Some of us love them, some of us have a phobia of them and most of us get a little annoyed when their excrement splatters onto our car windscreens but birds are very important creatures. Today, January 5th, marks the 10th anniversary of National Bird Day. Originally launched by Born Free USA, the day is aimed to increase awareness of the wide range of threats birds face around the world. Did you know that nearly 12% of the world’s bird species face the possibility of extinction within the next century?
Birds play an integral role in our environment, many being excellent indicators of change and degradation due to their high sensitivity. Many of us have heard the stories of the coal miners taking caged canaries down into the mines with them as they were highly sensitive to changes in the carbon monoxide and methane levels. This sort of sensitivity to small environmental changes has alerted people worldwide to issues that may be arising within their local ecosystem.
At Arid Recovery we have an extensive number of birds, recording 121 species inside the reserve since 1997 and a total of 195 within the Roxby Downs region. The high rainfall throughout last year increased the amount of vegetation present for small birds to hide and breed in as well as increasing the number of prey for larger birds of prey.
The photographs below were taken using a remote camera, located within the reserve and help to illustrate just how big our Wedge-tailed Eagles really are!
As part of our Dingo Research project we use a carcass dump to lure in dingoes and observe their behaviours. It also attracts a different crowd though, this Wedge- tailed Eagle in action attempting to steal a meal.
The wing span of some Wedge- tailed Eagles can reach up to 2.27m!
Upon landing the wings of this eagle nearly reach the top of the star dropper post.
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