NGT Out and about – Photos from the field in February

Rosemary and John recently did a day of weed removal for Tarregal Landcare Group on a property on Cape Bridgewater, removing the prickly weed Apple of Sodom (Solanum linnaeanum). This nasty weed is unpalatable to stock and forms dense patches, harbouring rabbits and out-competing native plants. It is a declared weed in Victoria. This project site is part of a wider Biolink connecting wildlife corridors. They will be back in a few weeks to finish off the job.

Bryan saw this cute koala along the Butterfly Walk in Penambol Conservation Park (20 minutes from Mt Gambier) this week. He has undertaken that walk nearly 400 times in the last 25 years and had never seen a koala there before!

Tessa and Sylvia recently spent a day wandering along creeklines in Adelaide’s southern suburbs, assessing the vegetation and fish passage. ‘Fish passage’ means looking at how easily small fish can travel along the creek when the water is flowing, and how easily they can pass through obstacles like culverts under roads, through dense vegetation, and around blockages in the creek. They found some quite picturesque spots that certainly don’t look like they are in the suburbs of a big city! Check out the diversity of waterbugs in the video below. These were found in a still pond along the creek, shaded by large trees; great food for native fish!