The southwest of Western Australia is a global biodiversity hotspot. Our bird species and our marsupial fauna are unique. Birdwatching has now just taken over as the number one ‘hobby’ in the world. Why isn’t the government forward thinking ... how do we tap this incredible international market with such a unique biodiversity experience in WA.
Burswood Park is not just a ‘bit of grass with a few trees’. Development over the last 20 years has created a unique environment. It is extremely rare to have a main brackish river channel (Swan River), freshwater wetlands, native bushland and large open grasslands in one area so close to the CBD. Calling it historically as a ‘waste dump’ is naïve,as prior to that (and the Heritage-listed Burswood Canal) it was part of the Swan River with native bushland enjoyed by our Indigenous past.
The near-threatened long-necked turtle once again calls Burswood home. Its population grew slowly at first but is now blossoming. Multiple turtles are seen across the wetlands from recently hatched, through to small juveniles, to our large older turtles including our very own (unfortunately?) named Fairways One female Thomas!
The new Motor Complex will mean the near-threatened long-necked turtle will cease to exist at Burswood Park. The infrastructure will destroy all migration routes and sites for breeding and nesting, and with the noise and pollution will die.
A 45-minute morning walk around the park showcases this wonderful ecosystem with over 30 individual bird species to be spotted, with the potential to see over 40 species. A unique experience within 3km of a city’s CBD of our size.
The joy of international visitors to the Crown (and Optus stadium pedestrians) seeing the ever- popular Black Swans with their cygnets, and the Pacific Black and Maned Duck with their chicks will become rare as these will all leave, fighting a losing battle for survival elsewhere in an ever- diminishing environment.
And then there is all those wonderful bush birds, river birds and ocean birds! Where will they go?
After the very first race, Burswood Park diversity will be reduced to the usual European City of less than 20 species dominated by non-endemic species to WA. You need look no further than the current Crown Car Park, dominated by common feral European pigeon and the WA declared pest Rainbow Lorikeet.
Please Help – Save Burswood Park!
We have some amazing resident birds from our small brown honeyeaters all the way up to our own apex predator! Our two resident Crown Tower’s Peregrine Falcons overlook and prey on the Burswood Park. Unfortunately, they have been nicknamed Roger and Rita.
The beautiful and normally rare and shy, Buff Banded Rail is not seen anywhere else in Perth with such numbers! They thrive in this system.
​Due to the destruction of habitat, resultant increased human overcrowding, pollution and the stress and deafness caused by noise, these residents along with the Little Grassbird will die, along with our common Little Grass Bird, Grebes, Moorhens, Swamphens, rarer ducks (Musk, Blue-billed, Hard-Head) and Shovelers.
And Perth already has the embarrassment of the barest tree canopy of any capital city in the country! ... all the while being exponentially reduced each day by the highly invasive polyphagous shot hole borer. 30,000 people and a racetrack with significant infrastructure squeezed into a 30ha area – what a disaster!
