with Marita McGuirk

When you are driving along a country road and you see birds by the roadside, it is always advisable to slow down. If the birds take flight, there is a good chance that they will fly into your car.  

This is what happened to the two gang-gang cockatoos currently recovering at the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter.

These birds flew into a passing car and have concussion and bruising. Luckily, the car was going slowly, or the outcome would have been much worse for the birds.  

Gang-gang cockatoos are now listed as an endangered species. A large portion of their habitat was destroyed in the Black Summer bushfires of 2019-20 and habitat is being lost daily as land clearing and native-forest logging continues.  

These birds nest in the hollows that form in trees and most eucalypts (gum, box and stringybark), will be over 80 years old before decent nest-bearing hollows have formed, which makes nesting places few and far between.

This is why it is so  important to retain and protect any large old trees, even if they are dead, as they  will still be home to many animals.  

Gang-gang cockatoos will often be seen in pairs because they are monogamous and mate for life. They mostly eat seeds from eucalyptus and wattles and will also eat flower buds and insects.

In late spring they may be seen in the Hepburn State Forest enjoying the seeds from the local wattle trees. They are not as raucous as other cockatoos, and you may not know they are above you until you hear dislodged seeds falling to the  ground.  

In recent times they have developed a taste for exotic species, namely hawthorn berries. These berries are a favourite food for the gang-gangs recovering at the shelter.  

Marita McGuirk is a field ecologist and environmental scientist, and a volunteer  at the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter. Marita will write monthly columns about the  shelter and the animals it cares for. If you would like to donate or volunteer, or just  to find out more information, head to www.hepburnwildlifeshelter.org  

with Marita McGuirk

Early on a cool morning in November, I was driving along King Street, Daylesford, when I saw what appeared to be a small bird, lying on the road. As I drove by a slight  movement from the bird caught my eye.

It could have been caused by wind, but I pulled  my car over to check, just in case it was still alive.

It was a New Holland honeyeater, and it was alive, but hurt in some way. I knew it needed expert care, so I took it to the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter.  

The bird was assessed and diagnosed as having a broken leg, as well as concussion and possible bruising to the lungs. It was placed in the incubator, where its environment could be regulated.

Luckily for this bird, Gayle and Jon have many years of experience caring for injured wildlife, with a speciality in injured birds.  

The little honeyeater stayed at the shelter for several months, so that the broken bone could repair. The bird then had to undergo rehabilitation and regain flight fitness.  

I received the call that the bird was ready to be released back into the wild.

Honeyeaters  are nectar feeders and they don’t have a specific home range but follow flowering events.

Jon suggested that I find a location close to where I had found the bird, where there were some plants flowering, so that there would be an available food source.  

So I went for a walk at Wombat Flat. Soon I came across a large banksia spinulosa in flower near Lake Daylesford. While I was looking at the flowering banksia a New Holland honeyeater flew into the large shrub. I thought this was a good sign.  

Back at the shelter, Jon placed the lucky little honeyeater into a transport cage, and I carried it to my car and drove to Wombat Flat.

Once I was back under the banksia, I opened the transport cage door and stepped back. The little bird flew straight up into the banksia. It was only in the  branches for half a minute when another New Holland honeyeater joined it.  

Then to my amazement this bird started hopping around the released bird, chirping and putting its beak onto the bird’s head. This went on for a short time and it looked like a happy  reunion. To my delight both birds flew off together.  

Marita McGuirk is a field ecologist and environmental scientist, and a volunteer at the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter. Marita will write monthly columns about the shelter and the animals it cares  for. If you would like to donate or volunteer, or just to find out more information, head to  www.hepburnwildlifeshelter.org  

with Marita McGuirk

Late on a Thursday night several weeks ago a local woman was driving home from a  night out with friends.  

As her car headlights pierced the night she glimpsed a jerking movement in the ditch by  the side of the road.

She was driving on Ajax Road, Daylesford, which is bordered by state  forest on each side.  She had frequently seen kangaroos, swamp wallabies, a wombat and even an echidna crossing this road and knew that there was a very old wallaby and an ancient looking kangaroo that fed on the grass growing by the roadside.

So she stopped her car and went to  see what was in the ditch.  She found an injured kangaroo. This animal had been hit by a car, probably several hours  previously, judging by the flattened grass around it, and abandoned.

The kangaroo tried to  drag itself away as she approached; it was unable to stand as its legs were obviously broken.  

She didn’t want to frighten the injured animal, so she went back to her car and phoned the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter.  

Julie Cais from the shelter quickly arrived. She found that the kangaroo was too badly injured to be saved so she euthanased her. But the roo was a mother, and Julie found a live  joey in her pouch.  

Julie carefully wrapped the joey in one of the warm woollen pouches she always carried in her car and brought the joey back to the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter.  

At the shelter, Gayle assessed the joey for injuries and found she had mild bruising. She gave her fluids to restore her electrolytes and allowed her to settle in.  

The joey is now doing very well, she has the specialised care that only the Hepburn  Wildlife Shelter can provide.

This includes a special milk formula, and she has 14 other orphaned joeys as company.  The special milk joeys require costs the shelter about $500 a week: please donate as you are able.  

Marita McGuirk is a field ecologist and environmental scientist, and a volunteer at the  Hepburn Wildlife Shelter. Marita will write monthly columns about the shelter and the  animals it cares for. If you would like to donate or volunteer, or just for more information,  head to www.hepburnwildlifeshelter.org  

with Marita McGuirk

On a hot day in January, a bushwalker was enjoying a walk along one of the Hepburn Shire tracks when he saw a koala sitting at the base of a tree.

It was mid-afternoon, an unusual time to see a koala on the ground, as they are nocturnal and usually stay in their tree and sleep throughout the day.

So, he went over to see if the koala was hurt. It was a large animal, panting rapidly and clearly unwell. A healthy koala would quickly try to get away from an approaching human by climbing the nearest tree, but this koala remained sitting.

As the bushwalker was concerned for the koala’s safety he phoned the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter.

Trevor, a wildlife rescuer, was contacted to go and pick up the koala. This meant walking for an hour to the site where the koala was located, and then carefully picking up the koala and carrying it for an hour back along the track.

This was no small effort as it was a large male. Rescuing a koala is a specialised task as they have very strong sharp claws, and a frightened animal can bite.

Trevor is very experienced and was able to pick up the large koala and carry him for an hour back to his car and then on to the shelter.

At the shelter Jon Rowdon had to clear out an enclosure for the koala, meanwhile Gayle Chappell conducted a health assessment and concluded that the koala was very dehydrated and possibly blind in one eye.

Gayle put the koala into the ICU and gave him rehydration fluids.

The koala spent the night in the ICU, where his condition was closely monitored, and the following day he was moved to his enclosure to recuperate.

Gayle is hoping to get an animal eye specialist to come and assess the koala’s damaged eye and, in the meantime, he is in safe hands.

Marita McGuirk is a field ecologist and environmental scientist, and a volunteer at the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter. Marita will write monthly columns about the shelter and the animals it cares for. If you would like to donate or volunteer, or just for more information, head to www.hepburnwildlifeshelter.org