Bruny kids celebrate National Threatened Species Day

Aurora: National Threatened Species Day is held every year on the 7th of September. Last year we learned a lot about the Forty Spotted Pardalote which is endangered. 

We spent lots of time in Pardalote Patch and now we are learning about the Swift Parrot which is critically endangered. 

Last week we read a picture book about a Swift Parrot and then all of us wrote questions to help us learn more. 

Here are some of the questions we came up with and the answers we found: 

Martha: Why do they come to Bruny Island?

Franziska: Because there is more food here that they can feed their babies.

Martha: How fast do they fly?

Franziska: 80km/hour

Lily: What do they eat?

Franziska: Nectar from the blue gum flowers.

Lily: How do they eat?

Franziska: With their tongue which is shaped like a brush, so they are very messy eaters. Being messy helps with Pollination.

Aurora: Where do they nest?

Franziska: In hollows in old trees. One thing they were not able to find out is how they know how to get from mainland Australia all the way to Bruny Island.

Aurora: Now we are making a card game which we can teach other about the swift parrot habitat, what they eat, their migration patterns and all of their treats to their survival.