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Evolutionary, molecular and comparative zoology
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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 53(4)

Breeding biology of a migratory Australian passerine, the golden whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis)

Wouter F. D. van Dongen A B and Larissa L. Yocom A
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A Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Vic. 3010, Australia.

B Corresponding author. Email: wouter.v.dongen@gmail.com

Australian Journal of Zoology 53(4) 213-220 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO04081
Submitted: 24 November 2004  Accepted: 24 May 2005   Published: 6 September 2005

Abstract

The breeding biology of Australian passerines is characterised by long breeding seasons and the potential to produce multiple broods within a single season. However, many species undergo a yearly migration from their breeding sites to climatically milder wintering grounds. This migratory behaviour may impose constraints on the breeding biology of these species. We studied a migratory population of golden whistlers (Pachycephala pectoralis) at Toolangi State Forest, Victoria. Individuals typically arrived in early September, attempted to produce a single successful brood over a 3-month period and departed again in late April. Both site- and pair-fidelity were high, with an average of 66% of males returning to the same site, re-pairing with the same female in up to 100% of cases. Nest predation was common, with 45% of nesting attempts failing due to predation. Each pair initiated an average of 1.7 nests per season, resulting in an average of 1.2 fledglings per pair each season. The short breeding season and single-broodedness of the golden whistlers at Toolangi is atypical amongst Australian passerines and suggests that constraints may be imposed on species undergoing annual migration. In this regard, golden whistlers show more similarities to Northern Hemisphere migratory passerines than to the sedentary passerines of the Southern Hemisphere.


Acknowledgments

We thank Raoul Mulder for his valuable advice throughout this project. We are very grateful to Saskia van Dongen, Sophie Allebone-Webb, Michelle Simeoni, Kristy van Dongen, Frieda van Dongen, Wouter van Dongen Sr, Ramiarison Robert, Tania Billing, Grainne Maguire, Carly Cook, Lindy and Oliver Eyster, Angela Schneider, Meah Volkard and Raoul Mulder for their assistance with field work for this project. For their comments on the manuscript we thank Grainne Maguire, Raoul Mulder and three anonymous referees. We thank Ian Gordon for his helpful advice on statistics. This research was funded by the Holsworth Wildlife Research Fund, the Loftus-Hills Memorial Fund, Birds Australia, the Linnean Society of New South Wales and the Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne. Blood samples were collected under Animal Experimentation and Ethics Register 01011 from the University of Melbourne and permits from the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Australia.


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