However we find we would like to hold one more hard 
copy of the following four editions. 
Aug 1976 #46, Jan 1993 #112, Apr 1993 #113, July 1993 
#114, Oct 1993 #115 
Please email the librarian if you can donate anyof the 
above Tasmanian Naturalists. 
librarian@tasfieldnats.org.au 
Letters to the Editor 
Citizen Science 
Dear Tas Field Nats, 
My first citizen science paper just came out and I would 
like to thank everybody who helped to support this, 
particularly all the wonderful volunteers spreading 
brochures, all the participants and the TFNC committee 
in particular for being so supportive from the start of 
this project. 
Here is the link to the paper and some media coverage: 
http://iournals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/iour 
nal.pone.0161447 
http://phvs.org/news/2016-09-historical-coexistence- 
dingoes-bandicoot-domestic.html 
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/09/1609Q 
7143121.htm 
There will be updated information on the project's 
Facebook page (Backyard Wildlife Hobart) and I will be 
back in Hobart briefly around Christmas when I have 
scheduled a public lecture for the 19 Dec in the 
conference room under the Town Hall. Bookings will be 
required closer to the date. 
With kind regards from Germany , 
Anke Frank 
(These links are also available on the TFN website on a 
new page entitled Research News. Ed.) 
Water birds on the Huon 
I would be grateful if you could help me in my search for 
information on changes in the numbers of water birds 
on the Huon River and its estuary. 
I have often speculated on the reasons for the relatively 
small numbers of waterfowl in the Huon's wetlands and 
marshes. 
I've read the Huon Collaboration Report Card 2015 and 
skimmed the 2012 "State of the D'Entrecasteaux 
Channel and the lower Huon Estuary" by Karen Parsons, 
plus a 1998 report. Taken together they are not that 
encouraging. 
The current Report Card notes a marked decline in the 
nitrogen load and other pollutants from fish farms, but 
on the negative side toxic algal blooms, loss of sea grass, 
shrinking wetlands and inedible shellfish are not so 
good. 
The 1998 Huon Estuary Study mentions, "The pesticides 
results do indicate that there is not gross contamination 
from these contaminants (modern pesticides) in the 
Huon Estuary. One disturbing aspect, nevertheless, is 
the high concentrations of DDT and DDD in the sediment 
sample from Hospital Bay". The authors recommend 
further work on this as their sampling was merely part of 
a "scouting study." 
The Tasmanian Planning Commission's "State of the 
Environment Report 2009: Waterbird Population 
Trends" mainly concerns itself with ducks, a shooters 
perspective, and doesn't cover the Huon. 
Do TFN members know of any further studies carried 
out on the Huon River? 
French explorers, British explorers and early settlers of 
the area remarked on the huge numbers of swans and 
other waterfowl. At 88 Nathalie Norris, orchardist of 
Fortescue Bay, remembers plentiful waterfowl in the 
1930's. 
Wetlands in many other places still teem with bird life. 
Even the Port Cygnet Conservation Area isn't really 
teeming with the numbers one would expect to see. 
There's something amiss. 
Given the paucity of official records it's time to look 
elsewhere. A wider net needs to be cast to search local 
memories and records. There should also be 
photographs giving evidence of the river's bird life from 
the 1850's on. 
If you are able to shed any light on this topic please 
contact me. 
Phil Gorman 
(03) 6295 1151, Address: PO Box 218, Cygnet 7112. 
Email: phil.gorman@iinet.net.au 
Corinna Frogs request 
The following request was received by email. Please 
contact Corinna Wilderness Experience by the provided 
email address if you can assist. 
Hi, 
Im trying to locate a list of frogs found within 10km of 
Corinna, Tasmania. Are you able to help me with this or 
could you please point me in the right direction? 
Kind regards 
Kelly, Manager, Corinna Wilderness Experience 
Your letters and observations are always welcome for 
publication in this Bulletin. Please email them to the 
editor at tfn.bulletin.editor@gmail.com 
Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club 
Page 8 
BULLETIN 364 September 2016 
