Category: Activity Report

THREATENED SPECIES GROUP REPORT

(From the CMA newsletter but covering several of the activities FOGG members have helped with.)

Wimmera Threatened Species Officer Pauline Rudolph compiled a list of achievements after ‘a year to remember’.  Ms Rudolph said the flora team had ‘significant’ achievements during the year. “There are certainly more things worthy of mention, but 10 is a good take-home message,” she said. “Many of these achievements wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work of our plant-enthusiast volunteers.”  Ms Rudolph said the top 10 achievements were in no specific order.

The State Government funds the Wimmera Threatened Species program through Wimmera CMA. The top 10 achievements were: 

  1. A new location of the Tawny Spider-orchid, Caladenia fulva. 
  2. Creating collections for the Millennium SeedBank project with the Royal Botanic Gardens.
  3. Extending the population of the Grampians Bitter-Pea, Daviesia laevis in the Grampians. 
  4. Roadside-plant studies north of the Little Desert, updating numbers and health for
… Read the rest

FOGG ACTIVITY CALENDAR

CHINNUP – WINTER Season of cockatoos
The Winter season is characterised at Brambuk by cockatoos, and fungi.

FOGG ACTIVITY CALENDAR

June 27 Saturday 10 am: Red Gum Walk working bee. See inside for more on the RGW. Contact person: Stan 5383 6349

July 1 Wednesday. Time to be confirmed. Celebrate the 25th anniversary of the proclamation of the Grampians National Park by walking from Wonderland car park to Halls Gap via the brand new Pinnacle to Halls Gap track. Contact Parks on 5361 4000.

July 18 Saturday 10 am: Fungi Frolic. Meet at Zumsteins picnic area near toilet block to then travel to a site which will be decided according to rainfall. Contact Ewen: 5383 6294

August 22 or 29 (to be confirmed). Another Red Gum Walk working bee to install new signs. Contact Margo closer to the time. 5356 4524.

September 12 Saturday 10 am: Spring picnic and our … Read the rest

Ptilotus erubescens (Hairy- tails) Count

Assemble at 9.30 am at the "Cooinda Burrong" for the start of the survey count of flower heads at 10 am. The gate at the "Dad & Dave" weir will be unlocked just after 9 am. The gate must be kept closed and the chain on the hook – lock closes to the pole.

After lunch we will have a general meeting where we will be looking more closely at the interpretation at the Red Gum Walk and hopefully getting something together to go to PV to go on a new board in a new information “wishing well”.

Contact person Stan -  5383 6349… Read the rest

PiIMELEA PAGAPHILA SEARCH November 8.

The search went very well. Sylvia and six volunteers. At all the previous recorded sightings on the Sheephills track we found masses of seedlings, but only one or two plants that had resprouted from the parent plant. We estimated that each mature plant must have left behind in excess of a hundred viable seeds, which had been dispersed about 10-15m on either side of the parent plant – probably spread by ants. Some seed had germinated the first spring and some the second spring after the fire. A good strategy if you don’t know if there’s going to be sufficient rain for adequate growth in the first year. Many of the seedlings had already flowered and one or two had reached around 30cms in height. Altogether very reassuring, now we just have to see how many survive the pressures of competition from other species and from browsing.
We were fortunate … Read the rest

Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby day

*BTRW – Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby*

On Nov. 3rd, 2007 Tony Corrigan, BTRW(Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby) Project Manager with the Grampians National Park, together with Sylvia van der Peet, Threatened Species officer, led a group of approx. 30 people on a 4WD tour of the proposed ‘release site’ for the Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby. This elusive creature known as the ‘Shadow’ once thrived in small colonies in the rocky outcrops & terraces of the Gramps, however it is thought to have become extinct in the 1930’s. Some knowledgeable locals believe the wallaby existed well into the 60’s, in much smaller numbers of course. Predation came about due to competition with foxes, goats and other feral animals.

Tony Corrigan, has come to the Grampians from Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve (outside Canberra) where Wallaby fostering trials started in 1997. Tony is most passionate about the planned release of wallabies into the Grampians; he was extremely pleased … Read the rest

Brush tailed rock wallaby community action group

Following the successful launch of the Brush tailed rock wallaby (BTRW) holding facility at Dunkeld last December Barry Clugston and Tony Corrigan have been considering ways for interested people to become involved with the brush tailed rock wallaby recovery project.

A number of individuals have expressed an interest in being more involved in the project and as a result of that interest it is proposed that a community based action group be formed.

Such a group could have a number of functions, some suggestions are:

* Raise awareness of the plight of the species and the efforts to conserve it. This program has very broad benefits for the ecological communities in BTRW habitat – for example the control of foxes has shown to have extensive benefits for small native mammal populations and fire management regimes that benefit BTRWs can also be used to conserve landscape values.

* Raise awareness of … Read the rest

Friends of Grampians Gariwerd