CUMBERLAND BIRD OBSERVERS CLUB
Birdwatching in Sydney since 1979
Affiliated with BirdLife Australia
CBOC ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING - TUESDAY 20 AUGUST 2024
The AGM will be held at the Friendship Room of the Wesley Uniting Church Castle Hill at 7.30pm.
Further information for the AGM can be accessed by clicking the links below:
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Draft Minutes of the 2023 AGM
​For further information, contact Pat Thorn on secretary@cboc.org.au
Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 October
NSW and ACT TWITCHATHON
The NSW and ACT Twitchathon is a competition to see how many birds each group can see in a specified time, with the money raised going to a worthy bird conservation project.
The Twitchathon will take place on the weekend of October 28-29, 2023. There is a choice of three Twitchathons – 30 hour, 8 hour and a 3 hour Birdathon.
The 2023 Twitchathon will be supporting Matt Herring for his project entitled 'Engaging the Custodians of Australian Painted-Snipe'.
More info, registration and donations
Bird Week: 16-22 October 2023
AUSSIE BACKYARD BIRD COUNT
Make a difference for bird conservation by giving a moment of your time to count the birds that are counting on you. Participate in the Aussie Bird Count during Bird Week in October and use your observation skills for a 20-minute period to make a simple but important contribution to Birdlife Australia’s conservation initiatives.
Each year people across the country head out to their front yards, backyards, courtyards, parks and play areas to count how many birds they see to provide a snapshot of Australia’s more common bird species. It’s a fun, simple and safe activity observing nature, which is proven to provide benefits to mental health and wellbeing.
Collecting this data at the same time each year allows us to look at the trends in our bird communities over time. Think of birds as a barometer for nature, as their health and wellbeing is one of nature’s best indicators.
Join the flock for Australia’s largest citizen science project – Aussie Bird Count.
To listen to the lecture from Dropbox: Prof Stephen Garnett lecture.
ARNOLD MCGILL MEMORIAL LECTURE by
PROF STEPHEN GARNETT - December 2022
Birding NSW have kindly offered to share the audio of their Arnold McGill Memorial Lecture from December 2022 by Prof Stephen Garnett who is lead Author of the Action Plan for Australian Birds over four decades.
The link to the lecture is on the right and is the Audio only; there were also slides shown which are not available on this link.
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Contact
Saturday 22 April at 2pm
BIRDLIFE SOUTHERN NSW AGM
The BirdLife Southern NSW AGM will be held via Zoom on Saturday, 22 April at 2:00 to 3:00pm. This is Earth Day with the official 2023 theme of Invest in Our Planet. There will be a series of short presentations followed by a short formal meeting. The guest speakers are:
Matt Herring on the Bitterns in Rice project
Sue Proust on the Cowra Woodlands Bird Program
Mick Roderick on the Regent Honeyeater Project
For more information, refer to the BirdLife Australia Submission
RAISING OF THE WARRAGAMBA DAM WALL CANCELLED
The new NSW Government has announced that it will not proceed with the raising of the Warragamba Dam wall. This is great news for wildlife including the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater, Aboriginal cultural sites, and the ongoing World Heritage Status of the Blue Mountains.
It follows a long and extensive campaign by a number of environmental and community groups including BirdLife Australia and CBOC. It shows us how important it is to keep advocating for birds in order to guarantee their wellbeing and in some cases their very survival.
Sunday 30 April 2023 from 1.30pm to 3.30pm
BIRDLIFE AUSTRALIA: WHAT WOULD STRONGER NATURE LAWS LOOK LIKE?
Join BirdLife Australia President Martine Maron on Sunday April 30th to hear about the choice we face – and how to put our birds on the path to recovery.
The Albanese Government is rewriting our national nature laws for the first time in over 20 years.
Strong new laws are our big chance to stop the destruction and restore wildlife, land, and seascapes.
But, it will take your support in 2023 to keep the reforms on track.
