WetlandCare Photography Prize 2015 Changing Landscapes Winning Works Sponsored by 1st Prize Winner Ron Weste Goyder Lagoon in Flood Latitude 25.896682 Longitude 139.349601, Northern Territory This image of Goyder Lagon was captured during a helicopter flight, part of which took us from Birdsville to William Creek over Lake Eyre. As we approached Goyder Lagoon we could see a vista of wonderful colour in front of us where the otherwise dry area had been transformed by the water flooding down from the Queensland Channel country. The scene laid out before us was breathtakingly beautiful and was dramatic evidence of how the harsh Australian landscape can be transformed into great beauty and life by the addition of water.

2nd Prize Winner Anne Morley Mitre Lake Flora and Fauna Reserve Near Natimuk, Victoria The lake had far less water in it than when I first visited it six months earlier. The depth gauge reveals much about the changing lake bed, and the rusted star picket a legacy of human activity. This photo was taken just before sunset with Mt Arapiles as a backdrop.

3rd Prize Winner Chris Ison Habitat in transition Henderson Creek, Capricorn Coast, Queensland The tree precariously leaning over the still waters of Henderson Creek has no doubt been a perch for birds preying on fish in the creek below for decades. Soon it will topple into the creek forming a refuge for small fish and other marine animals and insect larvae from predators above and below the water’s surface.

Youth Award Winner Brielle Gatenby City Kurnell , NSW My photo ”Mangrove City” shows the in the foreground looking vulnerable , and the city, slowly approaching in the background. I feel this shows how it’s a changing environment. The city and people are closing in on the mangroves and impacting on them.

WetlandCare Australia Photography Prize 2015 Flora Winning Works Sponsored by 1st Prize Winner Ben Blanche Angophora Over Noosa River Noosa River, Great Sandy National Park, Queensland I believe that this is a Rough-barked Apple (Angophora floribunda) which I stumbled upon during a summer paddle in the Noosa Everglades. Quite a common tree but this specimen was hanging quite low to the water and made for a dramatic appearance against the dark tannin stained water.

2nd Prize Winner Nellie Gay Nesting Striated Pardalote Lightning Bushland, Della Road, Noroonda Western Australia In 2012 the Friends of Lightning Swamp designated a boardwalk built on the far east boundary of this ‘A Class Reserve’. In the wet season when precipitation is plenty, the boardwalk has a small pier that stands over the water while some of the trees are submersed in water. The surrounding trees are mostly flooded gum (E rudis) which makes a great habitat for small birds to nest. In this case a nesting Striated Pardalote bird found a cosy hollow of one of these trees and I was fortunate in spotting this sweet little bird pop in and out of the hollow of the branch. The tree in bloom of cream coloured flowers invite insects that will feed this family and provide good shelter. Both parents incubate the eggs and share feeding the young when hatched, I found them to be pro-active darting in and out of the tree hollow while building their nest from surrounding materials such as paperbark and fine blades of grass.

3rd Prize Winner Raelene Kwong Chara australis Langwarrin South, Victoria When I think of algae, the term “ scum” comes to mind. So I was very excited to learn that this beautiful submerged plant with its bright translucent green foliage and iridescent orange fruit (oospores) was in fact, an alga. Chara australis is a native charophyte which can grow in permanent and temporary wetlands, still or flowing water and is an important food plant for water invertebrates and birds. I now have a new appreciation for the humble “pond scum”.

Youth Award Winner Charmoni Martin-Cogger “Purple Tassles” Sowerbaea Laxiflora Spectacles Wetlands, Western Australia Every spring this little star-like flower appears at my wetland showing off its precious purple colour and bright yellow stamens, like a daytime star only to disappear again until the next spring.

WetlandCare Australia Photography Prize 2015 Helping Wetlands Flourish Winning Works Sponsored by

1st Prize Winner Deborah Pearse Survival Belongil , Byron Bay New South Wales Thanks to the ongoing and tireless efforts of Byron Bird Buddies and in particular Jan Olley and Heather Hartford (now deceased) the Pied Oystercatchers have fledged not one but two chicks this season in Belongil Estuary. Bird Buddies have fenced off their nesting area, erected signs and done extensive education on the need for a safe and dog free area for them to go through their nesting cycle. This is the first year for sometime that they have been successful, previous years dog tracks around the nests and interference by humans have led to the nest being abandoned. This year too one of the chicks was banded by Greg Clancy, the other had already fledged.

2nd Prize Winner Anne Morley Edithvale-Seaford Wetland Education Centre Edithvale-Seaford, Victoria This Education Centre is run by Melbourne Water and it runs education programs for schools and the general public. I took this photo at sunset when the golden light bathed the native grasses and other vegetation.

3rd Prize Winner Christine Chester Fishing With Style Attadale Reserve, Swan River, Attadale, Western Australia The Friends of Attadale Foreshore have played a significant part in the care and maintenance of the fragile area of the Attadale Reserve, by preserving as much as possible the natural environment and protecting the flora and fauna from intrusive influences such as human interference and introduced animals such as foxes. Through their tireless work, water birds, such as the Little Egret can enjoy an abundance of food. Dancing and prancing in the shallows, wings splayed, bill pointing downwards, he concentrates on a doomed fish, then zeroes in on his prey, pouncing with precision, nabbing the tasty morsel.

Youth Award Winner Joseph Post Down by the lagoon Tumut wetlands, Tumut New South Wales

My photo relates to the theme ‘Helping Wetlands Flourish’. This photo was taken three hours before the rain on Thursday 4th of December.