Bookend Trust

29/05/2026

Good luck everyone! Wishing you fantastic survey days…

It's the start of the second (& final) round of surveys for Where? Where? We**ie! 2026! Sixty-five teams are taking part, all across Tasmania, with twenty-nine of them heading out to their booked survey squares today, to survey for all raptor species and also the three white cockatoo species. Find out why here https://naturetrackers.au/projects/where-where-wedgie/ – and follow along the results, as they're uploaded throughout the days, here https://webapp.naturetrackers.com.au/map_results
Good luck everyone!

27/05/2026

Don't forget to book!
**ie

Last chance to book!! Today's the deadline for booking a Where? Where? We**ie! 2026 survey - so if you were thinking of taking part, go for it. Each additional survey makes for more accurate science (especially where, together, we cover a survey square for 2 days).
Join us all on this *eighth* year of raptor surveys - details & bookings: https://naturetrackers.au/.../where-where-wedgie/take-part/
📷 Mick Brown

06/05/2026

NatureTrackers is at Agfest! Come & talk Where Where We**ie & all things raptor - we’re here for all 3 days. Find out how your wingspan compares with various raptors (Coordinator Clare’s arms can’t quite reach a sea eagle’s); and pick up a free raptor ID guide.

We’re on corner Main/Fifth Street, kindly hosted by TasNetworks.

The first surveys are *next weekend*! (Friday - Sunday 15-17 May).

Can’t get over to us at Agfest? Find out all about it, & access the booking details, via https://naturetrackers.au/projects/where-where-wedgie/

Booking deadline is a few days before each weekend.

23/04/2026

There have been some big Atlantic puffin wrecks (mass mortalities) this year due to storms and disruption of foraging, so it's good to see that Skomer Island at least has strong returning numbers for the breeding season.

Puffin numbers are declining in many areas, but Skomer is bucking the trend.

14/04/2026

It's that Where? Where? We**ie! time of year again, with bookings open for the citizen science and the webinars, and a big range of associated educational resources. Please share with the Tasmanian teacher/s in your life! 🦅
(Click on the shared post's date/time to see the links in the comments)

Welcome to the beginning of our eagle adventure this year.  I'm Dr Clare Hawkins and, through the videos on these pages, I'll be taking you on a scientific journey to learn about birds in Tasmania with my friend Dr James Pay.  In the resources for teachers, you'll also find some fascinating oppor...

10/11/2025

Congratulations to Archer and all the other entrants! If you're in the area, make sure you head on over to see their beautiful, inspiring work this week 🦞

A HUGE congratulations to the winners of this year's Claws on the Line art competition for primary-aged students!!

First prize: Archer; second prize: Matilda; third prize: Charlie. Special mentions to: Serenity, Leon, William, Lilly and Adam.

Archer's work is pictured; we'll share some of the others in future posts. This year, the focus was on Burnie, and the art works are currently on display at in a beautiful exhibition at the Burnie Regional Museum this Wednesday to Friday at 10-4pm – bring your friends and family! Details here:
https://www.burniearts.net/Exhibitions/2025-Exhibits/Mini-Exhibition-Claws-on-the-Line

The Bookend Trust is very grateful to Burnie Arts for running four extremely popular workshops around the competition, for hosting the awards ceremony, and for creating such a wonderful space for everyone’s work.

If you’d like to know a little bit more about Claws on the Line, check out the links on this page: https://naturetrackers.au/projects/claws-on-the-line/
The iNaturalist project detailed under ’Take Part’ is a popular activity for students, and a great opportunity for everyone to help discover more about a very special Burnie resident and its relatives.

07/11/2025

We're very proud!
Congratulations to all our collaborators and everyone involved.

International finalists!!
Remember that we won the Green Gown Award Australasia for Creating Impact last year, for the Kelcey Tier Extinction Matters BioBlitz? Well, we made finalist for the *International* Awards! We didn't win, but the judges said some lovely things. They 'were impressed by this inspiring model of citizen science that generates ecological data of national importance' and 'appreciated that it has engaged hundreds of participants across generations and successfully linked research, education, and culture to promote environmental stewardship.'
Congratulations - again! - to everyone involved.
🔎🪳🍄🦇🌿📲
https://greengownawards.org/university-of-tasmania-01

12/10/2025

Have your primary-aged student/s entered yet? It's the final week of this year's Claws on the Line art competitions... Details below.

CLAWS ON THE LINE ART COMP 2025 - DEADLINE APPROACHING!
It's the final week for this year's two Claws on the Line art competitions for primary-aged students. These have a special focus on the threatened Central North and Burnie burrowing crayfish – to help students learn and understand more about about these amazing, threatened creatures, which each live nowhere else in the world but their own little patch of Tasmania.

Students are invited to create burrowing crayfish artworks, to help let people know what might be living beneath their feet!

Entries will be displayed at two awards events: The Tasmanian Arboretum 3:30 pm 30th October; Burnie Regional Museum 3:30 pm 31st October. Prizes and certificates will be presented for outstanding entries (event details to be emailed to entrants, and awards posted to those who can’t get there).

If you would like to enter a piece of art this year, please complete the following form, and send a photograph of it to [email protected] **by 5 pm Sunday 19th October 2025**

Entry Form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/8FQ9NJS
More information on Tasmanian burrowing crayfish: https://naturetrackers.au/projects/claws-on-the-line/
Pictures of Tasmanian burrowing crayfish and their burrows: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/claws-on-the-line

Please share with any young artists you may know! 🦞🎨

Image using a photo of a Central North burrowing crayfish by Wade Bone

20/09/2025

What a fun morning - with the help of Dr Joseph from Cradle Coast NRM and Wade from Pinion, the Claws on the Line team ran a bunch of activities to explore burrowing crayfish anatomy, burrows and habitats. We found out what swimmerets are, and how a Cistern Burrowing Crayfish can survive up a mountain, far from creeks and tarns!
And we had a special focus on the Central North Burrowing Crayfish, which is found *nowhere else in the world* except a tiny region of Tasmania that includes Port Sorell.

15/08/2025

Booked your spot yet? Here's a chance to record and identify some rarely heard calls, and contribute to Tasmania-wide monitoring to help guide conservation efforts. CallTrackers HQ are looking forward to telling you all about it!

Other National Science Week events, taking elsewhere across Tasmania, detailed here: https://naturetrackers.au/news/spring-into-wildlife-monitoring-action/

Curious about wildlife in your neighbourhood at night? Learn how call trackers work and how to borrow one from participating Libraries.