Speeches
Thursday, 24 October 2024
Wittunga Botanic Gardens Bird Garden Inauguration
Rod and I are pleased to join you for the official opening of the new Wittunga Bird Garden.
This is our first time at Wittunga, after official visits to Adelaide and Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens last year and regular return visits to Adelaide several times since, including for the wonderful Chihuly exhibition.
I’m reminded, as I was at the Australian Arid Lands Garden in Port Augusta, of just how beautiful – and colourful - a low water garden of Australian plants can be.
As, of course, are the native South African plants on display.
I am also reminded of how important native plants in urban areas are to local wildlife, such as birds.
At Government House Rod and I are fortunate to be surrounded by trees and gardens which attract a range of wildlife, including native birds.
These include parrots such as eastern rosellas and rainbow lorikeets, waterbirds such as the white ibis, and woodlands birds, including kookaburras, whose calls begin very early in the morning and who have been known to peck at Rod’s study window and at least once to fly into the laundry to inspect an ironing board!
I was delighted that a report I received this week on the use of our bird boxes which were installed earlier this year included photos of two wood duck nests, each with 11 eggs and two rainbow lorikeet nests, one with two eggs and one with two chicks.
We are proud to be contributing to supporting a healthy ecosystem of birds in the Adelaide CBD.
I was pleased to see these birds and many others, including some I have never seen, listed in the Wittunga Bird Garden brochure, prepared by the Friends of the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide.
Friends,
Bird watching, whether at Government House or Wittunga, is an excellent activity for people of all ages – for young families, Blackwood Primary School students, right through to retirees taking up a new hobby.
I thank the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide for creating an inclusive and interactive space that will attract a wide range of locals and visitors and no doubt bring enjoyment to all.
I thank the Friends - led by President Ed McAllister who will shortly complete a very successful term as President - for the many volunteer hours they have spent developing the garden, and for contributing funds to produce new signage.
Rod and I are proud to be Patrons of the Friends and to see their positive impact across all three botanic gardens in Adelaide.
I also thank the Director Michael Harvey and staff for their oversight of this project.
It’s now my great pleasure to declare the Wittunga Botanic Garden Bird Garden open.