Royal Botanical Gardens

Conservation of a Botanically Significant Characeae Collection

$10,000

This is a hugely important project involving the conservation of a 19th Century collection of freshwater algae specimens. The specimens were collected from streams in now urban Melbourne. The collection was burnt while on loan to another Australian herbarium, making them too fragile to handle. Specialist conservators will be employed to stablise the collection. Preservation of the specimens are of national significance and provide detailed records of Victoria’s freshwater biodiversity to researchers. The RE Ross Trust are providing half the funds and The Norman Wettenhall Foundation the other half.

The University of Adelaide

Returning Warru to APY Lands

$5,000

The study team aim to reintroduce the endangered warru (Black-footed rock-wallabies) to two locations in SA. The first part of the project will determine the home range of wild warru and reintroduced warru and expand current baseline data. They will examine how wild warru use burnt patches of bush, their water requirements, and population density impacts on habitat. Two Anangu rangers will be employed with this grant to help with the data collection.

Victorian Wader Study Group

Geolocator Studies of Migratory Waders

$10,000

This is a well known and respected group who monitor waders in Victoria. This particular project is looking at Eastern Curlews and Sanderlings down in Corner Inlet in Gippsland. The grant will assist in purchasing geolocators (light sensitive data loggers) to use to collect data on the birds’ migration routes, stopover locations, breeding destinations and general migration. The RE Ross Trust will fund $5,000 and The Norman Wettenhall Foundation will fund $5,000.