“Birds are everywhere. Even in the center of the cities, the white cockatoos call as they form silhouettes against blue sky; the rosellas squabble for fruit.  And in the bush birds are the canaries of the environment. They tell us which places are thriving, which are dying.  Australia’s bird populations are under threat. Even such iconic and common birds as the Kookaburra are diminishing in numbers. This project explores the idea of birds as part of the Australian identity – both individual and cultural.”

So opens ABC radios “Birdland” Pool project, a collaborative forum for all things audio, visual and literary inspired by Australian birds, and concerning the threats they face.  In between PhD writing, I have been contributing some images and sounds collected in the Wet Tropics, concerning the effects of climate change on rainforest bird biodiversity…  Including some spectrograms like the one above.  Please take a look and explore some of the other contributors works also, the Pool project is an interesting one, bringing together all sorts of perspectives on all sorts of topics…

In response to a few hopeful emails, I’ve just received word that the local branch of Birds Australia, Birds Australia North Queensland Group are keen to donate a few pairs of used binoculars for us to use in educational work and training in field work techniques for young indigenous people on Cape York and elsewhere.  This is a wonderful gesture, and a great help in getting people skilled up and on the ground in high conservation areas like Cape York.  If we can provide one young person with the key to unlocking the world of birds, their beauty and conservation value, then we will have succeeded!

Cheers

A

Inspired by the heady mix of music, ideas and alternative social models, I have applied to present some of the same “rainforest birds and climate change” educational material at the Woodford Folk Festival this year…  All seemed like a good idea… but how will a classroom format presentation translate into the much more fluid and fun-focused world of festival venue?  The solution?  a road test at Townsville’s own Palm Creek Folk festival…  Luckily Goodo, the energetic organiser of the children’s festival there saw some value in my concept and worked to push it through for inclusion in the festival line-up, despite the lateness (thanks so much good0!)

With the help of my friend Ana, who didn’t balk at the idea of cycling down to the festival (got to keen things carbon neutral!), we spent a great morning with a fantastic group of enthusiastic kids (see pic here on facebook).  We saw an amazing number of birds, thanks to the beautiful setting of the festival, tucked between the rainforested flanks of Mt Elliot and a water-lily studded lagoon.  We learned about bird names, bird calls, how to use binoculars, and a bit about climate change and what we can do to help.  Thanks to all involved, the kids, parents for their support, the Townsville Folk Club and Palm Creek Folk Festival Committee, Goodo and the Children’s festival Committee, Ana, and the Townsville Music Community for a great festival!… next step… WOODFORDIA!

peace

A

any takers at fullyloaded.com?

Having shared some of our ideas and experiences about biodiversity and climate change, and some information about the things we can do to help with the keen students at Eungella State School, we repaired to the Eungella Chalet for a large lunch over looking the Pioneer Valley, and planned our eminent descent… Lunch consisted of nachos, the Plan consisted of pointing the bikes downhill, in both cases, gravity did the rest….

some helpful information for the cyclist...

The descent is a good, one, all those tears, ragged breathing and and silent pain from the “mountainclimb” to get up the hill, find their realisation in about 20 glorious minutes of 14% slopes, 60kmhr straights, hairpin bends, cattle grids, oncoming trucks, and windburn… yeeha.  Maximum speed recorded was 70km/h… an interesting speed with fully loaded front panniers… Suffice it to say we made good time getting back to Finch Hatton gorge.

Its easier going down...

Some of the great (and accurate) colouring-in work by students at Eungella School.

After our surveys in the early morning, and lugging our gear out of the forest to ride back south to Eungella, it was a great and incongruous relief to be greeted at Eungella State School by the welcoming staff and students, and scones with jam and cream…  Guided by a their dedicated and passionate principal Sue the school has a comprehensive program of environmental activities all managed by the students, including revegetation, a butterfly garden, recycling, gardening, and even a school chicken…

All this seems to have fostered amongst the students an ethos of interest in, and of responsibility for, their surrounding  environment.  This made the task of presenting our rainforest, birds and climate change,  Antarctic biodiversity, and cycle touring information and activity sessions pretty easy going, as the students where well engaged and well behaved from the word go!  All this must be only enhanced by the location of the school, perched in rainforest on the edge of the escarpment, surrounded by the cool green of the canopy, the cries of endemic birds and the flash of butterfly wings…  Many thanks are due to the Principal, Sue Vonthien, her great staff, and amazing students, for making this great day possible.

