White or Manna gums seem to be very rich. Insects, birds and fungus love them. The name “manna” comes from the sweet sticky exudate that forms naturally on the branches.  It is this that the 40-spot prize, and even farm!  Chicks and fledglings are fed this almost exclusively.

Their white, smooth bark with pendulous arching leaves unfortunately oft exhibit red and ginger stains, presaging their imminent death, as they seem sensitive to drought and plain ennui.

They can be quite small but typically are bigger and in moist environments grow to a massive forest tree. It has smooth bark, sometimes with rough bark near the base, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, white flowers and cup-shaped or hemispherical fruit.

It is typically quite a beautiful tree, relatively easily confused with Swamp gum (E. ovata) which is generally much more untidy and has green flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and conical to bell-shaped fruit.

On Bruny other potential look-alikes are white peppermint (E. pulchella – much narrower leaves that smell of peppermint) and blue gum (E. globulus – whose huge nuts that can be found under the tree, with bigger leaves and twigs).

Tiny, light olive green birds with white spots on their wings that move fast, but stick around the same area.  Limited to Tasmania, some people like to call them the Tasmanian Pardalote, or even Gould’s Diamond as pardalotes are collectively known as ‘diamond birds’ because of their tiny, jewel-like appearance.  The 40-spot is the dull cousin of the family.

Birds in Backyards has some information on the 40-spot, not all of which is up-to-date, and DPIPWE also has an entry.

Some people say they look a bit like moths – fasting fluttering wings – not flying very far, but quite acrobatic.

They are typically in manna or white gums (E. viminalis) or not very far away, except for the teenagers that are happy to party elsewhere for a little while after they have fledged in October – November. They typically return to the colony that they came from, but occasionally, they set up a new colony.

Their cousins are much showier – if you see a brightly colored pardalote, it is unlikely to be a 40-spot:

• the Spotted has a crown of spots surmounting an ashen eyebrow on its head and quite bright breast and under-tail
• The Striated has no spots at all, but a very dominant streaky eyebrow and is highly coloured

The calls are also very different:

• the 40-spot has a soft, almost querulous call “where… where-where… ” usually only one or two notes.  You need to be quite close by to hear it.
• the Spotted call is much bolder and high-pitched, with a 3-4 note “d-dee-dee” or “sleep-may-be”
• the Striated again is a dominant call, heard from far away, often repeated ad-infinitum “pick-it-up“, “pick-up”

The 40-spot breeds between August and December. Four to five eggs are laid with potential for a second clutch. Clutches are generally fledged by September-October. The incubation period is 16-20 days and fledging is approximately 25 days (DPIPWE, 2007).

Amongst the towering white gums on Inala, Bruny Land for Wildlife owners saw, heard and learnt about the cryptic Forty-spotted pardalotes from Dr Sally Bryant and our very own Tonia Cochran.

Hosted by BIEN, this training day marked the beginning of an exciting citizen science project that will focus initially on helping the 40-spots survive and thrive.

About 20 people from all over the island first learnt how to identify 40 spots and differentiate them from their two cousins – the Striated and the Spotted pardalotes – and also to identify the Manna or White gum (Eucalyptus viminalis) on which these little dears are completely dependent.

The 40-spots are very unusual animals in that they actually farm their food source. Close-up filming has revealed that these tiny birds use their hooked beak to wound the stalks of the Manna gum to promote manna – a sugary secretion that they eat.

Over the past 40 years, the population of the 40-spots has plummeted by 60%. Being completely dependent on Manna gum makes them very vulnerable and Manna gum is very sensitive to drought.

Huge swathes of Manna gum habitat has declined due to climate change and many former strongholds of the 40-spot are now empty of birds.

Off-shore islands now hold most of the 40-spot populations, and Bruny is of critical importance.

This is why BIEN is engaging with citizen scientists to help the birds survive and thrive.

We have reasonable ideas of where the 40-spots have been in the past, where people have put up nest boxes for them, and where people have planted white gums to encourage new colonies, and we are now asking people to monitor populations using the nest boxes and in suitable habitat.

We’ll feature here the best information about the 40-spots, how to:

• identify 40-spots
• identify Manna gums
• monitor for 40-spot presence and upload data
• build your own nest boxes (or purchase them)
• plant and protect new planting for habitat