2012 Annual Report - Hunter Wetlands Centre Australia

Site Managers Report continued14December 2012 results showed nilGreat Egrets, however they werecounted in very small numbers atthe back of the breeding season inFebruary. Only 8 Intermediate egrets,down from 42 in 2011. Only 1 LittleEgret nest, down from 3 in 2011, and300 cattle Egret nests (On MiddletonSwamp) down from 360 in 2011. Theibis had 26 nests, and usually breedin July so another survey will becompleted then. This large drop innumbers has been attributed to thedry period leading into the breedingseason. 2 Latham Snipe were surveyedbut no Australasian Bittern which tie inwith our Ramsar status. AustralasianBittern usually visits the siteintermittently in Iron Bark Marsh andwas recently seen in 2011. Our surveysalso revealed some nice surprises in2012 including a Sea Eagle nest on sitea Brush Cuckoo, Red-Kneed Dotterel,Black-winged Stilt, Pink-eared Duck,Blue-faced Honeyeater, PeregrineFalcon and King Parrot that aren’t seenevery year, all in the atlas survey andHBOC annual report for 2012.Additional HBOC records for the yearhighlighted our first on site Sea Eaglenest, a Brush Cuckoo (not seen on sitesince 2006), and a King Parrot! Alsosome other interesting species to noteincluding the Black-winged Stilts, andPheasant Coucals amongst others.building construction disturbed areasand connectivity to the junior Landcarearea.On the bush regeneration front wehad a number of projects funded andcompleted. And I would like to thankthose supporters for their contributions.These included:Be Natural Landcare Grant for revegetatingaround the new WEECCatchment Management Authority –including weed control and plantingswithin the Aboriginal Conservation Areaand main track Iron Bark Marsh bushregeneration area.Wetland Care Australia - Latham SnipeplantingCaring for Catchments Alligator weedcontrol across site (CFOC 2012-13 ongoing)Catchment Management Authoritybush regeneration including plantingsand weed control around the Farm Damunderstory, causeway and sensory trailconnection adjacent to Tuxford Park.(ongoing)We welcomed a new staff member,Matt Stow, who is managing tasksassociated with the Biodiversity ProjectAreas including bush regeneration andnest box installations on site, and supportto volunteers. He has brought with himsome experience in offsite contractorwork and nursery enquiries from hisprofessional network that may help todevelop our client base with the CentreNursery for commercial orders.