Category: General

Results of Nest Box Monitoring Walmer Conservation Reserve

Thank you to everyone who came to the nest box monitoring activity on Sunday 19th May 2019 at the Walmer Conservation Reserve. And a big thank you to Blair from City of Greater Bendigo who lent us the pole and camera equipment, which I found incredibly useful and definitely beats the ‘going up the ladder’ approach. Miles Geldard led the activity and is going to be doing some follow up repairs in the Reserve.

We surveyed for two hours in the morning, but then Nev, Dave, Beth and Theo went back in the afternoon and did another two hours to finish it off. There are around 90 boxes on the reserve and we are currently working on putting in GPS points for each box as well as a new labelling system. Some boxes are for Bats, Pardalotes and Kookaburras, but we only surveyed the larger mammal boxes.

The results are as follows:  We checked 74 boxes in total. We found 28 animals – 5 Brush-tailed Possums, 4 Brush-tailed Phascogales, and 19 Sugar Gliders. There was evidence of recent phascogale nesting in 14 boxes. Three boxes had bees. This data will be submitted into the Atlas of Living Australia.

Blair on the pole camera with various people monitoring through screens and iPods
The monitors allow everyone to see what’s nesting in the box

 

Young Dale and his mum Linda. Dale was doing his Landcare badge for Scouts

 

Jacky Lizards

These guys are everywhere, living in the wood pile, under the tank pump, in stumps of wood, under the caravan. They don’t seem fussy about their homes, and they are incredibly friendly. In fact, we often nearly step on them as they are in no hurry to flee.

Talking Fire Events

Returning cultural burning to Country – Djandak Wi
Thursday 29 November 7.30pm
Newstead Community Centre (9 Lyons Street, Newstead)
All welcome – no need to book.

Come and hear Scott Falconer (Assistant Chief Fire Officer with FFMVic) share his experience in the United States and Canada where he explored the involvement of Indigenous people in land and fire management, with a focus on how Traditional Owners are working with agencies to reintroduce cultural burning to Country, establishing strong relationships with Traditional Owners and creating employment opportunities.

Scott’s research was supported through The Lord Mayor’s Bushfire Appeal Churchill Fellowship. He was accompanied by Trent Nelson, Dja Dja Wurrung man and Parks Victoria Ranger Team Leader for part of the research trip. Read more here …

Reviving Indigenous Burning Practices in a Changed Landscape: Community Search Conference
Friday 30 November 9am-5pm.
Newstead Community Centre, 9 Lyons Street, Newstead
All welcome. Free event but please book your place by Monday 26 November via Eventbrite.

How we manage fire is an important conversation for rural and bush communities. What can we learn from how Aboriginal people used fire? Are those techniques applicable today in local landscapes that have changed a lot over the last 200 years?

At this one-day event we will discuss how we can connect Indigenous fire traditions with current approaches to fuel reduction and planned burns to shape new ways to protect our landscape and communities.

This event is for everyone with an interest in this topic: community, government, academics, researchers. Read more here …

For more information go to Talking Fire on Facebook or our website or drop us a line at newsteadtalkingfire@gmail.com. Read more about the 2016 Talking Fire event. This project is supported by the Mount Alexander Shire Council Community Grants Program.

Talking Fire is an initiative of the Muckleford Forest Friends Group
Chris Johnston 0354762457, 0418 512 471