28th Friends of Parks Forum

The 2012 Friends of Parks Forum was held in Naracoorte this past weekend. Friends of Parks groups are community groups dedicated to preserving the state’s parks and native flora and fauna. The forum is a time when all the Friends of Parks groups from around the state can spend the weekend participating in local environmental projects, catching up, and making new friends. This year the Friends of Naracoorte Caves, of which Chris and I are members, hosted the event. About 180 members from across South Australia attended.

The event began on Friday afternoon with registration at the Town Hall. Chris and I helped man the registration table, which provided a great opportunity to meet everyone as they arrived. Chris and I are by far the youngest members of the Friends. Most Friends are retirees or park staff, so you can imagine the age gap between us and most of the other members. Despite the age difference, Chris and I were welcomed and encouraged to participate in every aspect of the forum.

 

 In front of the bat tunnel decorated with various crafty bats made by community groups.

 Some of the cute bats in the tunnel.

 Welcome to the forum!

The main event of the Friday evening program was a presentation by one of our members, Ian Lewis, who is also a member of the Cave Exploration Group SA Inc (CEGSA). He gave a fascinating talk on the formation of the caves in the Naracoorte area. I have heard this information many times before over the past year, but Ian had a way of presenting that just grabbed me and the information really sank in. He gave a fun demonstration using a homemade cake (decorated as Naracoorte) of how the Kanawinka Fault Line, which runs north-south through the Naracoorte area, contributed to the creation of the caves when it shifted and made holes in the ground through which water could move and eat away at the limestone. Afterwards we got to eat Naracoorte as part of dessert. 

  The Thylacoleo (marsupial lion) and Procoptodon (giant kangaroo) guard the stage.

  Some pretty entertaining cave formations...

Saturday was a busy day. We began at the Town Hall for the morning presentations, which included a talk by Steve Bourne and me about the bat research at the park. We tag-teamed our presentation: Steve began by giving an overview of the Southern Bent-wing Bat and the bat interpretation at the park, I continued by talking about my current research, and then finally Steve finished up by discussing other research that has happened over the past years.

On Saturday afternoon everyone headed out to the caves to get up close and personal with the highlights of the forum (the caves, the bats, and the megafauna fossils) and to listen to the “experts” (as Deb called us) talk about our topics in our natural settings. I was stationed in the Bat Teleview Centre to give each group that came through (a total of five groups) a glimpse into the life of the bats inside Bat Cave using the infrared cameras. They really loved it, and I enjoyed speaking with a group of people that already has a background in environmental issues. They asked great questions like “What is the hierarchy of the bats?” (Answer: We don’t know specifically for this species, but it’s likely that they don’t have a strong social hierarchy), “How fast do they fly?” (Answer: They have been clocked at 30 kph coming out of Bat Cave, but in direct flight they can fly up to 50-60 kph), “How do bats hold onto the cave wall?” (Answer: They have special tendons in their feet that lock into place when hanging. They don’t have to exert any energy to hold on, but have to exert energy to let go. That’s why you can find dead bats, or even skeletons, still hanging on the wall), and “How do they go to the bathroom?” (Answer: From what I’ve observed, they pee and poop while hanging upside down. The pee droplets and guano pellets typically fall to the ground and don’t get stuck in the fur, although this can happen).

Saturday evening was the awards dinner, which also included a talk on the Naracoorte megafauna fossils by Professor Rod Wells. We finished quite late (10:30pm) and because of the start of Daylight Savings Time that night it was essentially 11:30pm. Chris and I went out to the pub with Jinhwa, Tom, and Dannielle for a few drinks afterwards to celebrate my birthday a few days early. By the time we got home I was exhausted and ready for bed!

 Our placemats at the Saturday dinner.

On Sunday afternoon we wrapped up the forum with a talk by Jack and Pat Bourne (Steve’s parents) about their life at Bool Lagoon, which is just a 20 minute drive from the park. We finished at 4:00pm and at 6:00pm Chris and I joined other members of the Friends of Naracoorte Caves at the Caves Café for a debriefing/celebration. There was delicious, homemade food from the café and of course wine. Allen Attwood, the president of the group, stood up and gave a little thank you and farewell speech to me. He spoke about the time he first met me at the Threatened Species Day last September when they were looking for a volunteer to wear the Ollie the Orange-bellied Parrot costume. He said he had been surprised that I, a newcomer, had volunteered, but I hadn’t even thought twice about it. He also said my legs looked mighty fine in the Spandex tights. That made me laugh. His words really touched me and made me realize just how much I will miss this place and these people. He presented me with a gift from the group (which Steve put together). It was three framed pictures, two of Southern Bent-wing Bats in flight and one of me looking at one in Bat Cave. I will treasure that gift forever and I will mount it on a special place in my home.

 My wonderful gift from the Friends.