'The tracking of Judith'   profiles a young female cassowary establishing its territory in the fragmented landscape of its essential habitat at Mission Beach. 

It was made possible by the community sharing information  which is being used to help protect the cassowary in our region. It helps identify individual cassowaries, their movement in the landscape, where they cross roads etc. 

Check out 'Judith's  story and lots of other information about the cassowaries and the identification  project. 

Thank you everyone for your contributions that make this  project possible.  More here.

'Joov' and 'Cyril'(ina) have got together as a cassowary couple this season. It is a big story because 'Cyril' is a four year old female who, it seems, has replaced a very aged bird, 'Barbara', well known to the  Bingil Bay/Garners Beach  community.
'Barbara' is one of Mrs Freda Jorrisen's birds. That means she is almost 50 years old. 

'Barbara' has been the mate of 'Joov' for the last three years and Joov, this year, as an 8 year old, has for the first time successfully raised a chick. (Larry)

Hello from sunny Coquette Point,

The suspense leading up to the solar eclipse on the 14/11/12 could have been written by Alfred Hitchcock. Dark clouds gathered on the days before the event and the weather gurus held very little hope that we, on the far northern coast, would have clear skies to see the sun. Thousands left the coast and travelled hundreds of miles inland to find clear skies.  However, that was no excuse for us to miss out on a neighbourhood get together and breakfast-party.

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WILDWATCH: by ANNE WILKINSON

I was delighted when I walked into Tully library the other day to find an excellent flyer displayed near the door for anyone to pick up.

Called “Protecting the little terns of the Cassowary Coast” it has been produced jointly by CCRC, the Federal Government, the Queensland Government and Reef Guardian Council. Apart from being an interesting document in its own right, it gives a fascinating glimpse into the lives of these tiny, endangered seabirds. Reading it, one can almost smell the sea and the beach.

WILDWATCH:  by ANNE WILKINSON

This mid-spring is a season of temperature contrasts.

The wonderfully cool early mornings are replaced with baking days. Often in the afternoon the wind springs up, drying any moisture if we were lucky enough to get a shower, and sending leaves and even branches tumbling to the ground.

Hello from Coquette Point,

On Thursday the Cassowary Coast Regional Council, CCRC, approved the reconfiguration of the Metricon marina development at 65 Coquette Point Road. This 89.26ha marina development abuts Ninds Creek, on the east and fronts the Johnstone River to the north. It is part of the old Ninds Creek Wetlands and as such the soils are acid sulphate. The site was cleared 100 years ago for agricultural and cattle farming purposes.

Hello from Jungguy country,

Coastal wetlands are some of the most threatened habitats on the planet. The Melaleuca leucadendren swamps of Coquette Point are included in the World Heritage Wet Tropics and extended from the mouth of the Johnstone River to the Moresby Range, an area three kilometres long by ½ kilometre wide.

This swamp is a major fish spawning habitat and consists of large deep lagoons and shallow swamps of melaleuca, pandanus and tidal mangrove: this is the Johnstone River’s ‘everglades’.

Dr's Steve and Miriam Goosem were guest speakers at a recent C4 general meeting.  Steve presented a fascinating power point presentation about cassowaries that took us as far back as the 1670's with a Cassowary painting by Francis Barlow in the Entrance Hall at Clandon Park, Surrey. (photo left)

Steve, who is the principle scientist at Wet Tropics Management Authority, kindly sent me the presentation (with his notes) to share with you. Here is Steve's power point presentation

Dr Miriam Goosem who is the Principal Research Fellow, Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science (TESS)at JCU, introduced the JCU Traffic management research report of which she is co-author.

Hello from windy and wet Coquette Point,

What a difference a week makes! From warm balmy days under cloudless skies the weather has turned into windy, wet misery. Or at least miserable for sun lovers like me.

The strong wind warning sent Martin in the ‘Sig’ running for port and he came in Monday night and is  now waiting for the wind to ease.

by ANNE WILKINSON

Adventure unlimited – this delightful aspect of life is ready and waiting for everyone here in the north.

It doesn’t have to be daring or hard to achieve. Almost anything, a gentle walk on the beach or in the forest, for example, can turn into a journey of discovery.

It is the same with wetlands. Wetlands in so many ways represent a stream of lifeblood in the wild world because so many creatures need them and congregate in them. Australia, the driest continent on earth, is privileged to have some of its best wetlands.