Flora walk in July

I took a walk around the Habitat to see what was around, since Spring seems to be coming a bit early this year. 

Left from the Centre, past Nursery, down the bushland Amble to Mossy Boardwalk (where the frogs were very loud). Along to The Hub and then out onto the bike path, reentered via Middle Gate and down to Birdsong to check on the nesting birds.*See map below

To hear the birds, bees, frogs, rustling in the grasses and the sight of all these in flower was delightful.

  Highly recommend this part of the Habitat at this time of year especially.

 

No, the wombat didn't sit on these, but don't tell the Kids Club!

Spiny Matt Rush

Fire recovery

National Tree Day

 

 

National Tree Day at the habitat

 

 Locally we have several tree Day activities, including:

at the Habitat revegetating  where power poles were removed.

Trees in Newcastle are at Stockton

Corlette, Lemon tree Passage, Anna Bay just to name a few.

 

   What is National Tree Day?

 National Tree Day and Schools Tree Day combine to make Australia's biggest community tree-planting and nature care event. Co-ordinated by Planet Ark and proudly sponsored by Toyota, these are special days for all Australians to help out by planting and caring for native trees and shrubs to improve the environment in which they live. National Tree Day was co-founded by Olivia Newton-John and Planet Ark in 1996 and since then more than 2 million volunteers have planted over 15 million native trees and shrubs! It's a day to get down and get your hands dirty to help the planet!

A short word about native plants

National Tree Day and Schools Tree Day promote planting and caring for native trees and plants. Australia is a massive continent. It is also a very old continent.  Australian plants have had a long time to adapt to local conditions. Transplanted to another site with a slightly different climate, an Australian plant could simply curl up and die OR it could establish itself as an invasive weed species and out-compete other native species in its new home. This then becomes a problem for local wildlife who have also adapted - to particular types of habitat and to particular food plants. The Cootamundra Wattle is an example of a native Australian species that has moved out of its local area to become a widespread weed.
At Planet Ark we believe it is important to maintain and support local bio-diversity. In places all around the world that people love to visit, plants bring their special colours, textures and smells to make those places unique. So we do not promote the planting of introduced species and we strongly recommend that sites are only planted under the supervision of an experienced and knowledgeable bush regenerator. Even in urbanized areas there can be remnant native plants that represent an important source of local biodiversity, often threatened by the pressures of urban living.

National Tree Day aims to inspire, educate and recruit Australians to actively care for our unique land and create future generations of committed environmental custodians.

Local Native Plants

There are many reasons why planting native plants that are local to your area (also known as local provenance) is important.

Planting for Climate Change

Plants help to combat climate change by locking up carbon, but there are more ways that native plants can help address the impacts of climate change.

Planting for Biodiversity

Before Climate Change was the "hot" topic in the environmental debate, the loss of biodiversity was internationally recognised as being the major threat facing the future of life on our planet.

Not local? Easy,  pop on over to Planet Ark to find a site near you

"No tree no me"

Tilligerry Habitat Reserve

Tilligerry Habitat Reserve & Environment Centre

Eco-tourism, passive recreation and education.

 Situated on the south-western shore of Port Stephens, the Tilligerry Peninsula is just 2 1/2 hours from Sydney and 45 minutes from Newcastle and Nelson Bay. 

The Tilligerry Habitat is a tranquil, 9 hectare  Reserve bordered by a variety of park lands and the picturesque foreshore of Tanilba Bay.  Its diverse flora and fauna make it an excellent place to observe and study nature.

The network of scenic paths and boardwalks, over mostly flat terrain, make it accessible and enjoyable for people of all ages. Much of the area is wheelchair friendly. The Reserve includes forests, heath and wetlands and is home a variety of fauna including; koalas, a range of birds and seven species of frogs.

Other features of the Reserve include a straw-bale building that is our Environmental Centre. It contains an Arts and Crafts Gallery and has space for audio/visual presentations and small functions. It has a large deck looking out across the reserve where filtered water views of the bay may be seen through the swamp mahogany forest. Next door to the Environmental Centre is our Native Plant Nursery where visitors can buy native plants and learn about native plant propagation, rehabilitation of sand-mined land and plant rescue activities.

Paths and walks

There are several walks around the Habitat to take in the various eco systems.

The boardwalks provide easy access and meander throughout. these were built primarily by Volunteers with assistance from Tafe students, Port Stephens Council and various Landcare groups

 The construction involves careful planning to minimise disturbance to the Native vegetation, awareness of water flow in heavy rain, Fauna habitats and life cycles, If that isn't enough we also need to provide access for Fire and other emergency vehicles to the site.

Generators are used for power tools but apart from that luxury it is a manual task.

Minimising erosion is another important consideration for us

Construction also involves bridge building in some areas. Although we are a relatively flat reserve waterways need to be able to continue unimpeded.

Some jobs just take on a mammoth proportion when nature decides to have her way.

Designing areas such as "The Hub" was a major venture and thank you to all those bodies who made it possible.

The Hub now has History, information on the posts and is definitely worth a stop to see.
The history of the area and time lines contain a wealth of information

All this work amounts to the ability to view Nature  and our beautiful waterways up close and personal

Seating is provided along the paths for a rest and a chance to just sit and admire what is around you

 Tranquility, Soldier Crabs, flora, fauna  and harmony. It is a delightful walk and one that is taken regularly by locals

 The view from "Birdsong Boardwalk" is a favourite amongst visitors and members alike.

"Blue Wren Bridge" leads you to this and the wrens can be seen hopping about as well as Pardalopes

 This bridge is our latest pride and joy, Designed and constructed by our "Monday and Tuesday" volunteers with the assistance of Dick for engineers advice.

and of course, there are the Koala sightings