Australia’s population is steadily increasing, prompting the need for new houses, shops and roads. While these developments are important for our community, they may have a negative impact on our local birds.
So, how do birds respond to urban development? Why do some species cope better than others? And what can we do to better support the more sensitive species?
To answer these questions, we’ve invited Dr Jacinta Humphrey to share her findings on what makes a residential street, urban park or private garden bird-friendly.
Speaker bio:
Dr Jacinta Humphrey (she/her) is an Urban Ecologist and Research Fellow with the ICON Science group at RMIT University. She completed her PhD at La Trobe University and continues to work with the Nangak Tamboree Wildlife Sanctuary.
Her work explores Biodiversity Sensitive Urban Design (BSUD) and aims to find opportunities to enhance habitat for wildlife in residential streets, urban parks, schoolyards and private gardens. She also monitors the Birrarung Trial Floating Wetlands, a series of artificial habitat islands installed in the Yarra River (Birrarung), on behalf of The University of Melbourne.