Activity Report – Friends of Grampians Gariwerd

Orchid Adventure Day 11th October

October 11th Saturday: Orchid Adventure with Hamilton Field Naturalists
For those wanting to carpool:
9am : John King will be at the Delleys Bridge carparking area in a White SUV to coordinate Carpooling.

Please note the tracks are not suitable for 2WD.

Meet at 9:00 AM in Halls Gap near Delleys Bridge (car parking area) for those who would like to carpool. We’ll leave by 9:15 AM. Carpooling is recommended due to dirt roads and limited roadside space.

For those travelling direct to meeting place.

10am : Meeting up with Hamilton Field Naturalists: We’ll meet at 10am, near Mirranatwa Gap, at the southern end of Henham track, (orchid reports are good at present), have morning tea and then progress to further spots, to be decided on the day depending on orchids and track closures.

https://goo.gl/maps/YPJt2S3ELnUkoftz8

Bring lunch, a chair and a flask if you would like. Recommended long trousers and … Read the rest

August 8th 2025 DEECA Update on the Joint Fuel Management Program

Dom Uljanic, Emily Kirton and Claire Mackay from DEECA attended and provided 16 members and non-members with an overview of the recent Grampians fires (2024-2025) and plans for future fire management.
The recent fires were unprecedented burning 136,647 hectares, 2/3 of the National Park, and one of 7 major landscape fires in the Grampians in the last 19 years.
Multiple dry lightning strikes, a period of extended dry conditions, wind and weather conditions led to the Yarram Gap fire rapidly getting out of control and reaching a size of 100 hectares in a matter of minutes. This was despite the early deployment of 4 bombers. Due to the location, it was not possible to get a ground crew in, and firefighting efforts relied on aerial control.
This was sobering. It was clear to me from the talk that fire management is a juggling act of resources, local knowledge, tactics and … Read the rest

“Tail of the Squirrel Glider” Project Platypus

Squirrel Glider Plantout a Soaring Success in Ledcourt
9 August 2025 – Project Platypus planting
Sunshine, community spirit, and 40 eager volunteers set the stage for an unforgettable day in Ledcourt, as Project Platypus hosted its very first plantout event for the Tail of the Squirrel Glider project. “With perfect weather and the group’s high energy – we really couldn’t have asked for a better day”, said Phoebe Nowell-Usticke, Project Coordinator at Project Platypus. “From start to finish, it was a true community effort, and everyone left feeling like they’d been part of something important.”
The planting site was located just 100 metres from a recent squirrel glider sighting, making the planting all the more relevant. Thanks to the incredible turnout, the team not only planted over 1,000 native trees and shrubs, they did it in record time.
Morning tea kicked things off, followed by a planting demonstration, and seedling … Read the rest

Sallow Wattle removal day

Sallow wattle (Acacia longifolia spp longifolia), is an invasive out of place native plant shading out the park’s unique vegetation.

On Sunday 10th August, 10 members tackled sallow wattle at Gar Trailhead and had a satisfying and successful morning. We pulled out and removed many patches of resprouting wattles from an area that Parks have recently slashed.
It is looking great.
More work may need to be done but this is a start.
We wanted to get in before it seeds in November.
Thankyou to all involved.… Read the rest

Wildlife talk by Neil Macumber

What a great afternoon. Thankyou Neil!
Thirty-four members and non-members attended this interesting slide presentation.
Neil showed us his favourite birds, reptiles, frogs and mammals in the Grampians.
One of his favourite birds is the Gang Gang cockatoo.
“When we came to the Grampians area it was great to see and hear Gang Gangs regularly as we certainly did not see them in suburban Carnegie. They are a lovely small cockatoo (32 to 36cm in length) with a creaky outdoor “Dunny Door” type call. Because of habitat fragmentation and continued clearing, global warming, bushfires and fuel reduction burning they are listed as ‘Endangered’.

Image courtesy of Neil Macumber… Read the rest

Dr John White May 2025

9th May 2025. A long-term study aids understanding of the likely impact of climate change on Gariwerd’s small mammals

Associate Professor John White presented to 32 attendees recently on “How will little critters cope with Climate Change?’ The Grampians fire, climate and biodiversity project.

