Don Knowler

The phone rang early one morning with an excited David Kernke on the line. He wanted to report that the welcome swallows had arrived back at Shene, the historic property he is restoring with his wife, Anne, at Pontville. I had heard earlier in the year that amid all the restoration work at what is considered one of the most significant homes in Tasmania, if not Australia, a family of swallows had also been left in peace to claim their own piece of heritage. The craftsmen … [Read more...] about Hard act to swallow

My investment in a modest Bruny Island property appears to be paying dividends. The property might be small without “mod cons” but the tenants occupying it are more than happy. No sooner had they moved in to Box 10, Waterview Hill on North Bruny, they decided to start a family and already I have gone from landlord to de facto grandparent, eagerly awaiting the chance to see the offspring.  The one-bedroomed shack might be small but it nestles in what an estate agent would … [Read more...] about A room with a view

Fishermen for eons have used seabirds to identify fish hotspots. Although trawlermen are these days armed with hi-tech equipment to identify shoals below the ocean’s  surface, out on the high seas they still look to the horizon to see how gannets and short-tailed shearwaters are performing.  In shallower, more sheltered waters the recreational fishermen do the same. They usually watch for crested terns which are adept at spotting fish, before gathering to plunge into the … [Read more...] about Plastic a drastic issue

With the arrival of spring it’s always time for members of the unofficial Plover Appreciation Society to stand-up and be counted.  You either love plovers or hate them, the hate part coming into play when particularly aggressive and belligerent members of the species choose to dive-bomb members of the public enjoying the first warm days of the season on public open spaces.  The plovers – or masked lapwings to give them their proper  name – are only doing what comes … [Read more...] about Plover lovers and haters

THE grey fantail perched atop a silver birch was singing a joyful song to welcome the coming of spring. The rain clouds had just lifted over Hobart and now rays of late-winter sunshine rained down on the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens on the Domain.  The fantail was a beautiful male in the crisp, new spring plumage. He sang a song of mellow descending notes, the song carrying further than usual. The male was putting an extra effort into the tune, no doubt to attract a … [Read more...] about Tuned into the song of spring