Dalrymple camp, good karma flowin' (photo by tom)

After a good sleep in my bivvy bag rendered only slightly fevered and uncomfortable by a tick biting me on the head at 2 am, it was with relief that we set out early to survey the nearer 1000 metre site.  This site lay to the west, back along the track to Dalrymple road we has used to come in.  To the East beyond where we camped the  trail leads eventually to the summit of Mt Dalrymple and apparently a spectacualr view of the Clark range and Pioneer valley, and then on down to Finch Hatton Gorge, where we were working the same trails a few days before.  The major challenge on this day was not so much the distance as the timing, as we had an appointment to visit the students at Eungella State School to talk to them about rainforest birds, climate change, Antartica, and bicycles, as we had a Finch Hatton…

This meant that in addition to the four surveys, we had to break camp and get our gear back to our bikes where they lay concealed in the forest, then load up and ride the 2o km back to town, and all before 11:45…  Thankfully Tom volunteered to lug the worst of it with him in a few trips, and loaded down only slightly more than usual, Tiffanie and I carried out the surveys and met him at the road.  From there it was a good to be rolling again, unencumbered by the forest, and we made great time back to Eungella State School to be greeted with tea and scones with jam and cream, perfect.

Tiff and Tom on "the death march" (dry your eyes!)

Our efforts the previous day where not in vain, as we made camp beside a beautiful mountain stream winding through tall and stately upland rainforest.  The endemic Eungela Day Frog Taudactylus Eungellensis could be heard calling from the stream sides, and Russet-Tailed Thrush from the surrounding forest.  This camp put us wthin a 45 minute walk of the site I had selected to represent the highest altitude forests and bird communities in the Eungella region, at 1200 metres altitude on the summit of Mt William.  Reaching the site for the dawn chorus required an even earlier start than normal, with a seriously steep climb immediately from the valley floor we were in at 970m up to nearly 1100m within only about 400 hundred metres horizontal distance… always sure to get the blood flowing at 5:15 am..

The forest here is tall, with many large trees, hung with epiphytic ferns and orchids, and interspersed with palms that seem popular when in flower and in fruit with the Eungella Honeyeaters.  In general though the bird life is less abundant and diverse than at lower altitudes, perhaps a result of the cooler temperatures and constant cloud reducing the productvity of the forest.  That said, several species prefer these conditions, like the Eungella Honeyeater, Eastern Spinebill (above),  and Russet-Tailed Thrush, all of which are found at higer numbers here than further down-slope.   It is finding and describing these types of subtle climate-driven patterns which motivates my research.

Having completed our surveys at the 800 metre site the previous day, there was little to do except head out for the forests at 1000 metres, along the Dalrymple road.  This route heads out north from Eungella township, and its perch overlooking the Pioneer valley, rapidly climbing from the 700 odd metres at the campground to nearly 900m within the first 4 Kilometres.  This was a decent climb for this stage of the journey, and I was beginning to feel the contrast in energy expenditure between this and my normal field schedule: early starts, followed by long mornings surveying (sometimes without breakfast, sorry Tom), interspersed with the physically demanding task of self-propelling ourselves to the next location… an advantage of which is a distinct feeling of being more “in” the landscape, somehow less a spectator and more a part of things.  I noticed more the calls of birds as we cycled through the forest, the sound of the wind in the trees, and the changes in temperature between sun and shade, or low and high altitude.  I also noticed more my own breathing, fatigue or alertness, and other sure signs of life like muscle pain… This latter aspect also became more apparent on this day, partly due to an accumulation of fatigue perhaps, but also due to a demanding triathlon event:  Stage one was a mercifully relaxed breakfast at the Eungella Chalet, which also over looks the Pioneer Valley, and has a charm which hovers somewhere between fibro-kitsch and euro-chique.  Stage 2 was the above-mentioned climb onto and then traverse along the northern arm of the Clark Range heading out towards Mt dalrymple and the 1000 and 1200 metre sites.

The road passes between the rainforest to the east and open dairy country the west, evidently in decline (following deregulation of the dairy industry, according to locals) judging by the lack of cows.  Stage 3 was the clincher… getting from the end of Dalrymple in along the Mt Dalrymple walking track about 1.5 kilometres to where there was freshwater and a camp site within reach of my survey sites. Sounds simple, but when you have just ridden 20 kilometres that day, and about 150 in the previous 7, and have no gear but panniers with which to lug your stuff along the track… it suddenly took on intrepid proportions.  a feed sack found in a ditch served to make a backpack for my gear, sherpa-style, complete with shoulder-slicing rope straps, while Tom and Tiff hung panniers from every available limb, and of we went in the fading light.  Two lessons worth learning from this event… firstly, participants appreciate being fully advised of the nature of each leg before it happens, for mental preparation if nothing else, and secondly: pack light, pack light and pack light.