Talk about owls …!
Following our highly successful owl talk and DVD presentation by Dr Natasha Schedvin last Friday at Strath Creek (see “Where are the Barkers ?” post below), interesting owl reports are coming in. Two of our most enthusiastic survey participants were walking up their bush block driveway at the Junction Hill end of Flowerdale, spotted “whitewash” on the ground, looked up and saw a magnificent Powerful Owl perched on a branch with the hind half of a Common Ringtail Possum clutched in its talons !
Local Shinglebacks
Shinglebacks, Bobtails, Stumpy-tails, even Tiliqua rugosa! These large blue-tongued skinks (closely related to ‘blue-tongue lizards’) go by varied names and pop up in the most unlikely places. In recent months Gary Hendy has found this free-living Shingleback on his property on several occasions. But do they belong here? Read more…
Fox, Common Brushtail Possum & House Mouse – Flowerdale.
This Common Brushtail Possum seems to know how to look into a camera lens!
Where are the Barkers ?
An evening of owls at the new Strath Creek Fire Shed
Friday 25th March at 7.30pm
Join us in discovering more about our local owls. Wildlife ecologist Dr Natasha Schedvin will present an educational and entertaining documentary featuring the endangered Barking Owls of north-east Victoria.
If you have seen or heard Barkers or any other owls, come along and tell us your experiences.
Places are limited, so please contact David Wakefield on 5780 1225 or email focusonfauna@gmail.com
Sugar Gliders at home
Recent checks of nestboxes installed on three Flowerdale and Strath Creek properties since the Black Saturday fires have shown Sugar Gliders (Petaurus breviceps) occupying a number of the boxes, with more than one glider in at least two of them. These delightful little animals seem to have readily taken to their artificial homes; but the importance of checking them was emphasised when a clutch of Common Myna eggs was found in one box. Other boxes showed signs of occupancy such as chewing around the entrance or nest material inside.
The pictured gliders clearly had n
ot read the label – as this box was designed for rosellas !
The boxes were all donated, and were made by various groups such as Rotary, La Trobe University’s Wildlife Sanctuary and even inmates of Dhurringile Prison.
Kinglake West has Phascogales too!
Our Focus on Fauna remote cameras are proving very successful at spying on these nocturnal gymnasts. Fire Recovery Coordinator with the Upper Goulburn Landcare Network, Chris Cobern, got these images last night at a nest box in Kings Rd, Kinglake West.
Mid-February frog choruses – Spring Valley Rd
Peron's Tree Frog
Six species of frog were calling from dams in Flowerdale in mid-February. These recordings were made on properties in Spring Valley Rd and Old Spring Valley Rd.
Roos, hare & family dogs
Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) are an all too common sight in the district. Their numbers can build up quickly, yet population control through predation is almost nil. With the good season that we’ve had, numbers are likely to increasing rapidly.
The Brown Hare (Lepus capensis) is another herbivore that’s probably doing well this season.
Birds returning to forests
Sacred Kingfisher
Brief surveys in burnt areas of forest on two Flowerdale properties recently revealed a good range of bird species. As part of the Focus on Fauna project, standard 20-minute, 2-hectare bird surveys are being conducted at each site at the time of setting up remote cameras.
At one site, a block under a Trust for Nature covenant, 16 species were recorded in 20 minutes, a feature being quite a large flock of Dusky Woodswallows.
At the other site, a very extensive bush block backing onto State Forest, which was completely burnt out in 2009, the survey netted 13 species, with the highlight being a pair of Sacred Kingfishers. Earlier, Scarlet Robins were seen on the edge of a cleared house site on the block.
Phascogales love their Three Sisters!
Three Sisters, on the Flowerdale-Strath Creek Rd also appears to have resident Brush-tailed Phascogales (Phascogale tapoatafa) in a patch of remnant Yellow Box (Eucalyptus melliodora) woodland, much to the delight of the proud owners!
Focus On Fauna 