An annotated list of the birds of Meandarra, Queensland

Abstract

From June 1977 to January 1982 the Meandarra Ornithological Field Study Unit kept systematic records of buds observed at its main study site centred on 'The Dell' and at a few selected localities near Meandarra, Queensland. A total of 172 species is included with 69 known to breed. The status, numbers and reproductive activities are sum- marized for the 160 species observed at 'The Dell'. A few records from the period 1969 to 1976 provide a historical perspective.

Ranges of three pairs of species that replace each other on an east-west gradient overlapped at the study site. Twenty- three per cent of the total number of species were vagrants and thirty-one per cent were transients. Eleven per cent of the species in the list were added in the final three months of the study, following heavy rains.

We speculate on the influence that topography, climate and more local conditions such as soil type, vegetation and rainfall mav have on the avifauna. As an illustration. we report changes in the populations of some species during a severe drought in 1979-1981.