Dear ,

Table of Contents:

• Bushcare Information
• Ecological Burn at Glenthorne
• Rescue Fish Population Hosts
• Movie Night - Ocean with David Attenborough 
• Friends of Marino AGM
• Rail Care - Seacliff
• 2025 AGM
• Tackling Feral Cats
• COOTS Plant Sale
• Community Grassland Plan
• Recent Activities Report
• Tours of Glenthorne
• Native Plant Nursery Update
• Friends of Sturt Gorge News
• Acknowledgement of Country

Glenthorne is an ideal place to research nature.

"Research is formulised curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose" - Zora Neale Hurston

Did you miss a Newsletter? Catch up on all our previous eNewsletters on this webpage https://www.friendsofglenthorne.org.au/news-letter/

This Saturday, is the First Saturday of the month, and is our first Bushcare Day for June.

As usual, we meet at Carpark One behind the Shearing Shed. (To get there, follow the Park Road down from the Ranger’s Station, then turn right into Carpark 1.)

If you need any help finding us, then please ring one of the following.

Martin:  0403 804 306
Alan:     0411 595 910
Bob:     0419 408 851

Bushcare Events at Glenthorne NP-IY:

• Each Wednesday - 9am to noon.
• 1st  & 2nd Saturday 10-4pm
  (Note: This has changed from First Sunday to the First Saturday.)
• 3rd Sunday 10-4pm

At RDA (Riding for Disabled) 

• 4th Saturday:   9-12pm  (RDA Front Garden) Volunteers from the Riding For Disabled will be joining us for these Bush Care days at RDA.

Always be mindful of the forecast weather and our Hot Weather Policy.  If the BOM forecasted temperature is 34 degrees or higher, the Bushcare Day is cancelled. See the BOM O'Halloran Hill Forecast Information here

If you are unwell, please do the right thing and stay at home.

Bushcare Mailing List

If you want to receive irregular Bushcare Notifications, subscribe to our BushCarers E-Mailing List. To do this, just send an email to BushCarers-Join@FriendsOfGlenthorne.org.au

Bushcare: It’s not Rocket Science, it’s much more difficult than that.

In mid May (Wednesday, 14th May) an Environmental Burn was conducted at Glenthorne by DEW, members of the CFS and the Park Rangers. The burn was along the creekline between the Playground, and the large Glenthorne lake.

When you next visit Glenthorne, you may like to take a careful walk along this area to see the success of this burn, especially after this recent rain (10mm), and as the plants (and weeds) recover from the burn.

Of course, after this Burn, it will be very important to do follow-up weed spraying, for at least the next two seasons, to keep the Phylaris under control, and hopefully eliminate it in this creek line.

These last few days we have had visits from folk from Nature Glenelg Trust, inspecting the large Glenthorne Lake, to see if it is suitable to host rescue populations of rare and/or endangered South Australian fish.

There are 5 target species, and they need to check out how “safe” the lake is for these fish.  They put out four fish traps over-night, and caught 21 turtles, but no fish.

There seems to be a lack of water-weed, but the water quality seems to be A-Okay, so we are waiting for the test results, and hoping that this projecct will go ahead.   Establishing water-weeds and a fish-friendly lake will be the next step.

There is a possibility that we can partner with the Warradale Primary School with this project.

Come and see this highly acclaimed movie with like minded Friends of Glenthorne.

Tuesday 24th June, the first session on or after 6pm at Event Cinemas, at Westfield Marion.

Reply to this email if you want to be reminded closer to the date.

Ocean With David Attenborough takes viewers on a breathtaking journey showing there is nowhere more vital for our survival, more full of life, wonder, or surprise, than the ocean. The celebrated broadcaster and filmmaker reveals how his lifetime has coincided with the great age of ocean discovery. Through spectacular sequences featuring coral reefs, kelp forests and the open ocean, Attenborough shares why a healthy ocean keeps the entire planet stable and flourishing. Stunning, immersive cinematography showcases the wonder of life under the seas and exposes the realities and challenges facing our ocean as never-before-seen, from destructive fishing techniques to mass coral reef bleaching. Yet the story is one of optimism, with Attenborough pointing to inspirational stories from around the world to deliver his greatest message: the ocean can recover to a glory beyond anything anyone alive has ever seen.

A botany lecturer from Uni Adelaide is going to present on "Challenges and solutions to temperate grassland restoration” 

Starting with the presentation at ~6:30pm or 7:00pm Wednesday 25th of June at the new Marino Community Hall, 44 Newland Avenue, Marino 

On Thursday 15 May, at a "Native Orchid" seminar, at the John Roche gallery in North Adelaide, Gerry Smith, a Senior Scientific Officer with the South Australian Seed Conservation Centre, presented some sobering facts:

The Gross Government Budget is $416.9 Billion, so "Threatened species" amounts to 0.017% of the Annual spend;

• From 2015 to 2017, the federal government allocated $210M to threatened species, that is, $70M annually
• In each year, Fossil Fuel Subsidies are $11.6 billion, and  Defence is $32.4 billion for 2016-2017 (that is $16.2 annually)
• Australians spend $30.7 Billion annually on their cats and dogs.

Current Spending on "Saving Native Species Program", over an unspecified time period, for 20 priority places or sites and 110 priority species.

