12 April 2019 – Guest Speaker – Innamincka Bird Surveys

The guest speaker at the April CFNC general meeting is Euan Moore, who will present a talk titled ‘Tracking Boom and Bust – Bird Surveys around Innamincka.’

Bourke’s Parrot, one of the special birds that is usually found. Photo by Euan Moore

Euan writes “Since 2011 members of the Friends of Innamincka Reserves have been conducting bird surveys on an almost annual basis in the Innamincka Regional Reserve. During that time we have seen the boom years following the floods from Cyclone Yasi to the intense drought of recent years as well as the impacts of grazing, mining, tourism and weed infestation. The deserts in this area are harsh but beautiful. Permanent waterholes along Cooper Ck provide a drought refuge for wildlife and in the years after flood the Coongie Lakes are magical.”

The presentation will be held in the Fellowship Room behind the Uniting Church on Lyttleton St, Castlemaine, commencing from 7.30pm on Friday 12th April.  Members and visitors are all welcome, and there is no cost for entry.  We hope to see you there for this special evening.

Cooper Creek near Innamincka during the boom that followed Cyclone Yasi. Photo by Euan Moore

8 March 2019 – CFNC Guest Speaker evening

The guest speaker for the March 2019 meeting of the CFNC is former club president and long-term committee member, and on-going international adventurer, Nigel Harland.  Nigel’s talk is titled “Travels in Tanzania, Kenya and Rwanda”.  Those who have attended his talks from previous adventures will know what a entertaining and knowledgeable raconteur he is, as well as a perceptive photographer.

Nigel says “the talk will relate to a three week trip to Tanzania, Kenya and Rwanda which Anne and I did last year. It rained for much of the time, but since we were not allowed out of the vehicle, that didn’t make any difference. We saw many birds and animals, in fact probably too many! For reasons I will explain, Rwanda was the highlight.”

The talk is open to both members and visitors – bring along friends and family.  The evening will commence from 7.30pm on Friday 8 March at the Fellowship Room, behind the Uniting Church on Lyttleton St (next door to the Art Gallery and Museum).  Tea and snacks available afterwards.   There is no cost for attendance.

9 Feb 2019 – Excursion to Wombat Forest

The CFNC excursion on Saturday 9th February, following Gayle Osbourne’s talk on Friday evening, will be to an area of the Wombat Forest near Spargo Creek, where the leafless bossiaea can be found.  The weather forecast is for 20 degrees. We will leave the Octopus (Duke St, Castlemaine) at 1.30 pm and drive to Daylesford to meet Gayle who will guide us to Spargo Creek.  Bring afternoon tea.

8 Feb 2019 – CFNC speaker Gayle Osborne

The first speaker for the Castlemaine Field Naturalists Club in 2019 is Gayle Osborne.

Gayle has been involved with Wombat Forestcare for many years, and will present a talk titled ‘Fauna surveys in the Wombat Forest’.  Gayle will describe the group’s motion-sensing camera projects, searches for Powerful Owls and spotlighting for Greater Gliders, and explain why entering data on the Victorian Biodiversity Atlas is essential for conservation.  Gayle will also mention the new fungi app and who to contact for more information.

The talk will be held in the Fellowship Room behind the Uniting Church Hall on Lyttleton St, Castlemaine (next door to the Art Gallery & Museum).  The evening’s event will commence from 7.30pm on Friday 8 February.  Members and visitors are all welcome, and there is no cost for entry.

Everyone is also welcome to attend an excursion on the following day (Sat 9 Feb).  Meet at the Octopus building on Duke St (opposite the Castle Motel) ready for a 1.30pm departure.  Bring afternoon tea, and car-pooling will be available.

Dec 2018 General Meeting – Open Mic!

As per Castlemaine Field Nat tradition, the December 2018 general meeting is a chance for any member (or visitor) to make a short presentation.  People are encouraged to talk for up to 5 minutes about a topic related in some way to natural history.  It might be photos from a holiday to an exotic location, video footage of birds in your backyard, an analysis of recent weather patterns or reciting a poem about a forest.  It is only limited by your imagination.  There will be a projector, PC laptop and screen available for use.

The evening commences from 7.30pm on Friday 14th December in the Fellowship Room within the behind the Uniting Church on Lyttleton St (next door to the Art Gallery).  Members and visitors of all ages are welcome, and entry is free.

If you’d like, bring along a plate of food to share with everyone afterwards.

Apologies for the advertisements

The Castlemaine Field Naturalists Club are currently using the free version of WordPress for its website and associated blogs.  A downside of this ‘free’ version that we’ve recently discovered is that our emailed blogs are often reaching the recipients with added advertisements at the bottom of the page.

WordPress.com states ‘we sometimes display advertisements on your blog to help pay the bills‘ and also that the ‘displaying ads from the Automattic Ad Network. The ads you see change depending on factors like your location and the type of site you’re visiting, and may come from a number of ad partners.‘

The Castlemaine Field Naturalists Club do not endorse any of the companies or products advertised at the bottom of any of our blogs that you receive by email, nor do we receive any financial benefit.  We are investigated our options to return to an ad-free website and blog service as soon as possible.

Plains-Wanderer video

As a follow-on from the November 2018 presentation by Deanna Marshall (Trust for Nature), Zoos Victoria has just released this video of some captive-born Plains-Wanderer chicks.  Enjoy!