Exotic Birds in Australia

S

Shirokuma

Well-Known Member
Similar to a thread I started for New Zealand, I was wondering what is the general situation regarding zoos and exotic birds in Australia.

Are any species especially prevalent? Any completely absent?
 
From what I remember:

1 Chilean Flamingo
1 Greater Flamingo
Egyptian Goose
Helmeted Guineafowl
Fiordland Crested Penguin
Gentoo Penguin
King Penguin
Rhea
Ostrich
Blue Peafowl
Green Peafowl
Victoria Crowned Pigeon
Ruddy Shelduck
Red Junglefowl
Andean Condor
various Amazon species
" " Macaw species
" " Conure species
Peach Faced Lovebird
Masked Lovebird
Mandarin Duck
Lady Amherst's Pheasant
Swinhoe's Pheasant
Luzon Bleeding-heart dove
1 Razor-Billed Curassow
Kalij Pheasant
Golden Pheasant
Chukar Partridge
Buff-banded Rail
 
Last edited:
UrMumzAGoat said:
From what I remember:

1 Chilean Flamingo
1 (Greater?) Flamingo
Egyptian Goose
Helmeted Guineafowl
Fiordland Crested Penguin
Gentoo Penguin
King Penguin
Rhea
Ostrich
Blue Peafowl
Congo Peafowl
Victoria Crowned Pigeon
Ruddy Shelduck
Junglefowl
Andean Condor
various Amazon species
" " Macaw species
" " Conure species
Click to expand...


Are you sure about the Congo peafowl?
 
There are a few, mostly kept in aviculture. Many finch species are around but quite a few have very low numbers and may not be around for too much longer, thats if bird clubs dont arrange to save certain species. Softbills I know of are mainly pekin robins, common shamas, magpie robins (all in pretty low numbers) plus all the introduced species. There are many parrots, too many for me to list, but some are very low in numbers. There are a few pigeon and dove species.

Here is a link to a good site with a large majority of the species in Australia:
http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/publications/pubs/inventory-exotic-species.pdf
 
list excludes domesticated species, introduced species, zoo only species, finch and parrot species (far too numerous) and species i have forgotten or those with unsustainable populations.

ostrich

pekin robin
silver eared mesia
oriental magpie robin
red crested finch (not a finch but a tanager)

masked dove
ruddy ground dove
luzon bleeding heart dove
white-bibbed ground dove
nicobar pigeon

egyptian goose
canada goose
ruddy shelduck
paradise shelduck
new zealand scaup
wood duck (carolina duck)
mandarin duck

chuckar partridge
crested wood partridge (apparently a few pairs in an individuals hands)

siamese fireback pheasant
silver pheasant
swinhoe's pheasant
kalij pheasant
common pheasant
reeve's pheasant
golden pheasant
lady amherst's pheasant
blue peafowl
green peafowl
red jungle fowl
helmeted guinea fowl

california quail
bobwhite quail
common quail
blue breasted quail (chinese ssp.)
 
I would love to see a crested wood partridge.

I am a bit doubtful they exist in Australia.
 
Wat about ploceidae. I know some Australian breeders that have descent results with vidua, euplectes and foudia species.
 
That's true. There are still, to my knowledge, Orange Bishop Weavers, Grenadiers, Madagascar and Comoro Weavers (and a lot of hybrids of the last two) and a few Red Shouldered Wydahs. I've also been told that there are Pin Tailed Wydahs, though I haven't seen any myself for years.
 
Monty said:
I would love to see a crested wood partridge.

I am a bit doubtful they exist in Australia.
Click to expand...

they certainly did exist in the not so-distant past. but the last i herd all remaining animals were in the hands of a single breeder. i know nothing more than that. it seems unlikely they will be bred back to a point of becoming "safe" again.

on the upside the siamese fireback is making a slow comeback thanks to the success of a dedicated few.
 
Adelaide Zoo had pin-tailed whydahs maybe 3 years back, I think 3 males. Very beautiful birds, but are not easy to breed as you require an established colony of St Helena Waxbills.
 
I've had contact with an Australian breeder who bred pin-taileds couple of years ago. I assumed there are still some birds in private hands. And although they aren't the easiest birds to breed, they are the easiest birds from the vidua genus and if you take their needs into account it is not too hard.
 
Are you sure Steve? Because I always though that only Foudia eminentissima and Foudia madagascariensis were kept in Australia.
 
I have heard of Foudia omissa in Australia, but they are definately not as common as the other two. Heard of a man in South Australia having a couple from a bird dealer friend of mine, so they are around.
 
My understanding of the whole Forest Fody question is that it all came about when a certain victorian breeder decided that his specimens of the so-called Comoro Fody looked more like the Forest Fody.

He then bred them truer to forest fody type and sold them as such (for a much inflated price).

Its worth noting here that basically the distinction between the two species is how far the red feathering of the head extends down the breast. The Forest species has a red head and upper breast, the Comoro species does not.

My theory? Its well known in Australia that people have hybridised the rarer Comoro's with the Madagascans here and there and polluted much, if not all, of the available Comoro stock. These "Forest Fodys" are simply Comoro's with a bit of Maddy in them that have then been selectively bred to appear more like a Forest fody. Hardly surprising considering how similar the pure Comoro and Forest Fody appear to begin with.

Kinda ironic since the "Forest Fodys" here sell for more than the other two
species when in actual fact hybrids are generally considered worthless to finch/softbill aviculturalists.
 
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