Our Latest Quest to Check the Nests

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This month, some of the NACC NRM team ventured out to Murchison House Station to monitor the local Carnaby’s cockatoo population and check out any happenings within their hollows.

Amid green grasslands of blooming colour, Biodiversity Program Coordinator Jarna Kendle, Communications Officer Phoebe Royce, and Birdlife Midwest volunteer Heather Beswick teamed up with station owner Belinda Carruth to monitor around 20 hollows within a secured area of the property.

Among the 20 hollows inspected, eight of these were artificial, having been funded and installed in 2022 by NACC NRM’s past ‘Protecting WA’s Black Cocatoos’ project. These hollows encourage flocks to continue breeding in the area and provide additional homes for Carnaby’s, who are forced to compete with other species to claim hollows.

Jarna and Belinda use the Carnaby’s Cam as their eyes on the inside.
Check out those striking tail feathers!

With the looming risk of becoming bogged given recent high rainfall, the team tackled the expedition on foot, clocking around 10kms of walking through wildflowers and wet grass. While this might not sound like much fun, there was certainly a lot of excitement to see the landscape nourished and coming to life leading up to Spring!

One of the biggest surprises of the day was the abundance of water in the area, which posed a challenge for some inspections and prohibited the team from accessing hollows surrounded by deep bodies of water! The team set out in the morning, and although the Carnaby’s were a little shy at first, eventually three paired up couples were spotted cuddling and canoodling in the tree tops, before a female was sighted prospecting for a suitable new hollow! As these monogamous cockatoos mate for life, observing the couples and their courting behaviours was a special highlight.

Phoebe and Heather getting a closer look at the Carnaby’s couples.

A crucial part of monitoring hollows is the courteous ‘tap and flush’ to get the ball rolling. Essentially, this is like knocking on the door and offering any animals within the hollow a chance to safely make an exit before the team send in a camera on an extendable pole. Without the tap and flush, the camera could alarm any inhabitants and cause a bird to erratically fly out and injure itself. This method was certainly validated when, upon Jarna carrying out a ‘tap and flush’ on a hollow, a Boobook Owl was flushed out and its egg was then discovered by camera – an exciting find! Also spotted were Pink and Grey Galahs, a Blue Wren, a Whistling Kite and some Australian Ringneck parrots, adding to the diversity of the day’s sightings.

The following day, Jarna continued out in the field, this time joined by NACC NRM Programs and Operations Manager Kane Watson to tackle a different area of Murchison House Station. While monitoring, Jarna and Kane stumbled up a duck occupying a hollow and diligently sitting on an egg, a testament to the thriving avian life in the area and certainly an unlikely encounter.

Overall, the trip to Murchison House Station offered valuable insights in the lead up to returning later in September for additional monitoring. Stay tuned for more exciting discoveries from the team, with ongoing updates to come!

This project is jointly funded by the Australian Government Natural Heritage Trust and NACC NRM, a member of the Commonwealth Regional Delivery Partners panel. 

Phoebe Royce – Communications Officer

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In 2020-21 I talked about ‘raising the bar’. In 2021-22 we worked on setting the bar on fire. Over the last 12 months, the team at NACC NRM has not stopped.

The Sustainable Agriculture team has extended the program’s reach through collaborations with grower groups in the regions. Specifically, the Beyond Reasonable Drought project and Grower Group Alliance – South West WA Drought Innovation Hub – Geraldton Node project. The Beyond Reasonable Drought partnership with grower groups supported farmers across the region to improve the environmental sustainability of their agricultural production and drought resilience. The outcomes of this project have been consolidated through our successful Expression of Interest to the South West WA Drought Innovation Hub, with support from grower groups across the region, to host the Geraldton Node of the Hub. The program continues to focus on working with agricultural networks to share technical expertise and provide opportunities that will improve land management practices in agriculture across the region.

