Geoffrey Dabb ‘Nine Interesting Canberra Birds’

Geoffrey, a lifelong birdwatcher, will present an illustrative talk, that will concentrate on nine species of birds that have a particular connection with Canberra.  Three of the birds are residents, three are migrants, and three come and go, to some extent, throughout the year.  There are different views on what birds are migrants and what are notable.

Abstract

For this profusely illustrated talk, Geoffrey has chosen nine bird species that have a particular connection with Canberra.  Each has a story attached to it.  Nine is the number chosen because the Gang-gang, with which everyone is now very familiar, has been dropped from the original list of ten birds. Three of the nine are residents, three are migrants, and three come and go to some extent throughout the year.  There are different views on which birds are ‘migrants’, strictly speaking. In fact there will be different views about which birds are ‘notable’.

Biography

Geoffrey Dabb is a lifelong birdwatcher and has photographed birds for many years.  He has given many talks on bird-related subjects.  He is the convenor of the Birdlife Australia English Names Committee which makes decisions on names for birds on the Australian list, yet another subject on which opinions differ.  An example is ‘Red Wattlebird’ which is not red, but is called red because it has little pink lobes on the side of its neck. Geoffrey will not have much time to discuss bird names during this talk, and the Red Wattlebird is not one of the selected notable birds.  However, the Australian Wood Duck is on the list.