Please like me, I’m not that bad thematic label

Please like me, I’m not that bad thematic label audio description

Why do we sometimes feel frustrated by birds like crows, ibis, noisy miners, pigeons, cockatoos, magpies, and plovers so much?

The crow and the Australian white ibis, or commonly known bin chicken, are often seen as a nuisance because they search through our bins for food, which can leave a mess behind. However, they are simply scavenging to survive in our cities as we continue to expand into their environment. The ibis is a native species and has migrated from wetlands to urban areas since the 1970’s when their habitat began to diminish.

The masked lapwing is sometimes referred to as the spur-winged plover because each of its wings is armed with a yellow spur at the ‘elbow’ (or carpal joint). Indigenous people used to say that the birds were carrying yellow spears. Lapwings use these spurs when diving at potential intruders or predators during breeding season, especially when eggs are close to hatching or chicks are running about. While these attacks are quite unnerving, the birds seldom actually strike, preferring a close approach to scare their ‘victims’ away.

The noisy miner can be quite aggressive to other birds and animals. They are very communal and family orientated bird, causing a ruckus when they want to warn other birds of possible dangers. They breed year-round and the chicks are just as noisy as their parents. The chicks are given a lot of attention by their families, sometimes getting up to 50 visits to the nest in one hour.

Gently turn the black knob anti clockwise on Christopher Trotter’s sculpture Domestic Noisy Mynah and see the baby bird raise its head out of the motor mower. Can you see that birds are not that bad?