Category: Articles

2020 March Prez Sez

Welcome to Friends of the Grampians Gariwerd newsletter.

As I write this, we have had nearly 30mm of rain and it is still coming down. No longer can I see the hills beyond the paddocks. I hope you have all had some relief from this hot and dry summer.

As I look outside on the dry brown grass, I see the red necked wallabies browsing on our lavender bushes…it can’t taste that good or can it? Last year’s joey is still hanging around and still has a drink every so often from mum’s pouch.

In November 2019 Grampians Parks Victoria staff met with local volunteer groups and we went through the process of planning our year and how to get approval for our activities on Park Connect. Following this Rhonda and Hannah have met with FOGG committee members to discuss our monthly activities plus Hannah and Rodney have been out … Read the rest

Walker Swamp Wetlands Tour with Glenelg Nature Trust

14 September, 2019

An absolutely fascinating day looking at the work this group is doing to restore wetlands on the edge of the Grampians, followed by a visit to a redgum forest inside the National Park. You will remember that last year FOGG gave them some money towards buying these properties so as to restore these precious environments. You can subscribe to their newsletter. … Read the rest

AGM and some gardening work in the Halls Gap Botanic Garden

9 November, 2019

At our AGM we chose the committee for 2020:

  • President: Catherine Pye
  • Vice President: Leigh Douglas
  • Secretary: Bill and Judy Gardner
  • Treasurer: Judith Thompson
  • Committee : Geoff Stratford, Andrew Cunningham, Rodney Thompson, Neil Macumber  A vote of thanks was made to retiring members (Mabel Brouwer and David Steane).
  • Newsletter Editor…Margo helped by Ben

We then did some some gardening work in the Halls Gap Botanic Garden, followed by a talk at the Mural Room on Wildlife Health Surveillance Victoria by Pam Whiteley.

Pam is the coordinator of Wildlife Health Victoria and is highly qualified and experienced Vet in the Faculty of Vet and Agricultural Sciences at University of Melbourne. She had previously worked at Healesville Sanctuary, spent 3 years working in the National Wildlife Health Center (American spelling !)  USA, CSIRO animal health laboratory in Geelong and Vic State Vet Laboratory.

Her fascinating talk gave examples of … Read the rest

Christmas on Mt William

December 14, 2019

We had a very enjoyable evening picnic on Mt William. Parks had given us permission for two cars to drive up with our chairs and provisions while most of us walked both ways. It was beautiful weather and this time we were prepared for the cold as the sun set. We revisited the marine fossils in the rock near the very top, and Neil showed us the Mt William Snow Gum (rare and only found on Mt William and Major Mitchell Plateau).… Read the rest

Visit to Cooinda Burrong

January 11, 2020

For our first activity for 2020 a dozen members gathered at the scout camp to revisit the ptilotus erubescens study that we assisted with during Stan Parfitt’s time.

The exclusion plots are long gone. Due to fire damage the remaining fencing material was removed for the safety of those using the scout camp. Quinn (the current camp manager) has tried to keep the signs in place since the fencing was removed. This did enable us to find the study areas. Unfortunately most were bare of ptilotus, or any grasses for that matter. The impact of fires, and the tough conditions and grazing since have had their effects.

One area was still showing both the Ptilotus erubescens (Hairy Tails) and the larger and more common ptilotus macrocephalus, commonly known as Featherheads. Many seed heads had been grazed off. I believe our final count was 40 plants and 60 … Read the rest

Insect Talk

February 7, 2020

It was very good to see over 20 people come to hear Denis Crawford speak on the importance of insects, and to enjoy his amazing photography of “creepy crawlies and bloodsuckers”.

Did you know that the world has 5,500 species of mammals, 10,000 of birds, 40,000 vertebrates and 1.25 million invertebrates, of which 1 million are insects?  Understandably we didn’t hear about all 1 million species but looked at some moths, bees and ants. Lots of fascinating snippets: I never knew that there was a moth that only feeds on dead grass trees. How specialised is that? What do insects contribute to the environment? They pollinate flowers, recycle and bury dung, eat or parasite other insects, provide food for other animals, disperse seed (and in various intriguing ways), aerate the soil. A reduction in insects would massively impact on flowering plants, lessen the food available for fish, … Read the rest

Advisory Group Report

There have been two meetings since our last newsletter. I missed the November one but have the minutes.

A tour of the new Troopers Creek Campground was undertaken . It is the last of the major infrastructure project from the fire recovery program. The team discussed the finalisation of the fire recovery program, Grampians Peaks Trail operations and the biodiversity response program with the Advisory group members.

The February meeting was held last week. The first item was an update on what had happened since our last meeting, particularly the two fires in the park (Mt Lang and Mt William }. Due to the conditions here and the emergencies elsewhere in the state, an enormous effort went into getting them out as soon as possible. Lots of people, lots of equipment. Even on Christmas day 65 people were at the fire. An interesting point was made that as firefighting … Read the rest

Other Park News

Parks staff produce a community newsletter,and here are some pieces from the recent Kooyang one.

Summer Education and Interpretation Program

During January a successful program of education and interpretation activities was delivered to almost 150 kids and adults by the parks Seasonal Rangers. Two guided walks for adults and families were also undertaken. Education and interpretation programs are run in Grampians National Park and surrounding reserves every Summer, Autumn and Spring School Holidays.

Brush-tailed Rock Wallabies

Recent scat analysis from areas around the main Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby population has revealed that four of the colonies offspring have ‘grown-up’ and moved into their own territories. Additionally, two new males have been introduced into the colony to diversify the breeding gene pool. This exciting news provides clarification that young are surviving and predator control is being effective.

Increase in Graffiti

Unfortunately, there has been a steep rise in paint and scratch graffiti … Read the rest

Update on Ian McCann’s Book – “The Grampians in Flower”

It’s pleasing to report that the book is almost ready to go to the printer, so it should be available by the middle of the year. The photos have been scanned and improved, the index gives current names, we’ve added a tribute to Ian, and updated the information on the VNPA and FOGGS. Proofreading is almost complete.

David Welch who has done most of this work has also been hard at work on a few other books which will also be on the market soon.  One is on Western Victorian aborigines and several are children’s books. We’ll let you know more when they become available.… Read the rest

Brush – Tailed Rock Wallaby site

2019 October

Rock Wallabies:

A new ranger is looking after this (Derek Sandow) and funding has been extended. There are five animals remaining, one of them is a male. In September a new young male is planned to be introduced.

Two new males were released in September 2019.… Read the rest

Friends of Grampians Gariwerd