Archivos de diario de noviembre 2021

05 de noviembre de 2021

Rain and LPS

Dear observers and participants,

Again, thank you to everyone who made observations this week.

Also, welcome to our two most recent contributors #dunlop3 and #tidebreaker.

In the coming week we will have significant rainfall over much of the area where Lorikeet Paralysis is known to occur. In the past we have seen a surge of LPS cases following major rainfall events. We think that when it rains, lorikeets may be forced to feed on plants that they would normally not feed on and thus be exposed to toxic plants. So keep an eye out for lorikeets feeding on unusual plants and be sure to report these observations.

We have been able to recruit an additional scientist to our LPS team. Dr. Mainity Batista Linhares is a pathologist and toxicologist from the University of Queensland and her thoughts on the possible causes of LPS and ability to screen for toxins will help the project.

The eucaplypt trees around my office are in full bloom and the lorikeets are making the most of them. Late last week I was walking around the building and lorikeets, corellas, cockatoos were making a ruckus. At the center of the ruckus was a recently fledged powerful owl. With a bit more observing, a tawny frogmouth was also present in the adjacent tree. It kept opening its mouth and perhaps it was also mobbing the owl.

Thanks again to every one who is supporting this project and all the best.

David, Maya, and Lauren

Publicado el noviembre 5, 2021 10:18 TARDE por david4262 david4262 | 2 comentarios | Deja un comentario

12 de noviembre de 2021

Welcome New Members and new observations of potentially toxic plants

First welcome to three new members of the team @c_sp, @nate240, and @ninjajuju, we are glad that you are part of this study.

In the past two weeks we have observed lorikeets feeding on to potentially toxic plants.

The first is the Cocos Palm. The fruit can cause a paralytic disease in flying foxes, but we don't know about the nectar and these birds were feeding on nectar from flowers.

The second is the black bean tree Castanospermum. This is a native tree that is found in the area where LPS occurs. The beans are toxic if not processed correctly, but the aboriginal peoples cooked and treated them and used them to make bread. Again, the lorikeets were seen feeding on the flowers and not the beans, so we don't know if the nectar is toxic or not.

I have been in contact with Dr. Claude Lacasse at the RSPCA in Brisbane. She says that they are seeing a few cases of LPS come in now on a regular basis, but the numbers are low.

Thank you to everyone who has made observations this week. Given our current observation rate, we will have over 100 observations by next week. A good milestone.

Have a great week,

David, Maya, and Lauren

Publicado el noviembre 12, 2021 11:40 TARDE por david4262 david4262 | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

20 de noviembre de 2021

Milestone reached

Dear Lorikeet Observers,

Great news, we have reached 100 observations made by 40 different observers.

It looks like it will be another wet week and I hope that all of you in flood prone areas can stay safe and dry.

As I mentioned in last weeks post, rainy weather has been associated with increased numbers of lorikeets presenting with lorikeet paralysis syndrome. So if you have a chance, weather permitting, to take a walk around the block to check out what these guys are eating in your surrounds that would be great.

On other news our research group is investigating why Australian king parrots present to veterinarians and wildlife carers in a severely debilitated state. You can find out more about this at https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-17/king-parrots-dying-of-mysterious-disease/100620680.

Thank you again for all your contributions, our new target is 200 observations.

Yours,
David
Laura
Maya

Publicado el noviembre 20, 2021 12:02 MAÑANA por david4262 david4262 | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

26 de noviembre de 2021

Wet weather brings out the frogs

Dear lorikeet observers,

Thanks to all of you who are checking for lorikeets, particularly @janice220, who is making contributions nearly every week.

On another note, you all might be interested in checking out the Australian Museum's FrogID app. It is free and pretty easy to use. It lets you record frog calls on your property or elsewhere and will identify them for you and then you can send them in so they can be logged with all the other data that is being collected. Right now, I have 5 species of frogs calling within 50 metres of my home.

This is a great project as there has been a mass mortality event of frogs this year occurring on the east coast of Australia and this data will help to determine what the impact of this die off has been and if certain species have been more impacted that others.

Have a great week and if the lorikeets are scarce listen for frogs.

Yours,

David
Maya
Lauren

Publicado el noviembre 26, 2021 10:03 TARDE por david4262 david4262 | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario