Tuesday 27 September 2016

Biodiversity at the Sydney Olympic Park

Bird Watching 
Sydney Olympic Park is a hotspot for all things natural, and protects habitats for hundreds of species of plants, birds, frogs, bats, reptiles and fish. There are over 35 kilometres of bike trails, walking paths and scenic boardwalkswithin the Park that can take you to parklands, rare salt-marshes, remnant woodlands, waterbird refuges and mangrove forest.

Among these protected wetlands and woodlands you can bird watch, photograph, spot lizards, visit the home of the endangered Green and Golden Bell frog, or just de-stress in the cool green calmness under the trees.

Sydney Olympic Park supports over 200 species of native birds, frogs, bats, possums and lizards, and contains over 300 hectares of threatened species habitat.


Life in the Park news:

Our resident White-bellied Sea Eagles are nesting and have two eggs. There will be an eager wait for eggs to hatch, after some 40 days incubation. Catch a birds eye view of their nest via EagleCAM.
Enjoy flowering wattles along the Louise Sauvage Pathway and Badu Mangroves during July. These plants form an important source of pollen for birds, small mammals and insects during the hard, cold months.

Bring your binoculars and watch Black Swans nesting on the main island in Lake Belvedere, Bicentennial Park and an island at the Waterbird Refuge in Badu Mangroves. Islands are an important refuge for nesting waterbirds, providing protection from foxes and other land-based predators.
See if you can catch a Black-shouldered Kite or Nankeen Kestrel hovering over the grassland of Woo-la-ra. These birds are searching for lizards and insects amongst the grasses

Learn more about life in the Park.

The Park is also for animals. Visitors can help to protect and conserve biodiversity by staying out of sensitive habitats, remaining on paths or mown grass and keeping their dog on a lead. Please keep your dog on lead except for in the designated ‘dog off lead’ areas.

Visitors are also asked not to feed birds and animals, this can encourage some species to become pests through changes in their behaviour. Feeding by visitors is not healthy for wild animals; it alters their diet and prevents them from performing their natural role in the environment.

Bird Watching 

Sydney Olympic Park provides excellent bird watching opportunities with its diverse habitats supporting migratory, nomadic and resident birds. More than 200 native species have been recorded. This is the season of migratory birds and the Park has lots of new visitors. Find out more about the birds or explore one of our bird walks!

Read more about Birds of the Armory walks and bird watching.

BirdLife Discovery Centre and EagleCam

Learn more about Australian birds and their habitats at the BirdLife Discovery Centre in Newington Armory. EagleCAM is a live remote feed operating out of the Discovery Centre close to the Parramatta River. Watch live action from our White-bellied Sea-eagle nest and see our Sea Eagle chicks via EagleCam as live and direct as they grow.

Mangrove Boardwalk

Experience the largest remaining stand of grey mangrove forest along the Parramatta River at Badu Mangroves in Bicentennial Park. Step into the dappled shade along the floating wooden boardwalk and look out for the abundant crabs and snails on the muddy shore below, as well as wading birds such as the White-faced Heron and the more secretive Mangrove Heron. Small birds such as the Yellow Thornbill, Silvereye and Grey Fantail may also be seen and heard as they flit through the forest, and Golden Orb-weaving Spiders are abundant in the autumn months when they build their webs in the mangrove canopy. Take a moment to imagine the time when such habitats dominated the rivers and bays of Sydney. More info

Brickpit Ring Walk

Enjoy a bird’s eye view of endangered frog habitat and other unique features of theBrickpit from the Ring Walk, an elevated circular walkway. You’ll see both naturally-formed and constructed ponds that the Green and Golden Bell Frog uses for breeding, with surrounding reeds, rock piles, long grass and weedy vegetation for shelter and foraging. Interpretive material around the Ring Walk explains the Brickpit’s industrial history and unique geology, the evolution of Green and Golden Bell Frog habitat, and the development and operation of the Park’s innovative water recycling scheme (WRAMS).

Narawang Boardwalk

Meander along walking paths and a reed-fringed boardwalk at Narawang Wetland. TheGreen and Golden Bell Frog and other frog species can be heard calling from the ponds during the warmer months, find a quiet shady spot and you may spot some of these web-toed residents. More info

Frog Walk

Take a walk of discovery through the Park's extensive freshwater wetlands and woodlands that support 7 frog species and learn about management of the endangered Green and Golden Bell Frog. There are 70 constructed frog habitat ponds around the Park, with 11 road underpasses and 6km of frog fencing that protect these important local residents. The Frog Walk takes you to the Brickpit Ring, where you have a bird’s eye view of frog habitats, and nearby Wentworth Common and Kronos Hill.

Heritage Railway

Jump aboard the heritage-listed narrow-gauge railway for a trip around the historic precinct of Newington Armory and learn about the Park’s remnant turpentine ironbark forest and the different bat species that inhabit some of the heritage buildings. This unique small-gauge electric railway tour includes a full commentary, taking in protected wetlands and remnant forest not usually accessible to visitors. More info

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