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| Powerful Owl male (L) female (R) |
A pair of Powerful
Owls has turned up at Beerwah on the Sunshine Coast. The agitated
behaviour of both birds indicates they have begun nesting. The owls
are in a reserve of open forest with a dense understory along Upper Coochin Creek. Thanks to my Facebook friend Chow Chilla, who discovered the
birds and asked that the site remain under wraps, and to Matt Wright
for helping me get on top of this pair. The birds were calling frequently in the area in recent days. One was seen to fly over houses after sunset, suggesting they may be feeding in suburbia as well as in the fragmented forest patches about Beerwah.
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| Powerful Owl male |
Powerful Owl is a
rare bird in the Sunshine Coast region. I've heard or seen them
several times in the Conondale and Jimna ranges – at Charlie
Moreland Park, Booloumba Creek and Peach Trees camping ground, among
other places – but sparingly over many years. Friends have recorded
them several times in their garden at Buderim and there is supposedly
a territory near Gympie. Barry Traill last week had one calling in
his garden at Maleny. Other locals reported Powerful Owls recently in
the Blackall Range foothills between Maleny and Landsborough. Another Powerful Owl was taken into care recently after being hit by a motor vehicle in Moffat Beach.
POSTSCRIPT: 9/5/2018
A Powerful Owl was found road-killed last weekend on Steve Irwin Way, just 1 km from the roosting site. I checked out the site today and there was no sign of any owls, confirming fears that the dead bird was one of this pair, with the survivor probably having left the area.
POSTSCRIPT: 20/5/2018
Local residents have heard a single bird calling at the site, suggesting that the survivor is the female and sitting on eggs in a hollow. Unless she attracts a new mate the nesting attempt will fail.
POSTSCRIPT: 9/5/2018
A Powerful Owl was found road-killed last weekend on Steve Irwin Way, just 1 km from the roosting site. I checked out the site today and there was no sign of any owls, confirming fears that the dead bird was one of this pair, with the survivor probably having left the area.
POSTSCRIPT: 20/5/2018
Local residents have heard a single bird calling at the site, suggesting that the survivor is the female and sitting on eggs in a hollow. Unless she attracts a new mate the nesting attempt will fail.
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| Powerful Owl male |
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| Powerful Owl male |
Also of interest
locally is an influx of Musk Lorikeets on Bribie Island. Between 50
and 70 were feeding in bloodwoods at Buckleys Hole when I visited and
they have been seen regularly at several sites on the island. They've
also been about Brisbane so it appears there's a significant movement
of the species into South-East Queensland, where it is normally a
rare visitor, from the southern states; this may be due to poor
flowering seasons further south.
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| Musk Lorikeets |
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| Musk Lorikeets |
A somewhat distant
pair of Grey Goshawks at North Arm was nice.
Greg
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure about bloodwoods having a poor flowering season further South. At Mallacoota - and you can't get much further South on the mainland than that - the bloodwoods have been in spectacular floriferousness this year. That has led to the Flying Fox camp being in 10's of thousands (my guess is ~60,000 bats).
Thanks for that. Well that's ruled out then :)
DeleteYes, Greg – First ever Powerful Owl/s we’ve recorded, here this year several times. Judith (SEQ 500m)
ReplyDeleteGreat record. Nice to know they are around. I saw my first Powerful Owl at a private property at Forest Glen in May 06. The only other record I have on the Sunshine Coast is of one calling near my sisters place at North Arm in June 2014.
ReplyDeleteThanks John. I've never been sure why they are so scarce around here.
Delete