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Where is Glenthorne Farm? O'Halloran Hill, Adelaide. To see mapfor Gate Entry click here
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Apologies for the late reminder, but THIS Sunday is our next scheduled Enjoyment Day at Glenthorne Farm.
The summer of below-average heatwaves and recurring rainfall events has seen not only the wren habitat fence line plantings flourish, but also those few plantings achieved during the summer have survived and are ready for the season breaking rains. In our Native Grass Compound we are seeing a few natives show themselves, including the Boerhavia dominii (Tar Vine) which is a spreading ground cover, Austrodanthonia sp (Wallaby Grass) in healthy numbers and a native oxalis.
Many of the plantings in the weed mat have survived and shed seed this year. This month we will continue to weed this area to protect the natives and are looking to prepare some ground for direct seeding of a few native grass species, following some local collections in recent months. We will complete our usual walk through the revegetation areas, looking out for Grey-fantails and Golden Whistlers which have been seen at this time of year in past years.
If you haven’t been to Glenthorne for a while or are yet to visit, the Friends invite you to come along for a tour of our revegetation areas and the water course down to the large dam in the middle of the property. Dam levels in past months have been at record high levels and it will be interesting to see if these levels have fallen in the past month and whether this has attracted the usual high numbers of waterbirds.
Visitors are strongly encouraged to bring binoculars as well as protective clothing such as long trousers, long-sleeved shirts, sturdy shoes or boots and a hat. The Friends have a number of hats and also supply sunscreen if needed.
We usually have tea or coffee and a discussion of recent events from around 1.00 pm.
We will be on site from 10.00am but if you arrive after 10.00am please call Alan on 0411 595 910 for entry instructions.
Mammalian hopes still alive after 20 years of lost opportunities & comparison with a real 20-year success story.
Many of you would know that Australia has an extremely poor record in regard to mammal extinctions, with 30 being permanently lost since European settlement. Many of you would have also heard of Arid Australia, an organisation sponsored by BHP Billiton in conjunction with DEWNR and the University of Adelaide. Rings a bell. Yes, Glenthorne farm is owned by the University of Adelaide. Arid Australia has fenced off 123 square kilometres in the arid outback of SA from feral animals such as cats and foxes and the natives, including a number which have been re-introduced, are thriving. Bandicoots, bettongs, bilbies, spinifex hopping mice and plains mice to name a few.
Arid Australia is celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. Another bell is ringing.
The Friends of Glenthorne celebrated its 20th anniversary last year. 20 years of hard slog lobbying and campaigning just to save the 208 hectares of Glenthorne from housing. Arid Recovery’s Board Chairman is Mr Mark Priadko. Yet another bell rings.
Mark is the man who generously chaired the Friends of Glenthorne Community Vision Day back in May 2015 and who did most of the work in compiling the Glenthorne Farm 2015 Community Vision document. Despite the similarities between the Friends of Glenthorne and Arid Australia, the achievements couldn’t be further apart and it is not for the want of trying by the Friends.
Arid Australia has achieved so much in a place many of us will never have the means nor the opportunity to visit, yet Glenthorne farm, just 17.5 kms from Adelaide’s GPO has been left, neglected by the University of Adelaide. We can only wonder how much we could have achieved in our 20 years, compared to Arid Australia, yet we are looking forward to the next 20 years and hoping that with the help of those in power, so much more can and must be achieved. What would we give to see something similar to the Tatachilla Lutheran College’s Eco-classroom and its native mammals, set up at Glenthorne Farm and so much more. A fully functioning natural landscape carefully restored with native animals and birds for those in the community who live closer to Adelaide to enjoy, combined with scientific research for the students and professors of Adelaide’s three main universities to jointly study and work in, not to mention the benefits for our local biodiversity.
It has been interesting to read that the University of Adelaide, Arid Recovery’s sponsor, has appointed a new Professor of Biological Services, Mr Kristofer Helgen who is due to start work in Adelaide this month. Mr Helgen is an internationally renowned zoologist who has discovered about 100 new mammal species. The Friends of Glenthorne welcome Mr Helgen to Adelaide and invite him to come along to one of our Enjoyment Days to see Glenthorne farm and discuss its potential with the Friends.
The Friends will be launching its petition to save Glenthorne Farm in the next week or so, with the hope that the State Government will support the Glenthorne National Park plan promoted by the Liberal Party and step in and put an end to 20 years of inaction and lost opportunity, before any more of our precious local wildlife is lost forever, like the 30 mammal species already lost forever. Our thanks to MP David Speirs for his passion and vision, which is a continuation of the City of Marion’s Great Southern Urban Forest Plan of so many years ago. So many good intentions yet to be supported by our State Government.
We keep working and living in hope.
The Friends have for a while encouraged existing members to renew their memberships and for new members to join us, via the monthly emailed Glenthorne e-Newsletters.
Although this hasn’t been as successful as postal requests in previous years, we are still maintaining a healthy membership base with plans to ramp this up in the coming months as the campaign to save Glenthorne intensifies in the lead up to the March 2018 State election. It is no secret that the Friends are determined to save Glenthorne from urban development, as decreed in the May 2001 Deed of Sale, but we are equally determined to see as much of it returned to thriving Grey Box Grassy Woodland as possible, as well as protect the important State heritage structures dating back to the 1850s. Of course we support increased community access and recreation, but our aim is to see these activities integrated into a sustainable and thriving landscape, as naturally as possible. We feel that this will not only benefit the local biodiversity but will ensure more enjoyable experiences for the visiting community and make the property a unique experience and a local drawcard.
We have much support for our aims from the community and would like to thank a number of our members who have renewed their memberships in recent months as well as our new members.
All the way from beautiful Kangaroo Island, Catherine Murphy has been a long time member and continues to support us with her membership over many years. A special thank you to Catherine, who lives in one of the more pristine, natural places in our great State.
From more local addresses, Helen Adamson, Neville & Ros Cordes, Jean Hancox and Jean Haselgrove have renewed their memberships for another year. They are all strong Glenthorne supporters and we appreciate their ongoing support. New members include former City of Marion Councillor, Mr Frank Verrall and Deputy Chair of the Friends of Nature Foundation SA Committee, Mr Ric Williams. We are honoured to have all of these wonderful and generous people support our cause. Every year becomes that much more important in saving Glenthorne Farm, but the Committee feels that the next 12 months will be crucial, so please renew your membership, if you are at all able.
Please remember to use your name as a reference so that we can identify your payment and an email to our Secretary/Treasurer at AlanBurns@friendsofglenthorne.org.au would be appreciated. Thank you for supporting the Friends and this important cause.
Note that it is important to put your name on any payment direct to our bank account and please send us a followup email so that we have your contact details, if you are a new member.
Membership is just $10.00 for individuals, $20.00 for families and $35.00 for institutions. Concessions apply.
Bank Account Details
Account Name: Friends of Glenthorne Inc.
BSB: 015209
Acct No: 198 876 197
Bank Reference: Enter your name
The report of our 2015 "Community Vision Day" can be downloaded here. (PDF format)
Regards,
Friends of Glenthorne
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