New homes for wildlife

Three local Landcare groups have joined forces to build and install nesting boxes around the Brisbane Ranges National Park, with a range of birds and other animals set to benefit.

Construction workshops run by the Brisbane Ranges Landcare Group, Rowsley Landcare Group, and Moorabool Catchment Landcare Group have resulted in 59 nesting boxes being installed on private property around the eastern flank of the Brisbane Ranges.

The nesting boxes will support breeding for several species living in the Brisbane Ranges, including barking owls, powerful owls, parrots, sugar gliders, phascogales, microbats, grey shrike-thrush, southern boobook owls, greater gliders, and kookaburras.

Research has shown that suitably sized tree hollows for large birds and animals require more than 100 years, perhaps even 200 years, to develop naturally.

The Brisbane Ranges and surrounding landscape are an example of how scarce this makes suitable tree hollows – within the National Park, many trees, including older specimens, were destroyed or damaged in the 2006 bushfires.

Older trees, especially dead ones, have also been seen as attractive sources of firewood on private land adjacent to the Park.

While efforts have been made to revegetate the area, particularly in the Rowsley Valley through program such as Grow West, these new trees are not yet old enough to form suitable hollows.

The groups hope that the nesting boxes serve as effective substitutes, and encourage breeding of birds and animals in the area.

“It’s exciting to see birds and animals investigating our nesting boxes as potential breeding sites. They are easy to construct, and I encourage anyone with a backyard tree to consider making it a home for wildlife,” Brisbane Ranges Landcare Group President, Robert Hall, said.

For more information on nesting boxes, visit www.wildlifenestboxes.com.au.

The nesting box program was supported by a grant from the State Government.