Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary

16/10/2022

12/09/2022

The highly regarded program run by Outdoors Victoria with support from City of Ballarat is coming to Ballarat this October to December. It's perfect for anyone keen to learn more about the Victorian & local environment, how to care for it and meet like-minded people, showcasing a wide range of local organisations like BirdLife Ballarat & the Friends of Clarkesdale group that you could get involved with. Registrations are open until Sept. 21 as per the attached flyer.

10/09/2022

Let's go bird spotting!
From 11am-12pm, BirdLife Ballarat will be giving a talk at the Caring for Nature Expo and leading a bird walk around the area. Learn about local birds and how to identify our feathered friends.
https://birdlife.org.au/locations/birdlife-ballarat
To see the full program, go to: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/caring-for-nature-expo-tickets-393024887017?fbclid=IwAR1GyDuddnDu5HN1Zis82BbkCgfglJUHDPdk5VCUIlK4gig0KHlZw4P0Wo0

14/08/2022

Sean "Birdman" Dooley is coming to Ballarat this week! Friends of Canadian Corridor have lined up an opportunity to hear from this great storyteller at 7pm on Wednesday night, August 17 at the Eureka Centre. See link below to secure your tickets.

14/08/2022

A lovely, wintery image of the Gordon's Lagoon Trail at captured by Phillip Le Marshall yesterday afternoon after a couple of short, sharp hail storms.

20/05/2022

Small mammals are hard to see and can be overlooked but play very important roles in woodland and forest ecosystems like those at Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary. 💚
Learn about some of Vic’s small native mammals, their habitats, life stages and conservation measures required for their survival at the free ‘Small Mammal Conservation’ online seminar presented by SWIFFT. Thursday 26 May, 10am – 12.30pm.
During this online presentation, you’ll hear from:
🍃 William Terry – Southern Cross University | Radio tracked phascogales
🍃 Dr Barbara Wilson – Deakin University | Refuges in the Otways
🍃 Dr Lindy Lumsden – Arthur Rylah Institute | Secret life of bats
🍃 Dr Phoebe Burns – Zoos Victoria | Native rodent conservation
Visit https://www.swifft.net.au/cb_pages/video_conferencing.php for more information and to register.
📷 William Terry | phascogale on Taungurung Country

Small mammals are hard to see and are sometimes overlooked 💚

Learn about some of Victoria’s small native mammals, their habitats, life stages and conservation measures required for their survival at the ‘Small Mammal Conservation’ free seminar presented by SWIFFT. Thursday 26 May, 10am – 12.30pm.

During this online presentation, you’ll hear from:

🍃 William Terry – Southern Cross University | Radio tracked phascogales
🍃 Dr Barbara Wilson – Deakin University | Refuges in the Otways
🍃 Dr Lindy Lumsden – Arthur Rylah Institute | Secret life of bats
🍃 Dr Phoebe Burns – Zoos Victoria | Native rodent conservation

Visit https://www.swifft.net.au/cb_pages/video_conferencing.php for more information and to register.

📷 William Terry | phascogale on Taungurung Country

19/05/2022

The Biodiversity Across the Borders Conference to be held at Fed Uni's Mt Helen Campus, Ballarat on Friday 10th June 2022 has a wonderful program of speakers as always. This year's theme is "Biodiversity Conservation: Moving forward with lessons learned". Scan on the QR Code on the flyer below to register.

17/12/2021

Ballarat Environment Network's annual calendar for 2022 is now available and there are less than 15 left. This year's theme is Orchids of the BEN reserves and Ballarat region. Most of the orchids featured can be found at . The calendar also includes pre-populated dates of significant international, national and local environment events, including Friends of Clarkesdale working bees and BirdLife Ballarat branch meetings. Contact BEN as per the post below if you'd like to buy a copy.

01/10/2021

The Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary is an absolute delight at the moment, with its lagoons, lakes and dams all full-to-the-brim and the ephemeral Springdallah Creek still flowing through the Herb-rich Creekline Vegetation with its overstorey of mature Candlebarks, Rough-barked Manna Gums and Yarra Gums.

23/09/2021

I wonder which birds will fly into your backyard to be counted this October?

Save the date – there’s only 1 MONTH TO GO until the 2021 and we can’t wait! ⁠

The 2021 event will run from October 18‒24 during National Bird Week. Register as a counter today at: https://aussiebirdcount.org.au/

The Aussie Backyard Bird Count is one of Australia’s biggest citizen science events. This year is our eighth count, and we’re hoping it will be our biggest yet!

Join thousands of people around the country in exploring your backyard, local park or favourite outdoor space and help us learn more about the birds that live where people live.

