Conservation Ecology Centre

09/10/2026

What a week it has been at the Australian Land Conservation Alliance (ALCA) conference in Hobart 👏

Landscape-scale conservation brings together so many amazing people and partnerships. It's been wonderful to hear what our colleagues and friends have been working on around the country.

We can't wait to do it all again on a global scale at the International Land Conservation Network Conference in Melbourne next year.

25/08/2026

In the heathlands of the Otways, the high-stakes mating strategy of the threatened Swamp Antechinus (Antechinus minimus maritimus) is becoming an important focus for land managers as they look to undertake more "cool" planned burns in the winter.

Swamp Antechinus mating is tightly synchronised, occurring over just three weeks in winter, after which all males die.

From that moment, the fate of the entire population rests with the surviving females, who must carry and raise their litters through the harshest months until the young become independent. This makes the population incredibly vulnerable over winter, where the death of these ‘single mums’ could spell the end of the population.

Master’s Student Jesse Ellis is working to fill some of the knowledge gaps between this unique biology and winter fire management, to understand how Swamp Antechinus can survive, and thrive, in a landscape managed by fire.

Read more: https://www.conservationecologycentre.org/discover-us/news/winter-deadline-swamp-antechinus

25/08/2026

In the foothill forests west of Lorne, researchers from the University of Melbourne and Conservation Ecology Centre are on their hands and knees searching the grassy undergrowth for Pale Sundew (Drosera peltata) and Stinking Pennywort (Hydrocotyle laxiflora).‍ ‍

Across the road, their colleagues wander around head-height Musk Daisy bushes (Olearia argophylla) and push through thick patches of forest wire-grass (Tetrarrhena juncea). ‍ ‍

“The differences in vegetation here are in part the result of different fire regimes,” explains University of Melbourne researcher Dr Sarah McColl-Gausden. “One part of the forest is open and grassy, another is dense and shrubby. But are both healthy? And will they carry fire differently?”‍

These are the questions behind the Northern Ramps study, underway in the foothill forests on the northern side of the Otway Range – where farmland gives way to forest, and an area which has been identified as a wildfire risk corridor for large tracts of wet forest and rainforest, as well as several large coastal communities.‍ ‍

Read more: https://www.conservationecologycentre.org/discover-us/news/a-different-way-of-burning

25/08/2026

New partnerships for coastal stewardship, building ecological resilience along the Great Ocean Road.

‍Who cares for this coast? It’s not a question that necessarily springs to mind when you’re driving along the Great Ocean Road, but more than a dozen organisations recently came together to consider exactly that – asking what priority conservation and research actions are needed to safeguard the region’s coastal and marine environments into the future. ‍

From seagrass meadows and sponge gardens to seal colonies and the vast submerged landscapes of the Great Southern Reef, the ‘Horizon Scan workshop on Marine and Coastal Conservation’ surfaced a wealth of ideas, including expanded marine protected areas, new monitoring programs, and bold questions about how we value, govern and tell the story of this extraordinary coast.‍

Read more: https://www.conservationecologycentre.org/discover-us/news/new-partnership-for-coastal-stewardship

24/08/2026

Today is the day, the Otways Ecological Research Forum is underway. Bringing together researchers, land managers, Traditional Owners, and community to discuss how we care for Country in the Otways forests, heathlands and coasts. We are thrilled to be at capacity with over 300 attendees. Videos of all the talks will be available after the event. Full agenda and abstracts are on our website https://www.conservationecologycentre.org/otways-ecological-research-forum

17/08/2026

Join this Southern Otway Landcare Network community planting day 🌱THIS SUNDAY 🌱and make a tangible contribution to the health of the Barham - restoring habitat and improving water quality.

The Barham is central to the community: it supplies drinking water, supports farms and wildlife, and is part of the landscape we all call home. This project is an important first step in restoring and protecting the catchment for the long term.

Register: https://form.fillout.com/t/47MGzRkbBjus

🌱 Restoring the Barham - Community Planting Day
🗓 Sunday 23 August
⏰ 10am - 1pm
📍 Meet at Apollo Bay Recreation Reserve - a bus will take participants to and from the planting site.
🍎 Morning tea provided

30/07/2026

Caption comp .... who am I? 👀 Spotted in the Carlisle Heath this week

27/07/2026

We are very grateful for the support of the Colac Otway Shire for our upcoming Otways Ecological Research Forum. Thank you Colac Otway Shire Council

As a non-profit organisation, this grant and our other sponsors Cassinia Environmental Corangamite CMA enable us to keep this important forum affordable and accessible for the whole community.

And that’s really important to us because we want you all there!

Join us for the 2026 Otways Ecological Research Forum

WHEN 👉 Tuesday 25th August, 8:30am to 5pm.
WHERE 👉 COPACC, 95-97 Gellibrand St, Colac.

Tickets are essential, register today: conservationecologycentre.org/otways-ecological-research-forum

09/07/2026

06/07/2026

Thank you again for your generous support for the Otways coast 💙

Phase 2 of Otways Marine Ecosystem Resilience program is underway!

Our team of ecologists, in partnership with Eastern Maar Traditional Owners and a passionate community of citizen scientist volunteers, have the funds to delve into deeper scientific research to interrogate the extensive monitoring data to work out what this coast is telling us.

Thank you for helping us protect the ecosystems of the Otways Coast we all love.

Stay tuned for updates or sign up for our quarterly update - link in bio.