Lou opened the meeting at 8.02 and welcomed the 36 members in attendance. We then moved straight into our main feature for the evening and our long term member Ken Moore was called on to introduce our guest speaker Bob Gillespie.
Main Feature:
Ken informed us that he had been friends with Bob for a significant period of time and that Bob had kept and shown Lizard canaries for approximately 30 years. Bob now has approximately 60 aviaries and a comprehensive collection of Exotic Parrots.
Bob’s talk this evening was specifically on the Moluccan Cockatoo. This particular Cockatoo is found on some of the Indonesian Islands and it is estimated that there are between 20 to 60,000 in the wild.
Bob has kept the Moluccan cockatoo for about 9 years and recognises that they are not for everyone. They are very loud, and capable of screeching up to 135 db which is comparable to a 747 jumbo jet. They are a very intelligent bird that requires a lot of stimulation and are quite demanding and attention seeking. They actively seek interaction with their owners, this was beautifully illustrated with the videos that showed Bob’s grandchildren playing with and stroking the birds. The birds seemed to be fully engaged and enjoying the attention.
The birds are fed twice a day and are given a wide variety of fruit and vegetables and nuts, along with enrichments to occupy them, such as palm branches, broken coconuts and native bottlebrush. They breed in April-May and usually have 2 eggs that take 28-30 days to hatch. Bob meticulously tracks their progress with weighing and crop feeding the chicks. They require 4 to 5 feeds daily , including night feeds.
Bob believes that one of his next challenges is to successfully breed a parent reared chick.
Jasper Keith had the pleasure of thanking Bob for a very informative and enjoyable presentation that was enjoyed by all present.
General Business:
A 20 kg Bag of seed donated by Dandenong Stockfeeds was the major prize of the night, won by John Pope.
1: Raffles details:
A number of donations were made for the raffle, including prizes supplied by many of our members. As always we are most grateful to the donors and thank them for their contribution. Congratulations to the winners.
Some winners and donors wishing to be acknowledged include: Lee Thornbury,Joe Bolyos, Marie De Lima, Andrew Harrison, Jasper Keith, Linda Florey,Ken Moore,John Pope, Tas Graham, Tony Lanigan,Gary Pegg, Robert La Ferla, Carolyn Pradun
(Any errors remain the Secretary’s).
2: Treasurer’s Report:
The Treasurer’s Report was posted at the side of the room. Moved: Warwick
Remington, Seconded: Peter Booth, Carried.
3: October Program : Sam Davis
4: New members: Welcomed by Lou and invited to speak to members if they
require any help.
5: Lost and Found: Nil.
6: Service Items: Tom Hobbs was selling service items at the side of the room, as well as a collection of books, for a gold coin donation.
7.Other Business:
Members were reminded to submit any recommendations they might have for the Bird Price Guide changes, to the Secretary by the 25th September deadline for consideration.
There has been little update regarding the H5N1 bird flu, any advice from authorities would be passed on as received.
Nominations for Office Bearers and Committee close 28th October , forms were made available from the Secretary.
The meeting closed at 9:45 with supper prepared by Tas Graham, enjoyed,as
members socialised.
Kevin Gadsden, Secretary
Avicultural Society of Australia,Inc.