Climate Changes means fires, drought and floods and this project aims to look at how ecosystems are going to respond.

Over the past 20 years the Grampians has experienced hypervariable climatic conditions, including four mega fires since 2005. Major fires are now more frequent, more intense, and more devastating. Floods are becoming more frequent and severe with major damage from the 2010/2011 flood.

Photo Credit Leigh Douglas

Deakin University has established 36 survey sites and conducted extensive small mammal surveys since 2008. These surveys have tracked numbers of feral (house mouse and black rat) and native species. Native rodents include the heath mouse and swamp rat, … Read the rest

Clean up Australia Day 2025 Meeting report

Sunday 2nd March Pines Plantation campground.

The day went well. The weather did us proud, nice morning. A dozen members participated and although the camp ground looked pretty clean at first glance we collected up a good eight bags of rubbish and some extraneous items over a bit more than one and half hours, which we thought was good hunting, so we didn’t do the quarry. Park Ranger Nick called by just after I arrived to set up and thankfully he offered to call past in the afternoon and collect the rubbish if we left it behind the toilets. Thanks Nick and thankyou to all our volunteers.

Another successful team effort.

… Read the rest

Tail of the Squirrel Gliders night survey report

On Monday evening, Friends of Grampians Gariwerd members and Project Platypus Elia and Lee ventured along the roadside vegetation to survey the area for Squirrel Gliders. We gathered at Mt Drummond Road, equipped with thermal imaging scopes and red light torches, tools crucial for spotting nocturnal wildlife. As the sun disappeared and darkness enveloped the landscape, the bushland seemed to come alive around us.

Our night began with some remarkable sightings. Almost immediately, a Brush-tailed Possum appeared in our sights, its distinctive, bushy tail illuminated in the soft red glow. Not long after, we caught sight of a Ring-tailed Possum navigating its way through the canopy with remarkable grace. These initial encounters reminded us of the importance of roadside vegetation with its mix of trees and understorey of wattles and set an exciting tone for the survey.

The real stars of the evening, however, were the Sugar Gliders. Not long … Read the rest

Special General Meeting – 2nd March 2025 @ 1pm, Meeting Room, Centenary Hall, Halls Gap

Welcome: Vice President Geoff Stratford took the chair and expressed thanks to Catherine Carlyle, Wendy Bedggood and Alison Bainbridge for their work leading up to calling this meeting.

Alison Bainbridge was minute secretary for this meeting.

Attendance: Geoff Stratford, Rod Thompson, Judith Thompson, John Minchin-King, Alan Bedggood, Wendy Bedggood, Neil Macumber and Alison Bainbridge

Apologies: Catherine Carlyle, Clive Carlyle, Elia Pirtle, James Maino, Andrew Cunningham, Sue Cunningham, Darren McClelland, John King, Jocelyn King, David Steane, Leigh Douglas, ben Gunn, Cindy Thompson

Motion: Apologies be accepted

Moved: Alan Bedggood Seconded: Judith Thompson Carried

All apologies registered their proxy in favour of all motions as foreshadowed in the Notice of this Special General Meeting.

Reason why a special meeting was called: Chair invited Wendy Bedggood to provide a brief outline of the why and how we have reached the position where Friends of Grampians Gariwerd (FOGG) could take the action to … Read the rest

Winter Blooms Walk Mt Stapleton July 2024

Saturday 13th July: Neil Marriott and Neil Macumber
9:45 Meet at Mt Zero Car Park

10:00 Walk to see the Winter Blooms on the way to Mt Stapylton via Flat Rock and Taipan Wall.

Chance to check out the vegetation in the north of Grampians/Gariwerd
BYO Picnic Lunch

An enjoyable day with a stroll up Flat Rock seeing Acacia stricta, Leptospermum turbinatum, Melaleuca decussata and many more plants.

We even made it to the top to see the Zieria oreocena – the Grampians Zieria – an endemic only found in the northern ranges.

… Read the rest