10 and 11 February 2017 – Castlemaine Field Naturalists AGM with guest speaker and excursion
Posted on 2 February, 2017 by Connecting Country
It’s a new year, and Connecting Country would like to share that the Castlemaine Field Naturalists Club (CFNC) are raring to go! The first event for the year is on the evening of Friday 10th February 2017 with both the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and a special guest speaker – David Cheal. The title of David’s talk is The role of fire in Box-Ironbark forests.
David Cheal will be presenting at the Castlemaine Field Naturalists 2017 AGM
David Cheal is a botanist with expertise in ecological restoration, landscape ecology and survey methodologies He has worked at the Arthur Rylah Research Institute on aspects of the ecological impacts of fire in forests, and currently holds the position of Associate Adjunct Professor at Federation University, Ballarat.
David will make a short presentation on aspects of fire impacts in Box-Ironbark forests, and recovery of flora and fauna. He will then open the meeting to questions and comments from the audience, to extend the discussion in areas of interest to members. David Cheal has said that there are no “right” or “wrong” answers in this complex area – rather, there are wiser, more thoughtful answers and other answers that may be simple and attractive, but counter productive.
The evening will commence at 7.30pm at the Fellowship Room, which is located behind the Uniting Church on Lyttleton St (next door to the Castlemaine Art Gallery and Museum). After the brief AGM formalities, David will give his presentation. Members and visitors are encouraged to attend – and to stay afterwards for a chat during supper.
The excursion on the following day (Saturday 11th February 2017) will be related to the talk – a visit to the forests around the Red, White and Blue Mine in the Muckleford. CFNC members have been undertaking flora surveys in burnt and unburnt sites at this locality for many years, and this excursion will explore some of these areas and consider their differences. The excursion will depart at 1.30pm sharp from the U3A Octopus building on Duke St (opposite the Castle Motel) – weather permitting. Again, members and visitors welcomed and encouraged to attend. Car-pooling is likely to be available, and don’t forget to bring your afternoon tea.
If you would like to do more reading about fire ecology and management please see Connecting Country’s resources page on Biodiversity and Fire and the Talking Fire website.
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