Friends of the Box-Ironbark Forests

Tasmanian-based naturalist Sarah Lloyd has recently started a blog on Myxomycetes commonly known as slime moulds. Sarah was the guest speaker at the FOBIF AGM in 2015 where she shared her expertise on these often neglected organisms to a fascinated audience.

Sarah has been collecting and identifying slime moulds on her property in Northern Tasmania since 2010:

In the years since starting my research I have amassed over 1500 collections representing approximately 110 different species. This seems extraordinary given that all specimens have been collected within two kilometers of our house, and only 42 species had hitherto been officially recorded for Tasmania.

On the site and in her two recently published books on slime moulds* and Tasmanian native birds** Sarah uses plain language to draw in the general reader. And she is a terrific photographer. The two photos below from the blog are examples of her beautiful work.

So to find out everything you always wanted to know about slime moulds, click here and have a look at Sarah’s blog.

*  Where the slime mould creeps: the fascinating world of myxomycetes (2014)
** The feathered tribes of Van Diemen’s Land (2015)

People interested in contributing their local knowledge to national systems should consider going to a video conference in Bendigo on February 2nd on DELWP and citizen science data bases. The conference will be held at the DELWP office, 1 Taylor Street Epsom, from 9,45 to 12.45, and light refreshments will be provided. Topics include:

–Atlas of Living Australia – Peter Brenton (CSIRO)

–Victorian Biodiversity Atlas – Mel Hardie , DELWP

–Bowerbird – Ken Walker, Museum Victoria

–Visualising Victoria’s Biodiversity & SWIFFT – Rob Milne, Centre for eResearch & Digital Innovation (CeRDI), Federation University

Numbers are limited. If you’re intending to go, email  peter.johnson@delwp.vic.gov.au

Ah…Facebook. FOBIF is a bit derelict, we have to confess, in putting material on its Facebook page; interpret that as you like…

And we’re not great at following other Facebook pages, or at coping with social media generally. Twitter? Oh…must think about that…Instagram? Um, er…

But this week our attention was drawn to Parks Victoria’s Facebook page, which had a pic of Expedition Pass reservoir, and the advice:

‘Feeling the heat? Come along and enjoy Expedition Pass Reservoir near Castlemaine. It’s a great spot for the family to enjoy a swim in the cool waters.’

More than one of the responses on the page pointed out that it was pretty astonishing that Parks should be promoting the Res as a hot weather destination when it’s already stressed to the limit on hot days, that parking there is sometimes a nightmare, and that there are unresolved problems with dogs.

Maybe someone in Parks’ Melbourne office was looking for something to put on the Page, and didn’t worry too much about local conditions. In any case, you sometimes do get the impression that Parks Victoria’s management is much more interested in pretty promotions than providing the resources to protect our environment. Maybe we need more rangers, and less promotion?

FOBIF has received a few clarifying details from Parks Victoria on the infestations by St John’s Wort and other weeds on Mount Alexander [see our Post]. Essentially they confirm our impression: that weed control programs are intermittent and dependent on unreliable funding [currently limited]. Biological controls on St Johns Wort are only partially effective, and in the recent good spring the weed has become more rampant than ever.

We have written to Coliban Water about their supposed program to control environmental weeds on the Coliban Race reserve, but have had no reply. The reserve is currently infested with a wide range of weeds, including the picturesque but diabolical Patersons Curse, which has been kept under reasonable control by Parks on the eastern side of the Mount. There doesn’t seem to be any co ordination of weed control efforts between the two authorities: a pity, because it means [for example] that any effort by Parks Victoria to control a weed in the park is doomed because of the certainty of re infestation from the adjacent race reserve.

The map below shows DELWP’s intention to burn a significant section of Kalimna Park on the town side of the tourist road this autumn. The lower red section is bordered on the south by Doveton street track. The small white circle is the Hunter Street water tank. The golf course lies between the two red sections.

Click to enlarge.

* In red is where planned burning will take place this Autumn 2017.
* The orange and pink circles will be target by mulching (either Gorse or Broom bush) and
* Tourist Park Rd and the track around Parker St may have mulching applied to assist in track/access maintenance.
No burning will occur to the eastern [Happy Valley] side of Tourist park drive. DELWP  is working through removing the Pines near the rotunda.

FOBIF has written to Vicroads regarding its September update on the Pyrenees highway project. Part of this update reads: ‘A reduction of the speed zone would not lead to a decrease in the amount of barrier treatments used in this instance. The impact of an errant vehicle with a roadside hazard (tree, power pole) at 80 kmh can still lead to a serious injury or fatality. The Installation of safety barriers provides the safest option.’

Pyrenees Highway between Newstead and Green Gully: is this stretch of road safer at speed than the Midland?

Our questions are:

1. Does this statement imply that there is no difference in the likelihood or nature of a run off road accident at 80 kph, compared to 100 kph? If so, it would seem to contradict campaigns like the ‘wipe off five’ campaign.

2. We understand that recent limit reductions on the Midland Highway between Castlemaine and Harcourt and on the Pyrenees between Chewton and Tunnel Hill were made for safety reasons. Does Vicroads believe that the stretch of road between Green Gully and Newstead is more manageable at speed than those two stretches of road?

3. Are we to understand from this document that plans for vegetation management are the same as originally proposed?

We’ll publish Vicroads reply when it comes./.

Fathers interested in taking their children for bushwalks this year might be interested in the Bendigo Dads Walking Group. The group goes out on a ‘Walk-Explore-Share-Play-Discover-Talk-Connect on a weekly kid’s adventure’. There are about 30 walks a year, on Sundays from 9.30 to 12.30, and many of the routes are in the Castlemaine region. For more details click here…Or email bendigodadswalkinggroup@gmail.com

FOBIF’s 2017 walks program will be mailed to members around the end of this month. Walks start on the third Sunday in March.

The Wombat Forest is our southern neighbour, but a very different environment from the drier forests and woodlands of our region. If you want to keep informed about the great qualities of the Wombat, you should check out the Wombat Forestcare Newsletter.

The latest issue contains a beginners guide to that frustrating subject, egg-and-bacon plants, great items on bird life and a terrifically interesting argument, ‘Reconsidering commonness’. This article persuasively hammers the point that our concern for rare and endangered species shouldn’t make us indifferent to the fate of common species: ‘Common species often represent the more hardy or adaptable species in an ecosystem so when they start to dramatically decline, it might indicate that something is seriously wrong. While common species often comprise a relatively small proportion of overall species richness, they usually contribute greatly to the structure, biomass and dynamics of ecosystems. Moreover, when habitats are burnt, fragmented, degraded or otherwise damaged or lost, it is common species that often suffer most.’

Check it out online here.