South East Queensland JULY 2014 Volume 8 Number 3 Newsletter of the Land for Wildlife Program South East Queensland ISSN 1835-3851 CONTENTS 1 Open Property Scheme 2 Editorial and contacts 3 Fauna Vignettes • Build it and they will come • The Supermarket Tree 4 Fauna Profi le Monitoring and Restoring Habitat for Quolls on Land for Wildlife Properties near D’Aguilar N.P. 5 Fauna Profi le A rare fi nd in Western Brisbane, Open Property Scheme, until next time... the Greater Glider is not extinct! fter running for one month with 25 during the Scheme. In their own words, 6-7 Fungi Profi le Aproperties and 450 participants, the participants will try to “Prioritise weed A Fascination with Fungi and 2014 Land for Wildlife Open Property species”, “Become aware of the diff erent their Role in Restoring Rainforest Scheme offi cially ended on the 31st May. ecosystems on a property”, “Encourage We received overwhelmingly positive natural regeneration”, “Get a fox trap” and 8-11 Land for Wildlife Open feedback from those who attended, which “Leave fallen timber in waterways”. is encouraging to hear and gives us lots Property Scheme 2014 Most participants visited Open Properties of ideas for future schemes. I thoroughly close to home. Some people met their enjoyed the events I attended. 12 My Little Corner neighbours for the fi rst time and learnt • A Pitta and a Snail The Open Properties were diverse but about local landcare groups. It was great to there was a commonality of purpose see these connections unfolding. • Day and Night Herons and dedication. All landowners want to The 2014 Open Property Scheme was leave their properties in better condition 13 Book Reviews made possible by the generosity of Land than when they bought them and all are for Wildlife members who opened up actively managing their properties to 14 Fauna Profi le their properties and welcomed other reduce weeds and provide habitat. My Tetragonula carbonaria landholders. Eleven Local Governments The main theme echoed at all Open and SEQ Catchments, with funding 15 App Reviews Properties was the value of social support from the Queensland Government connections. According to feedback, the Gambling Community Benefi t Fund, all 16 Turkey Tangentials best part of the Scheme was “Knowledge contributed to making the Scheme a sharing with other participants”, success. Thank you all. Bleeding Heart (Homalanthus “Connecting with other LfW members” and populifolius) See pages 8-11 for more Open Property “Meeting like-minded people”. Scheme images and quotes. Photographs Many participants reported that they will of Open Property Scheme events can be try new things on their own properties viewed via www.lfwseq.org.au/ops based on what they learnt and saw Article by Deborah Metters Published by SEQ Catchments through funding from the Australian Government editorial ay was a good month for me. I we fi ght, the feral animals we despair at Land for Wildlife Mvisited 16 Land for Wildlife Open and the wildlife or good pastures that Properties, drove 3,300 kilometres and bring us hope. Learning about the history Extension Offi cers met lots of Land for Wildlife members. of the area is invaluable. South East Queensland Despite my carbon footprint and Another theme that resonated with me exhaustion, I thoroughly enjoyed it - was the personal journey of discovery for Brisbane City Council because of the people I met and the some landholders. I could respectfully All enquiries, 3403 8888 properties I saw. refer to them as unlikely or reluctant Peter Hayes Catherine Madden There were many highlights and some conservationists. People who would have Cody Hochen Scott Sumner recurrent themes emerged. My breath laughed dismissively if told a decade ago Tony Mlynarik Ffl ur Collier was taken away at one property. We that they would be standing in front of were walking on impressive, contoured a group of landholders promoting the Gold Coast City Council walking tracks at Doug and Marg Bettens’ benefi ts of Land for Wildlife! But there Darryl Larsen, 5582 8896 property at Cooran. These tracks help they were in May speaking proudly during Lexie Webster, 5582 8344 visitors access the beautiful waterfall and the Open Property Scheme. Thank you! Todd Burrows, 5582 9128 other steep sections of the property. Most I have allocated a few pages to the Ipswich City Council of the walk was among young rainforest Open Property Scheme in this, and the Stephani Grove, 3810 7173 regrowth with lots of notable weed next, newsletter edition. So if you have control undertaken. We rounded a bend contributed a story and it hasn’t yet been Lockyer Valley Regional Council towards the end of the walk, and there printed, please don’t depair. Kaori van Baalen, 5462 0376 it was. One enormous stump of a once majestic