To help you understand these figures, it is sometimes better to see a picture. The Pie Graph below does have a thin blue segment, at the very top, which is the "threatened species" spend amount.

You may find it difficult to get to Glenthorne for Bush Care. You may not get to BushCare as often as you'd like.  Either way, "Rail Care" may be your thing!

Rail Care - Seacliff, will be planting out the Pocket Park (Next to the Seacliff "To Adelaide" platform) on Saturday 14th June at 10.15am followed by a free sausage sizzle and tea and coffee.  If you would like to attend, and help, then please go to the City of Holdfast Bay website to register, if you are able to attend. Registrations are essential for catering purposes etc. 

Registration link is:  https://www.holdfast.sa.gov.au/discover/whats-on/community-planting-seacliff-2

The 2025 "Friends of Glenthorne" AGM will be held on Tuesday 9th September. 

Please put this in your diary now.

Did you know that Feral cats kill over 1.5 billion native mammals, birds, reptiles and frogs, and 1.1 billion invertebrates in Australia each year?

Read more about DEW is working to beat feral cats, and other invasive pest species, in South Australia.

See https://www.environment.sa.gov.au

On each First Sunday of the Month, the Australian Plant Society COOTS(*) group host a Plant Sale at their Clubrooms in Goodwood.

Where: 1 Minute Walk from the Goodwood Railway Station.  21a Richards Tce. Goodwood.

When: 12 noon to 3.00pm.

There will be knowledgeable environmentalists attending so if you have any questions about native plants, birds, insects and other such matters, please come along and have a chat with the COOTS team.

The Glenthorne History book will also be on sale for just $35. Cash and credit card facilities available.

* COOTS = Conservation Of Our Threatened Species.

Adelaide University PhD student Max McQuillan has released a Management Plant for the Community Grassland Project at Glenthorne.  Below are some excerpts from this plan.

Overview

The Glenthorne Community Grassland, located within Glenthorne National Park | Ityamaiitpinna Yarta, is a restored grassland that reflects the region’s natural heritage, cultural importance, and historical significance.

As part of the nationally threatened Grey Box (Eucalyptus microcarpa) Grassy Woodlands and Derived Native Grasslands ecological community, it represents an opportunity to preserve and restore one of Australia’s most endangered ecosystems.

Ecological and Historical Significance

Historical evidence indicates that, prior to European settlement, the Glenthorne Community Grassland, along with much of Adelaide, was managed as grassland ecosystems by the Kaurna people. The Native Temperate Grasslands of southern Australia are a nationally threatened ecological community, which today covers less than 1% of its pre-European range. Their decline is directly linked to the loss of plants and animals that specialise in this habitat. Most grasslands are cultural landscapes that rely on periodic disturbance (historically in the form of fire) to maintain a heterogeneous and biodiverse assemblage of plants and animals.

Remnant native grasslands can support exceptionally high levels of biodiversity, with over 100 species per hectare recorded in surveys. These ecosystems also hold significant cultural value for both Aboriginal people and European settlers. The Kaurna maintained grasslands across most of Adelaide to sustain their >65,000- year-long sustainable way of life. For European settlers, grasslands provided critical grazing resources in the early colonial period. The rapid shift in grassland management, coupled with a lack of understanding of these ecosystems, led to their near-total decline since 1836. Restoration initiatives like the Glenthorne Community Grassland are essential to preserving the biodiversity and cultural history embedded in these living landscapes.

Learn more about this at https://www.glenthornegrassland.com

The past month has been rather busy.

• Slashing Area 4 and Area 9.5, ready for Spraying.
• Weeding around the Munitions Hut plantings.
• Surveying the quality of the Lake with Dr. Syliva Zukowski, for potential Rescue Populations of rare native fish.

David Speirs is still offering Tours of Glenthorne, covering the Past, Present, and Future of the Park.

David would love to see you.

To register for a tour, either

• Click this link , or
• Point your phone camera to the QR Code below, and then go to the Webpage that the QR code identifies.

A "Development Application" needs to be submitted to the Council (City of Marion).  DIT have engaged an Engineering firm to progress the necessary engineering activities required for the nursery site.  This firm have a comprehensive engineering team that can assist with all elements of the design required to push the DA forward.  

To complete the Development Application, further research is needed at the RDA site to understand the ground conditions for the footing and slab design for the shed.  

Assessment is needed for the the existing Grey-waste Water system to see if any amendments are required to accommodate the nursery.  If amendments are required, an approval with SA Health may be needed.

Once these things are done, we can expect another get together with DIT is expected, to work through the next level of detail, and to discuss the timeline for the Development Approval and the construction in more detail.

DIT remain committed to completing the construction of the nursery as part of the Majors Road Interchange project, which is on track to be completed by the end of 2025.

Would you like to know what is happening with the Friends of Sturt Gorge? Subscribe to their eNewsletter at this webpage: Friends Of Sturt Gorge

The Friends of Glenthorne acknowledge that Glenthorne National Park - Ityamaiitpinna Yarta is part of the traditional lands of the Kaurna people and we respect them and appreciate their innate and spiritual connection with the land and waters of Glenthorne.

We aspire to work alongside them in taking care of this land and community to restore Glenthorne to be once again, a healthy native habitat.