Twilight adventure in Karakamia

Last night, a large group of excited adults and children visited Karakamia Wildlife Sanctuary.  Karakamia is run by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, and covers over 200ha of beautiful bushland with jarrah and marri trees, with rolling hills and small creeklines. 

The first place we visited was the information centre, a rustic log house, where we met our guides, and split into two smaller groups.

Our guides took us carefully through the bush just after sundown.  We learned about the various nocturnal mammals that live in the forest, such as the woylie (a.k.a. Brush-tailed Bettong), quenda (Southern Brown Bandicoot) and Tammar wallabies.  We saw all of these animals during our walk, as they foraged in the undergrowth for their food, safe from harm.  Karakamia Sanctuary is surrounded by a "predator-proof" fence, which keeps out feral animals like foxes, cats and dogs.

There were so many things to look at; golden orb spiders, leaf-curl spiders, trees that are hundreds of years old, and places where animals had dug for food.  We saw a trapline put in by visiting biologists to study small animals.  Our guides showed us places where some of the animals live, such as goanna burrows, and possum hollows in wandoo trees.  We learned a little bit about the jarrah forest web of life.

After two hours of walking, looking and listening, we headed back to the log house for well-deserved cups of tea and snacks.  What an exciting adventure! 

Ellenbrook Bushland Group, in association with City of Swan, is planning more adventures like this one for local residents.  Keep an eye on the Upcoming Events listing above.

The Great Cocky Count - debriefing

I headed out yesterday afternoon to my designated observation site near The Vines to take part in The Great Cocky Count.  It was beautiful weather; clear skies with almost no cloud, and comfortably cool (around 22 degrees Celsius).  The site was in a Bush Forever area, and a quick walk around it revealed large mature paperbark trees (mostly Melaleuca rhaphiophylla) as well as Marri (Corymbia calophylla) and other gum trees, surrounding a natural spring.  I chose a place on top of nearby earthworks, about 180 metres away, to view the site as dusk approached.  Two kangaroos bounded past, startled.

It was a quiet evening.  I waited impatiently for Carnaby's Black-Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus latirostris) to make an appearance.  Usually flocks of these birds can be heard from several hundred metres away, but I heard only a few magpies and butcherbirds carolling the sunset.  I watched the colours changing on the Perth Hills with the fading light, and picked a few more ticks off my socks.  Commercial jets droned overhead on their early descent to Perth airport, all flashing lights and brightly-lit tails.  But no flocks of big black birds arrived.  It soon became obvious that Carnaby's might not be coming to roost on this occasion.  

At 6:40pm, I packed up my binoculars and notepad.  My count for the evening was zero.  From a scientific viewpoint, this is still a result, and however disappointing, it's important that it's included in the survey.  I hope the other volunteers had more impressive counts!

 

NEEDED - field assistants for The Great Cocky Count 2010

Wednesday April 7th is marked on our calendars for the next Great Cocky Count - a day when dedicated birdwatchers "stake out" at likely places to watch Carnaby's Black-Cockatoos as they come in to roost.

Although flocks of hundreds of birds are sometimes seen, the numbers of Carnaby's Black-Cockatoo have fallen by 50% over the last forty years.  Many areas of cockatoo food plants have been cleared, and the cockatoos face competition from feral animals for nesting sites. 

This survey helps scientists to work out what is happening with this Endangered species, and hopefully show local government and other groups which areas of bushland need to be retained for the species' survival.  The survey is a joint project between Birds Australia and the Department of Environment and Conservation.

The Great Cocky Count is an excellent way to help our local biodiversity.  If you would like to join Fat Bobbie for the Great Cocky Count, and help her with recording the numbers of birds coming in to roost, please send an email to ldalgliesh at hotmail dot com with your name and contact details.  First in, best dressed!  The evening's "stake out" will start around 5:30pm, and you will need to be fit enough to walk about 2km across rough terrain (and in the dark!) to the survey site and back.  

Read more about the Great Cocky Count in my Community, and about the biology of Carnaby's Black-Cockatoo on Wikipedia and the Threatened Species Day website.