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Open Letter to the Victorian Government has been sent as a video to express our views and concerns about this coming duck season. Have a look for your information

This morning 7.25am at the bird feeder (for the magpies and white-winged choughs- and the crested pigeons and the magpie-larks!), a sole Pied Butcherbird, denizen of the Mallee. I believe he or she has been around for a couple of days , observing. It's not only humans who observe other species and their behaviour. Having worked out the routine, the bird followed me to the next feeder, then the next but was a little overwhelmed by the numbers of other birds including belligerent and raucous cockies. After 3 days of gale-force southerly winds, this bird is unlikly to have hitched a ride that way. The last sighting of a Pied Butcherbird, 7 or 8 years ago, in the area was after several days of strong northerlies. Will this bird stay? Will it be joined by others fleeing the no-food situation further north? What will our resident Grey Butcherbirds think about this?

Some sightings here at Carapooee West over December 2023 and the start of the New Year   Old palm trees have their use- female Mistletoebird collecting the fluff from stem for her nest- several visits but I only managed one photo. The male was escorting her and dangling off the end of the fronds, scolding me for being too close. Clear winged fly of some sort on cactus flower Dec 2023- any entomologists about? And on our main dam- we have always had Australasian (Little) Grebes on the dams but the only place they seem to breed is up on the wetland. However, this year, because the dam has been full to overflowing for months- here we are, just the one baby though, making heavy weather of the wake from its parents.

View downloadable documents on prjects and list of Brochures Documents Useful Websites https://www.fncv.org.au/publications/ https://www.csiro.au/en/research/plants/native/identifying-eucalypts-made-easy https://apps.lucidcentral.org/euclid/text/intro/index.html https://www.urbanfieldnaturalist.org https://profiles.ala.org.au/opus/foa https://www.ala.org.au https://seana.org.au/becoming-a-field-naturalist/

Review who we are and view the history of the club About Us The St Arnaud Field Naturalists Club was formed in April 1984 to protect rare native orchids in our local Box-Ironbark forest. The Club was formed by a small group of people who had earlier formed ‘The St Arnaud Natural History Group’ within the St Arnaud Historical Society. These people enjoyed getting out into the field to explore and study the particular biodiversity and natural history of the St Arnaud area. The geology, the flora and fauna of the forests and water courses, the relics and traces of the past within the local landscape. In 1984, attempts to preserve St Arnaud’s unique local natural assets began. More about our history and a selection of our historical pics can be found HERE . Who we are: Our Committee is elected annually. We are a ‘not for profit charitable organisation’ and operate under the Victorian Consumer Affairs “Model Rules 2023”. You can find our Constitution HERE . We are committed to providing a safe, inclusive environment for our members and being a child safe organisation in accordance with the “Victorian Child Safe Standards”. See our Code of Conduct policy HERE . See Landcare Child Safety Guidelines 2022 HERE . The Club's Purposes: To study nature in all aspects. To increase the understanding, enjoyment and appreciation of the local natural environment within the local community and the wider public. To promote the purposes of the Club, by meetings, field excursions, seminars, publications, exhibitions and the printing and circulation of its transactions when appropriate. To take actions for the preservation and conservation of Australian native flora and fauna, natural resources and objects of regional, State and National importance. To form collections and illustrations of natural history specimens. To provide for the permanent housing of the Club’s property. What we do: We organise monthly meetings, activities and excursions for our members. We work in the community, to promote the understanding of biodiversity and respect for our bushland areas. We work to protect special unique areas from perceived threats to their existence. We assist with the recovery of threatened species and the natural regeneration of bushland, with research, knowledge and resources. We work to encourage sound land management practices on public and private land. We work to encourage thoughtful and effective management of the Parks, Reserves and State Forests of the Region. We support the Djaara/Parks Joint Management initiative. We provide critical support to Parks Victoria to help manage particular sites. We support a sensible approach to fire management, one which achieves community safety without destroying the environment. We prepare submissions to government in the name of conservation, and threats to biodiversity in our region. We aim to provide an apolitical conservation voice for the St Arnaud community and surrounds We produce pamphlets highlighting 4 special places near to the St Arnaud town: the Wax Garden, Bell Rock, View Point and the Basin. We form collections and illustrations of natural history specimens. We work with other like minded conservation groups in our broader region. We provide accurate and useful information about conservation and the local environment through our website. . We are associated with: Djaara Joint Management Team Parks Victoria South Eastern Australia Naturalists Association SEANA Victorian Field Naturalists Clubs Association VFNCA Friends of the Box Ironbark Forests Maryborough Field Naturalists Club Inc. Field Naturalists Club of Victoria FNCV Wedderburn CMA Friends of Kooyoora North Central Catchment Management Authority NCCMA Avon Plains-Banyena Land Care Group Buloke and Northern Grampians LandCare Network. BNGLCN Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Commission (ACNC)

What's On We have monthly meetings. We organise monthly excursions to interesting sites further afield. We regularly observe our local bushland. If you want to join in , Contact Us Our 2026 Program will be uploaded to this page shortly.