The Aussie Backyard Bird Count has produced some interesting preliminary results.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Now in its fifth year, hundreds of surveys were returned from across the district, including 335 from Ballarat.
Nearly 30,000 birds were counted, out of more than 2.5 million nationally.
Last Sunday, BirdLife Ballarat walked around Lake Wendouree, showing enthusiasts and newcomers rare birds who only nest locally.
Species included the elusive Freckled Duck (Stictonetta naevosa), the Blue-Billed Duck (Oxyura australis) and the Great-Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus), and further out of town, many rare honeyeaters were spotted.
BirdLife Ballarat secretary Graham Dent said the whole week had been great for citizen science.
“It’s involving people in the birds a bit more and getting them to look outside their back window, and take account of what’s going on in their backyard,” he said.
“At the moment there’s a fair bit of concern about small birds, their habitat’s disappearing and they’re struggling.
“It’s encouraging people to plant more native species to attract birds, plus people are more conscious of their backyard cats.”
Birdlife Australia’s chief “bird nerd” Sean Dooley said the Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen) was looking to top Victoria’s list once again.
“We don’t yet have the number one for Ballarat, but the number one nationally, and I don’t think it can get knocked off its perch again, is the Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus moluccanus),” he said.
“The Australian Magpie, which is also in the top three, was the most frequently recorded - the highest percentage of surveys had the magpie in it, but the lorikeet was the highest number.”
He added it was interesting to note changes in where birds were spotted.
“The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), again a bird that is often in big flocks, but certainly we know from a lot of BirdLife Australia’s other surveys, they're starting to disappear from some suburbs,” he said.
“In terms of the number of surveys entered, it was about a 25 per cent increase (nationally).”
READ MORE: Indian mynas are on the move - to Ballarat
The next step for people who’ve caught the bird bug is to get to the great outdoors.
Parks Victoria’s Ballarat ranger team leader, Alex Schipperen, said there were some very accessible places close by.
“The Landcare walk in Creswick, it’s a half an hour walk, and there’s a good chance of honeyeaters, raptors, Bassian Thrush (Zoothera lunulata), you can find them along this particular walking trail,” he said.
“If you’re lucky, there’s some Brush Bronzewing Pigeons (Phaps elegans), also the Crescent Honeyeater (Phylidonyris pyrrhopterus), and they’re species you wouldn’t expect here.”
Initiatives like the Backyard Bird Count help scientists track populations, he added.
“Many rare species are not seen by scientists or rangers, they’re spotted by enthusiasts,” he said.
“People who go out walking, no matter where it is, they see that scientists or park rangers don’t see, and they can be the eyes and ears and see what species are appearing or disappearing.”
Mr Dooley agreed, and said once the surveys had been returned, researchers were poring through the results.
“It’s good to see records of Painted Honeyeaters (Grantiella picta), which is a Ballarat specialty, it’s a rare bird that migrates,” he said.
“Clunes and Creswick are strongholds, and down in Linton as well.
“Another rare honeyeater, the Black-chinned Honeyeater (Melithreptus gularis), that’s a threatened bird, and it’s good to see they’re still holding on.”
To check out the results as they come in, postcode by postcode, visit aussiebirdcount.org.au/statistics
Have you signed up to The Courier's variety of news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.