Reef guide shares love for ocean

Adele Bennett

Inspired by sharing her love for the ocean, reef guide Natalie Lobartolo is opening up the rocky shore with her new business Reef Connect.

Natalie is guiding Rock Pool Rambles and Citizen Science Snorkel tours during the Milbi Festival and plans to keep offering the tours in the future.

“My intention is really to focus on the education and the connection and just getting people out in [an] easy and simple way.”

“I just realise how important it is to have opportunities for people to connect with nature and animals.

“I remember the first time I went for a snorkel off these rocks.

“It looks quite dark and just blue, like there wouldn't be anything there, and my mind was just blown.

“The colours and diversity of coral and fish and other marine life is just incredible, and I think there's very little like it on the east coast of Australia in terms of a shore dive.”

But Natalie said people don’t have to get wet to enjoy the diversity of marine life, and those looking to explore the shore can join a Rock Pool Ramble.

“There's a whole bunch of life in the rock pools.

“And it's just incredible to see how excited kids can get when you show them a creature that seems quite simple, but if you tell a story or introduce some fun facts, they just get excited so easily and just really love it.”

Natalie said her passion for the ocean was sparked by a visit to Sea World when she was six years old.

“Since then that has set me off on my journey and I've come to work as a guide with dolphins in the wild and see how incredible it is in their natural environment.

“I'm not necessarily for animals in captivity, but I can recognise that it was that potential for connection that was really powerful.”

After many years working in marine research and as a Master Reef Guide on the Great Barrier Reef, she’s looking forward to sharing her knowledge with the community through her new business.

“Master Reef Guides are storytellers and interpreters, and they bring the reef to life… it's all about allowing opportunities for people to experience the wonder of the Great Barrier Reef.

“It's a World Heritage area, which means that there's nothing like it on the whole planet.”

Reef Connect focused on local marine environment

Natalie said the idea for Reef Connect came about through her work with tourism operators on the Great Barrier Reef and in the local community doing community snorkels.

Reef Connect is starting out with some local tours during the school holidays, then in coming months Natalie will be guiding trips to Heron Island on the Southern Great Barrier Reef.

“Reef Connect here in Bargara is really important because not everybody will have the opportunity to go out to the Great Barrier Reef.

“Having the programs here will provide the opportunity for people to see how amazing corals are and how amazing the reef is and all of the marine life, whether it’s straight off the shore or out on the Great Barrier Reef, there's just so much to see.”

Natalie said participants on the snorkel tour will also make a valuable contribution by collecting data as citizen scientists.

“Citizen science is really important because marine park managers and people at the management level can't be everywhere all the time.”

Using a colour chart developed by Coral Watch, participants will help to monitor coral health by submitting observations for ongoing monitoring, she said.

To find out more about Natalie’s tours, head to www.reefconnect.com.au

Yvonne is Buxton's fundraising superstar

Ashley Schipper

Yvonne Garnham is a volunteer and fundraising superstar in the Buxton community, spending her time supporting others through the Buxton Friendship Association and Buxton Rural Fire Brigade.

It’s something she has always had a passion for and although she has worked many paid jobs throughout life including bar and hotel manager, Yvonne said she gets the most satisfaction out of volunteering and helping others.

“I started fundraising the day my kids started kindergarten, and my eldest is now 50 years old,” she said.

“It’s about the satisfaction that you get by helping others.

“If everyone was better at giving it would be a better place to live.”

Yvonne's profile is part of Bundaberg Regional Council Our People Our Stories project which aims to connect and celebrate the local community.

Yvonne has lived in Buxton for six years and helps to give back to the community by organising raffles and cent sales through her membership at the Buxton Friendship Association.

She has also fundraised enough money for the local rural fire brigade to purchase an extra vehicle.

“We hold four dinners a year that fundraise towards the rural fire fighters,” she said.

“All the leftovers get made into bubble and squeak and given to the oldies who can’t attend.”

Yvonne is also support worker for the Buxton Rural Fire Brigade and on Australia Day each year she gets great enjoyment out of helping to cook breakfast to make sure everyone is fed.

She was part of the team of supporters who were on hand to keep fire fighters from across the region hydrated and fed during last year’s Woodgate fires.

Yvonne said she would always be there to support others for as long as she could.

“I’m not giving up; I have no intentions of giving up,” she said.

“There is plenty to do if you want to do it and you’re never too old or too young to volunteer.”

