Quick update – I haven’t been birding anywhere, but was idly flicking through some of the downloaded eBird data last night, and came across a really interesting pattern for Crested Pigeon. In my mind I think of this species as being a successful urban colonist that is presumably increasing in numbers. The data don’t bear this out at all – it has been steadily declining, at least in reporting rate (i.e. the proportion of outings on which the species is seen) over the past 13 years – see graph below.

It’s one of those periods again when heaps of good birds are being seen. A Little Eagle is kicking around Oxley Creek Common area, Double-banded Plover and Red Knot at Manly, Ged Tranter had a Barn Owl at Kedron, a species of almost mythical status in Brisbane, a Little Grassbird at Dowse and several Barred Cuckooshrikes at Gold Creek. I should definitely try for the grassbird, but all the others are tricky for one reason or another, and I am sitting frustratedly on the sidelines. It’s getting trickier to fit in early morning birding because dawn is advancing. Hope to get some birding in during the Easter holidays later this week.

The reporting rate for Crested Pigeon in Brisbane has consistently declined since 2005, when approximately half of all complete checklists included this species, to 2017, when this proportion had dropped to about 35%. The reasons for this steady decline seem unclear to me.