Frogs are a vital component of ecosystems and are easily affected by changes in the air, water and land: they are good indicators of the environmental health of our region! But they are in trouble world-wide due to habitat loss, pollution and disease.

We can ALL help them if we know where they live! Get involved in this great community frog monitoring project this February and join the Find a Frog in February project on iNaturalist. You can search for the project in iNaturalist or find the project here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/find-a-frog-in-february and when you photograph a frog on your property it will be added to the project.

Often it is easiest to spot frogs at night, when we can hear frogs calling preceding or after rainfall. If you're spotlighting at night, remember to always stay vigilant of your surroundings and take a buddy with you on your walk.

This project is run by the Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee (MRCCC), aiming to assist land managers to help them undertake actions that improve water quality and aquatic biodiversity, and improve their productivity and sustainability in the Mary River Catchment. If you’d like to learn more about the MRCCC visit their website: https://mrccc.org.au/about-the-mrccc/.

How many frogs will you log this month? Happy frogging!

After this wet and warm weather there are lots of winged-beasts on the move. Whether you enjoy photographing butterflies and their host plants or recording bird calls in your backyard, this challenge is for you!

Record 10 or more "things with wings" (i.e. butterflies, birds, bats) before Easter and go into the draw to win an iTunes/Google Play gift card to purchase Field Guides for your phone.

There are a number of field guides that can assist you in your future identification pursuits including applications for your smart device such as Frogs of Australia, Snakes of Australia and Morcombe’s Birds of Australia field guides. Field guides have colour photos, recordings of various mating and advertising calls as well as descriptions on habitat and distributions maps to assist you in sharpening your ID skills.

Alternatively winners may choose to select a voucher for native seedlings. There are a number of native host vines, shrubs and small trees that you might like to plant to provide additional foraging habitat for locally significant or threatened moth and butterfly species living on your property and surrounds. If you wish to get in touch with any local community native nurseries to see if they have any specific host plants in stock, you can find their details here: https://www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/Environment/Trees-plants-and-gardens/Community-Native-Nurseries.

Are you interested in learning more about light trapping moths to assist in getting better photographs for identifying moths on your property? Learn more here https://www.lfwseq.org.au/light-trapping-moths-for-beginners/#:~:text=Probably%20the%20simplest%20way%20is,portions%20of%20the%20light%20spectrum.