Keep count on local birdlife for annual event

Emma Turnbull

Bundaberg Region residents are being asked to raise their eyes to the sky next month to help keep stock of local birds in this year’s Aussie Backyard Bird Count.

The annual bird watching event, held between 18-24 October, is run by BirdLife Australia as part of National Bird Week.

It is one of Australia's biggest citizen science activities and helps to collect a huge database of feathered friends from around the region.

Bundaberg Regional Council environment portfolio spokesperson Cr Wayne Honor said Bundaberg was ideal for bird watching because of the diversity of its natural areas.

He said Baldwin Swamp was an example of one local area which was home to an abundance of birds, which made the environmental reserve one of the best locations to capture their beauty up close and personal.

“As there is a variety of vegetation types including lakes, wetlands, bushlands, vine forest and grassy areas, Baldwin Swamp makes an ideal area for birds to thrive, and there have been more than 130 species recorded here,” Cr Honor said.

“It’s a great place for families to visit, take a walk and try to spot as many birds as possible during this annual event.”

Cr Honor said other great bird watching locations included the Botanic Gardens, Barolin Nature Reserve, Black Gully Nature Reserve in Gin Gin and Russo Nature Park.

He said during the 2020 Backyard Bird Count in the Bundaberg Region there were more than 22,000 individual birds counted throughout the week.

“More than 200 species were sighted in the 4670 postcode area and more than 100 species were spotted in both Childers and Gin Gin,” Cr Honor said.

“Among the list, residents spied the vulnerable Glossy Black Cockatoo, seasonally migrant species such as dollar birds, Australia’s largest duck the Musk Duck and Australia’s largest bird of prey the Wedge-tailed Eagle.”

The count is in its eighth year and takes contributions of more than 100,000 citizen scientists to create a snapshot of the state of Australia’s backyard birds and the population of different species.

Cr Honor said the data gathered was invaluable as it would help Council, the community and other organisations to make informed decisions to improve the natural areas and ensure local activities weren’t having a negative impact on birdlife.

“For example, through continued involvement in this initiative we can keep an eye on trends and even see whether or not a tree planting or weed removal project has had a positive effect on biodiversity,” Cr Honor said.

“The more involvement we get this year in the Aussie Backyard Bird Count from the community the better our future will be especially for the birds and wildlife.”

During the Aussie Backyard Bird Count locals are encouraged to go into their backyard or a local park or beach and observe and count the birds they see for 20 minutes and record the information on the free Aussie Bird Count app.

Find out more here.

Lenzie’s practical garden one with nature

Morgan Everett

Lenzie Duffy has become self-sufficient after curating a vegetable garden and backyard orchard efficient enough to provide food all year round.

Lenzie said at the very first inspection he had visualised the garden in his soon-to-be Avenell Heights property.

The bare block allowed for the correct preparation and three years later the garden is now in full swing, with something always ready to harvest.

Being the eldest of six siblings, Lenzie said he started gardening at seven years of age as his responsibility was to feed the family.

“I learnt how to be very efficient, I also learnt the best way of growing things, the right angles and simply by practical application,” Lenzie said.

“I plant everything north south because you get maximum sun and better production.

“It's all part of the environment and if you set up the ecosystem right, all of these things work.”

Lenzie said everything you saw in the garden was recycled and what was thrown away by others now hosted a special place in his garden.

“When I first moved in, I used an excavator to dig 20 inches deep and found all the rubbish people had buried along with 200 bricks that I reused for the garden beds out the front,” he said. 

There are 64 trees that call Lenzie’s orchard home, with a range of international varieties.

“I've got a variety of from Peru, I've got one from South Africa and Indonesia,” he said.

“I've got fruit you won't be able to buy in the shop.”

To be able to grow such a diverse range of trees Lenzie said you must first create the right conditions.

“I changed the pH of the soil from 4.4 to 7.2, this gets all the pests out of their comfort zone,” he said.

“The soil here was .05 of organic matter, the soil is now up close to 20 per cent, I don’t need a digging fork to dig in my soil, that’s the difference.

“That holds the moisture and converts to all the nutrients your plants require, I don’t use fertilizer.”

The Bundaberg green thumb said everything in his garden was dual purpose as you’ve got to work with nature to get the best use out of it.

“All the walkways are waterways,” Lenzie said.

“The runoff from the neighbour’s yard continues down the waterways and waters the trees.”

“Companion planting is key, I plant flowers amongst the edible crops for the bees,

“I’ve got native bees here for pollinators.”