Backyard science cures for boredom

Posted on 2 April, 2020 by Ivan

No doubt you have seen some great ideas of how to remain engaged and occupied during the isolation phase of the COVID-19 outbreak. It’s a very challenging time and impacts continue to spread across the globe. Connecting Country is adapting our community engagement model, to deliver some events to our audience, community and stakeholders in the comfort of their own home. Stay tuned for when we advertise these events in the coming months. We also hope to produce some videos down the track to keep everyone engaged.

We have discovered some excellent activities you can do from the safety of your own backyard and still contribute to science.  ‘The Conservation’ recently published an inspiring article. Please enjoy the following extract highlighting many useful activities and ideas to contribute to backyard science. To view the full article  –  click here.

Environmental projects need your support too

The yellow-footed antechinus (Antechinus flavipes) is a curious little marsupial (photo by Jane Rusden)

If you’d like to get your mind off COVID-19, there’s a plethora of other options for citizen scientists. You can contribute to conservation and nature recovery efforts – a task many took to after the recent bushfires. Some sites ask volunteers to digitise data from ongoing environmental monitoring programs. Contributors need no prior experience, and interpret photos taken with remote digital cameras using online guides. One example is Western Australia’s Western Shield Camera Watch, available through Zooniverse.

Other sites crowdsource volunteers to transcribe data from natural history collections (DigiVol), historical logbooks from explorers, and weather observation stations (Southern Weather Discovery).

Citizen science programs such as eBird, BirdLife Australia’s Birdata, the Australian Museum’s FrogID, ClimateWatch, QuestaGame, NatureMapr, and the Urban Wildlife App, all have freely available mobile applications that let you contribute to ‘big’ databases on urban and rural wildlife.

Nature watching is a great self-isolation activity because you can do it anywhere, including at home. Questagame runs a series of ‘bioquests’ where people of all ages and experience levels can photograph animals and plants they encounter.

In April, we’ll also have the national Wild Pollinator Count. This project invites participants to watch any flowering plant for just ten minutes, and record insects that visit the flowers. The aim is to boost knowledge on wild pollinator activity.

The data collected through citizen science apps are used by researchers to explore animal migration, understand ranges of species, and determine how changes in climate, air quality and habitat affect animal behaviour.

This year for the first time, several Australian cities are participating in iNaturalist’s City Nature Challenge. The organisers have adapted planned events with COVID-19 in mind, and suggest ways to document nature while maintaining social distancing. You can simply capture what you can see in your backyard, or when taking a walk, or put a moth light out at night to see what it attracts.

For those at home with children, there are a variety of projects aimed at younger audiences.

From surveying galaxies to the Bird Academy Play Lab’s Games Powered By Birds – starting young can encourage a lifetime of learning.

If you’re talented at writing or drawing, why not keep a nature diary, and share your observations through a blog.

By contributing to research through digital platforms, citizen scientists offer a repository of data experts might not otherwise have access to. The Australian Citizen Science Association (ACSA) website has details on current projects you can join, or how to start your own.

Apart from being a valuable way to pass time while self-isolating, citizen science reminds us of the importance of community and collaboration at a time it’s desperately needed.

Take a guess….how many Eltham Copper Butterflies did we see last summer?

Posted on 2 April, 2020 by Ivan

The Eltham Copper Butterfly (ECB) is one of our most treasured and interesting threatened species, and we are fortunate enough to have the largest population in the world right here in the Mount Alexander region of central Victoria. In the past 12 months, the special little butterfly has attracted much-needed attention, attracting funding for three separate projects in our region.

Connecting Country obtained funding from the Mount Alexander Shire Council to increase community awareness and education regarding the butterfly, and to support citizen science monitoring in key locations to learn more about the local populations. We worked closely with local ecologists Elaine Bayes and Karl Just, who with support from Wettenhall Environment Trust continued their vital work on mapping local Eltham Copper Butterfly habitat and distribution. We also joined in the excellent Butterfly Celebration Day held in Castlemaine Botanical Gardens in November 2019. Our hope is that all Castlemaine residents now know about this amazing threatened species living on their doorstep!

Connecting Country delivered a popular community education workshop, and worked with ecologists Elaine and Karl to promote and coordinate four community monitoring sessions for Eltham Copper Butterfly around Castlemaine VIC over November 2019 to January 2020, when the adult butterflies were out and about (for details – click here). These events attracted excellent numbers of people keen to learn more about the life cycle of this butterfly and to participate in butterfly monitoring within local butterfly habitat. The aim was to support interested community members to learn how to monitor with expert guidance, providing skills for them to become citizen scientists, conduct more monitoring and (potentially) discover new populations.

photo by Connecting Country

Photo: Connecting country

Photo: Elaine Bayes

The Eltham Copper Butterfly is a small and attractive butterfly with bright copper coloring on the tops of its wings visible during the summer flight season (photo: Elaine Bayes)

Well, the results are in, the numbers crunched and the maps produced! We now have some great insight our local Eltham Copper Butterfly populations, including previously unexplored areas of potential butterfly habitat. In total 113 individual Eltham Copper Butterflies were observed in the prime flying period between 15 November 2019 and the 3 January 2020.

Monitoring results

Our monitoring experts, Elaine Bayes and Karl Just, provided the following summary of the results, accompanied by a very detailed and useful map of the areas they visited:

• The monitoring team searched, ranked and mapped all of Kalimna Park (170 hectares) for butterfly habitat in November 2019. Time spent to carry out rapid assessment was 48 hours.
• This work determined that out of 170 ha of Kalimna Park, 73.25 ha was classified as prime potential Eltham Copper Butterfly habitat (i.e., medium or high quality Sweet Bursaria habitat).
• Using Eltham Copper Butterfly habitat mapping, the team searched areas that were determined to have good butterfly habitat potential. Using this method the group located five new Eltham Copper Butterfly sub-populations and extended the area of known Eltham Copper Butterfly occupancy from 3 ha to 8 ha.
• In total 113 individual Eltham Copper Butterflies were observed in the prime flying period between 15 November 2019 and the 3 January 2020 (some of which may have been double-counted from resurveying same area).
• The total survey effort or time spent searching for butterflies in this period was 187 hours.

More about wonderful Eltham Copper Butterfly

Castlemaine’s Kalimna Park is home to the largest remaining population of the threatened Eltham Copper Butterfly in the world. To learn more about this fascinating little butterfly, including ecology, distribution and information on how to identify this species from similar look-alike butterflies – click here. Please enjoy the video below, courtesy of the N-danger-D Youtube Channel, that has some excellent footage of this wonderful butterfly and symbiotic ant species.

We would like to thank the Mount Alexander Shire Council and Wettenhall Environment Trust for providing the funding for these projects. We hope to continue to monitor Eltham Copper Butterfly and implement management actions to help our local butterfly populations thrive over the next decade and beyond. 

Frogging on

Posted on 31 March, 2020 by Frances

Autumn is a great time for frogs and recording frogs using the excellent FrogID app developed by the Australian Museum. The Mount Alexander region is home to around ten native frog species. Perhaps you have some frogs in your backyard, property or local dam that you can visit safely while adhering to current safety isolation requirements.

We know that the reduction of permitted leisure activities is presenting challenges – so here are some froggy suggestions from the FrogID team to help make the most of your time at home:

• Record frogs in your back yard: if you already have frogs in your garden or property then we want you to record them daily if they are calling. Send those records in, our validation team are working from home and are keen to hear your submissions. If government advice has not changed, record frogs on your daily walk, whilst maintaining physical distance from others.
• Download an activity sheet: if you have children looking for a fun activity, we have a fantastic activity sheet you can download – click here. There is a quiz, colouring in, and other cool activities. It’s all set up for you to print from home!
• Explore the FrogID app or website: the FrogID app and website have hundreds of species profiles for all of Australia’s frogs, you can play their calls, view pictures and learn all about where they live and how they breed.
• Build a frog habitat in your garden: for those who want to get your hands dirty and don’t yet have a frog pond, this could be a good time to start. Upcycle that old bathtub, recycle some old downpipes, create an oasis for your froggy friends. Don’t forget to record any frogs once they arrive, and send in pictures of your garden with your submissions on the FrogID app.

To learn more about the FrogID app see our previous post (click here) or download the FrogID app (click here).

Our Director, Frances recently spotted this handsome Spotted Marsh Frog.

Spotted Marsh Frog (photo by Frances Howe)

Tanya’s tawny tales: a good news story

Posted on 27 March, 2020 by Ivan

We were thrilled to receive a well-written story from our former superstar staff member, Tanya Loos, about the journey of a Tawny Frogmouth. Tawny Frogmouths are often confused with owls, but are actually more closely related to the nightjars. Tanya gives us a great insight into these magnificent creatures and the journey of a special Tawny’s road to recovery. Please enjoy the following words and photos from Tanya.

The question I am most frequently asked is ‘I have found a bird that seems to be hurt – what should I do?’ It is always the same answer – capture the bird using a tea towel or towel, and place into an appropriately sized cardboard box. Then pop the box in a quiet room away from pets and people – and call a wildlife rescue number for assistance.

Usually it is a friend or local person – but a couple of weeks ago I got ‘the question’ via text from my teenage nephew! Heart burst moment! Nephew and Mum had seen a bird on the road in Hepburn – an owl they thought, that wasn’t flying away.

The owl turned out to be a Tawny Frogmouth – a much loved night bird that is commonly found in local forests and gardens. Even though Tawnies are brownish grey in colour, like owls, with big round eyes, like owls, they are quite different , and in a completely different bird family.

Owls (Strigidae family) are predators who hunt and kill their prey with their huge fierce talons. Tawny Frogmouths capture their prey – mice, frogs, and insects with their beaks. Their feet are strangely weak, without big claws, and are used only for perching.

In Australia, we have three species of Frogmouth in the Podargidae family – the Tawny which is found all over the country, and the Papuan and Marbled Frogmouths which are found in Cape York and southeast Queensland.

Another difference between owls and Frogmouths is that Frogmouths are masters of camouflage, with finely patterned feathers, who adopt a special ‘broken stick’ posture, where the Frogmouths close their eyes and point their heads up to the sky. Owls never do this.

One of the golden rules of wildlife rescue is that if an animal survives and can be released, it must be released where it was found. Animals such as Tawny Frogmouth have specific territories or home ranges – where they know where the best places to find food are, the best sleeping (roosting) sites and nesting sites. This area is also where their mates or family members are! Our family Tawny was taken to a wildlife carer in Gisborne – and after a week or two, I travelled down to see if the bird was ready for release.

In the picture you can see the loving hands of Lynda the wildlife carer as she was checking whether Tawny’s wings were strong enough to fly. You can also see that the feathers are slightly brown – which means she is a female bird! The males are completely grey – a lovely ash colour, with the same fine patterning.

Tawny Frogmouths are often confused with owls, but are actually more closely related to the nightjars (photo by Tanya Loos)

Tawny wasn’t ready then, but yesterday Lynda texted me saying that Tawny has made a full recovery and is now ready to go back to her Hepburn forest.

The car collision must have been a mild one. Sadly this is the exception – as animal loving folks know – death by car is all too common. Driving slowly and carefully at night, dusk and dawn is the only solution.

To contact Wildlife Victoria phone: (03) 8400 7300 – and they will refer you to one of the many local wildlife carers in our region.

by Tanya Loos

Connecting Country still hard at work!

Posted on 25 March, 2020 by Frances

Koala at Moonlight Flat (photo by Frances Howe)

Here at Connecting Country we take our social responsibility seriously, and while there are landscapes and people needing our help, we continue to operate and support our community. However, it may be in a slightly different format to normal to reduce infection risk.

In the interests of health and safety, all our staff are working from home as much as possible. Therefore our office at the Hub is temporarily closed. However, you can still contact us via phone or email. If there’s no answer on the office phone, please leave a message and we’ll get back to you. Our operating hours are unchanged: 8.30 am to 4.30 pm Monday to Thursday.

We are reworking our planned community events, converting them to online workshop format or postponing to later in the year. We’re reviewing our other activities with the aim of continuing our important work where possible without risking the health of our staff or community. Although some tasks will not be possible, there is much we can still do.

We will be adaptable and stay focussed until we all come through the other side of this difficult time.

We appreciate your support in helping keep our community and environment healthy! Please enjoy our favourite video below, from Remember the Wild, about our Woodland Bird Program.

Bird of the month: Australian Owlet-nightjar

Posted on 25 March, 2020 by Ivan

Welcome to our second-ever Bird of the month, a partnership between Connecting Country and BirdLife Castlemaine District. Each month we’ll be taking a close look at one special local bird species. We’re excited to be joining forces to deliver you a different bird each month, seasonally adjusted, and welcome any suggestions from the community and our supporters. We are lucky enough to have the talented and charismatic Jane Rusden from BirdLife Castlemaine District writing about our next bird of the month, with some assistance from the brilliant Damian Kelly. You may be familiar with the second bird off the ranks.

Australian Owlet-nightjar (Aegotheles cristatus)

The Australian Owlet-nightjar almost looks like a sugar glider, very cute with huge dark eyes peering from a hollow. Well known local author and photographer, Damian Kelly, has been trying for several years to photograph the resident Owlet-nightjars on my property as they soak up sun in their hollow entrance. However, they seem to know when he is coming and vanish.

Until recently, when he finally managed to coax the two birds at my place into modelling for him. Thanks for the photo Damian. The Owlet-nightjar is a near ground level, small and agile, insect and spider hunter, who emerges on dark often to drink and then search for prey. They will take prey on the wing, by pouncing from a low perch or running along the ground. So if you’ve got too many spiders for your liking, install a couple of nest boxes for Owlet-nightjars as they love them.

The Australian Owlet-nightjar is one of Australia’s most widespread nocturnal birds (photo by Jane Rusden)

The Australian owlet-nightjar is colloquially known as the moth owl (photo by Damien Kelly)

Interestingly they are neither owl nor nightjar, but blend of these two, and a distinct species. Around their small bill and wide mouth are long rictal bristles for nocturnal hunting, reminiscent of nightjars. Like owls they have a round head and huge forward-facing eyes. Unlike nightjars, the eyes of the Owlet-Nightjar do not reflect light and they can be a very hard bird to see at night. Both male and female birds look indistinguishable, although the female can be slightly larger by 2-5%, which is impossible to actually see. Mostly they appear soft mottled grey with darker head stripes running back from the eyes middle of the head. If you see a rufous coloured Owlet-nightjar, it is most likely female.

Immature birds look almost the same as their parents, which is a nice change when you are trying to identify birds, as in many species they can look quite different. This species, thought relativity common in Box Ironbark Forest, can be incredibly difficult to find and see. They have a habit of dropping low in their hollow and out of sight before we’re aware of them.

Occasionally you may be lucky enough to see one that has flushed and is perched on a branch, but your best hope is in a hollow in just about anything from trees, to rocks, to buildings, usually not overly high up. I started putting up nest boxes when our resident bird tried to roost amongst tools in the back of the ute for several days! This year I discovered two Owlet-nightjars habitually roosting about 200 meters apart. The photos show the one in the nest box and the one in the tree hollow. Damian’s research found that pairs mate for life, but reside in nearby hollows.

Owlet-nightjars are often heard though rarely seen (photo by Jane Rusden)

They will have a dozen or more hollows they use over their home ranges of up to 80 hectares. I wonder if the two I see every day are a mated pair?

To listen to the varied and lovely calls of the Australian owlet-nightjar, please – click here

Words by Jane Rusden
Research material contributed by Damian Kelly
Photos by Damian Kelly and Jane Rusden

Prickly plants providing homes for wildlife

Posted on 19 March, 2020 by Ivan

Eucalyptus trees, their abundant nectar-rich flowers and the hollows that develop in older trees are typical habitat elements that spring to mind when thinking about wildlife habitat in Box-Ironbark Forests and woodlands. While these overstorey habitat elements are important, we also know that a diversity of understorey plant species are necessary for healthy resilient local forests and woodlands. And importantly for wildlife, this layer of vegetation within our local forests, gives protection, food and places to nest for many species of insects, small mammals, reptiles and birds, allowing them to survive and reproduce, and disperse through the landscape.

From clearing and disturbance that occured during the goldrush, the introduction of grazing animals over time, and invasive plants and animals, understorey plants have been lost or have greatly decreased in distribution and regeneration success throughout our landscape. This loss of species diversity reduces the complexity of habitats and their ability to respond, or bounce back from threats such as climate change.

Thankfully Connecting Country have secured funding over the past few years to return a suite of these understorey plants (many of which are prickly) to our region through landholder support and education to restore these vital species.

The most recent project supporting this work is ‘Prickly Plants for Wildlife on Small Properties’. The main focus of this two-year project is assisting landholders on smaller properties who may have missed out on previous Connecting Country projects that typically targeted larger properties (>10 Ha).

Connecting Country staff met with landholders who expressed interest in restoring the bush on their property, to assess the vegetation, identify threats and provide tubestock plants of local species suitable for their vegetation type. Where older eucalypts with hollows were lacking within the bush on these properties nestboxes were installed for species such as Brush-tailed Phascogale, Owlet Nightjar and microbats. This project is generously funded by the North Central Catchment Management Authority to improve the health and management of our landscape.

Landholders in the Mount Alexander region of Victoria have planted local indigenous species of understorey appropriate for their vegetation type.

Microbats were provided with homes through installation of nestboxes on properties lacking natural tree hollows.

Connecting Country upskill on Climate Future Plots

Posted on 12 March, 2020 by Ivan

We’re very proud of what we do at Connecting Country. After a decade of landscape restoration, we have helped restore 9,500 hectares of habitat, equating to around 6% of the Mount Alexander Shire. We know this is only the beginning, and more is needed to provide vital habitat, vegetation, education and monitoring across our region for years to come. We also know that we must keep learning and updating our skill set to adapt to climate change and the likely scenarios that will occur across our region.

It was with great excitement that some staff members attended a recent Climate Future Labs workshop in Bendigo. The workshop was hosted by Greening Australia and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP). Greening Australia and DELWP have been working with a range of organisations to develop guidelines for community groups and agencies to improve the resilience of plants in your neighbourhood by planting Climate Future Plots.

What are Climate Future Plots?

Climate Future Plots are simply areas of revegetated and restored land that include plant species that already occur naturally in the area, but also include plants of the same species from other areas with different climates. This genetic mixing helps increase the capacity of the plants in our natural environment to adapt to a changing climate. As the climate changes, these plant communities will be better equipped to change with it. By including a mixture of local and climate pre-adapted plant genotypes (such as seed from hotter and drier, or cooler and wetter climates) the plots aim to enhance the resilience of natural landscapes to the changing climate. Through monitoring, we will also have more accurate information to actively inform future restoration and biodiversity conservation management.

Climate Future Plots are valuable because they:

• Develop climate-resilient habitat by creating natural areas that maintain ecosystem function in uncertain climate scenarios.
• Act as nursery sites due to their high genetic diversity.
• Enable testing of predictions and proposed management strategies under a changing climate.
• Inform future adaptive management by showing how species respond to climate interventions.
• Enable community engagement and awareness by providing opportunities to work together.

Connecting Country and Climate Future Plots

Connecting Country have conducted strategic revegetation across hundreds of properties in our region. We found the Climate Future Plots training and guide an excellent resource for our future activities and climate-proof revegetation projects.

Restoration Coordinator at Connecting Country, Bonnie Humphreys, said ‘This workshop provided us with a guide to how to plan revegetation under a changing climate, including working out what our future climate will look like, and how to select the appropriate species and provenances to plant’. ‘It is important that we plan our habitat restoration practices in line with future climate predictions, based on the best science we have available,’ said Ms Humphreys.

While the guide is a great resource, it will still require a lot of planning to coordinate and implement the guidelines. Our staff and committee are urgently seeking funding to start implementing the guide, and expand our networks so we can source suitable provenances of plants and seeds. Once we secure funding, we will start work on planning and constructing Climate Future Plots in the Mount Alexander region.

Guidelines

A copy of the ‘Establishing Victoria’s Ecological Infrastructure: A Guide to Creating Climate Future Plots’ is available online for downloaded – click here.

The purpose of the guide is to provide a step-by-step process for organisations and community groups to plan, establish and monitor Climate Future Plots, and to establish a network of climate-resilient plant communities across Victoria and ideally nationally.

Here are some highlights from our revegetation program, which have survived well in the recent extreme weather, so far (photos by Connecting Country)

photo by Connecting Country

Grow Wild: Gardening to Sustain Wildlife in the Hepburn Shire

Posted on 12 March, 2020 by Frances

Update: The authors have cancelled the book launch of ‘Grow Wild’, but the book is now available to purchase.

Our Wombat Forest neighbours have been busy writing and publishing an excellent new book titled ‘Grow Wild: Gardening to Sustain Wildlife in the Hepburn Shire’.

They have extended a special invitation to the Connecting Country family to join them at the launch on Sunday 29 March at 2.00 pm in the Glenlyon Hall (Daylesford-Malmsbury Rd, Glenlyon VIC).

Written by local resident and avid gardener, Jill Teschendorff, and published by Wombat Forestcare, this beautiful book aims to empower people to include indigenous plants in their gardens and provide the special habitat needed by our local wildlife.

Guest speaker: AB Bishop author, radio presenter, horticulturalist and gardening ‘trouble-shooter’

Copies of the book will be available for purchase.

RSVP by Wednesday 25 March 2020
info@wombatforestcare.org.au
Jill Teschendorff 03 5348 7947

Please see the flyer for further information – click here

RSVPs are essential.

Butterflies enjoy backyard gardens and are excellent pollinators for many plant species. Photo: Elaine Bayes

Bird walk at Mount Tarrengower – 7 March 2020

Posted on 5 March, 2020 by Frances

Our friends and partners at Birdlife Castlemaine are having their monthly bird walk this weekend, at the beautiful Mount Tarrengower West, led by the wonderful Damian Kelly. This is a great opportunity to walk and talk with some of the best bird watchers around and increase your knowledge, as well as enjoy some lovely landscapes and company. Please find the event overview below, from their newsletter, as well as information about the AGM following the walk. For more details on Birdlife Castlemaine, please click here.

BirdLife Castlemaine District March Bird Walk

Saturday 7 March – Mount Tarrengower West 

BirdLife Castlemaine’s next walk takes us to Mount Tarrengower West, led by Damian Kelly. The habitat is grassy dry forest with box eucalypts on slopes, Red Gums and Yellow Box in lower areas. Birds that may be seen include Large Parrots, Eastern Rosellas, Thornbills, Scarlet Robin, Jacky Winter and Restless Fly Catcher.

Location and directions: From Maldon VIC take the Maldon-Bridgewater Road. About 2 km out of town turn left into Watersons Road. A further 1 km along is the turn off on the left to Mount Back Road. The walk starts here. Plenty of parking is available near this intersection.

Time: Meet at the destination at 9:00 am, or to carpool from Castlemaine meet at 8:30 am outside Castlemaine Community House (30 Templeton Street, Castlemaine VIC).

Important information about walks: Bring water, snacks, binoculars, hat, sunscreen, insect repellent, sturdy shoes, long pants during snake season, and other weather-appropriate gear.

Walks will be canceled if the temperature is forecast to be 35 degrees or more during the walk period, severe weather warnings are in place, persistent rain is forecast, or if the day has been declared a Total Fire Ban day.

Questions? If you have questions about our walks program, you can email us at castlemaine@birdlife.org.au, or call/text Judy Hopley (0425 768 559) or Asha Bannon (0418 428 721).

All levels of experience are welcome – they’re a friendly bunch and the walks are a great chance to learn from and have fun with fellow birdwatchers.

The 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of BirdLife Castlemaine District Branch will follow the walk at 11:30 am, at 25A Church Street, Maldon. Morning tea will be provided from 11:00 am.

Mistletoebird on a dead branch. Photo: Geoff Park

Clean up Australian Day: Sunday 1 March 2020

Posted on 27 February, 2020 by Ivan

Gorse management info session: 21 March 2020

Posted on 27 February, 2020 by Ivan

Our partners at Sutton Grange Landcare Group have teamed up with the Victorian Gorse Task Force (VGT) to deliver an information session on Gorse (Ulex europaeus). Gorse is a species of flowering plant in the pea family (Fabaceae). It’s native to the British Isles and Western Europe, and has spread over 23 million hectares in Australia.

Join the Victorian Gorse Taskforce (VGT) at the information session with the Sutton Grange Landcare group on Saturday 21 of March 2020, held in the Sutton Grange Hall (921 Faraday-Sutton Grange Rd, Sutton Grange VIC ). There will be information about the role of the Victorian Gorse Taskforce, a chance to chat with their Extension Officer, information on best practice gorse management and refreshments to finish.

RSVP to Brydie Murrihy on 0428 335 705

For more information please contact:
Brydie Murrihy (VGT Extension Officer)
m. 0428 335 705
e. VGT@cva.org.au
or
Christine Brooke (Sutton Grange Landcare)
e. sglg@live.com

The Victorian Gorse Taskforce was formed in 1999 and launched a community-led integrated approach to reducing gorse across the landscape. VGT members include local people who have successfully controlled gorse on their land, as well as natural resource management, agricultural, pest management and other experts. We work with private landowners and public land managers such as the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, local councils and catchment management authorities. We also work with researchers exploring new ways to tackle gorse.

Please enjoy the video below by the VGT, that outlines the impacts of Gorse across Victoria.

Climate change resilience workshops in Castlemaine

Posted on 27 February, 2020 by Ivan

Our fabulous Castlemaine Community House is offering a series of three workshops to assist individuals and families to develop resilience around the climate crisis. The workshops will be facilitated by Dr Susie Burke, environmental psychologist and therapist, and member of Psychology for a Safe Climate.

• Where: Castlemaine Community House, 30 Templeton St, Castlemaine VIC
• When: Please refer to times and dates for each workshop below
• Cost: $15, or $10 concession (or if booking for more than one person)
• How to book:  Please book directly with Castlemaine Community House online via the website links below.

Further information regarding the workshops is available from Castlemaine Community House via their website (click here) or by telephone at (03) 5472 4842

Coping with Climate Change

Date: Wednesday 11 March 2020
Time: 6.30 pm – 8.30 pm
To book: click here

An experiential workshop to help people deal with grief and anxiety, come to terms with the climate emergency, and stay engaged in solutions.

This workshop is for anyone who is deeply concerned about the impacts of climate change on the things they love and care about, and would like to explore with others how to come to terms with the climate crisis and cope with distressing thoughts and feelings.

Participants will learn techniques for making room for uncomfortable feelings, free themselves from self-defeating thoughts and urges, cultivate a perspective of active hope, and increase their capacity to be present and focus on what matters in the context of the climate emergency.

Deep Adaptation to Climate Change

Date: Monday 23 March 2020
Time: 6.30 pm – 8.30 pm
To book: click here

A workshop to help people start to come to terms with the climate emergency, and stay engaged in solutions.

In this workshop participants will discuss and begin to work out what ‘Deep Adaptation’ could mean (and what it doesn’t).  Four questions guide the work on Deep Adaptation:

• Resilience: what do we most value that we want to keep and how?
• Relinquishment: what do we need to let go of so as not to make matters worse?
• Restoration: what could we bring back to help us with these difficult times?
• Reconciliation: with what and whom shall we make peace as we awaken to our mutual mortality?

Parent Workshop – Talking with Children about Climate Change

Date: Monday 30 March 2020
Time: 6.30 pm – 8.30 pm
To book: click here

A workshop which aims to help parents think through the impact of climate change on their children, cope with that knowledge themselves, whilst at the same time supporting their children to cope with climate change now and in the future.

By attending this workshop participants will be able to:

• Think through how they, as parents, can respond to the current reality of climate change and the threat of worse impacts to come.
• Learn strategies for coping with the ‘uncomfortable truths’ of climate change
• Gather ideas about how to support their children to cope with it.
• Learn about the skills and capacities that our children, the next generation, will need for engaging in efforts to restore a safe climate, and for adapting to the inevitable changes ahead.

Facilitator: Dr Susie Burke PhD FAPS
Dr Susie Burke is an environmental psychologist, therapist, climate change campaigner and parent, currently working in private practice in Castlemaine.  She is a Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society, and author of the Climate Change Empowerment Handbook and other articles and resources on the psychology of climate change.  She consults, and runs workshops and individual sessions to help people cope with and come to terms with climate change, with a particular interest in how to raise children in and for a climate altered world.

What scat is that? – take the quiz

Posted on 27 February, 2020 by Ivan

Have you ever been out walking and wondered ‘what scat is that?’ You can call it scat, faeces, or just plain poo, but if you’re not too squeamish, you can learn a lot from animal poo. Wild animal poo is known as scat, and it can be very useful in working out what species are nearby because each type of scat is different. It is a fascination among the scientific world and the broader community alike.

Of course, some scat will begin to dry out and look different with age, so if you really know your business, you’ll be able to tell how long ago the animal was there. It is well known that Koala poo, for example, goes from a moist green to something that looks more like dried out grass pellets. Regardless of the name you give it, most people go out of their way to avoid digested animal waste – but not the most dedicated scientists and animal lovers.

If you’re interested in finding out more about the animal world, identifying scats can tell you a lot about a creature, including what they eat, where they go and even how they live. The ABC has created a fun ‘What scat is that’ online quiz, which has excellent images and questions to assist learning. It is part of the ABC’s ‘How to Summer’ science series, which covers a variety of topics including ants, sea-creatures and scats.

Take the scat quiz to test your skills and learn a bit more about another survey technique and potential curiosity wonder!

To take the quiz – click here

Around two centimetres wide and high, this scat forms almost a perfect cube. Which animal left it? (photo: ABC)

New factsheets proving popular

Posted on 20 February, 2020 by Ivan

Following best advice on revegetation will give your plants the best chance of survival (photo by Gen Kay)

We developed the factsheets courtesy of funding from the North Central Catchment Management Authority. The factshets form part of our ‘Prickly plants for wildlife on small properties‘ project, which targeted landowners with smaller properties who are keen to manage their land as wildlife habitat, but were excluded from previous projects. Through this project we’ve helped numerous local landholders with smaller areas of remnant vegetation to protect and improve habitat on their land. We’ve supported landholders with on-ground actions such as revegetation planting, weed and rabbit control, and nest box installation, as well as delivering three popular community education events.

Many people contact Connecting Country regarding how to revegetate their land using native tubestock plants. There are numerous aspects to consider when using this technique, such as when to plant, how to prepare the soil, what to plant, and how to protect your plantings. The new revegetation planting factsheet covers all these topics and more, to help you give your precious native plants the best start in life.

Here is a brief outline of each of the four factsheets:

• Weed control. Weeds, or invasive plants, are one of the main extinction threats to Australia’s native plants and animals. Some weeds were introduced initially as garden plants, and others accidentally introduced and spread through seeds or plant material. Some native species become weeds if they spread aggressively beyond their natural range. To download – click here.
• Nest boxes for wildlife. A nest box is an artificial enclosure provided for hollow-dependent animals to live and nest in. Providing a well constructed and maintained nest box on your property can provide a supplementary home for native animals where natural tree hollows are missing. To download: click here
• Invasive pest animals. Invasive animals are a major threat to biodiversity and agriculture. They can cause long-term damage to ecosystems and have resulted in dramatic extinction rates of species across Australia. To download: click here
• Revegetation planting with tubestock. Planting within or next to existing bush land to provide habitat for native animals can be a satisfying endeavour. Taking time to plan and prepare your revegetation will give you the best chance of seeing your plants survive to maturity. To download: click here

Further information and factsheets on a variety of restoration topics can be found on the Connecting Country website – click here.

Platypus citizen science workshop: Sunday 15 March 2020

Posted on 20 February, 2020 by Ivan

Our friends and partners at Friends of Campbells Creek are organising a FREE public workshop on Sunday 15 March 2020 in Campbells Creek, VIC. Experts from the Australian Platypus Conservancy will highlight the conservation needs of these animals and outline ways the community can help monitor their populations in local rivers, creeks and lakes.

The platypus rarely uses sight when underwater – its eyes normally close automatically as soon as it dives (photo: Australian Platypus Conservancy)

A practical demonstration in nearby Campbells Creek will follow the formal presentation.

Bookings can be made online – click here

For the event flyer – click here

The platypus is listed as ‘Near Threatened’ in Australia and on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. For more information and maps of distribution – click here.

More details about the event are provided below, courtesy of Friends of Campbells Creek.

Bird of the month: the chatty Crimson Rosella

Posted on 13 February, 2020 by Ivan

Welcome to our first-ever Bird of the month, a partnership between Connecting Country and BirdLife Castlemaine District. Each month we’ll be taking a close look at one special local bird species. We’re excited to be joining forces to deliver you a different bird each month, seasonally adjusted, and welcome any suggestions from the community and our supporters. We are lucky enough to have the talented Jane Rusden from BirdLife Castlemaine District writing about the first-ever bird of the month. We know you’ll be familiar with the first bird off the ranks. We thank Jane for the following words, the first of many posts to come.

Crimson Rosella (Platycercus elegans)  

Recently I returned from a month-long conservation volunteer hiking trip pulling weeds in coastal south-west Tassie. As I sat looking out on the bush from my living room, a Crimson Rosella flew in to drink from one of the many freshly fill birdbaths around my home. It walked in that funny fashion parrots do which is slightly pigeon-toed, up to the rim of the pot base holding water and dipped its head for a drink. Using it’s incredibly dexterous foot, it then scratched its head, turned and flew off.

