Venkat Subramanya, Suffolk Park
It is alarming to see many bird species disappearing from the local scene in recent times.
Rainbow Lorikeets in large numbers were very common here till mid-last year and now appear to have disappeared completely. The decline started mid-last year and not a single lori’ to be seen on their flowering grevillea tree, their usual haunt and also of many other species.
There was a distressing report in [ital]The Echo early this year that thousands of loris had died in the Northern Rivers region, cause unknown.
On Main Beach in Byron, the pine trees hosted a large number of loris noisily roosting in the evening. Wonder if they are still around?
Till two years ago large flocks of King Parrots came around, and since last year’s decline started, you don’t see or hear them anymore.
Similarly eastern rosellas, kookaburras and other small species are also disappearing.
I don’t see the large flocks of black cockatoos that used to fly back and forth across the sky.
Early morning bird calls are meagre. Only magpies and Indian myna (army) birds seem to be thriving still.
Is this all owing to human endeavours through technological advancements?
Coincidence? NBN wiring happened only two years ago in the local areas and other communication towers etc started being built.
Any other explanation? Are any scientists or authority investigating the causes? Is this a warning of major disaster in the offing?
Certainly, if they all disappear for good, it will be an environmental disaster.
The words of “mid-last year” brings up what happened six months before that. We had the worst bushfires in history due to Climate Change.
And with those bushfires half of Australia’s population of bees was wiped out. Go into your garden now that it is early spring and see if you can find any bees on the flowers.
The pollination of flowers and plants has had a major hit. The bees have all gone.
We need the bees and the insects, to have the birds, to have the plants and the trees, to have the animals. They are all connected in the bigger picture.
Have you considered that because of the successful wet season birds may travel inland to find abundant food sources, then return to coastal areas when it dries out again ? There may well be some bird population decline for ecological reasons but this kind of broad statement, making judgements about NBN or 5G based on casual observations., is is fear based pseudo-science, akin to religious zeal. Go talk to a ornithologist.
if we want to save birds then we need to manage cats because they cause the most ecological damage, we should follow ACT.
https://www.cityservices.act.gov.au/pets-and-wildlife/domestic-animals/cats/cat-containment
EMILY YOU ARE CORRECT – IT WAS the BUSHFIRES and a very dry year 2019– feed birds don’t be mislead by people saying it is wrong– We cut down their trees or burn them as rubbish –I am feeding 2-3 white cockatoos and sometimes 2 galahs???– buy sunflower seeds and hopefully the sunflowers shall grow if they drop a few
i live in whitsundays and every arvo around 3 the kookas turned up i had up to 5 i fed by hand one even let me tap him on the head,all of a sudden there gone ????