From south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Wed Nov 27 13:15:19 2002 Received: from www.plaidworks.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.2/8.12.2) with ESMTP id gARLCx7s006631 for <[[email protected]]>; Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:12:59 -0800 (PST) Received: from paul.gloryworks.com (paul.gloryworks.com [64.71.189.132]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.2/8.12.2) with ESMTP id gARLCHZS006594 for <[[email protected]]>; Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:12:20 -0800 (PST) Received: from MSOE ([12.121.6.193]) by paul.gloryworks.com (8.9.3/8.9.3) with SMTP id NAA23145 for <[[email protected]]>; Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:29:11 -0800 (PST) Message-ID: <001d01c29659$b5dfe440$[[email protected]]> From: "Scott Smithson" <[[email protected]]> To: <[[email protected]]> Date: Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:12:14 -0800 MIME-Version: 1.0 X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.3612.1700 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.3612.1700 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" X-Content-Filtered-By: Mailman/MimeDel 2.1b4+ Subject: [SBB] Notes about Nutmeg Mannikins 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]] Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-MIME-Autoconverted: from quoted-printable to 8bit by plaidworks.com id gARLCx7s006631 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 single 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/south-bay-birds-archive%40plaidworks.com This email sent to [[email protected]]