A mature Crimson Rosella (above) and two immature Crimson Rosellas (below) showing the different coloring (photos by Jane Rusden)

There are various races (forms, often denoted by color variation), but let’s take a look at our local Crimson Rosellas. Mature adults have a vibrant crimson head and chest, with mid to very dark blue wings and tail. Immature birds are olive green in the body and head, as they mature the crimson replaces the green. Both mature and immature birds have a mid-blue patch which extends from the lower mandible (bill) to the cheek.

Being a parrot, they have an extremely strong, down-curved bill, which is powerful enough to crack wattle and grass seeds, as well as gum nuts. Like many parrots, they are amazingly expert chewers, which is useful when renovating tree hollows in eucalyptus at breeding time. For such a powerful bill, Crimson Rosellas can use it to be very clever and delicate at manipulation of all manner of things.

Primarily you’ll see Crimson Rosellas in trees, thought they do wander about on the ground at times. They are a species that can be found in both the local Box Ironbark forest as well as in towns and gardens. I mentioned tree hollows – parrots need tree hollows in which to nest and raise their young. In our area much of the bush was cleared during the gold rush, which in tree terms is not that long ago. Therefore, there hasn’t been the passage of time for trees to grow old and develop tree hollows. You might like to consider putting up a Crimson Rosella nest box in your garden. I have several at my place and they are used regularly by a number of species, including Crimson Rosellas.

To listen to the varied and lovely calls of the Crimson Rosella, please click here.

Distribution of the Crimson Rosella (image from Atlas of Living Australia)

Words by Jane Rusden

eBird learning tool: a different approach

Posted on 6 February, 2020 by Jess

Being new to bird watching can be a daunting and exciting experience for many, with plenty of birds seemingly having similar appearances and attributes. Thankfully there are many excellent books, guides, smartphone apps and community groups that can assist with the learning of how to identify birds in your region. But we all know that practice, practice, practice is the key to getting familiar with our incredible birdlife in the field and learning from experienced bird-watchers is a great opportunity in our region (see Birdlife Castlemaine’s monthly birdwalk). To the beginner, it can very hard to tell similar species apart, such as the variety of Lorikeets in our region pictured below. Can you recognize who is who?

Photo: Geoff Park

Photo: eBird

Photo: eBird

However, if you cannot get out into the field as often as you like, or cannot access locations to practice your bird spotting skills, there is another way to improve your skills on our local species. We’d like to introduce you to a great learning assistant: eBird Photo and Quiz

Each custom quiz presents you with 20 birds that occur at a date and location of your choosing, pulled from millions of photos and sounds added to the Macaulay Library by eBirders around the world. Guess the species—and don’t worry if you’re wrong—this challenging quiz is for your own fun and learning. After each guess, you’ll rate the photo or sound for its quality, helping curate the Macaulay Library so it is more useful for you and for science. It can be quite a challenge, but we do enjoy that you can choose any location in the world and any date, and get a different mix of birds for every quiz. Sure, it is not as good as being in the field with an expert to guide you, but it could be the next best thing. It is particularly enjoyable to listen to the sounds that go with each bird.

Give it a try, and see how many you can guess correctly.

There is also a useful smartphone app that we highlighted in a previous blog, that we find very useful: Ask Merlin, what is that bird. 

Can anyone guess this local beauty? Photo: Ebird

Become a Connecting Country Member: Join us on our landscape restoration journey

Posted on 6 February, 2020 by Ivan

We have noticed many of our supporters are not currently members of Connecting Country. The support we offer is not exclusive to our members, but we would love to sign up some new people and increase our membership in 2020. By being a member, you are showing your support for Connecting Country, and assisting us to achieve our aims and objectives. Membership provides insurance cover when you attend our events and activities or volunteer with us, and also allows you to vote at our Annual General Meeting and have a say on our future direction.

We currently have 250 valued members and would be thrilled to increase our membership to over 300 members this year. More members will assist us when applying for grants and presenting to potential funding bodies.

Membership is free, and needs to be renewed annually. Applications from first time members are submitted to the Committee of Management for official approval.

To become a member of Connecting Country for free, and help us on our mission of landscape restoration, please click here.

Connecting Country runs community education events, attracting over 1,000 attendees in the past year (photo by Ivan Carter)

For a quick recap of some of what we do and why it’s important, view the following video.

How Connecting Country began

In 2007, the Normal Wettenhall Foundation (now Wettenhall Environment Trust) developed a work plan for supporting community-led landscape restoration in south-east Australia. The Executive Officer contacted Friends of the Box-Ironbark Forests (Mount Alexander Region), an environment group in Castlemaine, to see if there was interest in working collaboratively across the region on a landscape restoration project. A reference group formed, eventually leading to the creation of Connecting Country.

During 2008, the project produced a Biodiversity Blueprint (click here for details) that identified our assets, the possible threats they face and what future actions we can take. It suggested directions, clarified priorities in landscape restoration and helped reconcile cultural, agricultural and natural values.

In 2009, Connecting Country worked in partnership with the North Central Catchment Management Authority to implement a program across the local landscape with a specific focus on the threatened Brush-tailed Phascogale (Tuan) and its Yellow Box Woodland habitat.

Since 2012, we have implemented programs related to local Landcare support, habitat connectivity and pest plant and animal management. We have supported development of local action plans, habitat enhancement for woodland birds, community skills training in environmental management and biodiversity monitoring. For more information on our current projects click here.

