Submission No. 216: Oriental Reed Warbler Acrocephalus orientalis; Miallo QLD, 1-15 March 1996. Submitted by Mike Carter.

Verdict: Accepted

This case involves the sighting of one and perhaps two Oriental Reed Warblers A. orientalis in sugar cane at Miallo, about 6 km North of Mossman, Queensland, between 1 and 15 March 1996. Visual observations were very brief with only one observer having views lasting more than a few minutes. The observers were very confident of their identification basing their opinion (as with other acceptable records of this species) on the diagnostic call. One observer noted the birds extreme similarity to Clamorous Reed Warbler A. stentoreus and commented that it appeared stouter and that the streaking on the breast was more well defined than the illustration in Slater (1986).

The key to this case once again being the tape recording of the birds call supplied to the committee as verifying evidence of the claim. As with the Port Macquarie, NSW (Case No. 161, Patterson 1996) record committee members were able to directly compare this birds call with other recordings of birds known to be Oriental Reed Warbler. The deep guttural ‘chacking’ and ‘crotchetty’ croaking being quite distinct from the more familiar Clamorous Reed Warblers of Australian populations. Committee members voting unanimously in favour of acceptance.

Although there are many reports of this species from Australia in recent years this is only the third record to be confirmed by the committee.

References and Bibliography

• Slater, P., Slater, P. & Slater, R. 1986. The Slater Field Guide to Australian Birds, Rigby, Sydney.
• Patterson, R.J. 1996. RAOU Records Appraisal Committee: Opinions and Case Summaries 1992 - 1995, RAOU Report No. 101.
• Cramp, S. & Brooks, D.J. 1992. The Birds of the Western Palearctic, Vol. 6. Warblers, Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Tony Palliser
Chairman Birds Australia Rarities Committee (BARC)