Join this exciting long tem project of the Mount Korong Eco-Watch members and landholders. Click on the link below for details and to watch the video
Many townspeople of Inglewood and Wedderburn have memories of days at lovely Mt Korong – climbing to the summit, having a picnic and even swimming in the old days.
In recent years over 1000 hectares of granite foothills beside Mt Korong has been direct-seeded with local trees and shrubs, to complement the bush of the Mount and improve the habitat for some of our threatened species, such as Hooded Robin, Painted Honeyeater and Powerful Owl. Extensive rabbit and weed control has also been carried out and is ongoing.
This regenerating country is known as Korong Ridge Conservation Estate, and the families who have bought blocks there are committed to restoring the biodiversity of the grassy woodlands and getting the bush ready to eventually be home to animals that were once found there, including Bettongs, Bandicoots, Curlews and Quolls.
Mt Korong Eco-watch is a grassroots, community group, made up of Korong Ridge families and other local people who want to enhance the health of the bush at Mt Korong and its surrounds. The group meets each month, plans ways to improve the bush and has working bees to remove weeds, undertake further revegetation and prevent erosion.
‘Rewilding’ is a concept that involves removing feral pest animals like foxes, cats and rabbits and creating a safer habitat for threatened native animals and plants. Rewilding helps restore the natural balance. 2016 will see the creation of a volunteer-run nursery at Korong Ridge, to grow understorey plants, to improve habitat and local biodiversity, but just as important will be the removal of pest species.
It is estimated that approximately 15 million feral cats kill about 75 million native animals every night across the whole of Australia.
Mt Korong Eco Watch has just entered a partnership with Victoria’s Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning’s Threatened Species Protection Initiative. DELWP have agreed to match funding, dollar to dollar (up to $25,000), for any money raised from a Crowd-Funding campaign launched last Tuesday. The group hopes to raise $12,000 to install a network of remotely operated, wireless trail cameras. These will be located across the conservation property’s 1000 hectares, to provide ongoing monitoring of both feral and native animal numbers and locations, and then create an action plan for the group to continue to remove pest species and protect our threatened species effectively.
How exciting it will be to one day hear the cry of the Curlew again and see some of our small nocturnal marsupials return to Mt Korong!
The Crowdfunding deadline is 15th December.
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