Macgregor. On Saturday 22nd June the
Landcare Day at Macgregor was held beside Ginninderra Creek in such perfect
weather that several of us peeled off layers of clothing to counter the ‘heat’
when working in the sun. We cleared weeds and the introduced grasses around the
plants which were put in to replace mature poplars (removed after public
consultation because they continuously send up suckers which alter the flow of
the creek and make mowing time-consuming).
The young plants are doing
really well and mulch was added around some furthest from the creek-line where
mulch isn’t subject to being washed away during floods. Local eucalypts,
wattles, bottlebrushes, Native blackthorn (Bursaria) and grasses have been
restored to the creek zone. They will
add new habitat for small birds and a non-weedy vista for the many who walk
along the nearby path. Passers-by called in for information and a “What’s
Landcare all about” chat with Ginninderra Catchment Group providing publicity
material, tools, a marquee and putting on a BBQ as Damon did for our Mt Rogers
Explorer Day. With the linear Macgregor area (it follows the line of the creek)
it’s more difficult to create a community of carers, but most of the Umbagong
Landcare Group regulars turned up for whatever time they could spare, giving
the young plants weed-free space for a while at least.
Mt Rogers working-bees. Although
all seems quite damp on Mt Rogers at the moment it is a very different Landcare
site from Macgregor. Our community continues to support our landcaring by
participating in a variety of activities. Flemming and Ivan scouted for Briar
rose plants, collecting & bagging the hips to stop birds spreading the
seeds, and dug the bushes out where possible. With Margaret and Chris, Flemming
planted out some native grass plants. The little Sorghum leiocladum plants were propagated by Robert from Umbagong
Landcare Group. There are two clusters of native Sorghum already on Mt Rogers.
It’s a tall grass with spectacular, reddish flowers and seed heads when
conditions promote flowering. We later scattered some grass thatch from a
native Poa in a bare area near the
‘recent’ Hazard Reduction Burn behind Woodger Place. People can’t always be
here to volunteer. Each working-bee has “apologies” as our members fulfil other
obligations.
New seedlings. Mt Rogers is largely doing its own revegetation. Let’s
hope the soil stays damp as eucalypt, wattle and shrub seedlings lengthen their
roots rather than rely on sporadic rain seeping through the topsoil. On 23rd
June Ann, Flemming and Ivan again worked on Briar roses and on patches of
Periwinkle behind the Bainton Crescent “Cactus gardens”. And today Ann and I
did some preliminary work on Cotoneaster, readying the plants for cut and daub
with herbicide once the sap’s flowing again. During each session we find there
are tiny weed seedlings thriving under large trees’ branches: privet, Viburnum tinus, Ivy, Briar rose, Cotoneaster.
This goes to show that plants with berries, whether useful in the garden or not,
are causing problems in bush reserves.
Sleeper weeds.
A list of sleeper weeds has been drawn
up for the Parks and Conservation Service. These species are causing problems
in the ACT’s bush because their seeds are easily dispersed even though they are
favourites for gardens. We can help Mt Rogers and other reserves and their landcaring
volunteers by ensuring the plants’ seeds can’t be spread by birds, blown away
by wind or slip-streams or carried on wheels. Californian poppy, Seaside Daisy,
Gazanias, South African Daisy Gaura, Euphorbia and Nandina are sleeper weeds.
Will birds eventually begin spreading Agapanthus seeds by deciding they’re
edible. Will unharvested olives become a problem here as they have in the
Adelaide Hills? On a positive, native dispersal-note we did find a young
Kurrajong tree today, growing where its seed had been dropped, probably by a
Currawong. Mt Rogers now has about ten of these fascinating native trees.
Kangaroos. Thank you for reporting more sightings of the
kangaroos. They are an attractive part of the Mt Rogers scene seeming to use
nearly every part of the reserve whilst also being adept at hiding away and
sheltering when they need to. For cross-country enthusiasts the tracks they
have pounded are really useful and introduce walkers to the reserve’s range of
habitats. It’s easy to see that the kangaroos favour Weeping grass because the
tussocks are eaten down. Until they move or flick their ears the kangaroos are
so well camouflaged amongst the winter-beige grass. The other afternoon a
hunched, hopping shape with a black tail crossed the gully. I’m pretty sure it
was a wallaby … so there’s another challenge for observers … what solo animals are we seeing?
Frogmouths. It’s
also worth keeping an eye out for the Frogmouths. Several times they’ve been in
a roost tree near the nest-eucalypt but they’re not there everyday. The tree is
one near the Flynn playground and their perch-branches are above the concrete
drain with its galvanised railing. There’s also an old metal Orienteering sign
as a marker. Expect a dark blob equalling two birds amongst or partly hidden by
the foliage.
