BIRD OF THE MONTH

Each month I like to select the bird that has given me the most pleasure and reward it by calling it my Bird of the Month. Sometimes it is easy (for example, if I get a lifer); sometimes it is difficult (if I haven't seen anything special). Most months it is surprisingly easy. Birds tend to self select. However, winter in Melbourne can be hard. Mostly, I enjoy the process. I go through the birds I've seen, I remember good trips. It is fun. So far, this year has been a mixed bunch. January was easy. I saw a Common Kingfisher on Cocos - a lifer, and an exceptionally beautiful bird. February was even easier. I saw the White-necked Petrel, a bird I had been wanting to see for decades. It was bigger and even more beautiful than I'd been led to believe. March was not so obvious. In the end I settled on an Eastern Spinebill - not a rare bird, but to me a special one nonetheless. I grew up with spinebills in my backyard in Ringwood and I have been sorely lamenting the fact that, despite all my native planting for that very purpose, they have refused to turn up in my new garden in East Kew. In March I saw one, just fleetingly admittedly, but I saw one unambiguously in the garden next door. Good enough for Bird of the Month for me!

This lovely photo by Ken Haines is not of the bird next door, but I couldn't tell the difference. (All the birds in Victoria are the same race.) The winner for April again was not obvious. I'd been to Werribee, hoping for a Black Tern, which, unfortunately, I did not see. But that day I had been struck by the large number of Australian Crakes. They all wanted to say hello. I think of crakes as being secretive and shy. These birds were not. I've always loved crakes and rails and I do not see them every month. On reflection, the crake was a clear winner. In the end May was easy, despite a large number of excellent contenders. I went to Sherbrooke and saw several Superb Lyrebirds. I saw Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos at Hay's Paddock. I visited Kamarooka and saw lots of wonderful birds, each worthy of being awarded Bird of the Month. There were honeyeaters (Purple-gaped, Tawny-crowned, White-eared and more), Red-capped Robins, Purple-backed Fairywrens, Shy Heathwrens, Crested Bellbird and (a most worthy nomination) Western Whistlers that I didn't know occurred in Victoria. So May was already spoiled for choice when I saw my clear winner: an Olive-backed Oriole in my street. It was sitting on top of a silver birch singing its heart out. In May! These summer migrants should be far north by May, certainly not sitting in my street singing. Another clear winner.

Again, the photo is by Ken Haines and again, it is not the bird in question. However, it is a Victorian Olive-backed Oriole so it is near enough for me. Now as June comes to a close, I am considering who deserves my award this month. I have been to Eden where I admired five species of albatross, each one worthy of Bird of the Month appellation. I saw friendly Buff-banded Rail at Eden, and, even better, Southern Emu-wren. En route I saw Spotted Quail-thrush and, again at Eden, I saw a magnificent white Grey Goshawk. Plenty to choose from. But the winner is none of these. The winner is Dame Edna! A bird I have been wanting to see ever since I heard of her existence. She lives in Royal Park and I look for her each time I visit. This time I saw her. She is an old female Superb Fairywren with a male's blue tail. I have been told that the experts think this is due to her age and an excessive build up of testosterone over the years. This fascinated me, as (in my ignorance) I had not heard of it before. I just happen to be reading 'The Wisdom of Birds' by Tim Birkhead (which I thoroughly recommend by the way) and came across a passage discussing just this issue: female birds exhibiting male characteristics. Here's the relevant bit (from page 282): 'Science is often sexist and, perhaps not surprisingly, until recently it was widely assumed that male hormones controlled male sexual traits - like a cockerel's plumes. The truth is that many male characteristics are determined not by the male hormone testosterone, but by the absence of the female hormone, oestrogen. Typically, males do not secrete oestrogen (or at least not very much), and consequently produce male plumage. Females secrete oestrogen and develop female plumage. A female with a diseased ovary that ceases to produce oestrogen reverts to the default situation of male plumage.' Fascinating. Whatever the cause, Dame Edna is the clear winner for June. And here she is:

The photo is by Peter Petinatos, and you can see that she has a female's orange eye-ring and a male's blue tail. So, so far at least, winter has not been difficult for selecting my Bird of the Month. Fingers crossed for July!