Are you up for a challenge?
Keep coming back to see what new Just for Kids activities are here for you to download. Enjoy!
A mixture of materials was used to create this fantastic picture by a Yellingbo Primary School student. We'd love to see your artwork too! Send us a picture or tell us what you'd like to see on this page.
**NEW** **NEW**
Have you tuned into Primary Perspectives yet? Primary Perspectives is a 1 hour radio program about creating a sustainable future for our planet. It is created for kids... by kids. No adult voices and no adult deciding what is important to talk about. How cool is that!
Check out the
website or listen to the program on Tuesdays from 4-5pm at 94.1FM or listen via
live-streaming from anywhere in the world!
We found out about Primary Perspectives from Senan, one of the Friends past Ambassadors. He's one of the presenters on the show, and invited us on for their 14 Feb 2012 program. Thanks Senan. It's fantastic to hear about what you're doing to help our planet!
Explore the natural world with a little help from
Aa is for...Take the A-Z challenge.
How many words can you create from endangered?.
Can you crack the code to find out why the Helmeted Honeyeater is a special bird?
Are you a whiz at searching a website? Take the quiz to find out. All the answers are on the Friends of the Helmeted Honeyeater website.
One of the best things you can do to help our native animals is provide them with a home. Grab a few important things and get to it! Find out the best way to plant habit for animals.
Take a look at the Threatened Species Education and Information Resources page for more information about Victoria's threatened species, including the Helmeted Honeyeater fact sheet.
Furry Fact! The word koala is Aboriginal for 'no drink'. Koalas get
enough fluids through the eucalyptus leaves they feed off. For more
fascinating facts on koalas and other Australian wildlife and plants,
check out the Enviro Facts page on the Junior Rangers website, brought to you by Parks Victoria.
FREE Zoos Victoria entry for kids under 16
The
Victorian Government has just announced that from the 1st July 2011
kids under 16 years of age will get free admission to Melbourne Zoo,
Healesville Sanctuary and Werribee Open Range Zoo on weekends, Victorian public holidays and Victorian school holidays!
What a great initiative to get kids engaged with wildlife and conservation.
Did
you know that the Friends work in close partnership with Healesville
Sanctuary who manage the Helmeted Honeyeater captive breeding program? When
you're visiting, tell the staff and volunteers how important you think
it is and what a great job they're doing. It's a great way to put a
smile on their faces, and yours! Check out the Helmeted Honeyeaters on display, then come and Join us in helping to save this critically endangered Victorian. We'd love to hear from you.
Is this the new norm? Floods, floods and more
floods.
Jack and Sean, our Sydney nephews who were on holidays with
us in Sept/Oct 2011, really wanted to see what was on the other side of Beers Bridge
on Woori Yallock Creek in Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve.
The flood waters were way too fast and strong to even contemplate
a crossing. Usually 3-4 metres wide, the creek had broken the banks and flooded
many of our low lying revegetation areas. Up to 30 metres wide in places, it
was incredible to think that just 45mm of rain that day in the Dandenong Ranges
could have this impact downstream. It’s fantastic to see. Challenging for our
on-ground works program, but fantastic to see!
We have had a wet 15 months. Heavy rains have
caused
significant flooding throughout the reserve, starting in September 2010,
then
again in October of that year. In February 2011 we were hit with the
aftermath
of Cyclone Yasi – the cyclone that devastated parts of Queensland -
resulting in significant flooding and track/fencing damage. Since that
time, with a sodden floodplain, our creeks have remained high.
We haven’t seen this for many years. In past years the
creeks have been running low at this time of year, with some of the smaller
tributaries drying up completely over summer. It will be interesting to see if
the waters flow all year this summer. Let’s hope so. Our fauna and flora certainly
need a reprieve from the dry conditions of the recent long drought.
Is flooding now the new norm?
