Cradle to Coastlines - Edition 3, 2014

Cradle to C oast l i n e s Newsletter of the Cradle Coast Natural Resource Management Committee

Edition 3• 2014

In this issue: Community Activities

2

Events and News

3

Natural Values

6

Sustainable Agriculture

7

Feature Story Hands on with the environment Pages 4-5

Image: Leven Canyon top lookout, Geoff Gleave

www.cradlecoastnrm.com

Community Activities

A successful balance at Lillico Beach Weed management can be a difficult undertaking, particularly because of weeds’ invasive and sometimes poisonous or thorny structures. This complexity is heightened when the weed is found to provide a benefit to some native wildlife and a threat to others, as is the case with African Boxthorn at the Lillico Beach Conservation Area.

A coastal vegetation area of 18 hectares was included in the project scope which encompasses the Little Penguin viewing platform jointly managed with the Friends of Lillico Penguin volunteers.

African Boxthorn is a Weed of National Significance introduced from South Africa. A thorny, dense shrub growing to five metres, this weed has invaded many coastal areas and is well established along Lillico Beach.

Whilst this phase of the weed control project is now complete, site monitoring will continue in Spring and then be checked annually to ensure that follow up works can be identified early and undertaken in a timely manner.

All of the African Boxthorn control work was undertaken after the Shearwaters had migrated and when most of the Little Penguins were absent.

It’s proven to be a safe haven for Little Penguins who build nests amongst the inaccessible foliage that deters feral cats and dogs. But one species’ friend is another’s foe and the crowded habitat of the Boxthorn plants means that it can injure Shearwaters attempting to land on the beach.

The Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service found a balanced solution to the growing problem with thanks to funding from Cradle Coast NRM’s Sustainable Environment stream and the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.

Small, recently established African Boxthorn plants were removed in priority Short-tailed Shearwater nesting areas, and larger plants closer to the Lillico Beach viewing platform were drilled and poisoned leaving them in situ as Little Penguin shelters.

Upper branches of a Boxthorn thicket were lift in-situ to minimise potential for layering and to maintain a level of habitat.

To find out more about Cradle Coast NRM’s regional projects that are restoring and maintaining coastal environments, contact Anna Wind or Dionna Newton on 6431 6285.

On the lookout for Natural Connections Do you have a project idea that will help restore our urban waterways and coastal environment? Or maybe a proposal to protect threatened species and vegetation communities? .... Then the Cradle Coast Sustainable Environment team would love to hear from you.

Cradle Coast NRM is calling on community groups to submit project proposals in its new Sustainable Environment Natural Connections program.

Project funding between $500 and $2000 is available for eligible applicants and projects. Project ideas can be submitted at any time and will be assessed and announced quarterly.

To get your ideas going, here are some example initiatives that may be relevant to your local area: • Revegetation of a riverbank or waterway that runs through an urban environment • Designing and installing interpretive signage that promotes natural values, conservation and/or rare and threatened species • Defining beach access points to promote natural regeneration in the non-pathway areas.

View the full Natural Connections guidelines form online at www.cradlecoastnrm.com Contact the Cradle Coast NRM Sustainable Environment team to answer any questions you may have and receive assistance to work up your project proposal. You will then receive an application form.

Contact: Anna Wind (awind@cradlecoast.com), Dionna Newton (dnewton@cradlecoast.com) or Mark Wisniewski (mwisniewski@cradlecoast.com) or by phone on 6431 6285.

www.cradlecoastnrm.com

The Tasmanian Leaders Program identifies, promotes and develops business and community

Events and News

Leadership in natural resource management

leaders across all sectors and regions.

Each year, a diverse group of participants with one thing in common – high leadership potential – is selected to come together regularly over a ten-month period to learn and cultivate a range of specific

For the Calendar: National Threatened Species Day

competencies crucial to leaders.

The group participate in seminars, panels, field trips,

Sunday 7 September is National Threatened Species

case studies and retreats, exposing them to hundreds

Day, a time to reflect on the importance of biodiversity

of community leaders, experts and critical thinkers.

and the role we can all play in preserving the habitats of vulnerable flora and fauna.

The three Tasmanian natural resource management organisations NRM North, NRM South and Cradle

Tasmania has a personal link to the creation of National

Coast NRM have teamed up to offer one scholarship

Threatened Species Day which first made a mark on our

of $5,500 to help support the leadership development

calendars in 1996. On the night of 7 September 1936,

of someone working in the NRM sector.

the last Tasmanian Tiger (thylacine) died in Hobart Zoo, making the species extinct.

