Tuesday, 31 March 2026

 Rikkie-Lee TYRRELL (Northern Victoria) (13:47): Last week I was delighted to revisit the Rushworth Field and Game club to see the progress they are making on building and placing nesting boxes for native parrots, kookaburras, bark bats, tree marsupials and waterbirds. This club is committed to working in conjunction with local schools and neighbouring field and game clubs to ensure the conservation and rehabilitation of native populations in the Goulburn Valley. Upon my visit I was surprised to see hundreds of these boxes ready to be delivered to the fire-ravaged areas of the Longwood fire, where they will be installed in suitable trees to encourage and assist native wildlife back to the area and re-establish healthy populations. I want to commend the members of the Tallygaroopna men’s shed, who played an important role in the construction of these boxes also. Finally, I would like to thank Graeme Wall for taking the time to show me around their conservation areas and explaining how they are working towards better management practices in the local environments.