Bird of the Festival

Keynote Speaker

Tales from the Tundra: What shorebirds get up to on the breeding grounds

Micha is a researcher who specialises in waterbird ecology and wetland conservation and has been passionate about shorebirds and their incredible migrations for many years. She is particularly interested in research about how we can ensure the survival of these amazing long-distance travelers through landscapes with extensive human activity. Micha recently returned from a trip to the shorebird breeding grounds on the northern coast of Alaska where she fell in love with these crazy birds all over again. She will share some stories, insights and photos from her journey and hopes that doing so will help you to look at our local shorebirds a little differently too!

Headline Performance

The Bowerbird Collective makes art for nature. Their award-winning multimedia productions have been performed throughout regional Australia and internationally, and their albums of threatened bird and frog calls, Songs of Disappearance, have twice made it to the top of the ARIA charts. Founded by Simone Slattery and Anthony Albrecht in 2017, the Bowerbird Collective partners with national and international organisations to tell conservation stories.

On Sunday, 17th of September, Simone and Anthony will perform their ode to migratory shorebirds, 'Life on Land's Edge', a 50-minute cinematic concert for the whole family, followed by a Q&A about the nexus of art and science.

www.bowerbirdcollective.org

Curator of Art

Charles Darwin University Academy of Arts

Dr Ian Hance is a locally celebrated mixed-media artist. Ian shares his extensive knowledge and skills in drawing and watercolour combined with an acute environmental awareness and knowledge of the local flora and flora ecologies.

Dr Ian Hance is curating the Shorebird Art Exhibition at the Nan Giese Gallery.

Shorebird Coordinator

Gavin coordinates the Migratory Shorebird Monitoring Program for BirdLife Top End. The Migratory Shorebird Monitoring Program sees regular surveys of shorebirds at a number of sites around Darwin, which is submitted to the national Migratory Shorebird Monitoring Program. The project introduces people to surveying shorebirds and raises awareness among people using the beaches of shorebirds and their needs.

Nighctliff Rocks survey 7am 16th Saturday

East Point survey 5pm 16th Saturday

Lee Point survey 7am 17th Sunday

Convenor, BirdLife Top End

Brittany Hayward-Brown is the Convenor of the local volunteer community group that focuses on conserving birds of the Top End. The BirdLife Top End branch offers community activities centred around the conservation of birds and their habitats in the Top End of the Northern Territory. Members can participate in a variety of bird-related educational resources, workshops, events and excursions. We also conduct research and monitoring programs, capacity-building initiatives, representation and advocacy for birds under threat, and share knowledge and raise awareness among community members, and form collaborative partnerships with groups and Indigenous owners that manage the land on which birds belong.

Festival Director

Dr Amanda Lilleyman conceived the Darwin-Garramilla Shorebird Festival after realising that many people in the Darwin-Garramilla community are obsessed with shorebirds! People make earrings and t-shirts of Bush Stone-curlews. A bird species that was voted as the ‘Top Bird of the Top End’ in 2020! Volunteers are out counting birds every month at a variety of locations. And there is even a selection of cocktails at Dom’s Bar and Lounge named after shorebirds! People love these special birds because they live amongst us on the beaches, shores, and grasslands. What better way to celebrate them than with a weekend-long festival!