The next Working Bee will be at our Mabb Street Site (Mackay Brook)
Saturday 5th September at 2:30 – 4:30 pm
We will be focussing on an invasion of cat’s claw.
Please come if you can – we need lots of help
For more information click here
Have you seen these gorgeous birds?
In the latest Bush Bites from Ed Frazer you can see some of the real beauties we have in our catchment. Learn more about the Rainbow Bee-eater, the Noisy Pitta and the Rose-crowned Fruit-dove.
Click here to see them all
Rainbow Bee-eater – © Ed Frazer
Three Gorgeous Birds by Ed Frazer
We have three spectacularly coloured birds in the Moggill Creek Catchment that have similarly beautiful colours, but very different lifestyles.
They are the Rose-crowned Fruit-Dove, The Noisy Pitta and the Rainbow Bee-eater.
Rose-crowned Fruit-dove – © Ed Frazer
The Rose-crowned Fruit-dove visits from the end of September and leaves around Easter each year to move to warmer areas up the coast of Queensland although I have experienced one overwintering in Brookfield. They breed while here in a nest that is not more than a few sticks in the fork of a tree 5 metres or more off the ground. They lay just one egg.
The diet consist mainly on native fruit and they prefer small purple/black fruit which they swallow whole. They also will take small figs and Lillipillies.
Despite their brilliant colours they can be well camouflaged, and they crawl through the branches of the trees in which they are feeding. They are surprisingly abundant in the catchment and have two quite distinctive calls that give their presence away. I am sure they are prey of some raptors such as Sparrowhawks and Goshawks and unfortunately, they are frequent victims of our window strikes.
Noisy Pitta – © Ed Frazer
The Noisy Pittas don’t live up to their name in the Catchment as they seldom call during the winter months when they are here. They come down from places like the Toowoomba Range and the Bunya Mountains where they breed in the summer and where they call incessantly while raising their young.
The Noisy Pitta is always associated with dense leaf litter where they forage for insects and worms. They are a very wary bird as they have to be on the lookout for danger which is unfortunately mainly domestic cats in the Catchment. By September they have gone back to higher ground and I am not aware of any staying in our area over the summer.
Rainbow Bee-eater – © Ed Frazer
The Rainbow Bee-eater is the only one of the trio that frequents the Catchment all-year-round. In the 1970s and 80s they were very common around our paddocks and often lined up along the fences from which they made darting sorties to catch the bees that make up the main portion of their diet. By 2000 they were seldom seen or heard so I encouraged my family to keep beehives and now we see them frequently and we also get a plentiful supply of honey.
They breed communally in tunnels made in the sandy banks of the Brisbane River. They are often heard before they are seen, and they make an attractive rolling drrrrt sound as they gracefully dart around catching bees. They are said to eat other insects such as wasps and dragonflies, buy I see them only eating bees. I am not aware of any serious dangers to the species and they are widely spread around the coast of Australia.
2020 Photography Competition is OPEN!
Get your cameras out and start snapping to enter this year’s competition. There is over $1300 up for grabs in cash prizes, thanks to the generosity of our local sponsors.
Entry is open to all members of the public, the young and the not-so-young, with an open category and our **NEW** Digital Young Persons (grade 1 – 6) category.
For all the entry information click here
2019 Entry by photographer Solveig Gillis
Tree Planting Report August 23rd
Moggill Creek Catchment Group (MCCG) Tree Planting on Sunday 23 rd August 2020
The Huntington/Tuckett bushcare group looks after a section of the ‘riparian zone’ of Moggill Creek
that extends from the footbridge at the bottom of Branton St. Kenmore Hills through the parklands
to Rafting Ground Rd. The group has been operating for about 20 years and during that time has
planted most of the trees that can be seen in the area. On the morning of Sunday 23 rd August, we
planted another 420 native trees and shrubs in two locations that had previously been occupied
mainly by weeds.
One of our regular working bee members, Baheret Sabet had asked us to organise a special tree
planting to commemorate the centenary of the arrival in Australia of the Bahá’í community, of which
she is a member. We had planned to host around 20 of their local youth group at the planting, but at
the last minute this had to be curtailed due to an announcement from the Queensland Premier the
previous day that stricter Covid-19 restrictions were being implemented, limiting numbers at
outdoor gatherings to 10. However, with some rather frantic last-minute reorganisation, we were
able to proceed with the planting, albeit with a reduced participation to comply with the new
restrictions (see photos).
A new member of the group, Julian Tuckett, who attended the working bee with his daughter
Martina, has a historical connection to the area. They recently moved to Brisbane from north
Queensland. Julian’s great grandfather, who gave his name to Tuckett St., was the owner of the dairy
farm that used to occupy much of the area where the bushcare group now operates. Julian and
Martina are now helping us to return at least some of the land to the native forest that dominated
the area prior to logging and land clearing in the 19 th and early 20 th centuries!
