WILDLIFE NOTE: Mocking Cliff Chat – new range...new inappropriate behaviour

A bit of background to what has become a very noisy and intrusive permanent resident...

We first noticed the new addition to our familiar ‘courtyard’ wildlife – the Mocking Cliff Chat in the summer.  It arrived in August and became part of the immediate surroundings next to the house, always popping up on the swing or log pile or similar.

It is the size of a large blackbird but distinctive in all manner of other ways - its orange breast with black surrounds, loud call and wagging tail.  It has a bold nature that was initially rather endearing, well until the swallows and swifts appeared to nest in October...

We have a wonderful breeding colony of striped swallows and white rumped swifts (not their correct names - will add later when book is at hand).  Their mud houses are glued all around the guest rooms and reception/our bedroom - it is very much their home as well.  They are so at ease that they use our bedroom as a thoroughfare and on occasion the swifts fly around in formation never landing, an amazing sight (until after hours of ignoring the two large open doors you begin to worry they may never leave.) The beautiful swallows also come in but they just land on the ornate metal ceiling light and look very decorative while chatting away in groups of up to 5 at a time.

But the Cliff Chat was spotted marauding their nests, unbalancing the old mud casing and flinging out any early chicks.  This went on for days, popping in and out of every nest causing much devastation with a cheery ease of spirit.  We quickly looked it up in our thick Bird Book to discover nothing is reported about its normal behaviour.  We could only discover information about its detailed markings, call and range but nothing about habits.  This was a mysterious discovery are birders not interested in behaviour?  Our mammal guides are full of insights into such things.

At this time Malcolm (our visiting bird guide and expert Ringer) arrived and was very  excited by the Cliff Chat presence as it is out of its normal recorded ‘range’.  And even more excited when he caught the male and managed to put a ring on it.  Dominik commented ‘did you ring its neck’?  Perhaps a little strong but it is doing our swallow and swift colony no good at all.  Anyway – we are now building up more insights into the behaviour of this bird that has extended its range...

Can you see the two Cliff Chat chicks....?

It has chosen a swallow’s nest to commander, right outside our door, and wakes up and starts calling even before the cockerels and then...begins its ritual of coming into our room and looking at its self in the mirror.  It clings on to the side of the small square mirror and pears at its reflection and pecks – at least 10 times before 5 am.  It continues this behaviour throughout the day and even when I am sitting at the desk it will land on the stable door look at me and glide over to take another look at itself....what is this about?  Is it new range new behaviour, a vanity associated with different climes, habitats or a new sense of competition with the striped swallows?  Hard to say and unless a Cliff Chatt enthusiast reads my blog I am not sure how to discover?

Also finally – with its shining new ring and a neck in tact it is successfully bringing up two babies who will carry on this behaviour in their new range!

(I have a video too which I will try to upload once free from 'dial up')