A nice article about Pick Swamp…
Thanks to Bob Green, the Convenor of BirdLife South East SA, for sending through this article about Pick Swamp (also see image below). I don’t get down there so often any more, but it is a place that I continue to have a close connection to.
As you may (or may not) know, this was the first major wetland restoration project I was involved in getting underway several years ago, and the results have been absolutely fantastic. As reported in the article, the area is credited with having a bird list of 149 species, providing habitat for a wide range of threatened species and achieving Ramsar status as a wetland of international significance. Not bad for an area that still largely resembled a cow paddock as recently as 2007!
Well done to Birdlife South East SA for such a long, volunteer commitment to the collection of high-quality bird monitoring data at Pick Swamp, and to Steve Clarke (DEWNR) for the key co-ordination role he has played throughout the restoration process.
Seeing what has been achieved by government and various sectors within the community working together effectively at Pick Swamp was also a major motivation behind the philosophy and approach of Nature Glenelg Trust; and it continues to inspire our efforts to share the concept of wetland restoration more widely in South Australia and Victoria.
Now that NGT is working with local people to initiate a wide range of similar projects across the region, it is going to be really special to bring you their stories of change over the years ahead.
So thanks to the many of you that are working with us on wetland restoration projects on both public and private land, for being part of something we all agree is pretty special!
From Cow Paddock (May 2007)….
To Ramsar Site (June 2012).
Pick of the Bunch – from the December edition of Australian Birdlife magazine
