Yalukit Willam Nature Reserve bird survey
11 May 2024
‘We started our May survey at 7.45 am with 15 observers. The temperature was a mild 15 C, with an overcast sky and occasional light rain that cleared. The water level of most ponds had risen due to heavy rain over the previous week, but remained low in drained Billabong 2. Dips in Area D had also filled with rain, drawing in a greater species diversity (15) and numbers of wetland birds (33) than would normally be observed in that location.’
2-col_11-May-2024_YWNR-bird-surveyReport: Sue Forster and Tania Ireton
Photos: Danny Fog
Thank you, Bob and Alyson
Bob Tammik and partner Alyson Svenson have been coordinating monthly Yalukit Willam Nature Reserve bird surveys since the surveys began in July 2019. From July 2024 they will no longer be living in Melbourne or attending surveys on a regular basis, but Bob will continue to email survey reminders on behalf of the group. Over 5 years, Bob and Alyson have done an amazing job in ensuring that (1) a survey team has been present every month (except for COVID lockdowns) and (2) that data for survey areas D, E and F has been properly recorded and uploaded to Birdata website. I’m thanking Bob and Alyson now as I won’t be at the June survey: thank you both for your diligence, good humour, community spirit and contribution to our knowledge about the birds in the reserve. You will be sadly missed by Bayside bird observers, but we hope you find many great birding opportunities near your new home.
Sue Forster.