By Katie Haynes | Operations Manager
The iconic endangered Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo and the vulnerable Forest Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo face an uncertain future because of urban development and historical land clearing that has dramatically diminished critical habitat. This is compounded by the impacts of climate change and Phytophthora Dieback which is threatening native flora communities. Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA) has continued to support Kaarakin Black Cockatoo Conservation Centre to rehabilitate degraded land in Beelu National Park this quarter. This national park is adjacent to their centre and is 40 kilometres east of Perth. CVA has been restoring critical habitat by removing all non-native species and planting local native seedlings in their place. This will provide a valuable food source for the endangered Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo and the vulnerable Forest Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo as well as important roosting and nesting locations, and helping with their long-term sustainability.
By restoring critical habitat for the black cockatoos the project will provide an important food source and when the trees mature will provide vital roosting and nesting sites. The Perth Hills region is one of the last remaining urban habitats for the cockatoos and is severely degraded and under pressure so it is vital that this area is protected and enhanced.
Over the last three months CVA has engaged over 100 volunteers from our primary and high school program, adult community volunteering program and indigenous training program. They have cleared over 3,000 square meters of weeds and replaced the area with over 5,000 seedlings.
Rachel, the Acting Environmental Projects Manager at Kaarakin said she was: “really happy with the volunteers hard work and without their efforts we wouldn’t have been able to reach a milestone at Kaarakin of 10,000 seedlings planted”.
The long-term impact of the project is that it will help develop an important corridor of critical habitat for the endangered Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo and the vulnerable Forest Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo and aid with their recovery. Kaarakin often soft release rehabilitated cockatoos into this area. This work will complement other restoration works that have been done in the region to convert degraded farm land into wildlife corridors. By providing corridors of critical habitat it enables the cockatoos to spread into new regions. The cockatoos have an important role as part of the ecosystem and this project will help create a sustainable future for them.
CVA would like to thank our supporters and volunteers. Without your help, CVA couldn’t help out with this important cause. If you are able to donate again we would really appreciate it – every donation will help us to continue achieving these great conservation results and give these beautiful birds a better chance at coming back from the brink of extinction.
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