Ted Macarthy with a revegetated Acacia (photo by Leonie van Eyk)

Trust for Nature: covenanting for conservation

Posted on 30 January, 2020 by Ivan

Have you ever wondered about conservation covenants and how are they applied? Did you know that we have already lost 80% of our biodiversity on private land in Victoria? We recently caught up with Senior Conservation Officer at Trust for Nature, Kirsten Hutchison, to learn more about this important conservation measure and what it means for landowners across our biodiverse nation. Here is a summary of the questions we asked Kirsten, which we hope will assist landowners in our region better understand covenants and the work Trust for Nature do in Victoria. Kirsten has been with Trust for Nature for nearly a decade and based out of the Castlemaine Office.

What is the concept of conservation covenanting properties?

Conservation covenants are voluntary. They are agreements on property titles that enable private landholders to protect nature forever, even after the property changes hands. Conservation covenants are set up for free—costs are covered so there is no cost to the landholder—and they are one of the most important things a landholder can do to Victoria’s environment.

Why should a landowner consider covenanting a property?

Since 1835, 66% of Victoria’s native habitat has been cleared. This has been most acute on private land, where 80% of biodiversity has been lost. Around 60% of land in Victoria is currently privately owned. Victoria is the most intensively settled and cleared state in Australia so it’s critical that we protect what’s left. This makes private land protection vital if we’re going to save Victoria’s threatened species and ecosystems. National and state parks are simply not enough.

Across the state, more than 1,450 private landholders have protected threatened woodlands, wetlands and grasslands with conservation covenants. These places are home to some of Victoria’s most threatened species such as the Helmeted Honeyeater and Plains-wanderer.

Kirsten Hutchison from Trust for Nature and Jody Gunn at Bush Heritage Australia, on Bush Heritage’s Nardoo Hills Reservem which has Trust for Nature conservation covenant on it. Photo: Bush Heritage Australia.

What are the criteria for covenanting a property?

Generally a property needs to be at least 10 ha in size, have good connectivity and contain high quality remnant native vegetation. Priority is given to properties that have threatened species and vegetation types present on them. Trust for Nature is guided by its Statewide Conservation Plan which identifies 12 priority landscapes across Victoria that will make the greatest contribution towards conservation on private land. The plan also identifies 148 native plants and 88 wildlife species to target for conservation on private land.

Who do I contact about discussing conservation covenants?

Contact Trust for Nature Head Office in Melbourne on (03) 8631 5888 and they can direct you to the appropriate regional staff member. In North Central Victoria you can contact Kirsten Hutchison (Senior Conservation Officer) on 0459 168 865.

What are the restrictions on covenanted properties?

A standard covenant generally does not permit:

• Native vegetation removal.
• Introduction of any non-indigenous vegetation.
• Subdivision.
• Deterioration in the quality, flow or quantity of water.
• Removal of wood or timber.
• Removal or disturbance of soil or rocks, including cultivation.
• Application of fertiliser.
• Pasture establishment.
• Recreational use of trail bikes and other recreational vehicles.

However, these standard restrictions can be modified in certain circumstances where the Trust is satisfied that the conservation of the land will not be adversely affected, i.e., the Trust can give permission for a temporary variation of the covenant via a ‘Letter of Approval’.  Permission granted by a letter of approval is conditional on the upholding of the conservation values of the property.

What are the benefits for biodiversity and our ecosystems?

Together with conservation covenants and reserves, we have protected more than 100,000 hectares across Victoria. This provides safe places for native animals and plants forever and helps to protect some of Victoria’s most threatened species such as the Helmeted Honeyeater, Growling Grass Frog and Red-tailed Black Cockatoo.  We also work with partner organisations such as Zoos Victoria and the Royal Botanic Gardens which rely on covenanted land for the safe release of plants and animals from captive breeding programs.

The Trust’s stewardship program provides ongoing support to landholders with a conservation covenant. The aim of the program is to ensure that all significant areas covenanted by the Trust are managed to maintain and enhance (where possible) the conservation values by preventing and controlling any threats to the biodiversity of a site. The program does this by providing the following services to landowners:

• Practical assistance: A site management plan is prepared for each proposed covenant in consultation with the landowner during the initial covenanting process.
• Technical advice: The Trust sources and provides technical advice to ensure landowners have access to up-to-date conservation related land management advice.
• Education: The Trust provides resources to enable landowners to improve their knowledge about managing and monitoring their covenanted properties. This is achieved through field days, information sheets, developing flora and fauna monitoring programs and one-on-one contact with landowners.
• Financial assistance: The Trust provides information on financial assistance that may be available from time to time for covenanters, including incentive grants for conservation activities (such as fencing, pest plant and animal control, and revegetation), rate rebate schemes with local councils, and tax concessions for the protection of covenanted properties.

Protecting and enhancing biodiversity on private land has public benefits to ecosystems and sustainable landscapes. The landowner named this paddock ‘Kirsten’s Paddock’ as a tribute to her efforts in protecting this important Plains-wanderer habitat.  (Photo by Kirsten Hutchison)

Trust for Nature – some general facts:

• TfN are a not-for-profit Victorian conservation organisation and are one of Australia’s oldest conservation organisations, established by an Act of the Victorian Parliament in 1972.
• Together with conservation covenants and reserves, has protected more than 102,000 hectares across Victoria.
• Trust for Nature has registered more than 1,459 conservation covenants since 1986
• Trust for Nature owns 42 nature reserves across Victoria, including the iconic Neds Corner Station, a 30,000 hectare property near Mildura that was once part of the Kidman empire.
• Trust for Nature uses a revolving fund to buy and sell private land with high conservation values. They protect these properties with conservation covenants then on-sell them to new owners.

Watch the following video for an overview of Trust for Nature’s valuable work.