Caring for wild places, Wildcare inc. wildlife and cultural heritage AnnuAl RepoRt 2015 1 Contents About Wildcare 2 Wildcare Branches 4 Co-Chairs’ Report 6 Board of Management 8 Ceo’s Report 13 Facilitator’s Report 14 Special Feature: orange-bellied parrot 15 every Branch has a Story 16 Wildcare Gift Fund Committee 44 Wildcare Bequests 47 Wildcare Financial Report 48 2 Wildcare Annual Report About Wildcare With around 6,000 members, Wildcare is the Wildcare actively seeks to provide opportunities and support largest and fastest growing community volunteer for community engagement in its programs throughout the organisation dedicated to caring for the State’s State. Activities are grouped into five main activity areas and parks and reserves, flora, fauna and cultural are delivered either by local Branches or through special heritage. Its slogan is ‘caring for wild places, programs. the five activity areas are: wildlife and cultural heritage’. Community action in reserves – management of parks Wildcare provides management and support for volunteers and reserves. working in natural and cultural heritage conservation and Heritage care – cultural heritage conservation such reserve management throughout tasmania. It works in as excavation assistance, archival research and historic partnership with government agencies, notably the parks and site management. Wildlife Service, local government and private landholders and contributes over 500,000 hours of voluntary project work Nature care – nature conservation activities such as each year. whale rescue, wildlife surveys and caring for injured or orphaned wildlife. Wildcare is a community-based, not-for-profit volunteer Contents organisation founded in 1997 and incorporated in 1998. Wildcare office – support to members of Wildcare, including It is also a registered environmental organisation and a newsletter production, event management and processing of registered deductible gift recipient and is entitled to receive membership applications. tax deductible donations. It is managed by a Board of Special programs – large scale annual projects and programs Management composed of elected and nominated members. undertaken in co-operation with partners in government. the responsibility of the Board is to oversee Wildcare’s Special programs may require specialist skills and often strategic direction and allocate moneys under the Wildcare call for extended commitments. they include the Caring for Gift Fund. More information on the year’s activities of the Islands program and Campground Host program. Wildcare Gift Fund is provided elsewhere in this yearbook. As an environmental organisation, Wildcare must have a public Fund to receive donations. the public Fund is called the Wildcare Gift Fund and was established in 2005. Its purpose is to raise funds through tax-deductible donations to support reserve management projects and nature conservation projects in tasmania. As well as attracting funds for the general purposes of the Wildcare Gift Fund, tax deductible donations can be made to a number of ancillary funds within it, called natural partner Funds. they provide an opportunity for donors to give to specific purposes associated with the environmental objectives of Wildcare. these natural partner Funds include the tasmanian Coast Conservation Fund, Wildcarbon Fund, Whale Rescue Fund, Injured and orphaned Wildlife Fund and the World Heritage Wilderness Fund. 3 Wildcare Branches Wildcare is a membership organisation. Members Friends of Trevallyn Reserve can express interest in specific projects or focus Friends of Yorktown Historic Site their skills and interest in a particular reserve or Get Outside with Community location. Members can join in activities when and Get Outside with Community in Launceston where it suits them. And there is plenty to choose from! An insight into the diversity and geographic KarstWatch milaythina muka spread of Wildcare’s projects and activities can be Mole Creek Karst Care gleaned from this impressive listing of more than Native Animal Rescue 80 Branches around the State: Oil Spill Response Furneaux Islands - seabird and other wildlife CARes Coal Mines / Lime Bay Oil Spill Response King Island - seabird and other wildlife CARes Narawntapu Reserves Oil Spill Response North - seabird and other wildlife CARes Southern Caves Oil Spill Response Northwest - seabird and other wildlife Central North Wildlife Care and Rescue Oil Spill Response South - seabird and other wildlife Derwent Avenue Group for the Dave Burrows Walk Rivers Wild Care Dry Stone Wall Preservation Group Wildcare Wildlife Emergency Response and Recovery Unit Friends of Bass Strait Islands Tamar Island Wetlands Volunteers Friends of Coningham Nature Recreation Area Threatened Plants Tasmania Friends of