Lyrebirds - how far west?

[Thylacoleo Gal]

Hi Questers

I think we might have a lyrebird in a picture from a camera just in from the central highlands. That wouldn't be a big deal if it were around Healesville-Acheron where they're very common. This spot is the Puckapunyal-Castlemaine region of central Victoria. Does that sound a little far west for a lyrebird?

Morrison (Australian Bird Book) gives lyrebirds' distribution as SE-Qld. to ENE-NSW to E. Vic. I know their preferred hab is wet temperate rainforest & this spot isn't that. More dry sclerophyl Manna(?) gum.

Anyone have a more detailed ref about lyrebirds' distribution in Victoria?

Thanks.

D.

[mingle]

Hi Debbie,

Can't really offer you any more info on the distribution of the lyrebird (all of my reference books are down at the holiday house), but being a bit of an ornitholgist, I may be able to assist with the ID, if you have a photo available?

From the location, other possibilities could be a juvenile mallee fowl or even a feral/escaped pheasant (they are/were quite popular in some of the larger parks/gardens - there are some up at Swan Hill, which may be a bit far north) - both wild guesses, without looking at pics...

Of course you could have a genuine lyrebird! Here's hoping!

Cheers,

Mike.

[Deleted]

Many years ago they were reported from the Balck Forest/Daylesford region but I haven't heard of any that far west for decades. The area is too heavily populated and too cleared to support a breeding population and cover from feral foxes, cats and dogs.

The Hume highway used to be considered the dividing line for Wombats and Lyre Birds; west of it no Lyre Birds (but some times they would turn up) and wombats were protected on the east lyre birds were known and wombats were not protected. It took over twenty years from wiping out the thylacine to consider protecting wombats and another five or so to pass the law.

[youcantry]

Yep, Castlemaine is further west than Graham Pizzey has it - published 1980, revised 1991.

[Thylacoleo Gal]

Hmm. Interesting. The MoV's species database doesn't seem to include birds. If anyone can turn up a ref about their distribution, that'd be great

OK, below is a snip from the main pic - I've lightened it a little so you can see the bird more clearly and (especially) its tail. It's about the size of a smallish chook. If need the full size image, I'll put that up l8r - it's about 300K. The bird was not quite close enough to the flash for a clear ID.



I have to be a little cagey re exact locations, as people might possibly infer from the file name. Let's just say, uh, it's a minefield out there ....

So .. opinions? Lyrebird, or not? If so, is it outside its expected range?

Thanks - D.

PS: The cams are having trouble coping up there. Gale force storms, rain in torrents and even snow! Tree branches are falling like confetti but they've missed the cameras. So far.

[mingle]

Hi Debbie,

Well, there you go... I'd say (with 99.9% certainty) that you have a young male superb lyrebird there!

The greyish head, chestnut brown wings are pretty indicative. Heck, you can also see the distinctive tail feathers...

I can't think of anything else it could possibly be...

Well done!

Cheers,

Mike.

[youcantry]

Without looking through my bird book, my first impression is that's a lyrebird.

I thought Albert's lyrebird was far less ornate than the superb lyrebird; and I thought I saw an Albert's lyrebird in the Blue Mountains a few weeks back, but when I looked at the distributions last night, Albert's has a really restricted range in northern NSW. However, this looks less spectacular than the superb lyrebird as well.

Despite this, it looks like both yours and mine are probably superb lyrebirds... perhaps there is sexual dimorphism? Ok. Got the book back out. Yep. Females are less ornate (sorry ladies). The brown wing, but with a grey neck, matches the superb lyrebird. (Albert's has a reddish-brown neck as well).

The only other bird it could be is the ring-necked pheasant - but that has a chequered breast and your bird does not.

[mingle]

Hi Chris,

I used to live in the UK and saw many pheasants in the wild - trust me, this is no pheasant!

Question is; does it show that the distribution is a bit further west that previously known? Or would this be considered on the border of it's known range?

Perhaps contacting one of the Victorian Ornithological groups would help?

Cheers,

Mike.

[Deleted]

Yep I'll go along with Lyrebird. And - I reckon it's a female. It seems to have a slight bend in the tail, which they get from being inside the nest and having to squash the tail in to the confined space. The breeding season is mostly April - October according to
www.birdsinbackyards.net/finder/display.cfm?id=1
so the tail feathers of the females at this time of the year would not be as bent as later on, but sometimes when I've gone to the snow in late winter/spring I've seen females in places like Mt Baw Baw with a big bend down the end of the tail.

[mingle]

Hi,

I'm pretty certain it's a young male - it looks like it has small, developing white display feathers visible (something the female lacks)... Could be just some background objects though...



A bigger, clearer copy of the pic will confirm this...

Either way it's a nice capture!

Cheers,

Mike.

