The primary habitat categories, into which the birds are ordered, each include a range of different habitats and these vary from region to region. These are described below in more detail.
Some birds occur in more than one habitat type. The checklist at the rear of the book shows all additional (or “secondary”) habitats that a particular bird is likely to be found in.
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Even the most intensively-used parts of the landscape provide habitat value to a range of birds. Farmland habitats include cultivation paddocks (bare or cropped, dry or irrigated), grassy verges, roadways, infrastructure and buildings. Most of the birds found in these habitats are “generalists”; they are highly tolerant of agricultural activity and have no particular habitat preferences.
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Blue-grass and Mitchell grass native grasslands and sown pastures, provide a distinctive habitat type. These are lessfrequently disturbed, with a more constant cover of vegetation. This country supports many of the birds that use farmland habitats, plus a suite of “specialist” grassland species that are less tolerant of regular disturbance.
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Include natural water-bodies, seasonally-flooded swamps, farm dams, ponds, large storages, drains and ditches. Flooded paddocks also provide a wetland resource when crops are being irrigated. Some wetland “specialists” (e.g. cormorants and grebes) prefer more natural or permanent wetlands, while others (e.g. ibis and herons) readily utilise temporarily flooded paddocks and drains.
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These communities range from widely-spaced trees with a grassy understorey, to denser woodlands with a distinct shrub layer. They are usually dominated by one or two tree species, depending on the location in the landscape. Typical communities include river red-gum woodlands on watercourses, poplar box and carbeen grassy open woodlands, and brigalow-belah shrubby woodlands. Typically, woodlands support a greater diversity of birds than farmland and grassland habitats, with diversity higher the shrubbier the woodland is.
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