Deal Island Wellington Park Bushcare Friends of Freycinet Whale Rescue First Response Team - Bruny Island Friends of Lillico Penguins Whale Rescue First Response Team - Devonport Friends of Maatsuyker Island Whale Rescue First Response Team - East Coast Friends of Maria Island Whale Rescue First Response Team - Eastern Shore Friends of Maria Island Marine Protected Area Whale Rescue First Response Team - Flinders Island Friends of Melaleuca Whale Rescue First Response Team - Freycinet Friends of Mt Field Whale Rescue First Response Team - King Island Friends of Redbill Point Conservation Area Whale Rescue First Response Team - Launceston Friends of Snake Island Whale Rescue First Response Team - Marrawah Friends of Tasman Island Whale Rescue First Response Team - Narawntapu Friends of the Franklin River Whale Rescue First Response Team - South Friends of the Freshwater Lobster Whale Rescue First Response Team - Stanley Friends of the Orange-bellied Parrot Whale Rescue First Response Team - Strahan Friends of Thompson’s Park Hut Wildcare Coastal Custodians 4 Wildcare Annual Report Wildcare Cradle Mt - Lake St Clair Wildcare Deslacs Friends of Bruny Island Quarantine Station Wildcare Friends of Fisher Island Wildcare Friends of Pittwater Orielton Lagoon Wildcare Friends of Tasmanian Whaleboats Wildcare Friends of the Penguin Cradle Trail Wildcare Friends of Woodvine Wildcare Gordon’s Hill NRA Wildcare Lumeah Point Wildcare Native Wildlife Rescue - Birralee Wildcare Roaring Beach Wildlife Rescue Wildcare SpLATs Wildcare SPRATS Wildcare Spring Bay Wildcare Tinderbox Marine Reserve Wildcare Veterinary Emergency Response Team Tasmania Wildcare Wildlife Rescue and Bush Babies Wildcare Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Wildscool Voluntary Educators Friends of GIS Get Outside with Community (South) Wildcare Inc Office Wildcare Friends of Bonorong Wildcare Friends of Billy Brown Falls Wildcare Friends of Cradle Valley Walking Tracks Wildcare Friends of Narawntapu Wildcare Friends of the Steppes Reserve 5 Co-Chairs’ Report ANDREW SMITH SALLY SALIER Co-Chair(Appointed) Co-Chair(Elected) 2015 has been a year of great successes again. Around $200,000 has been allocated to projects, ranging Of course. This is Wildcare Inc. The volunteer from wildlife care support and Devil research to walking effort and the financial contribution of Wildcare Inc track maintenance in wilderness areas and the conservation continues to astound and make a real difference of the orange-bellied parrot. I thank everyone who has to our reserves, wildlife and cultural heritage. made a donation to the Wildcare Gift Fund or one of its sub-funds. the great thing about donating to Wildcare Inc there have also been continuing frustrations. of course, is that 100 per cent of your donation goes to where it is this is a large and complex organisation. It requires needed. there are no administration costs taken out. some serious management at Board of Directors’ level. I would very much like to thank the Gift Fund Committee the Directors have continued to work hard to make sure members, all of whom are volunteers, for their efforts members, Branches and the environment get the best reviewing and assessing applications to the Fund. More returns possible. A lot of this effort is invisible to members information is provided elsewhere in this yearbook about and people outside the organisation, but it is extremely what was funded by the Wildcare Gift Fund in 2015. important. one of the things that the Directors do, that Branches will be familiar with, is the allocation of small Branches continue to apply for and receive grants internal project grants. the internal grants program has for projects, from various funding organisations. continued to support the work of our Branches. Almost $1 million has been received since 2010. these grants are managed by the Branches who apply Membership continues to grow. new Branches continue for them. the presidents or treasurers of the Branches to form. A massive amount of volunteer time is provided to work closely with Carol pacey, our “bookkeeper”, to ensure projects. Volunteering tasmania Inc developed a calculator bills are paid and project money is spent appropriately. to assist volunteer groups to work out how much value Carol also organises Director authorisation for every they contribute to their cause. this recognises the nature payment made from the Wildcare Inc bank accounts. of the practical work undertaken, the time away from other Many hundreds of payments are made each year. activities, the social capital value of the relationships and thank goodness for online business banking. lindie goodwill developed between the organisation receiving lupo, our Finance officer, keeps an eye on financial volunteer assistance