Rare rescue mission
CONSERVATION efforts are under way to save 40 spotted pardalotes from parasitic flies in the Kingborough area as the species is pushed to the brink of extinction.
The small birds inhabit Tasmanian forests where white gums are present, with “stronghold” populations located on Bruny Island and Maria Island, with smaller groups found in Tinderbox and Southport.
Australian National University research fellow Fernanda Alves has been researching populations in Kingborough, which she said were important to the survival of the species.
During her research, Ms Alves discovered that birds were being killed by parasitic flies, which laid eggs in the nests of the pardalote.
“When the chicks hatch the maggots burrow into their skin and feed on their blood,” Ms Alves said.
“Because the parasites attack chicks when they are young, their chance of survival is small and often the entire brood dies.”
Ms Alves said, on average, it resulted in the deaths of four chicks per nest.
“They have been pushed to the brink of extinction because of the clearing of bushland,” Ms Alves said.
“And now among other threats, a parasitic fly threatens them. It was really hard emotionally to collect the data, when you are climbing trees to check nests that you know and all you find are dead chicks.”
To increase the bird’s chance of survival, Ms Alves developed a method to rid the nests of the parasite, creating
a feather dispenser for the birds to build their nests.
The dispenser contained chicken feathers, which were sprayed with an insecticide, harmless to the pardalotes, but deadly to the parasites.
“The nests that used the sprayed feathers had a 95 per cent survival rate … where the other nests, which used unsterilised feathers had only an 8 per cent survival rate,” Ms Alves said.
Ms Alves wanted to expand the project ahead of the breeding season, enlisting the help of the Blackmans Bay Scouts.
The groups had been working on habitat restoration for the pardalotes for the past 10 years.
“Fernanda had a lot of dispensers she needed built in a short amount of time,” Kingborough Council natural areas interpretation officer
Bridget Jupe said. “Guided by Fernanda, the Scouts built more than 100 dispensers.”
Kingborough Mayor Paula Wriedt said it was an important project for the community to get behind.
“Fernanda’s amazing invention, along with the physical help from the Blackmans Bay Scouts … are such important environmental wins for Kingborough,” she said.