By u5825765

In recent years, Canberra’s rapid population growth has driven the development of new residential areas en masse. Burgeoning suburbs, such as Throsby, allegedly hold the key to accommodating such future growth. However, to the contrary of its boasted ‘superb’ development charm, the environmental impacts of Throsby (as an urban development) pose a threat to its own threatened regional avian icon: The Superb Parrot (Polytelis swainsonii).

Canberra: A future Superb centre

There is increasing evidence affirming the migration of Superb Parrots to Canberra as a result of climate change and loss of original habitat. In addition to other parts of Canberra, Throsby contains a significant area of suitable habitat in the form of mature-age trees. These trees offer vital hollows for the Superb’s nesting.

However, critically endangered Box Gum Grassy Woodland comprises much of this tree population – this being its own conservation issue of Throsby. According to Dr. Laura Rayner, one of the lead researchers of the ANU Superb Parrot Hollows study, this only emphasises the severity of the Superb Parrot’s future.

“In 50-70 years, this landscape — this area — is going to be the most important area for the population” – Dr. Laura Rayner, from her interview with ABC Journalist, Craig Allen

Setting up the climb

As part of my volunteer work, I assisted Giselle Owens – an astute researcher from Dr. Rayner’s team – in assessing Throsby’s mature-age trees for hollows and Superb Parrot populations.  My work primarily involved ground surveying and data scribing, recording Giselle’s observations and measurements as she ascended the trees.

We used a pre-mapped GPS database to locate the specific trees for surveying, as well as a comprehensive system of gear to aid Giselle’s climbing. In terms of plain sighting for potential trees, Giselle memorably remarked, “Generally, the worse they look, aesthetically, the more likely they have suitable hollows.”

Preparing the climbing system was the most time consuming part. At one tree in particular, we spent over half an hour just slinging the initial support rope over the tree. Repeating this process gave me a far greater appreciation of the sheer effort and time required to undertake such research.

In turn, I raised the question of how more modern technologies, such as lightweight drone cameras, could potentially improve research practices. Perhaps they could allow visual access to hollows without climbing, though such methods would need to be assessed in terms of potentially disruptive impacts.

Scribing and surveying

The task of scribing itself was relatively straightforward, though nonetheless a valuable experience. We measured a range of hollow aspects, such as location, condition, entrance size and depth. Our findings (per tree) ranged from none to more than half-a-dozen suitable hollows, as well as a ground survey of a tree with more than fifteen hollows. In addition to hollow diversity, it was interesting to see how the array of different measurements helped develop a more three-dimensional model of each hollow out of centimetre figures.

Ultimately, this profiling of hollows is not only important to informing population studies, but also potential future rehabilitation, such as improving current artificial hollow designs.

Conserving a Superb future

Even from a short period of work, it is clear Throsby hosts a considerable habitat capacity for the Superb Parrot. To echo the arguments of existing research, it is vital that urban developments account for the situational gravitas of this threatened species. Ensuring earnest conservation for both a critically endangered habitat, and threatened species, should ultimately determine whether Throsby truly ‘makes life superb’.