Red Hill Regeneration Group

Today I dropped in to Grill’d on Franklin Street, Manuka, where restaurant Manager Samuel Diggins handed over a cheque for $300 to the Red Hill Regenerators.
Grill’d regularly support local volunteer organisations and charities by donating part of their takings to those groups.  Earlier this year Grill’d contacted the Regenerators to tell them that they had been selected as an organisation deserving of their support, and in the last week or so contacted the Group again to invite them to visit the restaurant to collect the donation.
The Regenerators are most grateful for support from local businesses, and for this donation.  In return, the least we can do is to encourage our friends to stop by this restaurant for a drink and a meal.
Thanks Samuel, and thanks Grill’d!

For Park Care volunteers who contribute their time and labour in our Nature Reserves, the ACT Invasive Plants Plan 2020-25 provides a very useful and interesting theoretical underpinning for this conservation work. 
Buried at the back of this Plan is information on past and future budgets.  This shows that, over the last decade, funding has swung wildly between about $3m in 2010-11 to under $1m in 2015-16.  It seems to have settled on about $1.5m over the last three years, with the same level of funding projected up to 2025.
There is no discussion in the Plan regarding what level of funding will achieve what outcome, resulting in the suggestion that the level of funding probably bears no relationship to the level of demand or desired outcome.
Perhaps this is an issue that ParkCare volunteers could usefully raise with the newly elected and increased cohort of ACT Greens MLAs.
To read the Plan, click here…

We’ll be holding the RHR AGM at the next activity on 1 November 2020.  The notice of meeting and other details are attached. 
Please note that, although we have nominations for the key positions, we want to spread the load a little and are asking members to consider taking on some roles.  A number of these are not onerous.  So, if you have any interest, please get in touch.  See the attachments for details.  
We will also be proposing some changes to our governing rules at the AGM.  
It was a delightful day for Sunday’s activity on 4 October 2020, and it was pleasing to see such a large number of enthusiastic members getting stuck into the weeds. We also enjoyed seeing the Little Eagle floating by, coping with the attention of a number of magpies – plus seeing a large moth larva that was found when one of our larger woody weeds was despatched.  Probably a cossid moth http://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/coss/encalypti.html
Regards
Ross Kingsland President

You are invited to attend our next  working bee on Red Hill.  We are now permitted to work as a group of up to 100 volunteers on Red Hill, providing that Covid19 precautions are followed (see below). This work activity will focus on removing African Love Grass and maintenance of our recent plantings. (more…)

Red Hill Regenerators have been closely engaged with an ongoing citizen science project to identify Gang gang breeding sites and behaviour. This work will lead to improved conservation management practice for this iconic species.

The ANU is seeking a PhD student to help guide research design and data analysis on further study into the resource requirements and movement patterns of Gang-gangs across the ACT region. A major knowledge gap, that has critical implications for land management of habitats in the ACT and nationally, is understanding how Gang-gang breeding behaviour varies across ecoregions and land uses; particularly between urban, rural, and reserved landscapes. More information about this project can be found here.

Results from earlier work will be published in the December 2020 edition of Canberra Bird Notes.

Those interested in helping with this project should contact Michael.Mulvaney@act.gov.au