The short talk will be by Duncan McCaskill on: “The Canberra Garden Bird Survey, a brief overview”.
Duncan will give an introduction to the Canberra Garden Bird Survey which is about to enter its 39th year of continuous operation. He will introduce the new chart, discuss a few results and provide a reminder of the rules for participants.
The main presentation will be by wildlife ecologist and photographer Chris Tzaros on “Out of the blue – The resurgence of the Turquoise Parrot”.
Once faced with extinction in the early 1900s, the Turquoise Parrot has made a remarkable comeback and now exists throughout many parts of Victoria, NSW and southern Qld. Although still listed as threatened, there are some areas where it has established secure localised populations. One such area is the hills of north-east Victoria, where a campaign to address key threats and improve the species’ habitat has been operating for about 6 years. Community involvement has been instrumental to the program’s success, with private landholders actively participating in a raft of activities that will hopefully allow this spectacular little bird to enjoy a bright future. This is an inspiring conservation success story that provides hope for other conservation initiatives.