Friday, June 24, 2016
Mt Buller & Mt Stirling’s Newspaper PH: (03) 5775 2115
E: sales.mcourier@nemedia.com.au
FREE
INSIDE
Rossignol Ladies Day - Page 5
THIS IS FUN: Young Will Sutherland of Black Rock had a wow of a time on opening day with a toboggan run down Bourke Street. Enough man-made snow was produced with snow guns going flat out most of the previous night to give first day guests a taste of what is expected to come throughout the season. During Saturday snow did fall giving Will an even better experience. For full coverage of opening day turn to centre pages 10 and 11. PHOTO: Andrew Railton - Mt Buller
Social Focus Pages 10-11
They’re back from the very brink of extinction By PAM ZIERKMAHONEY
Stirling links with Estonia - Page 14
INDEX Skier profile...............P6 Mr Bumps Blogs........P9 Real Estate ....... P13, 16
THE success of Mt Buller’s Mountain Pygmy Possum recovery program has been highly praised during the opening of the 2016 snow season. Both ARMB board chair Jennifer Hutchison and chief executive officer John Huber mentioned the success of the program to reinstate a healthy colony of the tiny creatures that were in fear of extinction. Ms Hutchison related how a ‘few male possums were
Attentive Staff
borrowed from Mt Hotham’. She said the success of these males being introduced, to boost the gene pool, had been so successful the ‘boys had been sent home early’. Mr Huber also praised the work of the environmental team on Buller, in particular Louise Perrin, head of the environmental department. “The mountain pygmy possum story at Mt Buller is a pretty rare example of where Australian threatened species management has succeeded,” Ms Perrin said.
Convenient Location
“This past summer, as we undertook our standard monitoring, we were staggered by the numbers – we now have more than 140 mountain pygmy possums – more now than when they were first rediscovered in 1996. It was initially thought the possum to be extinct, however, a live possum was found at Mt Hotham as early as in 1966. “They are very small, live deep down in rock boulderfields (not trees) in tiny habitat patches at high elevations and
Competitive Rates
hibernate from May to October – meaning they are not often seen,” Ms Perrin said. “Over the years, their habitat has been lost and/or fragmented (meaning loss of genetic diversity) and feral predators (particularly foxes and cats) have been happily munching on them.” When they were re-discovered at Mt Buller in 1996, around 80 individuals were trapped. By 2004, this number had dropped to six (bi-annual monitoring takes place in Novem-
Long Opening Hours
ber and February) - extinction was imminent. Resort management, with BSL and DSE (now DELWP) developed a recovery plan, which was implemented from 2005 to 2010. Key actions were to connect previously fragmented habitat, revegetate habitat, undertake integrated yearround ongoing predator control programs, reduce sediment impacting habitat and to improve education and awareness of the species. Continued page 2
Tuning Centre
Whether beginner or expert, skier or snowboarder, the Grimus Ski Centre has the right equipment for your needs. Experienced fitting staff offer excellent advice and friendly service to ensure you have the most suitable gear.
Located at the end of Breathtaker Road right next to the Abom 6-seat chairlift on Bourke Street. Take the free village shuttle from your lodge right to the door. Convenient carry bags are available to easily transport your hire gear back to your lodge.
5 Breathtaker Road
THE HOME OF WINTER OLYMPIAN ANTON GRIMUS
Tel: 5777 6990 or 5777 6396
n51D02409/2315
GRIMUS SKI CENTRE Long opening hours, competitive rates, fast professional fitting and quality hire equipment are the cornerstones of the service provided by the Grimus Ski Centre. Forgotten your hat, gloves, goggles, sunscreen or just need a souvenir? Take a browse in the boutique.
Our new $300,000 Wintersteiger Mercury robot is the only one in Victoria. Using this state-of-the-art technology, our technicians can tune our rental fleet & your own equipment to exact specifications – no guess work involved. Great tuning = great skiing. Try it today!!
www.grimusskicentre.com