I
hadn’t even had the chance to open the lid when a raucous
kkaaaaaaagggghh made my heart jump! I nearly fell out of the tree
backwards!
I got really excited a few weeks ago when I observed a pair of Red-capped Parrots (Purpureicephalus spurius)
inspecting one of my nest boxes. Red-caps are one of the 14 birds
endemic to the south-west of Western Australia (meaning they’re found
nowhere else in the world).
Since
the first sighting I had left the pair alone as to not disturb them
while they were moving in, but yesterday I was certain they were sitting
on eggs. It was time to get some photos! I scaled the tree but was
greeted by an aggressive warning call. Not only was the sitting bird
unfazed by my presence, but let out a warning to let me know I wasn’t
welcome! It’s so unusual for birds using nest boxes to behave like this,
but great as it means they are likely to defend their nest site and
rear young successfully.
I
managed to lift the lid slightly to snap the above shot, then I left her
alone. This will now be the second year that our most beautiful local
parrot has called one of my nest boxes home. Last year a pair reared 4
young in a box nearby, but I was away and only managed to get photos of
the chicks in their first week (see below). This time I hope to document
them as they grow up.
Here’s a shot of young Red-caps in the nest box last year:
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