Observers attend Indigenous seed collection and propagation workshops.

We attended two workshops in November which were conducted by Seeding Victoria, at Creswick. The seed collection workshop provided basic theoretical knowledge on topics relevant to collection, cleaning and storing seed. The workshop was well complimented by hands on experience, using different techniques and tools.

The second workshop covered aspects of seed and plant propagation. It was an informative and practical way to learn how to deal with seed and plant cuttings once they have been collected. The success of the hands on part of the workshop will be measured by the successful germination of seeds we brought home.

Having attended these workshops we, are now enthusiastically looking for opportunities to utilise our newfound (but very basic) knowledge and skills. We hope to make use of the Pimelia spinicens - Spiny Rice Flower seed that we have already collected this year.

Annette Robertson and Lynton Schriever

Photo - collecting seed

Frogmouth families

This month, on three separate occasions, at three different locations we have sighted Tawny Frogmouth with chicks. A truly marvellous sight, as the nest is only a flimsy platform of sticks and it is amazing how the chicks and the mother remain on such a lightweight nest. When observed during daylight hours they simply sit motionless, and it is easy to miss them, as they look like part of the branch.

There has been a number of interesting bird sightings. The sound of the bird call is often what alerts the observer to look for the bird. We have heard the mournful calling of the Bronzewing pigeon and the distinctive call of the peaceful dove. Thought we were hearing things on our walk one morning, but further across some open country we confirmed the call was that of a small group of cockatiel.

The warmer weather has seen goannas active again. We are wondering what has happened to a goanna that often resides in our tank overflow pipe (now full of water). In the days before the big rains we noticed large numbers of dragon flies, and also heard a lot of cicadas. Many insects (other than mosquitos) are now proliferating.Investigating what looked like a mouse or a rat disappearing into the top of an old piece of farm machinery revealed a family group of antechinus, happily living inside.

The intense excitement of this year’s flush of spring flowering is fading, but never the less a number of colourful native plants are in full flower right now. For example, Magenta Storks bill is in unusually large numbers,

Still plenty to see in the bush, mozzie repellent is a requirement at present, but our natural environment is certainly well worth a look. The response to the rains has been spectacular.

Wedderburn Conservation Management Network “Observers”

Land for Wildlife Talk

THE WEDDERBURN CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT NETWORK PRESENTS

TERRI WILLIAMS – LAND FOR WILDLIFE EXTENTION OFFICER WITH DSE.

COME ALONG AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE LAND FOR WILDLIFE PROGRAM

MONDAY JANUARY 10^TH AT THE WEDDERBURN COMMUNITY NEIGHBOURHOOD HOUSE BEGINNING AT 7PM.

SUPPER PROVIDED.

TO RSVP PLEASE CONTACT WENDY MURPHY ON 0438384053

wendy.murphy@dse.vic.gov.au

OR MICHAEL MOORE ON 54943542

emandem@iinet.net.au

Norman Wettenhall Foundation Workshop

Some weeks ago I attended the Norman Wettenhall foundation workshop which was held at the Ceres Environmental Centre in Melbourne. As a member of the deputation from the Loddon Plains Landcare Network which also included Mal Brown, Jean McClymont and Leah Cripps (Project Officer of the LPLN) we were involved in discussions aimed at sharing the challenges and progress of the five Natural Resource Management groups funded by the foundation.

Other groups involved in the valuable discussions were members from the Connecting Country Project (Mt Alexander Shire), the Beyond Bolac Project, the JARR Project ( Jack and Albert River Restoration) and the Otway Agroforestry Network and the Upper Barwon Landcare Network - Otway L.E.A.F. Project (linking environment and farms).

A theme common to all projects was that of developing biodiversity blueprints for each project area and much discussion was centred around this subject. The Loddon Plains Landcare network although the “youngster” in this group is well on track in this aspect as our Project Officer goes about the business of collecting information from the thirteen member groups of the LPLN. The Wedderburn CMN is a strong supporter of the united efforts of the Loddon Plains Landcare Network.

Michael Moore, photo – round table discussion at Ceres Centre

Spiny Rice Flower mosaic burn

How would the local population of Pimelia spinicens – Spiny rice flower respond to burning? The wet weather has contributed to a large increase in vegetation growth at the site and a trial of burning has been discussed over the past year.

With the assistance of Wedderburn CFA a small mosaic burn was conducted at the roadside site of the plants. Unfortunately, wet weather has not only increased the amount of biomass around the plants, but made the unused road site too soft to take vehicles on. An alternate site to burn was planned, and with good conditions the burn took place on 17 November.

Still green vegetation resulted in a partially successful burn of one small area approximately 4m X 4m. Photopoint monitoring has been commenced at the site.

Annette Robertson

Fox Baiting

I have recently had some feedback from members of the public who have concerns about the methods employed by the WCMN to conduct our fox baiting program. The first issue many people raise is the risk to non-target species, especially native animals and that by doing a baiting we are killing all animals. The 1080 impregnated baits are targeted quite specifically for pest animals. In general, foxes, rabbits, dogs and cats are most susceptible, with other animals less so, birds even less susceptible and amphibians and reptiles the least susceptible.