[Deleted]

Gee Deb you will soon be getting yourself a reputation, first bobucks and now lyre birds what species will you turn up next - they say things come in threes. Yes my money is on the genuine lyre bird. I know you don't want to reveal the exact location but when you say Castlemaine I assume you mean North of Daylesford in the Wombat State Forest or at Mt Alexander.

I haven't been over there for a while because that is all regrowth forest having been cleared during the gold rush. My ancestors were partly to blame great grandpappy owned four timber mills and did his bit in clearing land and supplying Melbourne with timber for homes. It would be great to think that the regrowth has been so successful that species that have not been known in the region for 150 years have returned.

[Thylacoleo Gal]

OK, here's the hi-res image -->

www.thylacoleo.com/forum_pics/puckapunyal011.jpg (250K)

It puts the bird in context but it sounds like we've all decided it's a "Superb Lyrebird"?

Here is the camera site & surrounding vegetation -->


Here is the camera set up and waiting. I left it on a plastic crate so as to look down the slope as I was hoping for something bigger than a chicken-sized bird



It's a long way into the scrub but we don't have to worry too much about the public accessing this site. They'd be taking a bit of a chance if they did

Three points. Firstly, I'd say we're a long way west of where lyrebirds typically live. Secondly, the forest around here is regrowth - it's been logged many decades ago. Thirdly, it's subject to regular burning so the understorey is thin to absent. Yet lyrebirds live here? The site is elevated, exposed to wind and snow in winter. I liked it because there's plentiful water nearby.

Thoughts?

[Thylacoleo Gal]

May 6, 2008 16:44:42 GMT 10 @dennis said:

Gee Deb you will soon be getting yourself a reputation, first bobucks and now lyre birds what species will you turn up next - they say things come in threes. Yes my money is on the genuine lyre bird. I know you don't want to reveal the exact location but when you say Castlemaine I assume you mean North of Daylesford in the Wombat State Forest or at Mt Alexander.

Yep. General area. The file name might give the game way .. oh well. The general public don't have access to this spot.

D.

[Wally1]

Congrats Deb, I hope I have similar luck when I restart my bigcat project again
Success of this will depend on whether the SOA camera that is being donated to me is electronically silent.
I thank my donor from the bottom of my heart
First the bigcat then I have both a thylacine and a thylacoleo waiting to have their picture took. I wonder if these critters can hear ultrasound.
Wally

[youcantry]

May 7, 2008 6:08:22 GMT 10 Thylacoleo Gal said:

I liked it because there's plentiful water nearby.

I'll venture that's why the lyrebird liked it too.

Chris.

[Deleted]

Saw one near Strath Creek area (Murchison Falls region actually) but that was nearly sixty years ago, there has been a lot of traffic and activity through the area since but it is not a long way east of your location.

[molloch]

Actually, come to think of it, I've seen one on the Mt Dissapointment Rd in the last few years on the way to the Strath Creek Falls. I live close by and go up there every so often. the place is overun by Dirt bike riders now though. The Dissapointment State forest does connect through to Flowerdale and Kinglake west though, so its not suprising. They are very, very common in Kinglake region.

Never heard of any out at Pukka though?

[Thylacoleo Gal]

Crikey! Getting close. A little to the southern side of Pukka. Sounds like this might be the western extremity of their range?

[mingle]

Hey Debbie,

Hope your lyrebirds aren't setting up home on the firing ranges up that way!

From your comments: "Let's just say, uh, it's a minefield out there ...", "we don't have to worry too much about the public accessing this site", make sure you don't get shot or an artillery shell in your ear!

Cheers,

Mike.

[Deleted]

Many years ago I took the kids (now in their 40s) for a picnic up the South Mountain Road; that runs from Wallan East toward Flowerdale & #1 Forrestry Camp (then a logging camp) and they picked up a lyrebird tail feather beside the road. I have no idea what the chances of them survivng there would be now.

[Hobbes]

Nice shot Deb,

I'd say a Superb Lyrebird for sure.
Morcombe's field guide has that area being pretty much the known western extremity for the species.
Cheers,
Hobbes

[Thylacoleo Gal]

May 8, 2008 12:27:21 GMT 10 mingle said:

Hey Debbie,
Hope your lyrebirds aren't setting up home on the firing ranges up that way!
From your comments: "Let's just say, uh, it's a minefield out there ...", "we don't have to worry too much about the public accessing this site", make sure you don't get shot or an artillery shell in your ear!

Hah! "Tip toe thru the minefield .."

[Thylacoleo Gal]

May 9, 2008 10:24:39 GMT 10 Hobbes said:

Nice shot Deb,

I'd say a Superb Lyrebird for sure.
Morcombe's field guide has that area being pretty much the known western extremity for the species.
Cheers,
Hobbes

Thankz Hobbes. Our take is also that this site is just within the birds' known range. We'll try further west in due course.
D.