i and i suspect many others have tracked your journey with these little guys and you are to be congratulated.
good luck with them into the future as i know how long you have put into them, hope it gets easier soon.
thanks for the pictures as well.
Update on Dusky Woodswallows.
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COUNTRY CAPITAL
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- Location: TAMWORTH
doing a great job mortisha.
i and i suspect many others have tracked your journey with these little guys and you are to be congratulated.
good luck with them into the future as i know how long you have put into them, hope it gets easier soon.
thanks for the pictures as well.
i and i suspect many others have tracked your journey with these little guys and you are to be congratulated.
good luck with them into the future as i know how long you have put into them, hope it gets easier soon.
thanks for the pictures as well.
CC
Aussie finch tragic.rodent/snake terroriser.
Aussie finch tragic.rodent/snake terroriser.
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desertbirds
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- Location: Alice Springs
They do breed a few at work, i can ask if you need any info. The BF Woodswallows are very aggresive when they have chicks and i saw one keeper with blood running down her face after she tried ringing the young in the nest.
Your post is one the best ive read for awhile and congratulations on the hand rearing of the species you have posted now and previously.Top effort.
Your post is one the best ive read for awhile and congratulations on the hand rearing of the species you have posted now and previously.Top effort.
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Mortisha
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- Location: Bathurst, NSW
Thanks Desertbirds.
Any info on different husbandry & feeding techquies would be very welcomed! The 2 eldest have weaned themselves off the insectivore mix and are only interested in fresh killed live food now. I have been keeping the bugs in a insectivore / vitamin mix 24hrs before feeding out in the hope i can keep the nutrition up to standard.
I have been trying to tempt them with crippled moths & crickets for a while now. Mostly they just freak the hell out at some random bug crawling towards them
One promising development today - I watch the eldest catch a wounded cricket, processed it by pulling off the big legs and eat it all by itself. The others were very curious about the whole process. AWESOME. Proud of the little tuckers.
From photos it seems in the wild they will feed on all sorts of dangerous insects - wasps, centipedes, bees and ants. I tried a few ants but they spat them out with a "what are ya trying to poison us" look. Maybe it is an acquired taste
Small beetles they like.
I could understand them be protective. They definitely behave like little predators it is easy to see the resemblances to others in the family like butcherbirds.
Their claws are needle sharp -when one landed on my face the other night it hurt quite a bit.
Any info on different husbandry & feeding techquies would be very welcomed! The 2 eldest have weaned themselves off the insectivore mix and are only interested in fresh killed live food now. I have been keeping the bugs in a insectivore / vitamin mix 24hrs before feeding out in the hope i can keep the nutrition up to standard.
I have been trying to tempt them with crippled moths & crickets for a while now. Mostly they just freak the hell out at some random bug crawling towards them
One promising development today - I watch the eldest catch a wounded cricket, processed it by pulling off the big legs and eat it all by itself. The others were very curious about the whole process. AWESOME. Proud of the little tuckers. From photos it seems in the wild they will feed on all sorts of dangerous insects - wasps, centipedes, bees and ants. I tried a few ants but they spat them out with a "what are ya trying to poison us" look. Maybe it is an acquired taste
Small beetles they like.I could understand them be protective. They definitely behave like little predators it is easy to see the resemblances to others in the family like butcherbirds.
Their claws are needle sharp -when one landed on my face the other night it hurt quite a bit.
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Mortisha
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- Location: Bathurst, NSW
Second night out in the big cage. I spent ages out the back paddock looking for the perfect roosting hollow for the cage.
But they decided to sleep like this.
So I pegged a bit of fabric on the outside to protect them from the owls or butcherbirds. Sigh.
They have decided on a variety of ant they like -http://www.myrmecos.net/ants/RhyMet4.html.
Just like M&Ms
But they decided to sleep like this.
So I pegged a bit of fabric on the outside to protect them from the owls or butcherbirds. Sigh. They have decided on a variety of ant they like -http://www.myrmecos.net/ants/RhyMet4.html.
Just like M&Ms
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desertbirds
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Ever thought about being a zoo keeper ? Seriously u have a talent
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HARVEY123456789
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great work 
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Mortisha
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- Location: Bathurst, NSW
Found out how woodswallows like to bath. Despite watching the finches a take a bath in the water dish they haven't tried to copy.
Hot afternoon here so I put a fine mist sprinkler over the vegetation in the cage for aircon. As soon as they saw the wet leaves though, they went nuts.They faceplanted themselves in the the leaves wings out and rubbed through every drop and twig they could find.
All the while squeaking and being into total bird rapture. Typical young birds though they went overboard and got so wet they couldn't fly.
This is the youngest one - they still like sunning themselves like dorks. Also I'm trying to figure a way of getting them to catch crickets for themselves. Any ideas?
Am using this set up at the moment.
The box is bigger than it seems in the picture. They sit on that branch and gawk but don't go in yet. I'm sure they can make into in and out of the box easily if they wanted to...
Hot afternoon here so I put a fine mist sprinkler over the vegetation in the cage for aircon. As soon as they saw the wet leaves though, they went nuts.They faceplanted themselves in the the leaves wings out and rubbed through every drop and twig they could find.
All the while squeaking and being into total bird rapture. Typical young birds though they went overboard and got so wet they couldn't fly.
This is the youngest one - they still like sunning themselves like dorks. Also I'm trying to figure a way of getting them to catch crickets for themselves. Any ideas?
Am using this set up at the moment.
The box is bigger than it seems in the picture. They sit on that branch and gawk but don't go in yet. I'm sure they can make into in and out of the box easily if they wanted to...
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natamambo
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Mortisha I use a similar method to feed the crickets to the chats and wrens but the tub is longer and wider than it is tall. It's also covered over the bottom with tea tree mulch (which I use in the aviaries anyway). Perhaps try a tub which is a different shape (it only needs to be about 12" high to restrain the crickets) and which doesn't have the bottom quite so slippery. My birds jump in quite happily, although the newly independent wren has to hop lots of times before landing himself a cricket - they keep moving on him just as he goes to pounce. Mine from memory is a 50litre tub, so quite large but not as tall as many similar sized tubs. From Bunnings . I can get you the code if you like tomorrow, the sticker is still on one tub.
I use the medium crickets as they don't have wings yet, have found the adult crickets will sometimes fly out of the tub.
- they keep moving on him just as he goes to pounce. Mine from memory is a 50litre tub, so quite large but not as tall as many similar sized tubs. From Bunnings . I can get you the code if you like tomorrow, the sticker is still on one tub.I use the medium crickets as they don't have wings yet, have found the adult crickets will sometimes fly out of the tub.