From 1 October 2024, the NFAEP is introducing a new approach to fire ant treatment on Coochiemudlo Island.

When you report suspected fire ants or nests on your property, you will receive a fire ant treatment kit by mail. It includes an instructional brochure that shows you how to treat nests.

History and research — we can learn from both. Melaleuca wetlands have been valued by Quandamooka people for thousands of years. A survey of our Wetlands’ fauna was completed in 2016 … this article revisits the survey and offers a bite-sized version of this important research — about the wildlife on the island and the animals no longer here.

Rae Wear has written an excellent article about how the ‘behaviour of birds, plants and animals has been shaped by natural light — sunrise, sunsets, the moon, the stars and periods of darkness’. Over recent years, there’s been a lot of research into the importance of conserving ‘Dark Sky Places’ around the world. Rae’s article is a great introduction. It includes a couple of links to drill down to deeper info.

Why not take part in the BirdLife Australia survey of birds in the neighbourhood? Download the app for free, the app helps you identify the birds you see. Terrific for kids, for everyone!

In an attempt to limit the huge amount of household waste that ends up in landfill — and provide beneficial composting options for households — RCC has introduced a compost bin subsidy for residents to make composting more affordable.

Keith Slack writes about how, in 1878, the Surveyor General’s Department was mandated to leave a minimum buffer of 150 links (30 metres) to the high-water mark in the island’s survey of crown land. This area was opened as an esplanade that is now known as the Emerald Fringe.

Feeding wild birds is a world-wide, nature-based pastime, a practice that can connect us to nature.

However, if birds are regularly fed the wrong food, especially when they are young, there can be severe consquences to their health and wellbeing including brittle bones and soft beaks.

Native to tropical America, painted spurge is an environmental weed in Queensland and NSW and it’s found in many sandy areas on Coochiemudlo’s Emerald Fringe.

The Emerald Fringe is bushland that skirts right around the island. It’s public/state-owned land, and heritage listed with Redlands City Council. This feature sets Coochiemudlo Island apart from other Queensland habited islands.

The impact of ex-tropical cyclone Oswald on Coochiemudlo Island in 2013 has had lasting effects on the environment and community.

Asparagus fern can be found all over Coochiemudlo, and in many parts of the Emerald Fringe. It is a dominanting ground cover that completely overwhelms native plants.

Native to Central and South America, Leucaena leucocephala was first planted for fodder in Queensland. Now it grows all over Coochiemudlo but it’s most prolific on the western side — on the Emerald Fringe and around the Community Hall.

Native to Madagascar, mother of millions is a rampant, environmental weed in Queensland and NSW — and throughout the island’s east and north-east shoreline.