St John’s Wort major outbreak in rural and reserve areas AS IF OVERNIGHT, a mass outbreak of bright yellow St John’s Wort became noticeable in December on public and private land of the capital region. Other opportunistic and invasive weeds: thistles, serrated tussock and Common Centaury amongst them, have found openings on
Rural Living
Rural living and farming articles from the Capital region and surrounds.
Caring
Maria Taylor visits two local heros of animal medicine and welfare in south-east NSW in this excerpt from her forthcoming book. THERE ARE A lot of kangaroos in my neighourhood on the fringes of the national capital. The countryside is rural residential — a mix of hobby-block farming, people who feed
Wildlife on the move and what attracts snakes to you!
Drought victim!
Another Australian on the Threatened Species List: The Dingo
NSW government bid for rural support with community-wide baiting, shooting
IN NSW, UNDER the umbrella of the National Party portfolio of Primary Industries (Niall Blair, Minister) the Local Land Services agency — which reaches out to all landholders — is the primary promoter of lethal management of animals considered pests by farmers. Besides targeting (undifferentiated) wild dogs that include dingoes as
Success in treating Wombat mange
Wildlife carer’s innovative method that any landholder can adopt WOMBATS IN AUSTRALIA face challenges to their survival, including drought and the destruction of their homes due to environmental factors and human activities. As if that were not enough, sarcoptic mange remains a considerable hurdle for our native friends. Mange is a contagious
Take-home lessons from week’s extreme weather, fires
AS THE MID-MARCH fire catastrophes, including Tathra near Bega, enveloped communities and residents, the Australian Science Media Centre gathered some expert comment on the extended fire season and the need for Australia to adapt to the changing climate. Some 70 homes and other buildings were razed in Tathra. Dr Grant Wardell-Johnson,
Larger, faster, hotter: the megafires are coming
IN 2006 JERRY WILLIAMS, formerly of the US Forest Service, visited Australia to talk to workshops organised by Australian bushfire authorities, and he used the term ‘megafires’. These fires, he said, are essentially ‘unbounded’, but there’s surprisingly little agreement about what the term actually means. Is it a measure of a
New housing estates and Bungendore water supply
PROPOSED GREENFIELDS developments in Bungendore have been on hold until more water is found to service them. The present water allocation from the alluvial aquifer is only adequate for the existing town. Any completion of permitted Bungendore urban infill would exhaust the presently available water supply. More water is needed for