Fox ( Species)	0.2 ( number of baits = lethal dose)	Very susceptible (Comments)
Feral cat/cat	0.5	Very susceptible
Wild Dog/dog	0.7	Very susceptible
Eagle	13	Unlikely to come across or eat this many baits
Western grey kangaroo	300	Not attracted to meat
Eastern grey kangaroo	5	Not attracted to meat
Goanna	33	Unlikely to come across this many baits
Sheep	8	Unlikely to come across this many baits, not attracted to meat or buried food

Data from Animal Control Technologies Fox-Off Brochure

The placement and deployment of the baits is also designed to target foxes. The baits are placed approximately 500m apart in sections of the Wychitella NCR, where foxes are likely to frequent and are buried to a depth of 15cm. This makes it extremely unlikely that native birds or carnivores will dig for them, and herbivores would show no interest at all.

There are very strict regulations about the use of 1080 fox baits and all users must have completed a Farm Chemical Users course to gain an Agricultural Chemical Users Permit, (ACUP), and then complete another course to gain 1080 Endorsement.

Another concern is that the baits will blow on to properties or poison will leach out with rain and contaminate dams. The 1080 compound is impregnated in a processed meat cube about 5cm x 3cm x 2cm, so once buried in the ground it will not blow anywhere. Water and fungi/bacteria break down the 1080 compound over time, but it will not contaminate dams or waterways as it will be so diluted and it is not residual in soils.

The whole purpose of our fox baiting is to protect the endangered malleefowl and other native animals from being preyed upon. If all animals were going to be killed, it certainly wouldn’t be done.

An interesting fact is that the 1080 compound is found naturally in more than 30 species of plants in Australia including the Gigee, Heart-leaf Poison Bush and Box Poison Bush.

For more information you can read the “1080 poison baits for pest animal control” Landcare Notes produced by DSE, which can be found on the DSE website or by searching for ‘1080 Poison’ or contact me on 0438384053 or wendy.murphy@dse.vic.gov.au

WCMN Community Bus Trip

Eight enthusiastic members of the public boarded the bus at Wedderburn to view sites of interest relevant to projects and works conducted by WCMN. Due to road conditions, the route had been modified but there was still plenty to see.

The tour guide was Wendy Murphy, WCMN Ranger , assisted by “the observers”. Wendy had produced a comprehensive handout of the history, the projects and activities of WCMN, in conjunction with explanatory maps. The sites visited covered many examples of WCMN work –revegetation, fencing of vegetation remnants, pest plant and animal control, monitoring works, threatened species management, and illustrations of the challenges of protecting significant vegetation sites

A pleasant lunch was had, enhanced by the location, at the very full Skinners Flat reservoir.

At the Korong bushland reserve there were some interesting reflections on its history, as some of the passengers had been involved with the original Velvet Daisy bush plantings. They were pleased to see that work is still continuing on that plant species.

With the plague locusts becoming thicker, and an intense storm looming, the tour was completed in comfortable time. Participants completed evaluations on the experience and had plenty of positive comments. A number have joined WCMN as members following this field introduction to WCMN activities.

Annette Robertson, photo – Wendy Murphy (right) informing tour guests about exclusion plots

Orchid species back from the dead

In a time when more and more plant and animal species worldwide are added to endangered lists and when experts warn us we are approaching a “wave of extinctions” equal to the one that caused the demise of the dinosaurs, Wedderburn can call itself home to an extinct species that has come back from the dead. The Robust Greenhood Orchid (Pterostylis valida) was last seen in 1941 and had been officially declared nationally extinct in 1999. Now, a small group of this species has been found at the Nardoo Hills reserve of Bush Heritage Australia.

This reserve, to the west of the Wychitella Nature Conservation Reserve (NCR), and about 20 kilometres from Wedderburn, was purchased by Bush Heritage (BHA) in 2004 and staff and volunteers have been busy all these years to clear the hills of rabbits, goats and invasive weeds. The discovery of this orchid comes during a time when the reserve is revealing a lot of botanical treasures and more exciting news is expected in the coming years.

The orchid was photographed last year by Ian Higgins of the local Catchment Management Authority (NCCMA) on a field trip to the Nardoo Hills. When he showed his photos to Julie Whitfield and Geoff Nevill of the biodiversity unit of the DSE at Epsom, Bendigo, they knew that they were looking at something special. It has taken until last month to find the orchid again, and this time Julie and Geoff took samples to establish a definite identification. This was quite hard as the National Herbarium only had one dried sample of this species and no photographs existed.

Since 1999 the national conservation status of this plant has been “extinct”. The Department of Sustainability and the Environment (DSE) is now lodging an application to downgrade this status to “critically endangered”. Once this process is completed, research will be conducted on its relationships with pollinators and fungi in the soil and this in turn will inform the land management of the reserve.

This good-news story shows that the right management of ecologically sensitive land can result in even extinct species making a comeback. When consistently tackling weeds and rabbits, restoring our natural landscape is possible.

Jeroen van Veen (BHA), photo – the Robust Greenhood Orchid