Project Wren

Mural Painting by Thomas Jackson 2019

Sydney’s Councils are valiantly trying to save Australia's beautiful blue, tiny birds.

Sydney City Council has plantings in the Blackwattle Bay area to encourage Superb Fairy Wrens (great title for a tiny bird) and New Holland Honeyeaters (black & white markings with bright yellow touches; small but not as small as the fairy wrens). The Glebe Society, an activist group which this year turns 50, has a Blue Wren Subcommittee. The foreshore parks are full of signs about council’s intent to create habitat… but sadly I've never seen a wren nor a New Holland honeyeater there. At the exhibition in the Tramsheds in June, I learned that in spite of their efforts, alas no wrens have been spotted in the Glebe area for several years.

Waverley Council has recently pitched a program for residents (mainly in Bronte and Tamarama), to plant yards that encourage fairy wrens. The Wentworth Courier (April 24, 2019) notes that wrens live on the cliffs in public parks (you’ve probably seen them if you’ve been on the coastal cliff walk). Some wrens and New Holland honeyeaters live in Centennial Park, so the idea is to make a plant corridor where they can live in between. Waverley's website has a page re: Bushland and Wildlife/ Living Connections.

They are offering a lecture ($5) plus plant giveaway on 10 September 2019. 

I’m not quite sure if the lecture is only for residents who live inside the target area, or for anyone. Contact Waverley council if you are interested.

Inner West Council's ‘Greenway Corridor’ along Hawthorne Canal aims to help birds, but I don’t think Inner West has a specific wren targeted outreach. The Rozelle Bay Community Native (Plant) Nursery, located in Whites Creek Valley, gave out free native plants at the council ecology festival in 2018, and hopefully they will do the same this year. Here’s the date: Sunday, 25^th August 2019. 

Randwick Council conducts events about local birdlife and how to identify and encourage it. Most councils probably do – now that I’ve checked this handful of councils, I’ve been encouraged by all their stated intentions. Other information sources: websites – Birds in Backyards, and Backyard Buddies.

Native plant seedlings

The problem: moving from council’s intentions to residents’ intentions. Especially in Bronte and Tamarama, where high-cost property and renovations present ongoing environmental factors. People sometimes save a large tree, especially if they are asked to. But saving low growth has not been a priority. Low bushes are where wrens live.

Trying to ‘re-establish’ rather than save already established habitat is difficult. But I hope people get on board wherever they live, and help our little birds. If you have a dog, please don’t let it run into the bushes on the coastal or harbour walk. (And if you do plant some habitat, try to keep pets out of it.) 
Another benefit from these plants: they feed insects, which are struggling to survive. And these in turn would be a food source for the birds. It’s great to walk around in summer listening to the crickets and cicadas humming. I hear them more when passing some gardens than others, but haven’t pinpointed exactly which plants or environments they prefer.

I’ve sighted fairy wrens twice lately in the Inner West, both times on Whites Creek. 

Around six months ago in a sort of bushy patch/old garden on the Railway Parade nature strip. Then about a week ago, I was standing in a similar place looking at the canal when I heard and saw a pair of Willie Wagtails. They often live and hang out in similar places to wrens: both eat insects and live low to the ground. While watching Willie, I spotted a pair of wrens just across the water, in the bushy area that runs alongside the light rail there. This is probably a very good spot for them where no dogs can access.

But who knows if that area can protect them: the M4 West Connex continues apace, with the intention of destroying Burrawan Park (only meters away), to improve access for cars driving between The Crescent and the CityWestLink.