Jim Pope
Chairman, Moggill Creek Catchment Group
Tree Planting Working Bee Sunday Aug 23rd
The next working bee will be on Sunday 23rd August. We will have over 400 native trees and shrubs to plant at an area in the parklands opposite Kensington Circuit, Brookfield. The site, which is opposite 41 Kensington Circuit, is about 300m upstream from the ‘dog off leash’ area and can be accessed either from Kensington Circuit or by parking at the bottom of Branton St., Kenmore Hills and walking across the footbridge, then turning right and following the path for about 300m.
We will meet on-site at 8.30am. I am hoping for a big turn-out but we do need to know numbers beforehand to manage social distancing requirements. If you plan to join please email Jim [email protected]
Please try to arrive on time, thank you.
Restoration of MCCGs ‘Bush Tucker’ Garden
In 2006 Moggill Creek Catchment Group (MCCG) received a grant from Australia’s Open Garden
Scheme to establish a ‘Bush Tucker’ Garden behind the Brookfield Produce Store at the end of
Rafting Ground Road. With the permission of the then owners of the store, two 20,000 litre water
tanks were in stalled at the back of the store to provide water, both for the garden and for MCCGs
bushcare groups. The idea of the ‘Bush Tucker’ Garden was to provide an opportunity for MCCG
members and local residents to become familiar with a range of plant species that were used to
provide food for the traditional Aboriginal owners of the land. Unfortunately, in recent years, due to
lack of maintenance, the garden had become overgrown with exotic vines such as glycine, Madeira
vine and balloon vine, as well as other weeds.
Having learned only recently of the existence of this ‘Bush Tucker’ Garden, MCCG Chairman Jim Pope
decided to organise a special working bee to start to clear out the weeds and clean up the site. On
Sunday 9 th August, a group of 22 volunteers gathered at the site (with appropriate ‘social
distancing’), to start the work. About half the group were young people from a local Baha’i youth
group called the ‘Brookfield Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program (Brookfield JYSEP)’, who
despite little previous experience of bushcare work, proved of great assistance in the task. The area
is now largely clear of weeds, but will require some ongoing support to replace species that had
been smothered by the weeds and to maintain it weed-free in future. With the agreement of the
current management of the Brookfield Produce Store it is hoped to restore it to its former glory and
encourage local residents and school groups etc. to visit the area and learn more about foodstuffs
that the first Australians included in their diet.
If anyone would like to volunteer to assist with the upkeep of the ‘Bush Tucker’ Garden please
contact Jim Pope ([email protected]). We need 3-4 people to meet at the site for 2-3 hours once a
month to re-plant the missing species and keep the area well maintained. No previous experience is
necessary and tools etc. will be provided.
Plaque commemorating establishment of the ‘Bush Tucker’ Garden in 2006
Volunteers at the working bee on 9 th August
Before After
Before After
Wildlife Show with THECA – Sunday August 16th
THECA will be holding a wildlife show run by well-known wildlife expert Martin Fingland, of “Geckoes Wildlife”, on Sunday 16 August. Come and meet a range of Australian native animals, and learn fascinating things about them.
Martin will run 2 consecutive one-hour sessions, the first starting at 9.30am, the second at 10.45am. Book for one or both. This event is great for families, especially children.
As COVID19 means that numbers are an issue, booking is essential. Please RSVP to Margaret Palmer on [email protected], stating which session you wish to attend, and providing the number of people coming and their contact details. Please note that the event is subject to rules surrounding gatherings, which may change without warning.
THIS EVENT IS FREE FOR THECA MEMBERS. For others, please pay $10 per family at the door. For further information on Geckoes Wildlife, please go to their website at www.geckoeswildlife.com.au.
Get to know the granivorous and gregarious grassfinch.
Did you know Australia has about twenty species of grassfinches and the spectacular double-barred finch is the smallest!
In his latest issue of Feather Fascination, Jim Butler describes the thrill of seeing two flocks of double-barred finches.
To find out more, head to Jim Butler’s Feather Fascination August 2020.
Photo: Ed Frazer
Platypus update from Gold Creek!
Cold mornings and the pandemic haven’t stopped MCCG member Ed Frazer from getting out to monitor platypus populations in Gold Creek!
Ed has been monitoring the platypus in two big pools on his property for the past twelve months.
You may recall his articles from late last year about a family with two babies.
Ed has continued to observe the youngsters and you’ll be pleased to know the wounds on the one which was attacked have now repaired.
At one point Ed was so concerned he consulted with Dr Chris Hosking. Her advice was to monitor the platypus closely and fortunately this has paid off.
But: are the youngsters still there?
To find out more and for a marvellous read about Ed’s platypus families, please head to our latest Bush Bites feature: Platypus watch August 2020
Our sincere thanks to Ed for his ongoing contributions to the website, and to the MCCG in general.
Don’t forget to sign up to join Dr Hosking’s Platypus Survey on Sunday 13 September.
For more info, please click here.
© Ed Frazer
