Biodiversity in Schools program update 

Lucy Kyriacou- Project Manager 

The team has been busy this term supporting schools learning about the unique ecology and coastlines of Western Port.  

We began the new year delivering a series of workshops at Point Leo Foreshore Reserve as part of the Junior Ranger program. These included Scats and Tracks with koala expert, Kelly Smith, and The Wonderful World of Wetlands with aquatic ecologist, Lance Lloyd. The children enjoyed hunting for scats to find clues about what might be living in the trees of Point Leo, and bug dipping to discover the water-dwelling invertebrates. 

We were back at Point Leo Reserve recently to deliver workshops about the intertidal zone and the wetland area, where freshwater meets the sea, to the students from Woodleigh School as part of their school camp. The children enjoyed using the bug identification kits to find out about the species in the wetlands and to gauge water quality, and a scavenger hunt in the intertidal zone to identify coastal and marine flora and fauna. We would like to thank Tony Walkington, Head Ranger of the Reserve, for promoting the work of the Biosphere Foundation and our environmental education programs. 

Other educational opportunities this term have included taking Caulfield Grammar VCE students on a guided boat trip of Western Port. Students were able to see the coastal wetlands, including mangroves, seagrass meadows, saltmarsh, and mudflats. They witnessed migratory shorebirds feeding as they prepare to take flight in April on their migration routes. Following the boat trip, the students were taken to the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens to meet the Southern Brown Bandicoot Recovery Group Coordinator, who took them on a guided walk to learn about bandicoot conservation and protection. 

Western Port Secondary College grade 9 humanities students have been learning about biomes and human impact on ecosystems. We have supported their learning by providing resources about the ecosystems of the Hastings coastline and joined them on an excursion to the coastal wetlands. We ran activities to demonstrate scientific techniques to collect data in the field, and mangrove restoration trials, such as the ‘John Eddy’ method. 

We look forward to supporting more schools in term 2. 

If you are interested in learning about the workshops we have on offer please visit: 

Biodiversity in Schools – Western Port Biosphere  

Or contact Lucy Kyriacou, Project Manager, directly on: 

[email protected] 

0499333762