Community heeds call to Turn off for Take-off

Over the last few weeks, the community came together in the name of the Short-tailed shearwater, one of the few migratory seabirds which come to Australia to breed.

Also known as mutton-birds or Py-er-din / Biyadin by the Bunurong, every year these incredible birds fly all the way from Alaska to nest on Phillip Island,

Pairs lay just one 85 gram egg which is incubated for around 53 days. The parents feed their chick while young, then leave them alone for up to two weeks while they forage. By March the parents have commenced their long flight back north from Australia up to Japan, then via Siberia to the north of Alaska where food is abundant.

Now alone, the chick stays in the burrow for the next 3-4 weeks converting fat and oil reserves into muscle while replacing down with adult feathers. Eventually the chicks are ready to follow the migratory path a few weeks later – usually in late April to early May. They await strong winds of 40km/h or more to help them soar off the cliffs where their burrows are on Phillip Island.

This year a record-breaking 700,000 shearwater chicks departed, with the community supporting their first take off by switching off lights that can disorient and cause casualties of the young birds.

Phillip Island Nature Parks runs the Dark Sky So Shearwaters Fly campaign annually to educate and encourage residents, businesses, and visitors to support the species in several ways.

Lights from houses, businesses and streetlights can disorient young birds, causing crash landings on roads which is dangerous for both birds and motorists.

In response, a large part of the campaign was focussed on reducing light pollution and this year there was an overwhelmingly positive community response, with over 30 businesses in the flightpath signing up to take part. 

Residents who lived in the predicted flight path received a flyer to encourage them to take part in turning off outdoor lights at their homes.

Rangers from the Nature Parks monitored wind speeds, and predicted nights for departure were identified. In response, lights on the San Remo bridge turned off from April 26 to 29 and May 2 and 3.

Businesses located in the flight path were also asked to turn off their outdoor lighting for the “lights out” dates. 

Most of the shearwaters are believed to have left on May 2 and 3 when winds were strongest.

At the Penguin Parade Visitor Centre, where the birds are often seen soaring at dusk, environmentally sensitive lighting was installed in 2018 with WE-EF LIGHTING. This protects the birds during the Dark Skies campaign and provides an ongoing safe nesting area for the shearwaters when they return later in the year to begin their annual cycle again.

The low impact lights are also beneficial to other wildlife in the area including Little Penguins and Eastern-barred bandicoots.

To assist road safety during the campaign, signs indicated the likelihood of birds on roads, and speed limits were reduced in some areas to 40km to allow drivers the ability to stop at short notice to reduce casualties of shearwaters who had crash landed.

The patrols run by rangers from the Nature Parks to monitor for injured or dead birds totalled over 100 hours, and a total of 419 birds were rescued and relocated. The busiest days for rescuing were Friday April 28 and Sunday April 30.

The wildlife clinic team and rangers would like to thank all those who reported an injured or deceased bird through the reporting hotline or website as this directly contributed to their timely removal from roads.

Phillip Island Nature Parks would like to acknowledge the partners who helped the campaign’s success including Bass Coast Shire Council, Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, Regional Roads Victoria, WE-EF LIGHTING, AusNet Services and the San Remo Foreshore Committee of Management.

A special thanks to the involved businesses who turned off their displays and outdoor lighting at night during the take-off period including Bass Coast Secondary College San Remo Campus, Bendigo Bank San Remo, Bottle-O Surf Beach, Burger Bar, Burnt Toast, Dar Boo Hair, Shorelec, IGA San Remo, Evans Quarries, First Choice Estate Agency, Fish and Chip Co Op, Full Circle, Garth Lisle, JLA Advisory, Newhaven College, Newhaven Boys Home, Newhaven Info Centre, Newhaven Primary School, Newhaven Soccer Club, Newhaven Veterinary Clinic, Phillip Island Helicopters, Rip Curl, San Remo Pharmacy, Smiths Beach Store, Stockdale & Leggo San Remo, The Chocolate Factory, The San Remo Hotel, The Westernport Hotel, The Yards, Vietnam Veterans Museum, and Westernport Water.

The team at the Nature Parks is extremely appreciative to the community who helped enable a safe departure for shearwater chicks. Complying with reduced speed limits, reporting injured birds, and protecting shearwater habitat were vital to the project and could only be achieved with the support of the community. 

To learn more about the Dark Sky So Shearwaters Fly campaign head to www.penguins.org.au/about/local-community/news/short-tailed-shearwater-great-migration