What can we do to revive LAND for WILDLIFE?

What a shame that Land for Wildlife has fizzled out. So many properties proudly display their signs but the program has quietly slipped away and the field officers have disappeared. Wouldn’t it be great if Land for Wildlife made a come back.

Small Brown Birds

The Euroa Birdwatchers visited Ruffy this week to check out the bird life in our riparian forest. The group ( Betty, Ann and Jill ) were delighted with the number of ‘small brown birds’ using this area. Before lunch the bush was alive with birds foraging in the bark hanging from the mountain swamp gums and amongst the  tea-tree thickets. After lunch the wind sprung up and the smaller birds disappeared , apparently this is the normal pattern on bird watching afternoons. Our list included : Yellow-faced honeyeaters, White-eared honeyeaters, Black-chinned honeyeaters, Brown headed honeyeaters, (I can see a pattern here !) Red wattlebird, Grey fantail, Blue wren, White-throated tree creeper, Golden whistler, Grey thrush, Flame robin, Yellow rumped thornbill, Striated thornbill, Yellow thornbill … These small brown birds are very colourful .

Rabbit control with the ‘Gas Gun’

Rabbit warrens in hard to get-at places are the perfect target for this bit of technology. Members of the Strathbogie Tableland Landcare Group got together on Sat morning to see a demo of how to use the group’s ‘gas gun’. This tool uses LPG gas to cause an explosion in the mouth of a warren, which sends a shock wave down the burrow. It’s claimed the shock wave has enough force to collapse a rabbit’s lungs and vital organs, killing it quickly and humanely while its down the burrow.

Cardboard Nesting Box

This family of sugar gliders have made themselves a very comfortable home  in a cardboard box on a pantry shelf  in the old Terip Terip School.  See the box on the left-hand side of the top shelf above the bottles of jam and chutney . It is lined with fresh green gum leaves. The family have been in residence for some time much to the delight of Tim & Andrew. They scamper out through a gap at the back each evening to forage for food in the nearby silver wattles .

 

 

They were asleep when I peeped in but later that evening Tim photographed them leaving on their nightly adventures.

I wish I had SUGAR gliders in my pantry.

We were warned….weeds

We were warned that our changing climate would create opportunities for infestations of new weeds to establish  and it’s  happening . The recent wet summers have been very favourable for the spread of Inkweed. This weed has been quietly sitting in the background for years , a few plants dotted across the countryside, not doing much harm . Suddenly we have noticed an explosion of this stinking toxic weed in the Creightons Creek , Gooram & Ruffy areas.

Ink Weed,  Phytolacca octandra : native of Central America, Mexico.     A weed of disturbed sites, waste areas, gardens, forest margins and roadsides. Its distinguishing features : A large herbaceous plant to small shrub growing to 3 m  but usually 1 m tall. Branched stems reddish in colour and hairless. Alternately arranged leaves that are green at first but often turn reddish with age. Inconspicuous greenish – white flowers that grow in clusters. Purplish black berries containing a reddish colour juice.

The seeds are dispersed by birds and foxes

Inkweed is regarded as an environmental weed and parts of the plant are toxic to livestock.

Landcare Coordinators in the Hughes Creek Catchment have taken action to prevent the spread of this weed along roadsides. They regularly patrol problem areas, cutting and painting the plant bases with herbicide  and removing the plants to prevent the ripening berries from germinating.

Tailed Emperor Butterfly – an unusual and beautiful visitor

The Tailed Emperor (Polyura sempronius sempronius) is, for some reason, an uncommon visitor to the higher altitudes of the Ranges, though they are  seen at lower altitudes. This specimen was found as a larva near Euroa, then ‘brought up’ by Ben at home in Boho South.

Nestboxes for Wildlife

Have you got any on your place? Ever wondered why people do it, or what they’re for? Come along on Friday evening, 25^th May, 2012, to the Violet Town Community Hall, tell us your story and hear all about what’s happening locally, nest-box-wise.

Come along to hear about the several larger nest-box-projects in our district that have been getting fantastic results, in terms of habitat improvement, wildlife records, and in being a great way for landholders to observe some our most secretive native animals on their own properties.

For more information: Bertram Lobert (5790 8606), Janet Hagen (5790 4268), or Janice Mentiplay-Smith (57611644, 0418 316 169), or view more details here. RSVP essential.

Additional nestbox information & resources:

Birds Australia Info sheet – Nestboxes

Warrenbayne Boho Nest-box_Information_Leaflet

Nestboxes & Tree-hollows- Australian Wildlife Cam

Land for Wildlife- Nestboxes for native wildlife

Choosing sites for nest-boxes- advice from Ray Thomas

[This and more info can be found on the Strathbogie Ranges CMN nest-box web pages, here]