The TNC recently released an extraordinary collection of member articles for Newsletter #47, covering everything from Rain Moths to an Antarctic voyage. The club also enjoyed a successful spring meeting and wildflower walk at the Ray Paynter Reserve and is planning an end-of-year celebration for Bibbulmun Track pioneer, Bob Frayne.
It is exciting to receive observations from those in the community, especially when the observation is unusual. The sighting of a Western Netted Dragon in the Toodyay area is one such sighting.
The Little Black Cormorant is more common on inland waters than coastal. However, it can also be found on coastal estuaries and is quite prolific in the southwest of the state.
We celebrated a new co-patron and enjoyed a members’ night featuring spectacular East African wildlife photos and rare footage of the club’s 1974 efforts to clear the massive Salvinia infestation at Tomato Lake. The club also honours the legacy of Doug Blandford, whose geological expertise powered local conservation campaigns.
A solitary, large, graceful white bird of 80 to 90cms, the Yellow-billed Spoonbill, can be observed in shallow water on the edges of the Avon River.
True to its name, the Broad-banded Sand-swimmer skink’s most striking feature is its pattern of rich brown to purplish bands. These markings flow from the back of its neck to the tip of its tail, a tapestry of branched and broken lines.
The Barking Owl and the Southern Boobook are of the ‘hawk-owl’ species. Although very similar in colouring and looks, the Barking Owl is much larger, with measurements of 35 to 45cms compared with the Southern Boobook of 25 to 35cms. Even though it is more common in the Pilbara area, the Barking Owl has been heard very, very occasionally within our Shire.
Members recently explored Wattening Nature Reserve, an area in the Phillips Sandplain Catchment of Toodyay Shire, notable for its freshwater springs. Despite its small size, the reserve boasts significant biodiversity and historical importance, having been utilised by Noongar people for thousands of years and documented by early European explorers and naturalists.
The Masked Owl is not a common species around our Shire, however, it has been observed in open farmland with large trees, woodlands and timbered watercourses with paperbark woodland being a preferred habitat.
The “Members Night” format of the May meeting did not disappoint as we enjoyed surprising and interesting presentations.
With our earlier rains the frogs are now calling and what a great sound it is following a long, hot summer. One such frog is the Moaning Frog which has a call that can cause sleep-less nights with its long and rising low moan if residing too close to the house. It is found in swampy and sandy areas from as far north of the state as Geraldton, east to Cape Arid and Rottnest Island – a vast area.
Residents recently received a letter from DBCA informing them that a burn was planned for Rugged Hills Reserve and “ensure your insurance cover is current and will provide you with adequate coverage in order to protect you from property losses”.
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