Author Archives: fobif

Julie Whitfield of Bendigo is an environmental consultant with a passion for butterflies, and she will be guest speaker at Newstead Landcare’s next meeting, Thursday 20th August. As a recipient of a prestigious Winston Churchill Fellowship Julie recently had the … Continue reading →

Over fifty children attended events at the Castlemaine Botanical Gardens this week as part of the FOBIF Winter School Holiday Program. Three events were held as part of the program, which aimed to give our local families an opportunity to … Continue reading →

Nioka Mellick-Cooper was the main organiser of this walk and she wrote the following post: The first 2015 youth bush walk took place on the Mount Alexander (Leanganook) and was a great day. There were 28 people that came bright and early … Continue reading →

FOBIF is running three nature-based events for primary school children in the upcoming school holidays.  Places are limited and booking is essential. Information about the program can be found on this FOBIF page.

The weather on Sunday (17th May) was perfect for our FOBIF walk into the Nuggetty Range. Thirty-three people came along and it was good to see some newcomers to FOBIF on the walk. The group was ably led by geologist, Brian Cuffley, who had … Continue reading →

Eight families from across Castlemaine came together to hear about restoration work and environmental values at the Clinkers Hill Bushland reserve on Sunday the 26th April. Elvyne Hogan gave an introduction to the site, outlining work done by the Victoria … Continue reading →

Long-leaved Box E. Goniocalyx is now in flower in our region. It generally flowers from March to May. The following photos of the buds, blossom and fruit of a Long-leaved Box at the summit of Mount Tarrengower were taken on 31 March.  (click to enlarge)

At the farewell event for Doug Ralph in the Castlemaine Botanic Gardens early last month Phil Ingamells gave a speech about Doug’s contribution to the environment movement in this region. Phil who lived in Castlemaine in the late 1990s was a good friend of … Continue reading →

The sounds of our natural environment are comprised of many voices; birdsong, frog choruses, seasonal insect choirs, mammal calls… But how have all these varied animal repertoires evolved? What can we learn from studying, or simply listening, to nature’s sounds … Continue reading →

Led by Geoff Park, twenty-five people walked leisurely around the Rise and Shine Bushland Reserve last Sunday (March 16). This was first FOBIF walk for this year. The Reserve is 30 minutes drive from Castlemaine and south of Newstead. Many people had come … Continue reading →