The Friends of the Sandy Bay Rivulet are keeping their hopes alive of one day being able to walk the watercourse on a new trail linking city and mountain. Amid all the talk of development in Hobart, from high-rise buildings to cable cars, the organisation has been quietly advancing the case for the Sandy Bay Rivulet Linear Park hoping it has not slipped from the Hobart Council’s radar. At the Friends’ recent annual general meeting, however, members were assured the plan was … [Read more...] about Walk on the wildside
On The Wing
Passport to birdland
Birdland is a magical place where it’s possible to escape all the pressures and stresses of the environment of the city created and inhabited by one species – humans – and immerse yourself in a less one-dimensional world. Birdland is nowhere in particular, and does not have to be special or noteworthy. It could be in the wildest of wild forest, or in suburbia. It could be a pristine beach, a few hectares of eucalypt woodland, or a neatly manicured city park. It could be a backyard. That’s the magic of birds; they bring beauty and wonder to every corner of the planet, wild or untamed, and my On the Wing writing is their celebration.
Eagle hotline takes flight
Two wedge-tailed eagles soared high in the sky as supporters of the Raptor and Wildlife Refuge of Tasmania gathered to mark another milestone in the organisation’s history. The refuge’s founder, Craig Webb, announced the launch of a dedicated 24-hour hotline on which members of the public could report injured and dead raptors. Despite being given endangered status, eagle numbers in Tasmania are under severe threat. There are only about 100 nesting pairs in the state and … [Read more...] about Eagle hotline takes flight
Bruny flies high
The Bruny Island Bird Festival took place of the weekend of October 19-22 , showcasing what Bruny Islanders describe as the “birdwatching capital of Tasmania”. This might sound like a bit of an exaggeration but the four festivals so far since the event’s inception in 2010 have certainly attracted large numbers of both mainland and international birdwatchers. And in the past two years Bruny birding “hotspot” status has been further enhanced by the twin Bruny islands also … [Read more...] about Bruny flies high
Wildlife haven close to home
The pastel-yellow flowers of bottlebrushes swaying in the breeze, and clinging to them, silvereyes. The silvereyes perform like tiny acrobatics on the trapeze, hanging upside down at times, before letting go, righting themselves in mid-flight and then reaching out with their claws to grab another cluster of flowers. I watch the silvereyes performing their manoeuvres for hours, I should be working at the computer terminal in my study – writing bird columns and other articles … [Read more...] about Wildlife haven close to home
Magpies on the attack
It’s magpie attack time and the birds with a beautiful flute-like song join plovers as public enemy number one in spring, if only for a short time. The menace of plovers – also called masked lapwings – were the subject of the column last week and now I turn my attention to a far more dangerous threat, magpies. As I reported, plovers are all bluster when they dive-bomb people near their nesting sites and rarely come into contact with the unsuspecting target. Magpies, on … [Read more...] about Magpies on the attack