The Committee for Lorne: Cape Otway Light – Australia’s favourite birds? — Just visit Lorne

With John Agar – Committee for Lorne.

The Great Ocean Road — and particularly Lorne — is blessed with an abundant, varied, and iconic array of Australian bird life.  My personal favourites are the Superb Fairywrens that hop and forage around my back garden and flit and dart about along Camel’s Walk in North Lorne.  Close behind come the kookaburras that fly in each day looking for a worm from my worm farm, and the beautiful King parrots that stop by in the mornings for a walnut or almond are equally enjoyed.  It is an equal joy to wake to the warbling choir of magpies — there are many collective nouns used for a group of magpies, most common being a mischief, a congregation, a charm, or a tribe — and the calls of the wattle birds as they peck for insects up the trunks of the gums in the front garden.

Add to the list the gulls, terns and plovers on the rocks at Point Grey, the ubiquitous screech and clamour of vast flights of Sulphur-crested cockatoos — those beautiful birds so favoured by tourists but condemned by residents for their bin-raiding, deck-eating habits — and the solitary Mopoke [the Southern Boobook Owl] that hoots softly in the night.  It has made me wonder which of these [or the many other local birds we all enjoy] would take out the prize for “Lorne’s favourite bird” if a survey was conducted.  Among our permanent residents, my money is on the fairy wrens!

For several years, The Guardian Australia has run a biennial poll that seeks to identify Australia’s favourite bird.  It invites the public to vote online, dubbing the bird receiving the most votes: ‘Australian Bird of the Year’.  But, as with all online polls, one must be a little cautious when interpreting the result in case there is ‘branch stacking’— using the original sense of the word ‘branch’— in favour of one species. 

Using a ‘first past the post’ voting system in its first year [2017], a total of 149,851 votes were cast, with voters electronically prevented from voting twice to attempt to ensure voting validity.  The top two were the Australian Magpie [#1 with 19,926 votes] and the Australian White Ibis — aka the ‘bin chicken’ — [#2 with 19,083], which surprisingly defeated the Laughing Kookaburra [#3 with 10,953], the Tawny Frogmouth [#4 with 6,870], and the Superb Fairywren [#5 with 6,366].  Among others well down the list were the Wedge-tailed eagle [#8], the Sulphur-crested cockatoo [#11], the King parrot [#12], and the Galah [#13].

When it was pointed out by Ben Rau [Guardian: 28/11/19] that the single run-off voting system used in 2017 might ‘favour divisive winners … those disliked by many but passionately liked by a few’, 2019 saw the introduction of a two-round system [à la the design of the French Presidential ballot].  An entirely different set of results found a highly endangered bird — the black-throated finch — take out #1 on debut.  Unfortunately, this suggested a ‘highly organised campaign’ may have been behind its win over the Tawny Frogmouth, which came in at #2. 

Naaman Zhou [Guardian, 15/11/19] noted that there was: “a crash in the ibis vote, that the magpie was licking its wounds, the wedge-tailed eagle only just scraped into the top 10, and ‘it wasn’t to be’ for the superb fairywren, the sulphur-crested cockatoo, the willie wagtail and others”.  At the time, BirdLife Australia’s Sean Dooley commented on “the sad reality that many of our birds are becoming iconic for all the wrong reasons, with many being ‘used’ as emblems of the extinction crisis.”

My preference for the Superb Fairywren — despite its apparent faithlessness — was vindicated in 2021 when it took out first prize in the Guardian’s Bird of the Year award.  It beat the Tawny Frogmouth in a ‘nail-biting finish’ with 13,990 votes compared with the Frogmouth’s 13,332 [total votes cast >400,000].  The gang-gang cockatoo, with solid support from Canberra, came a creditable third with 12,836 votes.

There are strongly held views about certain birds that may bias towards — or away from— a fair and balanced vote.  For instance, the magpie, emblematic of a particular football team that is loved or hated with equal fervour, may receive or be denied votes for non-avian reasons.  Moreover, a magpie would hardly garner favour with any who had been swooped in nesting season. 

The Lorne ‘cockie’ may provide a wonderful photo-op joy for our visitors but try living with them!  They are the bane of a local resident’s existence as they raid our bins, spread rubbish across our streets, and eat our balcony furniture! 

On the other side of the coin, it is rare to hear a bad word said about fairy wrens or parrots — despite that the male fairywren… the iridescent blue ones [the females are all brown] … is regarded as one of the most promiscuous birds in the avian kingdom!  On the other hand, as monogamous paragons, cockatoos and the King parrots commonly mate for life.

Two birds have acquired special significance along our coastal strip: the hooded plover and the Rufus Whistler bird.  The hooded plover — also known as the Hooded Dotterel or the ‘Hoody’ — is regarded as endangered, though unless I am mistaken, I have often encountered ‘fleets’ of them on the rocky point at Vera Lynn.  Nevertheless, beaches all along Victoria’s southern coast now commonly display warning signs to keep pets away from nesting sites.  While this is sensible conservation, the legion of signs from Inverloch to Portland that claim ‘only 75 breeding pairs left’ does begin to stretch belief.  That said, as their nests are vulnerable and their eggs few, the signs are a welcome warning of the fragility of our coast, its dunes, and the wildlife that lives in their shelter.

