The Birder's Pass
This pass covers 12 hours of bird walks and speaker sessions. These will start at 7 am on Saturday, 20 September 2025 and finish at 1 pm on Sunday, 21 September 2025. You can also add other sessions and activities on Friday, and Saturday evening to your personal Festival program. The Single Sessions page provides further information. THE BIRD WALKS Expert BirdLife guides will lead Bird Walk groups of approximately 15 people during Saturday and Sunday. Each group will go birding in three guided bird walks on private properties, during Saturday moning, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday morning. The private properties hosting these walks are in different areas of the Capertee Valley with a range of undisturbed, regenerated, and farmed habitats. We will assign each ticketholder to a Bird Walk group, and at each property you will meet the guides for that property. Directions and maps will be provided. SPEAKER SESSIONS Descriptions of each speaker session can be found further down this page. Each of them will be conducted at both Glen Alice and Glen Davis community halls. You won’t need to go between the two halls, as the speakers will do the moving around. FOOD & DRINK This is a full program so : - a water station will be available to fill your complimentary Festival water bottle - complimentary tea and coffee will be available at both community halls - the community associations will have stalls offering morning and afternoon tea - there is a lunch option which you can select as an extra when you buy your Birder's Pass - you are welcome to BYO food, but no kitchen facilities will be available
Woodland Birds: Trends, Threats, Prospects and Conservation
Speaker : Julian Reid Excessive clearance of natural vegetation for agricultural development in the Sheep-Wheatbelt of south-eastern Australia occurred historically, ramping up considerably after WWII. The legacy of over-clearance continues today because of the long lags in large, complex ecosystems. Some bird species have gone locally extinct in the South-west Slopes, some are Critically Endangered nationally, and many more continue to suffer declining populations. Many native bird species continue to thrive. What can society, BirdLife Australia and individuals do to assure the persistence of woodland birds in these regions?
Birding and Bird Conservation in Australia
Speaker: Sean Dooley Sean Dooley is the National Public Affairs Manager for BirdLife Australia and editor of Australian BirdLife magazine. He is best known for his book "The Big Twitch," which chronicles his attempt to break the Australian record for the most bird species seen in a single year. Sean will be profiling what BirdLife Australia and the broader conservation movement is doing to roll back the extinction crisis affecting Australia native woodland birds and how ordinary Australians can help in that cause through birding.
The Recovery of the Regent Honeyeater – The Jewel of the Temperate Woodlands
Speaker: Mick Roderick The Regent Honeyeater is one of Australia’s rarest birds. Once occurring across south-eastern Australia in large, raucous flocks and at times visiting flowering trees in suburban Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, the Regent Honeyeater is now on the precipice of extinction. It is estimated that fewer than 300 birds remain in the wild and it is listed as critically endangered; the final rung-on-the-ladder before being recognised as ‘extinct in the wild’. So rare is the Regent Honeyeater that it has been found to be learning the songs of other bird species, presumably due to the fact there are so few adult birds left for young birds to learn from. Regent Honeyeaters are also so rare that they are bred in zoos, not just to keep the species from disappearing altogether, but so that zoo-bred birds will be released into the wild to supplement the critically low wild population. The talk will outline the ecology and decline of the Regent Honeyeater, the importance of the Greater Blue Mountains region and in particular the Capertee Valley, and the recovery actions that BirdLife Australia and its partner organisations are implementing to save the ‘jewel of the temperate woodlands’.
Seeds of Survival – Restoring Mistletoe to Save Threatened Honeyeaters
Speaker: Kristy Peters Discover how mistletoe – an often misunderstood native plant – is becoming a lifeline for some of Australia’s most threatened birds. Mistletoe supports healthy woodland ecosystems by enriching soils, increasing invertebrate diversity, and providing vital food and shelter for birds. Learn about a unique restoration project led by BirdLife Australia and Mindaribba Local Aboriginal Land Council, working to revive mistletoe in fire- and drought-affected NSW woodlands. This work is helping the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater and informing efforts to support the vulnerable Painted Honeyeater. Since 2020, over 4,500 mistletoe seeds have been planted in the Hunter Valley, with early signs of success as the first restored plants begin to flower and fruit. We’re also trialling plantings of Needle-leaf Mistletoe—a key species supporting Regent Honeyeater breeding along the Capertee River and its tributaries. Join us to hear how science, Indigenous knowledge, and community action are coming together to boost biodiversity and climate resilience. We’ll also share practical tips from our new Mistletoe Propagation Manual to help you grow mistletoe and support local birdlife in your patch.
Bird Photography and Videography
Speaker: Mark Fuller Mark Fuller founded Avianation in 2013 and used his 40 years’ experience as a print-based graphic designer and his love of nature photography to create photo guides to help people identify the birds of their local area. For Mark, first and foremost, his camera is an education and conservation tool to share his observations, using photography to help people engage with birds as a first step in habitat protection by showing them what’s there. During this session Mark will describe how and where he learned to photograph birds, the lessons he’s learned and the techniques for getting that perfect shot that not only brings pleasure but also helps drive the cause for conserving our precious native birds.