WEDNESDAY, August 18th 1 Pm – 1:45 PM

THE SCIENCE OF NESTBOXEs

RESEARCH GIVES US THE INFORMATION TO BUILD THE BEST DES.RES. FOR THE BIRDS AND POSSUMS WE WANT TO HELP

We want to help our birds and possums to find places to nest and raise their young as we know there are far too few suitable natural tree hollows for the animals who need homes. Nest boxes can provide a viable alternative to natural tree hollows for a range of wildlife. This session will share the research that has been undertaken to find out what is needed to build nestboxes that work - not too hot, the right sized holes, where and how to site them. They can be critical for survival where hollows are not available or have been lost, such as in most forest areas on the South Coast after the 2019/20 bushfires. But it’s not as simple as one size fits all. Species often have particular requirements for their homes and nest boxes need to mimic the characteristics of natural hollows.  This session complements the Gang-gang and Glossies in the Mist presentations from yesterday.

Courtney Fink-Downes and Susan Rhind from Eurobodalla Council share the results of their work. Andrew Morrison from Bega Valley Shire Council will talk about what we might do together here.

Courtney is a natural resources officer with Eurobodalla Shire Council. She is a passionate advocate for the environment and works closely with community groups to achieve environmental and social benefits. Her work is diverse from managing invasive species, helping cat owners to reduce the impact of their pets on wildlife, promoting community gardens and aiding bushfire recovery. Courtney and the environment team at ESC have been working with landholders to install 500 nesting boxes across the shire since the bushfires.

View the presentation here.