The Cake Walk

On the 28th of March, our very own Professor Cake took us out for an early morning bird watching walk around Bibra Lake. Bibra Lake is one of the lakes comprising Beeliar Regional Park. We were lucky enough to see a range of birds, some common and some not so common! It was a beautiful morning for a stroll along the lake and everyone present seemed in awe of the birds and developed a greater appreciation for our winged natives.


The Species of birds at Bibra lake include:

• Musk Duck (Biziura lobata)
• Black Swan (Cygnus atratus)
• Australian Shelduck (Tadorna tadornoides)
• Australian Wood Duck (Chenonetta jubata)
• Pink-eared Duck (Malacorhynchus membranaceus)
• Australasian Shoveler (Anas rhynchotis)
• Grey Teal (Anas gracilis)
• Pacific Black Duck (Anas superciliosa)
• Blue-billed Duck (Oxyura australis)
• Australasian Grebe (Tachybaptus novaehollandiae)
• Hoary-headed (Grebe Poliocephalus poliocephalus)
• Little Black Cormorant (Phalacrocorax sulcirostris)
• Eastern Great Egret (Ardea modesta)
• White-faced Heron (Egretta novaehollandiae)
• Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
• Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)
• Australian White Ibis (Threskiornis molucca)
• Straw-necked Ibis (Threskiornis spinicollis)
• Yellow-billed Spoonbill (Platalea flavipes)
• White-bellied Sea-Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster)
• Whistling Kite (Haliastur sphenurus)
• Little Eagle (distant) (Hieraaetus morphnoides)
• Purple Swamphen (Porphyrio porphyrio)
• Eurasian Coot (Fulica atra)
• Black-winged (Stilt Himantopus leucocephalus)
• Red-necked Avocet (Recurvirostra novaehollandiae)
• Silver Gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae)
• Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus banksii)
• Little Corella (Cacatua sanguinea)
• Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus)
• Southern Boobook (Ninox novaeseelandiae)
• Laughing Kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae)
• Red Wattlebird (Anthochaera carunculata)
• Grey Butcherbird (heard) (Cracticus torquatus)
• Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen)
• Willie Wagtail (Rhipidura leucophrys)
• Australian Raven (Corvus coronoides)
• Magpie-lark (Grallina cyanoleuca)
• Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxena)
• Tree Martin (Petrochelidon nigricans)

Caversham Wildlife Park Trip

Is uni getting you down, feeling stressed out already? Then take some time off to relax, have some fun and meet some fellow wildlife lovers and some cool Australian native wildlife.

MUWA is holding our first off campus excursion for 2011 at the Caversham Wildlife Park in Whiteman on Saturday the 12th of March. We will be car pooling from Murdoch and aim to arrive at the park at 11am for a tour and then be free to explore the park for the rest of the day all for only $8!

This is event is for members only so if you were considering joining before now is the time to do it!

For more information on this fantastic field trip or more information on joining MUWA email us at murdochmuwa@gmail.com

Hope to see you there!

When: Saturday 12th Match
Where: Caversham Wildlife Park, Whiteman
Who: MEMEBERS ONLY (membership can be paid at the same time as your entry fee)
Cost: $8 plus petrol money for car pooling

Raptors Talk

MUWA's first talk for 2011 will be from Stuart and Amanda Payne from the WA Conservation of Raptors Inc, on Thursday 17th of March at 12.30pm. Stuart and Amanda will be talking to us about their work rehabitating birds of prey as well as providing members with the opportunity to get up close and personal with a range of birds all without leaving the Murdoch campus!

When: 12.30 Thursday 17th March

Where: VCS2.008

Cost: FREE for members, gold coin donation for non members

Membership can be purchased on the day for $15

For more details see the promotional poster below

AMAZING VOLUNTEERING OPPURTUNITY

Belinda Cannell, who talked to us about her research project "Little Penguin Project" last semester, is now looking for volunteers! She will be starting beach captures in October on Penguin Island. Two volunteers are needed for each night, and will be provided with accommodation at on-site research quarters. DEC staff member Sandy McNeill will be training volunteers in penguin handling beforehand. Anyone interested needs to contact both Belinda and Sandy.

Belinda Cannell: B.Cannell@murdoch.edu.au
Sandy McNeill: 0439 090 734

Wildlife Photography Competition

Do you have some WILD photos of wildlife? Then why not enter them in the MUWA Wildlife Photography Competition?

This years competition will be judged by award winning photographer Bob Litchfield and wildlife photographer Mike Helbig.

The winning photo will be published in the Australian Veterinary Journal with the possibility of even being on the front cover! There are also a number of other great prizes up for grabs incuding our peoples choice award.

Entries are limited to three per person and need to be submitted by Wednesday the 11th of August.

All entries can be emailed to murdochmuwa@gmail.com or submitted on a disc with your name and email address to the MUWA pigeon hole outside of the vet common room.

Silvery Gibbons Talk

MUWA's next WWS is a talk from Perth Zoo assocaite veterinarian, Dr. Karen Payne, on Thursday 6th of May at 12.30pm. Dr. Payne will be talking to us about her work with Silvery Gibbons and the work performed by Perth Zoo and "The Silvery Gibbon Project" to help conserve this endangered species.

When: 12.30pm Thursday 6th of May
Where: 4th year lecture theater (VCS2.008)
Cost: FREE for members, gold coin donations for non members

Memership can be purchased at the event

For more details see the promotional poster below.

Meet the Natives: Reptiles

Ever wondered what types of reptiles might be commonly brought into veterinary clinics, or even just the ones that you might find in your backyard? Not sure how to handle snakes and lizards? Then join MUWA along with speakers from Kanyana to gain an appreciation of all things scaly!

When: 5-7pm Thursday 22nd April
Where: 4th Year Lecture Theater
Cost: $7 (covers information session on common native reptiles, hands on learning experience with real, live lizards and snakes, and a BBQ!)

For more details, please see our promotional poster below

Due to the limited number of animals available for handling this is a MEMBERS ONLY EVENT!!

For more information on Kanyana Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, and to learn how to help, please visit their website