tree. It was huge; at least two To date I have received only two entries Logan City Council metres in diameter, with cuts in the sides for the competition to win a signed Lyndall Rosevear, 3412 4860 that at one time held springboards that Limited Edition copy of Tadpoles and Frogs Melanie Mott, 3412 4859 carried strong men with crosscut saws. of Australia by Marion Anstis. It is a cracker Rebecca Condon, 3412 4979 These giants of the forest kept the soils of a prize, so put pen to paper or fi ngertip cool, the weeds at bay and harboured to tablet. Entry details are on page 13. Moreton Bay Regional Council quantities of wildlife that I will never see Zoe Samson, 5433 2244 Thanks to all the fabulous contributions in my lifetime. Ainslie Wyer, 5433 2288 to this edition. Enjoy. This one stump made me realise the Noosa Shire Council Deborah Metters importance of recent history in helping us Customer Centre, 5329 6500 understand the landscapes we manage Land for Wildlife today. History can help explain the weeds Regional Coordinator Redland City Council SEQ Catchments Maree Manby, 3820 1106 Scenic Rim Regional Council Landholder Registrations, Land for Wildlife SEQ - 1/6/2014 Keith McCosh, 5540 5436 Registered Working Towards Total Area under Somerset Region Total Area Retained Properties Registration Restoration Trevor Page, 5424 4000 Sunshine Coast Council 3063 784 55,120 ha 5,034 ha Alan Wynn, 5439 6477 Danielle Crawford, 5475 7339 Forward all contributions to: Land for Wildlife South East Queensland is Marc Russell, 5475 7345 a quarterly publication distributed free of Nick Clancy, 5439 6433 The Editor charge to members of the Land for Wildlife Stephanie Reif, 5475 7395 Land for Wildlife Newsletter program in South East Queensland. SEQ Catchments Toowoomba Regional Council Print run - 4795 PO Box 13204 All enquiries, 4688 6611 George Street QLD 4003 Back copies from 2007 - 2014 available for download from 07 3211 4404 www.lfwseq.org.au [email protected] Back copies from 1998 - 2006 available upon request to the Editor. Burnett Mary Region ISSN 1835-3851 Gympie, Fraser Coast, Land for Wildlife is a voluntary program North & South Burnett, that encourages and assists landholders Bundaberg and to provide habitat for wildlife on their Baffl e Creek Regions properties. For all regions contact the Burnett Mary Regional Group, 4181 2999 www.lfwseq.org.au 2 Land for Wildlife South East Queensland July 2014 PRIZES! SEQ Catchments is giving away a set of three copies of various Queensland Museum pocket guides (RRP $30) to three selected Land for Wildlife fauna members who contribute published articles in 2014. Limit of nine free vignettes books per newsletter edition. Please send your article and/or photographs to the Editor (details pg. 2) Built it and they will come ere are some pictures of bat boxes Hthat my fi ve year old son and I built in January this year. We installed the three boxes about 5 metres up trees around our little dam. I can’t say that we have seen any evidence of use yet, but fi ngers crossed. Jeremy Patten Land for Wildlife member Mundoolun, Logan The Supermarket Tree e have always loved the red- this vine, the only food source for this Wfl owering gum planted thirty butterfl y’s caterpillar. Despite several years ago near our Tallebudgera home. failures we now have a well-established A northern Australian bloodwood, with vine in the adjacent bushland. twisted branches and large leaves, it Nearby neighbours have reported yearly produces bunches of ‘Snugglepot and sightings and even pointed out a few in Cuddlepie’ buds and, of course, clusters the neighbourhood but this year they of gold tipped red eucalyptus fl owers have appeared, up to a dozen at a time, followed by large, tough gum nuts. attracted by the ‘supermarket tree’. We call it the ‘supermarket tree’ because, The large females, constantly attended when in fl ower, there is an endless stream by the smaller and more colourful males, of creatures coming to feed on its bounty. dance around the open garden with Birds and insects by day, the occasional frequent returns to top up on nectar. When nocturnal possum or glider and the nightly feeding, it is possible to approach closely fi ghting and noisy complaints from fruit and be entranced by the truly amazing bats make up its visitors. This year, over colours and iridescent greens of this most the fi rst weeks of March, the tree has seen beautiful creature. a new ‘customer’, the Richmond Birdwing butterfl y. Congratulations to everyone in the area who has nurtured a birdwing vine. A few years ago, I attended a Land for We hope that you all get to share the Wildlife education day in Tallebudgera experience of seeing the Richmond Valley and learnt more about this most Birdwing butterfl y at your place.