Observer’s reward.
A report on 22nd on
the Canberra Ornithologists’ email-line mentioned finding Yellow-tufted
Honeyeaters feeding on Mt Rogers with other canopy birds a few days ago. Visiting,
Roger W emailed a photo of the bird with its spectacular deep yellow chin and
black mask. See http://www.flickr.com/photos/rroger880/9089357937/ Kevin D has also sent a photo to capture his moment of triumph and
he said he’d also seen a Crescent Honeyeater. Both are new species for my list
of Mt Rogers sightings.
Birding. Last Saturday began as forecast: “showers”. I
left the myna trap baited and walked up to see what Mt Rogers could offer.
Quiet small birds in a Mixed Feeding Flock (MFF) were busy in the trees and
shrubs uphill from the notice-box, busily gleaning but giving each other
confidence during Ravens’ and Currawongs’ calls. A larger bird moved, proving
to be a male Golden Whistler and its mate was nearby. A Striated Thornbill flew
so close I felt I could almost reach up and touch it. Others hovered beyond
clusters of eucalypt leaves where they can see and peck at tiny insects with
their thorn-shaped beaks. A Weebill had grabbed a 2 cm-long caterpillar, reinforcing
how vital these insectivorous birds are to the health of plants whether in the
bush, on farms and in our gardens. There was a cacophony of “Miss Piggy”
Spotted Pardalote calls above us.
A coup. A canopy-search revealed Yellow-faced and White-eared
Honeyeaters and, for a long instant a Yellow-tufted
Honeyeater amongst the copious buds of a Eucalypt. Wow! To think that the birds had
remained here for a week after that first sighting.
Is the excitement of
bird-watching a benign form of hunting where nothing is killed and the trophies
are memories … and photographs if one can carry the necessary gear?
Wrens’ calls signalled their
arrival and there were Yellow-rumped Thornbills on the ground. Red-browed
Finches alternated between shrubs’ safety and the grasses. In an open area
where the CVA crew felled Chinese pistachio for us, another Wow! Two Speckled
Warblers foraged in short grass near a long-fallen trunk. They’re a vulnerable
species in the ACT, delightful un-afraid little ground-nesting birds. Steve joyfully
reported seeing three of them later that day. Can we claim they have bred
successfully in spite of foxes and suburbia’s cats?
Undergrowth. I
then went on through the trees and along the roos’ tracks, finding forests of
mosses, lichens and liverworts with sporangia giving height to their
ground-hugging diversity. Recent
rain has enlivened these essential plants and stimulated fungi to raise their
spores into breeze-catching spaces. See some photographs here.
Musings. You will know from these newsletters and our
conversations that Mt Rogers is an obsession for me. It’s part of the natural
scruffiness of the Australian bush but a miniature example of all the beauty,
complexity and interconnectedness that daily enlivens our curiosity and
restores our sense of wonder at life’s and Australia’s uniqueness.
As members of our caring and
observant community you’ll also know that Mt Rogers is occasionally under
threat from a range of forces and processes. The reserve we share reflects
situations elsewhere in Australia where natural habitats, uniqueness and icons
such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Kimberley and our “food bowl” are
threatened.
Shooting and grazing in
national parks, logging native forests, fracking, drilling and mining on
agricultural land, mining in wilderness and native forests and
industrial-farming and over-fishing are being allowed by the powerful … those
who have not have not yet moved beyond exploitation and domination in favour of
respect for other species and, as we do, living more simply so others may,
simply, live.
We are not alone.
Although feeling a sense of
despair is common amongst long-term landcarers, threatened land-loving farmers
and landowners and all those with a love of the outdoors, habitats and species,
surely we mustn’t give up? Communities around the world are uniting in action
against the destruction of their heritage by the powerful. They observe and
question what is happening, question and refute the accompanying “spin” and
adopt whatever form of activism each situation requires. Thousands of
organisations are involved involving millions of individuals and yet their
activism is rarely reported in the mainstream media. Google wiser.org, to Discover, Connect and
Share what’s happening.
Even if we’re time-poor the Places You Love Campaign is
concentrating on saving Australia’s special places, national parks, nature and
marine reserves by asking that we phone/write to our MPs saying environmental
protection laws must remain under the control of Federal Parliament and not be
devolved to the states. The campaign’s website lists, with links, all the
organisations who are partners.
The importance of
activist-numbers to amplify everyday Australians’ voices is paramount.
Change has to come and is
coming from the grassroots, from people like us.
Rosemary, Mt Rogers Landcare
Group. 01.07.13 - 08.07.13. 6258 4724
