There’s a living natural history museum just north of Melbourne’s coolest music venues. Merri Creek’s grasslands are rare and wonderful places connecting to the inner northern suburbs of Melbourne.
These grasslands host an impressive 121 species of native plants. They are both environmentally significant and a testament to intensive land management by Wurundjeri people over tens of thousands of years.
Photo: Uncle Frank (Apples) Wandin burning grasslands in Fawkner with Merri Creek Management Committee.
Our community’s efforts continue to protect them from development. Only one percent of Victoria’s natural grasslands remain – so this place is truly special.
The Blue Banded Bee plays an important role in the long-term survival of many wildflowers in these grasslands. However this magnificent little creature can only travel short distances. Maybe it’s exhausted from buzz pollinating: by banging its head in the flower a staggering 350 times per second!
That’s easily faster than any punter at an Iron Maiden gig.
Humans have destroyed so much grassland habitat that the Blue Banded Bee is struggling to take pollen between surviving patches of endangered wildflowers. Lonely lilies can’t produce healthy seeds without the pollen the bees carry.
To save the grasslands – the Blue Banded Bee needs you!
Friends of Merri Creek need to connect the wildflower patches by planting more. Doing this means the head banging Bee can continue to rock out, and easily get from plant to plant – so we don’t lose the diversity of the culturally significant grasslands.
The Friends of Merri Creek need ace heroes just like you to help the Blue Banded Bee save the day and ensure the vitality of the Merri Creek.
What’s more, if you choose to come to the party you won’t be alone supporting these little bees to do their job.
Given the Blue Banded Bees love ROCKIN’ OUT, some of Melbourne’s favourite musicians offered to be the Bee’s own backing band! They are throwing their weight behind a Pozible campaign to fund the Friends of Merri Creek to plant new habitat patches. This will mean the bees can travel the distance needed to pollinate these little beauties.
Photo by Tajette O’Halloran.
So if you love the Merri Creek and reckon saving the precious green spaces near our city is important then please contribute to this campaign to Help the Rockin’ Bee, Rock the Grasslands!
Every $1 pledged will contribute $4 to helping the Blue Banded Bee save the Merri Creek Grasslands. Here’s how:
The Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) will match every donated dollar up to the $15,000 target. Community volunteers- maybe even you- will be supported to help plant and monitor to the value of $30,000.
So that’s $2 worth of volunteer labour, PLUS $1 Government funding for every $1 you give.
This shows how the donated $15,000 + DELWP $15,000 = $30,000 will help save the Merri Creek Grasslands:
More project details can be found here .
This project will be completed, and all funds expended by December 2017.
Monitoring and research |
Citizen scientist activities to measure local lily populations, bee activity, and results of the project’s activities |
14% |
Site preparation and nurturing new patches | Weed control to establish linking habitat patches |
18% |
Purchase and planting of wildflower seedlings | Purchase and planting 200 specially grown Dianella together with 2000 associated habitat plants |
39% |
Supporting and engaging volunteers |
Community activities with local schools and community groups |
9% |
Presentations and newsletters |
Presentations, posts and articles to describe and share the delivery and outcomes of our project |
7% |
Rewards | 13% |
Two key challenges: crazy Melbourne weather, and not hitting our target.
Planted wildflowers could struggle to establish if Melbourne’s 2017 spring and summer is really dry. We’ll call on our volunteers to help water the new patches of wildflowers if necessary.
If the target’s not reached, there’s no project and your money will remain in your own bank account. The Bees and the Merri Creek Grasslands will miss out on this ace project, and we all miss out on our rewards.
Pledges are only processed if the targetAU$15000 is reached before 15:30 28th Aug 2016.