BirdLife Australia notes that “the Rufus Whistler bird is one of Australia’s finest songsters with a far-carrying, rich, and musical song constructed around repeated whip-cracks interspersed with a variety of whistles and trills of various volumes, rhythms and tempos.”  It is another monogamous bird often heard in the Lorne area and is especially beloved by some local residents. 

On a recent trip to Scotland, I was astounded by the lack of birdlife, particularly when compared with our abundance here in the Otways and more broadly across Australia.  Josh Davies [Natural History Museum Newsletter: 12/05/23] reports that “… the number of wild birds in Britain has fallen by 73 million since 1970 … the dawn chorus is a lot quieter nowadays … and the rhythmic call of a cuckoo, or the gentle trill of a turtle dove, are becoming ever rarer”.  He reports that the British Trust for Ornithology has looked back to data from the 1970s and paints a grim picture: “… that over the past five decades, Britain has lost close to 30 million house sparrows, 20 million starlings, four million skylarks, two million blackbirds, and one million chaffinches”. 

With this grim UK report in mind, we should cherish our abundance of feathered friends and take great care that — in 50 years — no similar piece will be being written here.

John Agar

A word from the Chairman – John Higgins.

Spring has sprung and what a cracker of a weekend we got for the change of season and Father’s Day.

Already there is a buzz in the Lorne air as the day-trippers visit in numbers and our returning locals are reminded how lucky we are to call Lorne our home.

Locals were out in numbers (about 100) at the community dinner at the Stribling Reserve Community Pavilion last week to enjoy good food, good company and cheer on our football and netball teams as they contest the finals.  Our Senior football team and Under 13 netballers were eliminated after gallant efforts, but our Reserves have made it through to the third week of finals and our Under 18 footballers have earned their spot in the grand final in two weeks time.  Go Dolphins!  

Our main street is seeing some changes with renovations and repainting for some of our shops and restaurants, and new plantings on the median strip and roadside.  Our town also got a very good airing on radio 3AW recently, with a number of our traders, residents and visitors telling the world what a wonderful place we live in.

We say farewell and thank you to Grant and Di from the Lorne Surf Shop which has been an icon of our town for more than 21 years.  We welcome Rip Curl to town and look forward to their participation in our community.  We are also excited about some other new arrivals, yet to be confirmed.

Our Lorne P-12 College music students demonstrated their talents recently with a live music event at Stribling Reserve to raise funds to refurbish the Doll’s House as a music and wellbeing space.  I hear it was a great and successful night, initiated and run by the students.  Well done!    

The Committee for Lorne met last week to discuss a range of issues including:

• The next “Affordable Housing” webinar which will be held on Wednesday September 13 at 4pm.  You need to register to be sent the link for the meeting.  Go to this link – http://tinyurl.com/lorne-housing
• We are continuing our push for a return of the New Year’s Eve fireworks, which have been a Lorne tradition (paused not ended!) for many years.
• The Surf Coast Shire Council meeting to be held in Lorne at Stribling Reserve Pavilion on September 26 at 5.30pm.  The meeting is open to the public and there is the opportunity to make submissions and ask questions, but prior notice is required.  Check the SCS website for details.

As we head towards the next school holidays, there are holiday activities planned at Stribling Reserve and other locations.  Please check the Lorne Community Facebook page for further details.

My quote of the week: Nobody ever changed their mind as a result of losing an argument. 

Cheers, John Higgins Chairman

Lorne Ward Events Calendar

September

9 Lorne Fire Brigade Ball

3 Course Meal, beer, wine and soft drinks, band and Entertainment – $90 p.p 

More info here.

10 Amy’s Gran Fondo – Cycling Adventure on the Great Ocean Road

Calling all cycling enthusiasts! Prepare to embark on an unforgettable cycling adventure along the iconic Great Ocean Road. Join Amy’s Gran Fondo, a premier cycling event, as you pedal your way through breathtaking landscapes and challenging routes. This is an opportunity to push your limits and experience the beauty of the region from a unique perspective.

For more information and registration details, visit amysgranfondo.org.au.

15 ‘What a Wonderfulworld’ Exhibition – Celebrating Local Artists

Art aficionados, here’s an event to mark on your calendars! The ‘What a Wonderfulworld’ Exhibition is set to captivate your senses as it showcases the exceptional talent of local artists. The exhibition opens with a grand event on Friday from 6pm to 7:30pm and will be open to the public daily from 10am to 4pm.

Visit the Lorne Community Connect to immerse yourself in a world of creativity and artistic expression. Don’t miss the chance to appreciate the beauty and imagination of local artists in this captivating exhibition.

October

29 Run the Marsh, 3km walk, 2km & 5km fun run at 9am Frogwood Arboretum, Deans Marsh. Register at deansmarsh.org.au.

November

4 Lorne Market, 9-4pm https://www.lornemarkets.com/