Eligibility criteria:

Sixty years later, National Threatened Species Day was

1. Must be employed or volunteer in the natural

declared as a time to reflect on what happened to the

resource management sector (or related sector

Tasmanian Tiger and how we can protect other species

such as farming).

from following the same fate. There are approximately 700 species listed as threatened in Tasmania today.

2. Consideration of a candidate statement of up to 300 words outlining:

Threatened Species Day isn’t all doom and gloom, however, with much news shared regarding ongoing

• your commitment to the NRM field and

threatened species recovery work and associated

aspirations for the future;

success stories.

• how this scholarship will help you achieve

The 2014 theme is Size Doesn’t Matter, highlighting

your goals; and

that those small and often unseen plants and animals • how the skills and knowledge gained from

are just as important to healthy ecosystems as their

the Tasmanian Leaders Program will benefit

larger counterparts.

your sector.

Visit www.threatenedspecieslink.tas.gov.au to get involved or find out more. You can also protect native

For full application details and a copy of the

plants on your property, attract native wildlife to your

application form, visit www.tasmanianleaders.org.au/

garden, be a responsible pet owner or simply go for a

our-program/scholarships. Applications close midday

bush walk to appreciate the diversity around our region.

1 October 2015. Good luck!

THREATENED SPECIES...DID YOU KNOW? Threatened species in the Cradle Coast region include: •

Hydrobiid Snail (Table Cape) - Beddomeia capensis

•

Australian Grayling - Prototroctes maraena

•

Burrowing Crayfish (Burnie) - Engaaeus yabbimunna

•

Broadlip Bird Orchid - Chiloglottis trapeziformis

•

Sea Clubsedge - Bolboschoenus caldwelli

3

Hands on with the environment As part of Cradle Coast NRM’s 2014 school’s program Community Education Project Officer, Sherrie Jaffray, has been working closely with three local schools to help children learn more about the environment in which they live.

Cooee Primary School staff and pupils had an exciting marine adventure in May when the Woodbridge School Marine Travel Program visited. The Marine Travel Program provides the opportunity for children to learn about, discover, and care for the marine environment by providing a stimulating and hands-on program in schools.

Andrew Walsh, Primary Coordinator from the Marine Discovery Centre, visited the school over two days to share his knowledge and expertise. Andrew brought with him touch tanks filled with sea stars, decorator crabs, hermit crabs and sea cucumbers. The children were able to pick up and study the features of the sea creatures and then participate in a variety of activities including making their own decorator crabs, looking at microscopic organisms and fish printing.

Further expanding their environmental knowledge the Grade 5 and 6 students at Cooee Primary will receive visits from experts on whales, penguins and shorebirds as part of Biodiversity Month in September. The school will then hold its very own Marine Expo in October allowing the students to share their knowledge and

passion about the marine and coastal environment’s located right outside their door.

Also having a wonderful time learning about marine life were the Grade 3 students at Stella Maris. The students celebrated World Ocean’s Day (June 8) by wearing something blue to school and creating colourful posters to display around the school.

They also made some ‘Ocean Promises’ as their way of making a difference to help ensure the healthy future of our waterways: • Always pick up rubbish when I see it • Reuse my plastic bags and will not throw any liquids in the oceans • Keep the ocean clean by making posters to tell others • To tell my family and other people to keep the ocean clean It was all hands on deck at Somerset Primary School in May when Cradle Coast NRM (CCNRM) helped the school extend their patch of threatened vegetation.

CCNRM provided 320 trees, shrubs and grasses that were planted by the students in the remnant bush area within school grounds.

To find out more about Cradle Coast NRM’s school’s program contact Sherrie Jaffray on 6431 6285.

Left: Mia Laird and fellow students from Cooee Primary enjoying the Marine Travel Program Right: Cradle Coast NRM’s Sherrie Jaffray and Mark Wisniewski with Joel Jaffray from Somerset Primary School planting trees.

www.cradlecoastnrm.com

On the 27th of November the kids of the Cradle Coast are taking over!

The ‘Kids Teaching Kids’ program aims to inspire our future environmental leaders. It connects students with local environmental issues and offers them the skills to develop their learning into an interactive workshop to educate peers and local community members.

Feature Story

Kids teaching kids

The event is student focused with student driven workshops presented to a student audience. ‘Kids Teaching Kids’ allows children to share what they have learnt throughout the year from the Cradle Coast NRM Environmental Education program.

