MARCH 2011 NORTHERN LOFTY VOLUNTEERS Volunteers Newsletter Hello and Welcome to the new Friends of Cobbler Creek get down look Northern Lofty Volunteers and dirty for clean up Australia Day FOCCERS had a great turn out as part of the Clean Up Newsletter. Australia Day Event! Twenty enthusiastic volunteers turned up on a rather crisp morning to ‘Emu Parade’ Grove Way Your feedback is important, and your ideas, articles and and Cobbler Creek Recreation Park. With support from stories are welcome. NLD rangers, volunteers collected over 40 bags of rubbish Email [email protected] and numerous other large items. David Mitchell, This edition features: President of FOCCERS said, “it was great to Celebrating Achievements see a few new faces in Heritage Hotspots addition to the “hardy Biodiversity Conservation: Threatened Species News annuals” and it goes to show that a specific On the Fire Front event such as CUAD Departmental Business has definite pulling FOCCERS getting busy along Grove Way New Initiatives: GIS Mapping and Calendar of Events power”. Photo courtesy of Steve Papp Safety Matters and Training Thankyou Porter Scrub Walk and Talk – Upcoming NLD Volunteer Events and Opportunities landholders from surrounding Ranger update properties come together for a Walk and Talk. Celebrating Achievements In November, 2010, 31 local landholders joined staff from DENR and the Upper Torrens Land Management Project In recognition of the many years our Friends of (UTLMP) on a walk and talk through Porter Scrub parks have been working hard, 2011 celebrates Conservation Park. The aim of the activity was to provide milestones for: an opportunity for the local community to begin to understand and appreciate the biodiversity within the *Friends of Black Hill and Morialta - 25 years park and get involved in undertaking biodiversity- *Friends of Sandy Creek - 20 years enhancing activities both on and off park. Also congratulations to all FoP Volunteer This community engagement initiative has been enabled Morialta First Falls through funds secured by the UTLMP from the State Morialta Conservation Park Groups successful in the latest NRM Community Grants, your effort is Government agency, acknowledged! Native Vegetation Council (NVC) and will be further developed this year with monthly activities planned during the months on May-October, 2011. Identifying natural beauties of Porter Scrub The next activity Photo courtesy of L. Ankor scheduled for Porter Scrub Conservation Park is a bird survey to be held on Sunday 8th May, 2011. If you wish to be involved in the volunteer working group or need more information please call Kim Thompson, UTLMP Project Officer on 8568 1876 or 0438 639 353 A few of the natural beauties spotted on the recent Porter Scrub Walk and Talk, Rabbit Orchid Leptoceras menziesii , Bearded Orchid Calochilus robertsonii and Twining Fringe Lily Thysanotus patersonii. Photos courtesy of L. Ankor - 1 - DENR:[email protected] Community Involved in Conserving and Restoring Our Cultural and Natural Environment MARCH 2011 NORTHERN LOFTY VOLUNTEERS Volunteers Newsletter Heritage Hotspots The Department is fortunate in having the support of Also to note that Fort volunteers through the Adelaide Gaol Preservation Society Glanville was recently (AGPS). The Society developed the shop, provided featured on Channel Nine’s information for the delivery of history and ghost tours, and Postcards! The episode was maintained the Gaol in public view for many years as it based at Fort Glanville and continues to today in partnership with the Department of showed off the key Environment and Natural Resources. highlights of this important and unique heritage site. The AGPS members’ passion and commitment provides the South Australian community the opportunity to learn about Big acknowledgement to the the important cultural history of the Adelaide Goal. More Friends of Fort Glanville who’s than 267 Sunday tours have been hosted this year and an passion and committed outstanding tally of over 1250 people have visited the site in ensure this site is preserved January alone! There will be a community event organised and open for all to enjoy our for the May 22nd as part of South Australia’s History Week. history. The next Open Day is On History Day entry to the Goal will be only $3 and the on April 17th, so come along Forth Glanville in Action! AGPS will be providing history and ghost tours, face Photos courtesy D. Heard and observe heritage painting, mug shots and a wide range of activities. preservation first hand. Friends of Parks Snapshots: Friends of Para Wirra have been pulling boneseed as part of controlling this WONS weed from spreading both regionally and locally within Para Wirra Recreation Park. This is part of a massive