Published on 19 August 2024
Specialised food on the menu for injured wildlife
Rescued wildlife like koalas and possums now have a dedicated source of food in Onkaparinga.
A new wildlife-food plantation in Happy Valley will help feed injured and displaced wildlife in care.
Carers can harvest the leaves, blossoms, nuts and fruit of 14 native species chosen to cater to the specific needs of native animals and birds.
Planting at the Dawson Avenue reserve site began in the middle of the year, with around 700 seedlings planted by 30 volunteers, including from Onkaparinga’s youth program, and council staff.
The plantation was proposed by the Save Our Wildlife Foundation in a deputation to the Council in July 2022.
The foundation recommended that the council allocate sufficient land to plant 3,000 to 4,000 plants suitable for feeding injured and displaced wildlife.
Once approved, council staff worked with the foundation to find a site for the plantation, choosing sections of the Dawson Avenue reserve in Happy Valley.
The specialised food is a boon to wildlife carers, not just the creatures in their care. Carers can spend significant time foraging for the right species.
While many rescued birds can be fed with food that purchased from shops, this is harder for wildlife that are ‘fussy eaters’ such as koalas, possums and some nectar-eating birds that rely on native plants.
"This will make our work as rescuers and carers so much easier,” says the foundation’s Southern District Coordinator, Kendall Laffey.
“Imagine you rescue a little injured possum in the middle of a rainy night and you have to go out with a torch to search for the types of plants that the possum will eat so you can feed it.”
The council will continue to work with the foundation and volunteers to further develop and maintain the plantation, according to Nikola Manos, Onkaparinga’s Nature Conservation Project Officer.
“Different species of wildlife have different food requirements and preferences. The plant species they feed on can also change over different seasons, depending on what parts of the plant they eat,” she says.
“We will plant seedlings of four different species which were not ready to be planted at the first planting event. These are being looked after in our nursery until they are big enough.
“We will also control weeds and replace any plants that don’t survive.
“Some of the species that have been planted are trees but they will not end up looking like normal trees. Due to regular pruning and harvesting, these plants will grow more bushy instead of tall.
“This will make it easier for the volunteers to access the fresh growth, which is what is preferred by the animals.”
The plants are expected to take two to three years to mature before they can be harvested.
To design gardens that attract, house and feed wildlife, see resources such as Green Adelaide’s wildlife-friendly gardens guide.
Species planted at the Happy Valley wildlife-food plantation
- Round-leaf or gold-dust wattle, Acacia acinacea
- Swamp wattle, Acacia provincialis
- Drooping sheoak, Allocasuarina verticillata
- Christmas bush, Bursaria spinosa
- Southern cypress-pine, Callitris gracilis
- River red gum, Eucalyptus camaldulensis
- Grey box, Eucalyptus microcarpa
- Manna gum, Eucalyptus viminalis
- Small-leaved Mallee pea, Eutaxia microphylla
- Lavender Grevillea, Grevillea lavandulacea
- Prickly tea-tree, Leptospermum continentale
- Cross-leaf honey myrtle or totem poles, Melaleuca decussata
- River bottlebrush, Melaleuca paludicola (formerly Callistemon sieberi)
- Twiggy daisy-bush, Olearia ramulosa