Students learn with their head, heart and hands. They are encouraged into thinking, feeling and developing practical ways to respond to the challenges facing our environment.

Cradle Coast NRM is excited to support this vision in our community.

World Ocean Day posters created by Grade 3 students at Stella Maris.

Students in Science – UTAS Science Investigation Awards 2014 Scientific inquiry encourages students to pose questions, plan and conduct investigations, collect and analyse evidence and communicate their findings. The UTAS Science Investigation Awards recognise scientific inquiry and award students with prizes from supporters with interests in science and the community.

Hosted by the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology at the University of Tasmania (UTAS), students in Years 5 – 12 can enter any science project they wish, present it on a standard poster and booklet, and attend a judging event at UTAS to present their findings to scientist judges.

Cradle Coast NRM is proud to be a part of the awards in 2014 by providing special awards for the Best Environmental Science Project in each year group. Environmental science projects provide the opportunity for students to investigate ways to better understand and look after our natural resources for future generations.

To find out more about the UTAS Science Investigation Awards 2014 contact Sherrie Jaffray on 6431 6285 or sjaffray@cradlecoast.com or contact the North West Project Coordinator Anna Paice 0439 111334 or Anna.Paice@utas.edu.au

5

Natural Values

Survey of King Island bats This story is based on article by Lisa Cawthen, Wildlife Ecologist, King Island.

Since November 2013, wildlife ecologists on King Island have been surveying bats to gain an understanding of what species exist on the island and where they can be found.

Three bat species have been identified by ecologist Lisa Cawthen – the gould’s wattled bat, chocolate wattled bat, and the lesser long-eared bat.

The chocolate wattled bat was an unexpected discovery for the island and shows that new biodiversity insights can be revealed at any time.

The study surveyed 40 sites across the island and found that not all bat species occur everywhere.

The lesser long-eared bat was more widespread than the other two species, a variance that Ms Cawthen predicted could be due to roosting vegetation preferences and distribution.

Pegarah with its eucalypt forests was a popular spot for all three species, and Seal Rocks revealed many sightings too.

A lesser long-eared bat (Nyctophilus geoffroyi) at the Pegarah Private Nature Reserve captured during the King Island Bat Survey

Bats are known to eat beetles, bugs, spiders and mosquitos and are valuable residents in the King Island landscape.

Ms Cawthen said “The work by many land owners to protect and promote forests is helping to conserve bats on the island. In particular, management strategies such as fencing off shelter-belts from cattle to improve forest condition, as well as recruiting new forest habitat where it has been lost…” - an excellent outcome for King Island and its resident bat species.

Discover what’s in Shearwater’s backyard

Natural Values Workshops

Would you like to learn about protecting your local environment? Do you have a couple of spare hours on a Sunday morning to do something fun and educational with the children?

The Hawley nature walk is part of a series of natural values training opportunities to be offered free of charge to community group volunteers, state and local government staff and industry in the coming months.

Cradle Coast NRM in conjunction with Environmental Consulting Options Tasmania (ECOtas) will be hosting a guided walk through the Hawley Nature Reserve on Sunday 19 October. Scientist Mark Wapstra will be hosting the walk and teaching participants about the special plants and animals of the Hawley area.

Natural Values workshops will also be held during October and November for those involved in natural resources across the region.

Each child that attends will receive a free NRM goody bag containing environmental information, colouring pencils, and other fun giveaways. Don’t forget your raincoat if it is looking a bit grey outside!

The walk will depart from the Hawley Nature Reserve, Hawk Hill Road, Shearwater at 10.30am Sunday 19 October. If you would like to attend please contact Lauren Clarke at Cradle Coast Authority on 6431 6285 or lclarke@cradlecoast.com

www.cradlecoastnrm.com

The aim is to enhance the knowledge and skills of land managers as well as support on-ground works through the provision of information surrounding legislation, management tools such as using the Natural Values Atlas and the LIST, and best practice methods.

There will be a series of four workshops; two will provide an overview of natural values in the region, one will focus on the threatened Central North Burrowing Crayfish and riparian management and the fourth will be specific to identification of trees.

Places are limited and bookings are essential. For full details visit www.cradlecoastnrm.com and follow the Natural Values link.

An extensive program is underway to help the region’s livestock producers reduce their reliance on agricultural chemicals while managing pasture pests, reducing soil erosion and improving pasture productivity.

