Birds in Backyards Research Projects
Date: 11-Nov-08
Author: Holly Parsons (Birds Australia)
Dear Backyard Bird Surveyor
As spring draws to a close, we hope you have been or will be sending us some surveys telling us about the birds that are making your garden their homes this year. We also have a special request for extra assistance with two research projects being conducted by students in biology at the University of Sydney.
Katie Lowe is investigating aggression between species living in human-dominated landscapes, and to help her with her project we have established a new survey called "Backyard Biffo". This survey involves recording acts of bird aggression that you might observe while conducting the 20-min Backyard Bird Survey. The form is very easy to fill out and any observations you can make would be a great help to Katie. Please try and contribute to this survey which is located at www.birdsinbackyards.net/surveys/backyard-biffo.cfm
Adrian Davis is undertaking research to determine the extent to which urban Sydney provides habitat and key resources for parrots. He is also seeking to identify changes in abundance of various species and identify any species that may be being out-competed by more dominant parrots. He is therefore trying to find backyards that host or have previously hosted nesting parrots. Please email Adrian at adrian.davis@bio.usyd.edu.au if you have any observations that might assist him.
Good luck with the spring surveys
Holly
