Location: Mountain River Hall
Date: 19 June 2021
Time: 9:30-12:00
What to bring: We may go for a short walk outside (no bushwalking), so please bring appropriate warm/wet weather gear.
Citizen Science is an established way for people from the public to collect data and assist scientific research. This free workshop will teach you the basics of citizens science, and show that everyone in Tasmania can get involved.
The workshop will cover what kind of data you can collect as a citizen scientist, how to collect it, and how to process the data so that scientists and government bodies can use it.
We will talk about:
No matter whether you want to find out what animals and plants live in your backyard, help protecting your local reserve that you love, or simply want to contribute to better understanding Tassie’s unique wildlife – after this workshop, you will have everything you need to know to go out in the field and be a citizen scientist!
Focus on Birds of Prey
The hills around Mountain River are prime habitat for birds of prey, including the endangered Grey Goshawk (white morph) and Masked Owl. Tasmanian raptor specialist Dave Young has worked in this landscape for years, to better understand the grey goshawk. He will talk about his research, and show how to identify grey goshawk habitat and nests. As this bird is very specific about its nesting habitat, it is very important to identify and protect suitable sites.
Dave Young has previously completed a study on Masked Owls in the Huon Valley. He is currently investigating the spatial and reproductive ecology of the grey goshawk in modified landscapes for his PhD thesis. He will be fitting 20 goshawks with GPS transmitters to estimate home range size and habitat use for the first time on this elusive species. He will also be investigating nest habitat, nest site selection processes, breeding densities and nest productivity. The results have, and will contribute to improving the conservation management of Tasmania's threatened raptors and their habitat. He has published three peer reviewed scientific journal articles and is currently working on publishing two others.
This project received grant funding from the Australian Government’s Communities Environment Program with the support from MP Julie Collins, and from the JM Roberts Charitable Trust through the Tasmanian Landcare Fund.
A COVID Risk Management Plan has been developed by Landcare Tasmania in line with the current COVID requirements. Please follow social distancing rules and stay at home if you are feeling unwell.
This event is part of our 2021 Outreach Events Program, leading up to the 2021 Tasmanian Community Landcare Conference in October.
Landcare Tasmania works to represent, support, strengthen and grow community Landcare. Landcare Tasmania has more than 300 member groups across the state, representing over 5,000 Tasmanians.