With the right conservation actions and mechanisms in place to protect habitat we can restore species. Join us to hear the role you can play in turning things around. Places are limited so please make sure you register
Contact
Contact
Vera O'Donovan | vera.odonovan@environmentnsw.gov.au or 0409 964 102
Dates for 2023:
Castlereagh NR: Thurs 13 April and Wednesday 19 April
Windsor Downs NR: Saturday 23 April
EASTER HOLIDAY BIRD WALKS ON CUMBERLAND PLAIN
Well-known ‘Avianator’ and CBOC member Mark Fuller has teamed up with National Parks and Wildlife to lead a series of family-friendly bird walks over the Easter holidays. Walks start at 7:30am and last for two hours.
Dates for 2024: 2 and 9 November
GREAT INLAND GLOSSY COUNT
The Great Inland Glossy Count is back again in 2024-25. This is part of a project aiming to secure the inland population of the Glossy Black Cockatoo in NSW, coordinated by the Central West Local Land Services in partnership with NSW NPWS, Forest Corp NSW and the Dubbo Field Naturalists.
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Dates for the surveys this year are as follows:
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2 November - Pilliga Forests and surrounds (registrations close on 30 October)
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9 November - Goonoo National Park and surrounds (registrations close on 6 November but already full)
All participants are required to register via the NPWS Volunteer portal.
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Conference tickets are available from www.lls.nsw.gov.au/bitternsummit
AUSTRALIAN BITTERN SUMMIT 2022
The iconic Australasian Bittern is the focus of a summit in Leeton on 1-4 February 2022, designed to advance the conservation of this cryptic species.
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The Australasian Bittern Conservation Summit 2022 is a unique opportunity to connect with scientists, conservationists, wetland managers, birdwatchers and farmers who share a passion for Bitterns.
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Bitterns are listed as an endangered species in Australia and only about 2,000 birds remain globally, so we are keen to connect with people who have an interest in its survival.
CBOC ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING - TUESDAY 16 AUGUST 2022
The AGM will be held at the Friendship Room of the Wesley Uniting Church Castle Hill at 7.30pm.
Further information for the AGM can be accessed by clicking the links below:
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For further information, contact Coralie Turner-Morris on secretary@cboc.org.au
Dates for 2022: 12/13 March
BIGNET CONFERENCE MEGALONG VALLEY
The Bird Interest Group Network (BIGNet) is holding a conference in the Megalong Valley near Blackheath and CB OC members are welcome to attend.
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The theme of the weekend is “Migration”.
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The program on Saturday includes a Conservation workshop in the morning and a seminar on Bird Migration in the afternoon. Sunday includes an early morning bird walk and the BIGNet General meeting.
Contact
Mark Ley | mark.ley@outlook.com
Links to other Information
Invitation, Registration form and Accommodation options
Contact
Rob Dunn | president@birdlifeshoalhaven.org
Saturday 22 October 2022
BIRD HAVEN FESTIVAL SHOALHAVEN
The Bird Haven Festival hosted by BirdLife Shoalhaven is returning in 2022 bringing hundreds of people together in Shoalhaven Heads to celebrate birds and learn more about their behaviour, habitat and conservation. It will be held on Saturday, 22 October from 11:00am to 5.30pm with registration from 10.30am at the Shoalhaven Heads Bowling Club, 76 Shoalhaven Heads Road.
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Leading ornithologists and researchers will speak about their work in bird conservation and the ecology of some of our bird species. The keynote speaker will be Dr David Lindenmayer.
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The price of tickets are $70, including afternoon tea/coffee and lunch.
Details of the program and other associated events are available at http://www.birdlifeshoalhaven.org/upcoming.html
Tickets for the Conference can only be purchased on-line – go to https://events.humanitix.com/2022-bird-haven-festival-conference
Sunday 23 October 2022
BIGNET MEETING SHOALHAVEN HEADS
The next Bird Interests Group Network (BIGNET) meeting hosted by BLSNSW will be held on Sunday, 23 October at the Shoalhaven Heads Community Centre on the same weekend as the Bird Haven Festival - Shoalhaven. Representatives of all birding club members are invited to attend.
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The program will commence with a bird walk at 7am, followed by the meeting from 9:00am to 2.30pm. Further program details will be available closer to the event.
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There is no charge to attend but registration is required on-line at https://events.humanitix.com/birds-interest-group-network-meeting
Contact
Judy Harrington | judyharrington60@gmail.com