COUNTING ON PLATYPUS
ACT Waterwatch, in
partnership with the Australian Platypus Conservancy will be providing two free
public programs on platypus on the weekend of May
23-24.
New to the expanding ACT platypus monitoring program
will be Platypus Watch. The Platypus Watch program is designed for rural
landholders, waterwatchers, landcarers or nature enthusiasts who visit their
sites on a monthly or irregular basis. Platypus Watch will be launched at 3:30
pm on May 23 under Tharwa Bridge. There, Platypus Watchers
will be trained, and gather initial Platypus Watch observation data for the ACT
region. Participants need to pre-book for this event by contacting Tanya
Rucosky Noakes via email, or by calling 6207-2246. Please wear sturdy
shoes, appropriate clothing and bring binoculars, if you have them, plus a pen.
ACT Waterwatch will also be
hosting an information session about Platypus Count on Sunday 24 May 2.30 pm at
the Queanbeyan Kangaroos Leagues Club, on the corner of Stuart Street &
Richard Avenue, in Queanbeyan. Dr. Melody Serena from the Australian
Platypus Conservancy will give an illustrated talk about the platypus?s unusual
biological features and describe the ACT
Platypus Count program for those who may wish to become
involved. This program is designed to monitor platypus at a given site on
a daily or weekly basis, and is an excellent and easy way for joggers, cyclists
and walkers to become involved in the conservation of their favourite places.
Sign-ups are not required for this program.
Platypus are often thought
of as shy and elusive. ?In actual fact,? says Conservancy biologist Dr
Melody Serena, ?they can occur fairly close to residential areas and are
reasonably easy to spot. We are hoping to find people to watch for
platypus in their local waterway (especially the Molonglo and Queanbeyan rivers)
and record their sightings. By systematically recording platypus sightings
over time it should also become possible to monitor how well populations are
coping and to plan conservation actions on their
behalf.?
Very little is currently
known about how this iconic Australian species is actually faring in rivers,
creeks and lakes in and around the ACT. To address this issue, ACT
Waterwatch and the Australian Platypus Conservancy recently joined forces
to monitor this fascinating animal and are looking for more volunteers to help.
Tanya Rucosky Noakes, the
ACT Waterwatch Facilitator, said that platypus are generally easiest to see in
places where the water surface is fairly flat and calm, so ripples created when
the animals swim and dive stand out. It normally only take a few minutes
of scanning to determine whether a platypus is active in the area. ?Most
volunteers can easily combine looking for platypus with their routine walk, jog
or cycle ride, so the time commitment is not great,? said Tanya.
For further information
contact:
Australian Platypus Conservancy:
Geoff Williams 03 5157
5568 Email:
ACT Waterwatch
Facilitator
Tanya Rucosky
Noakes
GPO Box 158
Canberra ACT 2601
6207-2246
