MILo disperses 500 km to Shoalhaven Heads

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Pause for a moment; salute MILo who has just touched down near Shoalhaven Heads. His 536 km dispersal took him via Berthong, between Temora and Young, and over the Great Dividing Range. This is our first evidence of the link between bitterns in rice and wetlands on the New South Wales coast. He has taken us straight to Coomonderry, the largest freshwater swamp on the New South Wales coast and once a hotspot for Green and Golden Bell Frogs. There are very few bittern records from the south coast so we hope he gives us a good wetland tour and finds a safe haven for the cold winter ahead. The role of coastal wetlands in providing bittern habitat between rice seasons is becoming clearer. Special thanks to Murray Irrigation Limited (MIL) who bought the naming rights back in 2014 during our crowdfunding campaign. Long may he thrive!

 

4 COMMENTS

    • They seem to make pretty handy coastal wetland tour guides. Arnold should be back online this time tomorrow. There’s a good chance he’ll have joined the coastal dispersal club too.

  1. […] 2. MILo remains at Coomonderry Swamp near Shoalhaven Heads. It’s been almost four months now and as the weather warms up we’re anticipating his 600 km return flight to the Deniliquin rice farm where we caught him in summer. Coomonderry Swamp is exceedingly valuable. At 670 hectares, it’s the largest semi-permanent, freshwater wetland on the New South Wales coast. Part of it is gazetted as a nature reserve but the main areas that MILo has been using are on private land. It seems highly unlikely that he is alone or the only bittern there from the Riverina. Last month, we visited Coomonderry and informed local landholders about their special guest. There was much interest in this seemingly unlikely connection between the Shoalhaven and the Riverina. Here’s a short clip of his habitat: […]

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