From south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Wed Nov 27 13:49:45 2002 Received: from www.plaidworks.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.2/8.12.2) with ESMTP id gARLlS7r006991 for <[[email protected]]>; Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:47:29 -0800 (PST) Received: from mtiwmhc12.worldnet.att.net (mtiwmhc12.worldnet.att.net [204.127.131.116]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.2/8.12.2) with ESMTP id gARLkmZS006954 for <[[email protected]]>; Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:46:48 -0800 (PST) Received: from acer ([12.81.4.237]) by mtiwmhc12.worldnet.att.net (InterMail vM.5.01.05.12 201-253-122-126-112-20020820) with SMTP id <20021127214621.HIUR13909.mtiwmhc12.worldnet.att.net@acer>; Wed, 27 Nov 2002 21:46:21 +0000 Message-ID: <000701c2965e$92df5fc0$ed04510c@acer> From: "John Mariani" <[[email protected]]> To: "Scott Smithson" <[[email protected]]> References: <001d01c29659$b5dfe440$[[email protected]]> Subject: Re: [SBB] Notes about Nutmeg Mannikins Date: Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:47:20 -0800 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4920.2300 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4920.2300 cc: South-bay-birds <[[email protected]]> X-BeenThere: [[email protected]] X-Mailman-Version: 2.1b4+ Precedence: list List-Unsubscribe: , List-Id: South Bay Birding List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Sender: south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Errors-To: south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Interesting stuff-- The first time I ever saw mannikins near Almaden Lake was on 11/9/98, and that was a flock of between 10 and 20 birds, all still juveniles. If they start to molt at about 3 months, and were already breeding in the wild at that point (a lot of ifs), then these birds may have fledged that fall? My impression is that the Nutmeg Mannikin population in Santa Clara County is limited, very localized, and slowly growing. The only areas in which they are regularly seen (as far as I know) is along Alamitos Creek from Almaden Lake upstream to maybe a half mile past the Mazzone Lane Bridge, and around the nearby Santa Clara Water District Ponds. I once had a flock of about 7 along Camden Avenue a few blocks from Almaden Expressway--thats the furthest away from their regular haunts that I've seen them. This fall I've repeatedly seen a flock of about 20 at Almaden Lake, and if I was to make a guesstimate of the total local population I would say maybe around 40 birds? But that would just be a guess. Maybe some other local birders would have a better idea of how many are out there, and perhaps they are occurring in other areas I am unaware of-- John Mariani [[email protected]] www.birdswest.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Scott Smithson" <[[email protected]]> To: <[[email protected]]> Sent: Wednesday, November 27, 2002 1:12 PM Subject: [SBB] Notes about Nutmeg Mannikins There was a post recently about breeding Nutmeg Mannikins in the Almaden Lake area to which I'd like to add some information. While at CSULB, I studied the breeding biology of these birds (and Orange Bishops) in the L.A. Basin for about 3 years in the late 90s. I observed active mannikin nests in every month of the year except January, and they are also known to breed year-round in Hawaii and Australia. In southern CA, there were two distinct peaks in mannikin breeding activity throughout the year, one in the early spring and one in late summer / early fall, suggesting double-brooding. Observations of color-banded birds confirmed that in 3 cases. Clutch size is usually 6, and hatch-year birds are plain brown until they start molting at approximately 3 months of age. Another interesting observation from that study is that Nutmeg Mannikins will breed successfully at six months of age, even before they have attained their full adult plumage. So they double-brood (at least), and their offspring can potentially breed within the same year! With this breeding potential and more pet owner releases from major city centers, we may see northern and southern CA populations merge some day in the distant future. There is already a small breeding population in the Santa Barbara area. It is correct that observing mannikins carrying nesting material may be only indicative of roosting nests being built, but I also agree that we should all take a closer look at them whenever we see them in order to confirm breeding, numbers of offspring, date and time of observation, food sources, etc. This data is very important as we track their expansion in CA. Here are a few things to watch for when you are out in the field: 1. During courtship, a male mannikin will take a short piece of grass or a twig in its bill and wag it up and down in front of a female. A male will also throw back his head and sing a vigorous song that is nearly inaudible to the human ear. These behaviors precede copulation and nest-building. (Sexes are identical, so it is convenient that only males perform the twig-display or sing the high-frequency song, although both sexes do call, "K-bee! K-bee!") 2. The actual building of the nest is accomplished by both sexes. When the nest gets to a certain point, one bird (usually the female) will stay inside the nest, while the other retrieves long pieces of green grass or pampas grass inflorescences (the feathery stuff) to push into place. Incubation and feeding of young is also shared. 3. Sometimes, a loose colony of active nests will be in the same tree, but s ingle nests are more common. Pines were preferrred in the L.A. area. I'm curious as to what trees they prefer in this area. 4. Recently fledged mannikins are plain brown with a whitish gape, and they associate closely with and beg from their parents for at least two weeks after fledging. 5. Birders that live near Almaden Lake will probably be getting mannikins at their seed feeders during the coldest, wettest part of the winter, but when there are grasses in seed spring-fall, they may be more dispersed. I hope this info has been helpful for everyone. Please contact me directly at [[email protected]] if you have any questions about mannikins or bishops. Anyone have a current estimate on the Bay Area mannikin population size? Scott Smithson Director of Outdoor Education Mission Springs Conference Center Scotts Valley _______________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. They will be ignored. south-bay-birds mailing list ([[email protected]]) Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription: http://www.plaidworks.com/mailman/options/south-bay-birds/redknot%40worldnet .att.net This email sent to [[email protected]] _______________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. They will be ignored. south-bay-birds mailing list ([[email protected]]) Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription: http://www.plaidworks.com/mailman/options/south-bay-birds/south-bay-birds-archive%40plaidworks.com This email sent to [[email protected]]