward to the publication in late 1998 of a new taxonomy
of Australian birds by the Australian Biological Resources Survey.
This will incorporate even more knowledge of the relationships
between birds, based on both the traditional morphological study, and
also the (now not-so) new techniques of DNA analysis.
The Committe decided at the last meeting that the ABSA would formally adopt, for use in all its publications, the interim taxonomy of Albatrosses as published in Flightlines No 21, January 1998. The article is reproduced below with thanks to the ABBBS.
Albatross taxonomy is undergoing substantial revision. Previous taxonomy comprised 14 species, but a workshop on the Biology and Conservation of Albatrosses at Hobart in September 1995 agreed that an interim taxonomy of 24 species was appropriate. Four populations of the Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) have been raised to full species status. These are:
• Wandering Albatross, Diomedea exulans, previously Diomedea exulans exulans
• Tristan Albatross, Diomedea dabbenena, previously Diomedea exulans dabbenena
• Antipodean Albatross, Diomedea antipodensis, prev. Diomedea exulans antipodensis
• Gibson's Albatross, Diomedea gibsoni, previously
Diomedea exulans gibsoni
Other Diomedea species, retained in the genus Diomedea, are:
• Northern Royal Albatross, Diomedea sanfordii, previously Diomedea epomophora sanfordi
• Southern Royal Albatross, Diomedea epomophora, previously Diomedea epomophora epomophora
• Amsterdam Albatross, Diomedea amsterdamensis, previously
Diomedea amsterdamensis
Species that used to be Diomedea, now Phoebastria, are:
• Short-tailed Albatross,Phoebastria albatrus, previously Diomedea albatrus
• Waved Albatross, Phoebastria irrorata, previously Diomedea irrorata
• Laysan Albatross, Phoebastria immutabilis, previously Diomedea immutabilis
• Black-footed Albatross, Phoebastria nigripes, previously
Diomedea nigripes
Species that used to be Diomedea, now Thalassarche, are:
• Black-browed Albatross, Thalassarche melanophrys, previously Diomedea melanophrys melanophrys
• Campbell Albatross, Thalassarche impavida, previously Diomedea melanophrys impavida
• Buller's Albatross, Thalassarche bulleri, previously Diomedea bulleri bulleri
• Pacific Albatross, Thalassarche nov. sp., previously Diomedea bulleri platei
• Shy Albatross, Thalassarche cauta, previously Diomedea cauta cauta
• White-capped Albatross, Thalassarche steadi, previously Diomedea cauta cauta
• Salvin's Albatross, Thalassarche salvini, previously Diomedea cauta salvini
• Chatham Albatross, Thalassarche eremita, previously Diomedea cauta eremita
• Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross, Thalassarche chlororhynchos, previously Diomedea chlororhynchos chlororhynchos
• Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross, Thalassarche bassi, previously Diomedea chlororhynchos bassi
• Grey-headed Albatross, Thalassarche chrysostoma,
previously Diomedea chrysostoma
Species that are unchanged, as Phoebetria , are:
• Sooty Albatross, Phoebetria fusca
• Light-mantled Albatross, Phoebetria palpebrata
Birds Australia is compiling the species accounts for Volume 5 of the Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds (HANZAB). This will cover the first part of the Passerines: Pittas, Lyrebirds, Scrub-birds, Treecreepers, Fairy-wrens and Grasswrens, Honeyeaters and Chats, Pardalotes, Bristlebirds and Pilotbird.
They are asking people to help with good colour photos of any of these species, especially those in juvenile or immature plumage. Birds should be ideally photographed in the following poses:
A) A profile shot of the entire bird to show the bill shape, head pattern, folded wing patter and general shape and proportions.
B) A dorsal shot showing the upperparts with tail closed or partly spread and one wing well-spread (but not over-stretched) to reveal all of the remiges and upper-wing coverts. The upper-wing is often crucial in ageing passerines, so shots showing details of juvenile wing-covert patterns, moult contrasts in coverts and/or remiges etc are extremely valuable. C) A shot of the ventral surface, showing the underbody, undertail, well-spread underwing, and most of the legs and feet.
These three poses will generally cover the basics, but additional close-ups recording details of the head, distinctive upper-wing covert patterns etc are of course invaluable.
Any assistance will of course be acknowledged in the Handbook. Material sent will probably be needed for at least 2-3 months. Material will be stored in a dust-free, fire-proof room. However, if you don't wish to part with your photos for such a long period, they would be willing to cover the cost of duplicating slides, though a limited budget means they would prefer not to do this if at all possible.
Please contact or post material to:
David W EadesBirds Australia,
415 Riversdale Rd
Hawthorn East
Vic 3123
Phone: (03) 9882 2622
Fax: (03) 9882 2677
Site name: Australian Bird Study Association
Site address: www.absa.asn.au
Site topic: About the Association, its activities, publications and events.
New pages added to the web-site include "Projects Funded by the Fund for Avian Research", and "What Bird Researchers Actually Do".
I apologise for the continued publication of an inactive e-mail address - in the face of continual "next week" promises by the computer networking people at my work. I have made alternative arrangements, and expect to be on-line by the time of publication. Expect more pages soon eg a page on the Regent Honeyeater project in Capertee Valley. Check it out!
OBITUARY: Hallam Secker 1923 - 1998
Hallam Secker, a long time member of ABSA, died on 29 May, 1998, in Masterton, New Zealand, aged 75. Born in Wellington, he was educated mostly at Wellington College and then Victoria University College of New Zealand. On military service in the Second World War, he saw many species of birds native to Italy and Egypt.
After the war, he worked for a time in the now-abolished New Zealand Wildlife Service, where he was secretary to the Fauna Protection Advisory Council
Hallam Secker was an enthusiastic student of Sclater's zoogeography. In consequence, he encouraged ornithologists, with some success, to relate their activities to an Australasian Geographical regional perspective. He was an enthusiastic field naturalist, adopting a phenological slant, and his life work includes the compilation of over 40 field notebooks.