The mystery of the Balerot bird

The Phillip Island Historical Society has recently had a display featuring extracts from the Nature Notes of Mary Potter (nee Anderson) of Bass, San Remo and Phillip Island, 1915. The display board focussed on her bird notes and showed copies of Mary's actual text accompanied by a modern photograph of the bird as we know it. It is alway fascinating (and somewhat depressing) to read about the bird species that used to be in the region but are now locally extinct.

Now when the society member came across Mary's "Balerot" bird no picture was forthcoming ....

I have since developed a theory about the mysterious "Balerot"!

After trying all the obvious bird guide and Internet searches that perhaps ought have revealed me a balerot I thought it was time to question a few assumptions. Amongst other questions arose "Was it not a bird?" Other creatures do nest.

But I think the real clue came in examining the hand writing (exposure to doctor's handwriting and some time spent doing genealogical research may have helped). My theory goes that the heading which apparently reads "Balerot" is either another person's handwriting or another word altogether. Examination of Mary's handwriting in the text below the heading reveals that the "er" in the words "numerous" and "where" are written quite differently to the so called "er" in "Balerot".

The next part of my theory is that what initially appears to be "er" is actually "co". Instead of "erot" we have "coot". This leaves us with "Balcoot" and if I stretch my theory a little further this is not too far removed from "Bald coot".

Bald coot was another name for the Purple swamphen as depicted in this plate which I take to be from the late 1800s in a University of Tasmania collection - Bird paintings of the 'Bald Coot' (porphyria melanotus) by Alfred May (1862-1948) Tasmania

Porphyhyrio porphyrio melanotus would also "tick the boxes" for Mary Potter's statement (their nests are pretty obvious):

 "very numerous about the Bass River and at Newhaven where they used to nest"

Purple swamphen, Porphyrio porphyio melanotus (Fishers Wetland, Newhaven, Phillip Island)

In a twist that makes my theory a little less neat, another bird warrants consideration. The Eurasian coot is another waterbird that is very common locally and also is globally very well-known as the Bald coot.

Eurasian coot (Swan lake, Phillip Island)

So we have two contenders for the identity of Mary Potter's "Balerot" (or "Bald Coot") - Purple swamphen or Eurasian coot. What do you think?

I am certainly sending off my little theorem to the Society for consideration!

Bird on!

Pelican pouch yoga, Phillip Island

A few interesting observations were made on a gloomy morning at Fishers Wetland, Phillip Island recently. First was the overall impression of a whole heap of pretty happy birds all feeding. We (Richard and I) did enjoy spotting a single Pink-eared duck amongst a mass of Eurasian coot.

Methinks not unlike a Freo supporter amongst the Collingwood coots!

Eurasian coot, Fishers Wetland, 29 December 2012

You know how the bird standing on one leg always brings out the other one just when you conclude it is lame? This one never seemed to and the leg on view seemed huge! 

Cape Barren Goose drinking the brackish Fishers Wetland water

Now on to some pelican behaviour ...

I've not seen this before!

 A little "quality" Internet research brought me to this National Geographic article by David A O'Connor which states:

Pelicans perform strange-looking exercises to stretch and maintain their pouch in a brand of pelican yoga. They will gape, holding their mouths wide open. In another pose, they point the bill straight up to the sky, stretching the pouch. Or most evocatively, a bird will turn its pouch completely inside out by forcing it over its breast.

Teal, dotterels and stilts all happily feeding at Fishers

I've not seen this many Red-kneed dotterel at Phillip Island before

An Australasian shoveler amongst the teal

I leave you with some of the comings and goings. In flight we see Australian pelican, Swamp harrier, Australian shelduck and Cape Barren geese.

Fishers Wetland, Phillip Island, 29 December 2012

Bird on!

Swan Lake performance steals show!

We are not talking of ballet but of a visit to Phillip Island's Swan Lake last weekend. The wetland is situated in the southwestern corner of the island. And although I was very pleased to study this Black-fronted dotterel from the more southern of the two bird hides, it is not the star to which I refer!

  

This Black-fronted dotterel (Elseyornis melanops) was actively feeding at the lake's edge.
Below (right) we can just see it extracting a worm from the crusted mud.

I am more than a little impressed that the bright contrasting colours (black and white chest, bright red-bill and eye ring) do not stop the birds from being well camouflaged. They are quite hard to spot. Unnoticed until in flight, two others flew off while I was studying this closer bird.

The star performer?

Again, while I enjoyed watching this Eurasian coot feed in the shallows and then coming ashore to shows us its "toes with flattened lobes to assist swimming" (Pizzey) - it is not my Swan Lake star.

Eurasian coot (Fulica atra)

The site is a popular spot for Little black cormorant (outnumbering the Little pied cormorant on this occasion) and Musk duck seem reasonably constant at present (better pictures of Swan Lake birds including Musk duck at Ian Smissen's blog pages featuring a visit to Swan Lake).

The lake was far from full which surprised me given recent summer rains. Close viewing of birds was limited to the southern hide. I don't even know how this darter managed to wet its wings!

Swan Lake, Phillip Island, 25th March 2012

An iconic coastal call and an appearance not-quite-right for Pacific gull?
We have ourselves a Kelp gull (Larus dominicanus)
Swan Lake, 25 March 2012

The path leading from the car park has information boards at regular intervals. 

The Swan Lake star performance was enjoyed on the way back to the car park and viewed from the wooden boardwalk (which provides protection for shearwater burrows).

It enables me to place the words "ballet" and "echidna" in the one sentence!

The Short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) which is found throughout Australia in wide-ranging habitat. There are also three species of Long-beaked echidna which live in Papua New Guinea