The conservation outcomes of ranger teams have expanded through work on several land tenures. Maintaining Heritage sites such as Willi Gulli, Racecourse Paddock and Buller River has long been a priority. During 2021-22, the teams have increasingly focused on threatened species and ecosystems.

To this end, Western Mulga rangers have improved management across 19,000 ha for the conservation of Malleefowl through firebreak and access management. They completed the maintenance of water holes and supported the monitoring of over 90 Malleefowl mounds.

Similarly, the Kwelena Mambakort Aboriginal Corporate ranger team have contributed positively to Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo populations by installing artificial hollows and habitat restoration.

All ranger teams have collected native seed, propagated native plants for restoration, and planted native vegetation in key locations across the NAR. Seed collection provides valuable industry experience and has facilitated the planting of over 100,000 seedlings during the year.   

In September 2021, the NACC NRM team delivered the WA Threatened Species Forum, held in tandem with the National Malleefowl Forum. Given the impact of COVID and the timing of this event, having more than 100 delegates from all over Australia was a significant achievement. The two Forums brought together 12 events over five days and featured 14 local artists, 25 businesses and 36 youth participants.

Following the successful relaunch of our updated NARvis, NACC NRM was invited to help lead a significant piece of strategic planning work for the region with Mid West Development Commission and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. With funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, the consortia delivered a Regional Drought Resilience Plan covering the shires of Northampton and Chapman Valley and the City of Greater Geraldton, along with significant technical analysis of drought vulnerability for the South West land division. The development of this plan also included extensive community consultation to ensure that local knowledge and technical advice guided the development of priorities for action.

This planning work links to existing NACC NRM on-ground projects, including Beyond Reasonable Drought and the Chapman Catchment Collaborative regeneration project.

It was a busy year for events with face-to-face events becoming commonplace again. During 2021-22 we hosted events in Gingin, Moora, Dalwallinu, Cervantes, Jurien Bay, Walkaway, Nabawa, Perenjori, Kalannie and Morawa. We supported events in Karakin, Thundellara, Perenjori, Paynes Find, Wubin, Cataby, Warradarge, Northampton, Yuna, Dalwallinu and Dandaragan.

We also supported on-ground works throughout the region, including at the following locations Yuna, Dalwallinu, Dandaragan, Merkanooka, Goodlands, Kalannie, Bunjil, Yardarino, Canna, Kondut, Latham, Kadathinni, Nabawa, Red Gully, Sandy Gully, Waddy Forrest, Devils Creek, Perenjori, Bowgada, Ellendale, Wandana, Namban, Hill River, Warradarge, Gillingarra, Regans Ford and Moonyanooka.

Our region is vast – slightly larger than Tasmania, which for comparison, is serviced by three separate NRM organisations. Covering the NAR region and its many environmental threats is challenging. We continue to focus on partnerships and collaboration to address this challenge. We know that by working with our community through passionate delivery of collaborative on-ground projects and education, the community will value and actively protect our region’s natural capital.

This year we have launched a new Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). The RAP Working Group consulted widely and developed an Innovate RAP which Reconciliation Australia approved in March 2022. The activities to fulfil these commitments are now in full swing.

Sadly, at the end of 2021, we farewelled former NACC NRM CEO Shelley Spriggs, who lost a long battle with cancer. Shelley was an inaugural inductee to the NRM Leadership Honour Roll. I will always be grateful for her guidance and no-nonsense approach, not to mention her passion for life.

While we have said farewell to some, we have welcomed many new faces across all programs, including our Administration team. We have also hosted a school-based trainee from Nagle Catholic College who has been working towards a Certificate II in Conservation and Ecosystem Management. This trial position has been very successful, and we look forward to making this opportunity available again in 2023.

During 2022 we have taken on new projects that align with our organisational and program objectives, and we have successfully completed some great initiatives that support continued conservation and sustainability outcomes. I want to thank the whole team who continue to go above and beyond for the organisation and each other proving their ongoing commitment to our purpose and our values.