September is Biodiversity Month

Be part of Kingston's Biodiversity Blitz - September

During September 2021 Kingston Council is celebrating Biodiversity Month by partnering with eight of our neighbouring councils to hold the Biodiversity Blitz 2021! This initative encourages residents to go out in nature to record their observations using the iNaturalist app.

Participating in this project is easy. Visit the City of Kingston iNaturalist Biodiversity Blitz page. You’ll need to create an iNaturalist account first or log in if you already have one. Once you’re logged in, you’ll be able to join the project. Then from 1-30 of September 2021 head outdoors to snap photos of flora and fauna in the Kingston area and upload them to the iNaturalist page.

We’re running a competition between all nine councils (Greater Dandenong, Casey, Monash, Kingston, Knox, Frankston, Mornington Peninsula, Cardinia, and Yarra Ranges) on who can record the most species!  You’ll be able to track how the other councils are going by going to the Biodiversity Blitz iNaturalist page.

Join us in this challenge and you'll be contributing to citizen science and showing the world the amazing biodiversity Kingston has to offer!

The iNaturalist App - for the Biodiversity Blitz

iNaturalist is one of the world’s most popular nature apps to help identify the plants and animals around you. Perfect for out and about in Spring! 

Get connected with a community of over a million scientists and naturalists who can help you learn more about nature. By sharing your observations, you’ll create research quality data for scientists working to better understand and protect nature.

It's the platform that supports September's Biodiversity Blitz challenge, so to help you learn how to use iNaturalist, you can:

• Register for the 'iNaturalist for Beginners' webinar to be presented on 2 September at 7pm; 
• View this great video made by Yarra Ranges Shire; or
• View the Video Tutorials available on the iNaturalist website 

Help grow the new Habitat Garden at Melaleuca Activity Hub

Book a Gardens for Wildlife home visit with Kingston 

Garden assessments offer residents the opportunity to have Kingston's Gardens for Wildlife Officer visit and provide customised advice on how to increase habitat and attract native fauna to your garden.

Whether you have a large established garden or a small balcony, there are many elements you can add to enhance your space and to provide habitat opportunities for wildlife to visit.

For more information on dates available, to book a garden assessment visit, or to download a copy of Kingston's Gardens for Wildlife Booklet, visit Kingston's Gardens for Wildlife page.

Protecting fruit trees and wildlife - new netting regulations 

If you have a productive household garden and use netting over fruit trees, vegetable gardens or other fruiting plants, please be aware of new regulations from Agriculture Victoria that commence 1 September in relation to netting size.

These regulations help protect animals such as birds, flying-foxes and possums which can be injured or killed when entangled in nets with larger mesh and which are poorly fitted.

Under the new regulations 'a person must only use netting with a mesh size no greater than 5mm x 5mm at full stretch to protect household fruiting plants'.

Using white coloured netting, thicker strand material and fitting the netting tightly and fully around a plant minimises risk of injury to wildlife. See the Ag Vic website for these tips and further information.

Join a Friends Group in a reserve near you 

Protecting our coastal dune biodiversity

The sand dunes along our beaches are an important 'buffer' between the urban and marine environments, are home to many plants and animals. The can become fragile quite quickly, so it’s important we use the designated beach paths.

Keeping dogs on leads and out of the dunes is also vital to protect ground nesting birds and other wildlife.

We’ve just installed new signage in particularly fragile locations and are increasing monitoring of those areas too, but you can help by spreading the word to stay off to save our sand dunes! If your littlies love to play on the dunes, this a great chance to educate them on the importance of enjoying our natural environment respectfully, so it can remain for generations to come.