BirdLife Australia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
BirdLife Australia

Type	company limited by guarantee
Industry	conservation and research
Founded	2012
Headquarters	60 Leicester Street, Carlton, Melbourne VIC Australia
Area served	Australia
Key people	Kate Millar Chief Executive Officer
Number of employees	c.75 (2020)

BirdLife Australia is a special group that works to protect Australia's native birds and their homes. It's a not-for-profit organisation, which means it uses all its money to help birds, not to make a profit.

BirdLife Australia was created when two older Australian bird groups, Bird Observation and Conservation Australia (BOCA) and Birds Australia, joined together. This happened on January 1, 2012. Their old magazines were replaced by a new one called Australian Birdlife.

How BirdLife Australia Started

On May 21, 2011, members from both BOCA and Birds Australia voted to join forces. Most members from both groups agreed to the merger. This was a very popular idea, with many members voting.

After the merger, BirdLife Australia became the official Australian partner for BirdLife International. This is a big worldwide group that works to protect birds.

The first leaders of BirdLife Australia included people from both original groups. They also chose a new, independent chairperson to lead them.

What BirdLife Australia Does

BirdLife Australia has its main office in Melbourne, Victoria. They also have a special place called the Birdlife Discovery Centre in Sydney. They even have offices in Western Australia.

They own and manage a large area called Gluepot Reserve in South Australia. This reserve is a safe place for birds and a site for important research. They also look after two bird observatories in Western Australia: the Broome Bird Observatory and the Eyre Bird Observatory. These are great places to watch and study birds.

BirdLife Australia runs many projects to study, watch, and protect Australian birds. Many volunteers help with these projects.

• The Atlas of Australian Birds Project: This project involves hundreds of birdwatchers across the country. They collect information about birds they see. This data helps BirdLife Australia understand how bird populations are doing.
• Birdata: This is an online tool where people can share their bird sightings. It includes information from the Atlas of Australian Birds and a project that records bird nests. Anyone can look at this information.
• Shorebirds 2020: This program focuses on protecting shorebirds that travel long distances.
• Beach-nesting Birds: This project helps birds that nest on beaches. It involves research and working with communities to keep these birds safe.

Other projects focus on teaching people about birds:

• Birds in Backyards: This program helps people learn about birds in their own gardens.
• Aussie Backyard Bird Count: This is a fun event where people count birds in their backyards.

Recently, many of these projects have been grouped into bigger programs. These include the Urban Birds Program, the Woodland Bird Program, and the Coast and Marine Program. There's also a Preventing Extinctions program to help birds that are in danger of disappearing forever.

After the big bushfires in 2019–20, BirdLife Australia started a Bushfire Recovery program. This program helps birds that were affected by the fires, especially those that are already rare.

BirdLife Australia also worked with Charles Darwin University to create the Action Plan for Australian Birds 2020. This plan shows that more Australian birds are now threatened than ten years ago. Over 300 experts helped write this plan. It gives advice on how to stop bird populations from shrinking even more.

Local Bird Groups

BirdLife Australia has local groups that help out in different areas.

• Birds Australia Northern NSW (BANN): This group is in northern New South Wales. They hold meetings, go on field trips, do bird surveys, and work on conservation projects. They also send out a newsletter.
• Birds Australia Western Australia (BAWA): This group is in Western Australia. They have an office in Perth and publish a newsletter called WA Bird Notes. They also organize meetings, excursions, bird surveys, and conservation projects.

Wader Studies Group

The Australasian Wader Studies Group (AWSG) started in 1981. It's a special group within BirdLife Australia that focuses on "waders" (also known as shorebirds). They publish a journal called The Stilt.

Their main goal is to protect waders and their homes in Australia. They also help with similar efforts in other parts of Asia.

The AWSG organizes special trips to North-West Australia. On these trips, experienced teams use special nets to catch and study many migratory waders. These birds visit beaches like Roebuck Bay and Eighty Mile Beach.

Goals of the Wader Studies Group

• To keep track of wader numbers by counting and banding them. This helps them see how populations change.
• To study how waders migrate (travel) by counting, banding, and adding special flags to them.
• To encourage other studies about waders, like what they eat or where they breed.
• To share what they learn with many people through their journals, newsletters, the internet, and talks.
• To create plans and share information to help protect waders and their homes. They work with government groups and other organisations.
• To encourage many people, both experts and volunteers, to help with these goals.

Awards for Bird Lovers

BirdLife Australia gives out several awards each year.

The Stuart Leslie Bird Research Award and the Professor Alan Keast Award are given to university students studying birds. These awards focus on research that helps bird conservation. The Indigenous Grant for Bird Research and Conservation supports Indigenous Australians who want to do bird research and conservation work.

John Hobbs Medal

The John Hobbs Medal is given each year to someone who has made great contributions to studying birds, but is not a professional scientist. It honors John Hobbs (1923–1990) and was first given in 1995.

Past Winners

D. L. Serventy Medal

The D.L. Serventy Medal is awarded each year for excellent published work about birds in the Australasian region. It remembers Dr Dominic Serventy (1904–1988) and was first given in 1991.

Past Winners