Cradle Coast NRM’s Pasture Pests Program is open to farmers, land managers and agricultural advisors from across the region, and registrations are still open if you’d like to get involved.

The Program offers a series of workshops and demonstration sites so participants can see theory being put into practice.

The main pasture pests of grazing systems in the Cradle Coast region are the black and red headed cockchafers and corbie grubs. When present in sufficient numbers these pests can create large areas of bare ground and eliminate susceptible perennial ryegrass pastures.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) incorporates preventative measures and involves actively monitoring pests and using a range of control techniques including

bio-control, natural enemies, tolerant pasture species such as cocksfoot, management practices and chemical control.

Two workshops remain in Spring 2014 and Winter 2015, scheduled to make the most of the variable conditions that come with changing seasons.

The program operates in two streams, one in Burnie and one in Smithton.

Sustainable Agriculture

Protecting pastures with Integrated Pest Management

Jason Lynch has been engaged as workshop leader and is a senior consultant at Macquarie Franklin with over 15 years of experience as an agronomist.

Participants receive a Pasture Pests Manual to guide their learning and development of an action plan for their property.

To find out more about the Pasture Pests Program or to participate in an upcoming workshop, contact Spencer Gibbs, Coordinator: Productive Landscapes on sgibbs@cradlecoast.com

Photographs by Jason Lynch, Macquarie Franklin

7

Upcoming Events

Staff R ichard In gram Executi v e O f f i c e r

September

G ra nt P e arc e Opera ti on s M an age r

Beachwatch groups will be conducting clean-ups at their adopted beaches throughout September. To get involved contact Project Officer, Dionna Newton at dnewton@cradlecoast.com

Beachwatch

Er ns t K emm e re r S trategy & Im pl e me n t a t ion M a na g e r

Penguin Guide Training Saturday 6 September, Cradle Coast Authority Training Room 1 – 3 Spring St, Burnie For further details contact Evelyn DeVito, Friends of Burnie Penguins on 6435 1102

Apri l Lan ge rak I n formati o n M an ager Vacant C oordi nato r: B i o di ve r s it y

October

Anna Win d C oordi nato r: Co asta l

Shorebird Counts

Di o nna N e w to n Project Officer: Coastal, Estuarine & Marine S herri e J af f ray Pr o j ect Of f i c e r: C o m m u nit y Ed u c a t ion M ark Wi s n i e w sk i Pr o j ect Of f i c e r: G IS a nd N R M S pencer G i bbs C oordi nato r: Pro du c t iv e L a nd s c a p e s Br a d Gri f f i t h s Pr o j ect Of f i c e r: S u sta ina b le A g r ic ult ur e Tom O’M al l e y R egi ona l L an dc are Fa c ilit a t or

Unless otherwise acknowledged, this publication and the projects featured are supported by Cradle Coast NRM, through funding from the Australian Government.

S h o r e bir d M o n it o r in g P r o je c t v o lu n t e e r s will b e c o n du c t ing resident s h o r e bir d c o u n t s be t we e n S t a n le y a n d N a r a wn t a pu N a t ional Park t h r o u g h o u t O c t o b e r . I f y o u wo u ld like t o g e t in v o lv e d p lease cont act P r o je c t O f f ic e r , D io n n a N e wt o n a t dn e wt o n @ c r a dle c o ast.com

Natural Values Workshops Cradle Coast NRM in conjunction with ECOtas will be hosting a series of natural values training opportunities free of charge in the coming months:

WHEN

TOPIC

WHERE

Sun 19 Oct 10:30am-12pm

Guided Natural Values walk focused on local residents and families

Hawley Nature Reserve

Tues 21 & Wed 22 Oct

2 day Natural Values overview workshops

Devonport

Thurs 23 & Fri 24 Oct

2 day Natural Values overview workshops

Burnie

Wed 5 Nov

Burrowing crayfish and Tasmanian Giant Freshwater Lobster ecology, habitat and riparian management

Devonport

Wed 3 Dec

Identification of trees

Burnie

Places are limited and bookings are essential. For full details visit www.cradlecoastnrm.com and follow the Natural Values link.

Postage Paid Australia

Cradle Coast NRM 1-3 Spring Street PO Box 338 Burnie TAS 7320

ph: 03 6431 6285 fax: 03 6431 7014 email: nrm@cradlecoast.com Cradle Coast NRM is an independent committee hosted by the Cradle Coast Authority