Taking part in the Aussie Backyard Bird Count is a great way to connect with the birds in your backyard, no matter where your backyard happens to be. You can count in a suburban garden, a local park, a patch of forest, down by the beach, or the main street of town. ⁠

To take part, register on the website today, then during the count you can use the web form or the app to submit your counts. Just enter your location and get counting ‒ each count takes just 20 minutes!

Not only will you be contributing to BirdLife Australia's knowledge of Aussie birds, but there are also some incredible prizes on offer. ⁠

Head over to the Aussie Backyard Bird Count website to find out more!

21/09/2021

's is online until September 26, with over 80 virtual events and experiences to choose from! Although our travel may be limited, they'll be taking you virtually across the state to hear the latest on protecting Victoria's special places and wildlife. Head to trustfornature.org.au/about-us/events to find out more and register.

Join us this September for the Victoria Nature Festival!

Although our travel may be limited, we'll be taking you virtually across the state to hear the latest on protecting Victoria's special places and wildlife.

Why not visit a remote Victorian, bank-owned conservation reserve from your lounge room?

Or join a debate about fenced reserves?

Head to trustfornature.org.au/about-us/events to find out more and register.

21/09/2021

For current and aspiring bird watchers, the virtual www.angairnatureshow.org.au/themes provides guidance for photographing birds in the Learn theme and Pete's virtual bird walk under the Wonder theme which shows you where to go to see birds close to town. Enjoy these in lockdown!

10/09/2021

The wonderful Angair Nature Show 2021 is now online (Sep 9 - Oct 31 2021): www.angairnatureshow2021.
Take a virtual stroll in Anglesea or Aireys Inlet beauty spots with new downloadable self-guided walks, try a jigsaw puzzle showing the bugs, beasts & blooms of the district or view an online tutorial on how to photograph birds. A student exhibition on the theme ‘Protect’ highlights the Surf Coast's endangered species. Local photographers exhibit their images of local flora & fauna in an online gallery to reprise the art content of the traditional show.

Angair Nature Show 2021
Have COVID restrictions kept you out of the colourful spring bushland of the Surf Coast? Turn on the computer and go for a virtual stroll in an Anglesea or Aireys Inlet beauty spot.
The traditional Angair Wildflower & Art Weekend has been cancelled for a second year but the Angair team have rebuilt last year’s highly successful virtual show to keep you entertained. The 2021 version will include new self-guided walks in downloadable and flipbook format, 10 jigsaw puzzles showing the bugs, beasts and blooms of the district and an online tutorial on how to photograph birds. A new theme: ‘Protect’ is behind a student exhibition that highlights the endangered species of the Surf Coast. Local photographers exhibit their images of local flora and fauna in an online gallery to reprise the art content of the traditional show.
Visit the Angair Nature Show on www.angairnatureshow2021 anytime from mid-September to the end of October.

01/09/2021

Happy "Wattle Day" from , where 17 indigenous and 50+ planted native species of wattles flourish, much to the delight of the birds, insects, possums and visitors.

30/08/2021

With a pair of Powerful Owls recently discovered at , this podcast of 's story "Hunting for Hoots" makes for fascinating listening. It features 's Callan Alexander who has been researching the variation in the calls of the owls around Brisbane for several years whilst completing his Masters Degree at QUT.

ABC Off Track: this week's program explores the sounds of the Powerful Owl, a Woowookarung resident.

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/offtrack/hunting-for-hoots-owl-ecoacoustics/13492922

Also, Ann Jones, the presenter talks about Hoot Detective which is a new citizen science project, getting people to listen to audio files to assist the Australian Acoustic Observatory (A2O) ( https://acousticobservatory.org/ )

03/07/2021

Have you entered BirdLife Australia's Photography Awards yet? Entries close on August 2, 2021 so start short-listing!
We’re halfway through this year’s BirdLife Australia Photography Awards competition and we’ve already seen some incredible entries from some very talented photographers.
Here are some of the stunning pics submitted so far!

The 2021 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards are proudly sponsored by Nikon Australia, Lake Cowal Foundation and RSPCA Victoria.
Find out more at: https://www.birdlifephotoaward.org.au/
Please note: being picked as a favourite does not guarantee that your photo will be shortlisted.
📷 Emu by Georgina Steytler Photography, Rainbow Bee-eaters by Inigo Koefoed, Victoria’s Riflebird by David Bryan, Scarlet Honeyeater by Roger Fance Photography, Yellow-billed Spoonbills by Rob Solic and Zebra Finches by Erin Jordan

22/12/2020

These delightful photos of Wedge-tailed Eagles circling above Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary were taken by Rob Loveband. Love the youngster checking with its parent to see if it is angling its wings just right, and the Dusky Woodswallow bravely defending its territory.

22/12/2020