ongoing effort (over a decade!) which has also been assisted by northern Green Jobs volunteers (formerly Green Corps), Orienteering SA (mostly Tintookies club). The group have also had a huge help over several years from DCS crews, as well as other local community groups and of course, our two NLD Biodiversity Conservation Rangers Erik and Steve and their families! Friends of Mount George have also got back into the weeding with three working bees already. The follow up work at this time of year in Mount George Conservation Park targets broome control directly improving the condition of a patch of the state threatened Candlebark Candlebark Forest vegetation association (Eucalyptus dalrimpleanaa ssp). Mount George Conservation Park Rover Scouts help protect Mt George Conservation Park In January this year Rover Scouts from around the world spent over 1500 hours cutting and swabbing an introduced pest plant, "broom" from the Mt George Conservation Park. This service project developed by the Northern Lofty District involved 250 Rovers over 5 days working tirelessly to remove both English and Montpellier Broom from the site, helping to conserve for the State threatened Candlebark vegetation association (Eucalyptus dalrimpleanaa ssp.). Photos courtesy M. Cooper Department of Environment and Natural Resources Ranger, Nick Dinan, said he could only have dreamed of achieving this amount of weed control work. "I was amazed by the incredible amount of voluntary work, an incredible 2.6 hectares of broom was cleared by these young people over the 5 days. Through their commitment they have really made a difference to the environment. Not only have they gone along way to preserve an area noted for its rare plants and conservation values, but they have also helped reduce the fire hazard around the Scout accommodation area and have also increased their understanding of why it important to protect the environment." 2 DENR:[email protected] Community Involved in Conserving and Restoring Our Cultural and Natural Environment MARCH 2011 NORTHERN LOFTY VOLUNTEERS Volunteers Newsletter Biodiversity Conservation: Threatened Species News Keeping an eye out for threatened bird species Worried about the declining bird species – you can help by reporting any sightings on the following bird species The Plight of the Pygmy Bluetongue Brown treecreepers Climacteris picumnus are one of the many declining woodland birds of the Mt Lofty Ranges. Pygmy bluetongue lizards Tiliqua adelaidensis are a small Knowledge of their current distribution and population size endangered bluetongue, whose range once extended from the within the Mt Lofty region is limited, although anecdotal Adelaide plains to the mid-north of South Australia, in areas around evidence suggests that both may have declined Burra and Peterborough. Having been thought to be extinct, the substantially over recent years. species was rediscovered in 1992. Volunteers with support from the Biodiversity Conservation Pygmy bluetongues (PBTs) are only found in native grasslands or Unit have recently finished surveys in an effort to establish a open grassy woodlands (two of the least protected vegetation preliminary population estimate and distribution by mid- communities) which have been subjected to extensive disturbance, 2011. particularly ploughing. Ploughing permanently alters the vegetation, ground cover and soil structure, as well as killing PBTs Any recent records of brown treecreepers, particularly if and destroying their burrows. PBTs live in burrows constructed by you see them regularly, would be extremely helpful, please trapdoor and wolf spiders, and are reliant upon these for their pass them on to Joss Bentley, Threatened Fauna Ecologist survival, with the number of PBTs generally correlated with the for the Adelaide Region ([email protected]). density and depth of spider holes available. Brown treecreepers typically occur in open woodlands with Last year, Julie Schofield (PhD) undertook surveys in the southern substantial patches of bare ground and few shrubs. You’ll area of the PBT’s historic range. Thirteen sites were surveyed, frequently find them foraging on the trunks of rough-barked ranging from the Onkaparinga River area in the south west, to the eucalypts. Standing dead trees, or trees with dead Dutton/Bagot’s Well area in the north, and the Red Creek area in branches that provide hollows, appear to be important the south east. PBTs were successfully located in one site around shelter sites for this species. They are commonly confused Bagot Well, a substantial range extension, and a number of other with their close relative the white-throated treecreeper, although white-throats are usually only found in the moister sites appear to have some potential.