Ecology of the Forty-Spotted Pardalote
Bruny Island
The Forty spotted Pardalote has a little hook on the end of its beak and it makes little incisions on the young shoots, and out of these little shoots a little bit of sap weeps out, crystallises, forms a substance called manna and then they come back and they pick that off, and that's the bulk of their diet. So it is a very, very specialised bird.
Now being specialised on one species of eucalypt means that it naturally has a very patchy distribution. But its distribution has contracted enormously during the period of British occupation of Tasmania.
So this is a bird that is endemic (restricted) to Tasmania. At the time of British invasion it occurred right across the eastern and northern parts of Tasmania and also on the Bass Strait Islands. Its range has now contracted right back pretty much to Bruny Island and Maria Island. Forty spotted pardalotes weigh about 10 grams each, so that's about 15 kilograms of Forty spotted pardalotes in the whole world! So these are listed as endangered.
Forty spotted pardalotes weigh about 10 grams each. So that's about 15 kilograms of Forty spotted pardalotes in the whole world!
The Forty spotted Pardalote has a little hook on the end of its beak and it makes little incisions on the young shoots, and out of these little shoots a little bit of sap weeps out, crystallises, forms a substance called manna and then they come back and they pick that off, and that's the bulk of their diet. So it is a very, very specialised bird.
Now being specialised on one species of eucalypt means that it naturally has a very patchy distribution. But its distribution has contracted enormously during the period of British occupation of Tasmania.
So this is a bird that is endemic (restricted) to Tasmania. At the time of British invasion it occurred right across the eastern and northern parts of Tasmania and also on the Bass Strait Islands. Its range has now contracted right back pretty much to Bruny Island and Maria Island. Forty spotted pardalotes weigh about 10 grams each, so that's about 15 kilograms of Forty spotted pardalotes in the whole world! So these are listed as endangered.
Forty spotted pardalotes weigh about 10 grams each. So that's about 15 kilograms of Forty spotted pardalotes in the whole world!
You might like...
Improving reproductive success of forty spotted pardalotes
This study found that giving forty-spotted pardalotes support to 'self-fumigate' their nests increased their reproductive success more than tenfold
Bruny Island nesting box project
The Bruny Island nesting box project provides nesting habitat for the critically endangered Forty-Spotted Pardalote and the Swift Parrot.
Threatened Species on Bruny Island
An extensive report compiled by ecologist Dr Tonia Cochran and Tasmania's Threatened Species Unit into the stunningly varied bird, plant and animal species found on Bruny Island.
The relationship between birds and trees on Bruny
There is a dynamic relationship that builds up with a particular species of trees, and particular species of birds, and their need to feed, to breed and to survive.
Newsletter
Sign up to keep in touch with articles, updates, events or news from Kuno, your platform for nature