Save Western Port Woodlands

31/05/2026

There was a full house at the Bunurong Environment Centre for the launch of Dr Dick Wettenhall’s magnificent volume "Ecology of Native Orchids and their Pollinators".

South Gippsland Conservation Society's past president Ed Thexton launched the book and pointed out that it was not just a scholarly work but a good read, with Dick vividly capturing the secret life of orchids, their native wasp, bee and gnat pollinators and the spiders that lie in wait for them.

Dick’s speech was in the form of an open letter from his loyal and extremely patient companion, Basil, who accompanied Dick on over 1200 orchid excursions into the Gurdies over the past five years.
(That's 35 dog years, as Basil pointed out. He reckons he grew old in the line of duty.)

Dick's book is on sale at the Bunurong Environment Centre.

26/05/2026

It will be interesting to see what results from this cool burn in the Gurdies.

A cultural burn in the Gurdies last week is the first undertaken in the area for almost two centuries.

15/05/2026

The former Holden Proving Ground is under contract to the owner of a defence tech company that designs and manufactures aerial and ground drones, as well as missile propulsion and weapons systems.

The Proving Ground has been used to test cars for more than 70 years. Now it’s likely to be used to test drones and military hardware.

The 900-hectare property forms the central link in the Western Port Woodlands.

In 2023, a coalition of 21 conservation and community groups urged the State Government to buy the site for conservation.

Save Western Port Woodlands will seek a meeting with the new owner to discuss the site’s environmental and community significance.
Read more

Defence tech boss buys former Holden Proving Ground at heart of Western Port Woodlands

19/03/2026

Great to see Bass Coast councillors speaking up for the Western Port Woodlands.
The council and SWPW are united in seeking an interim Environmental Significance Overlay on the woodlands.
We await a response from the State Government to our request.

14/01/2026

How about joining us for a woodland walk on Sunday?

Where: Grantville Nature Conservation Reserve
When: Sunday, January 18, 9.30am
Park: At the end of Stanley Road, near the Freeranger egg farm.
Distance: About 4kms return, 90 minutes to 2 hours at a very leisurely pace
Level: Easy walking. No hills. Sheltered.

Look out for: Blue winged parrots, yellow tailed black cockatoos, grass trees, mosses, and lichens. Bring your bird book!

Please remember you're responsible for your own safety.
And if the weather changes drastically, we may need to reschedule.

05/01/2026

Now is a good time to wander through our woodlands. We had a very enjoyable walk through the Grantville NCRP today in ideal conditions. Lots of birds around, the highlight being a small flock of Blue-winged Parrots which flushed out of long grass. Rufous Whistlers were plentiful, and lots of young birds were observed (of several different species) including a Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoo that was constantly begging for food which is always a welcome sight !

20/12/2025

A year to the day after fire swept through the Gurdies a small team returned to the council offset reserve to check on the trail cameras we placed back in March to monitor the recovery.

We had marked the locations with Geotracker AND pink ribbons but locating the cameras proved a challenge because the bracken is now chest high and everything looks different.

The sight of so many dead trees is still confronting but we were cheered by the explosion of wildflowers, particularly the native pelargoniums and native violets.

Kangaroo apples and fringe lilies were abundant and we noted a few stands of the minor grass trees that we can’t remember seeing before.

We saw plenty of roo and wombat s**t and the kookaburras and Eastern Whipbirds were on song.

We’re checking the footage from the cameras and will let you know what we find.

18/12/2025

Locally made gifts that will delight the nature lovers in your life ... and every purchase helps in the campaign to protect the Western Port Woodlands.
BIRDS OF THE WESTERN PORT WOODLANDS, POCKET GUIDE
Just $15 at these venues:
* Bassine Cheese
* Beand, San Remo
* Bendigo Bank, Grantville
* Bunurong Environment Centre, Inverloch
* Corinella General Store
* Gurdies Winery
* KGS Kilcunda
* Lang Lang PO
* La Provincia, Corinella
* Print It Fast, San Remo
* Wendy Mae's, Lang Lang
* Wonthaggi Market
* Wonthaggi ArtSpace

BIRDS OF THE WESTERN PORT WOODLANDS, TEA TOWEL
Celebrating our beautiful robins: the Flame, Scarlet and Rose, made of Australian organic cotton, printed in Victoria, It’s the kind of gift people get to use every day.
Just $22 at:
* Bunurong Environment Centre, Inverloch
* Wonthaggi ArtSpace
Or buy online at
https://www.savewesternportwoodlands.org/swpwstore.html

06/12/2025

Grass tree walk, Grantville today
The grass trees are in flower, and we might spot the last of the orchids and do some bird spotting.

When: Sunday, December 7, 2pm
Where: Grantville Nature Conservation Reserve, Stanley Road
Meet just past the water tanks (just past June Street). There is plenty of parking on the side of the road.

This is an easy walk on level ground. About 90 minutes return at a leisurely pace. Please remember you’re responsible for your own safety, and be aware that it’s snake season.

We’ll have bird guidebooks, tea towels and tees available for sale.