Keeping Our Carnaby's Project Wrap Up

Farmers Improving Outcomes for Carnaby’s Black Cockatoos

2023 was a massive year for Katanning Landcare and the Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo! We are so proud to have been able to deliver an incredible project with $90,000 of funding from the Western Australian Government’s State NRM Program for the ‘Keeping our Carnaby’s: Farmers Improving Outcomes for Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo’ project.

Carnaby’s Cockatoo, photo by Shannyn Piearce.

The project supported landholders to manage native vegetation on their properties for biodiversity conservation and aimed to improve Carnaby habitat and long-term food sources. Across 310 hectares, over 32,000 native seedlings were infill planted into remnant Wandoo woodlands. Diverse midstorey species were selected with the majority being Banksias and Hakeas, to provide critical food resources for cockatoos. Whilst most of the project sites were already fenced, 1km of fencing was installed to protect the newly established seedlings from stock intrusion.

Artificial Cockatoo nesting tubes were installed at each of the three properties by Dean Arthurell from Carnaby’s Crusaders. Mr Arthurell also conducted a two-hour workshop with the Katanning Scout Group and guided them through the process of building cockatoo nesting boxes as well as a fantastic presentation on the history of these beautiful endangered birds. Nest box monitoring on the properties was provided by Dr. Sam Rycken of BirdLife WA, who also provided training to our project staff on how to monitor the newly established homes going forwards.

Dean Arthurell (Carnaby’s Crusaders) installing a nesting box.

In conjunction with Katanning’s annual Bloom Festival, we hosted a community screening of the award-winning documentary film ‘Black Cockatoo Crisis’, which provides education and awareness behind the decline of black cockatoo populations in Western Australia. Film director Jane Hammond and Dr Sam Rycken of BirdLife WA provided a Q&A for the public after the screening, and local community members also brought in their rescued black cockatoos to provide up close interactions for the public.

Some massive THANK YOU’s – our landholders for participating in this incredible project and for contributing to WA’s collective conservation efforts for the critically endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo. The Badgebup Aboriginal Corporation’s Ngoolark Rangers for assisting our landholders with the planting of thousands of native seedlings on project sites. Our volunteers helping with plantings, workshops, and events. To our project staff Sara Anderson and Amber Bateup for their dedicated efforts with project delivery.