Click on the video below to hear from the Safe Havens project coordinator Angus Underwood and Pete Knock the Large Forest Owl project coordinator.
The Safe Havens Project is a three-year project that commenced in mid-2023 with support from the NSW Government’s Environmental Trust. The NSW Conservation Council (NCC) is currently implementing this project to assist the recovery and improve the long-term viability of a number of Barking, Powerful and Masked large forest owl species.
NCC are focusing on Bundjalung, Yaegl and Gumbaynggirr country, in the lower Richmond and lower Clarence floodplains of northern NSW – spanning across 260,000 hectares. The project aims to take the knowledge from previous projects and apply them across a larger area to work with landholders to monitor and conserve large forest owl species, their habitats and prey.
So why large forest owls? Large forest owls act as an indicator species for functional and healthy forest ecosystems. They are phenomenal animals, helping maintain the food chain and ecological balance. Without management intervention, their population is expected to decline. The Vulnerable Barking Owl has already declined in its historic range in NSW, with the Pilliga Forest and coastal Clarence and Richmond Valley being the only two remaining regions having a stronghold.
Over the three project years the team will work with landholders by undertaking workshops, putting up nest boxes, setting up acoustic monitoring to support the post-fire recovery of not only the large forest owl species but also threatened species that occupy the space as well. It is essential to educate and support landholders on managing this important habitat to protect this species.
To continue the Large Forest Owl video series, click this link below:
https://vimeo.com/showcase/7199466 (produced by Jimmy Malecki)
To find out more and keep up to date with this project, head to their website:
