A new bird watering station has been installed at Manning Park as part of the Keep Carnaby's Flying: Ngoolarks Forever project.
The four-metre-high bird waterer, designed and supplied by the Town of Victoria Park’s Natural Areas Team and manufactured in Perth, was donated to the City by Murdoch University.
The City partners with Murdoch University for the project to safeguard the future of Carnaby’s cockatoo by addressing threats and providing food and water habitat across the Perth-Peel region.
City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said Manning Park was a popular roost for Carnaby’s and providing them and other birds with an alternative water source had already proven successful in other bushland areas in Cockburn.
“The City installed a similar bird waterer at a popular forage site for the threatened Forest Red-tailed Cockatoo in Bibra Lake last April and it is regular haunt for all sorts of birdlife, including the cockatoo,” Mayor Howlett said.
“These custom-designed bird waterers feature four large water troughs at varying heights and angles, with timber rungs perfect for perching and beak-sharpening.”
City of Cockburn Environmental Officer - Natural Resource Adam Harris said the installation also involved a small community revegetation project to install foraging habitat (Banksia sessilis) in the area, with SERCUL and Perth NRM and volunteers from the community and Friends of Manning Park Ridge.
“There is no guarantee cockies or other birds will use it in the first year, as it may take time for them to get used to it and feel safe using it, but we know they like to forage in the area,” Mr Harris said.
“We are in a drying climate and threatened species like Carnaby’s are in decline and will benefit from additional water sources.
“Birds like Carnaby’s rarely drink from lakes, due to vulnerability to predation and difficulties taking flight from boggy ground so this waterer could prove very beneficial in time.”
The City completed the project in February.