Full house in ‘Husky’

Above: Huskisson Pictures – a former community hall built in 1913.

On Thursday 23rd June, 170 nature lovers attended the evening screening of The Message of the Lyrebird, packing out the Huskisson Pictures auditorium; a quaint movie theatre in the picturesque seaside town of Huskisson, New South Wales.

The event was hosted by BirdLife Shoalhaven; a birding organisation who inspire action and find solutions to ensure birds and their habitats flourish. The organisation was one of the first branches formed [in 2014] after the BirdLife Australia merger; the only national organisation focused on conserving native birds.

Inside the latest BirdLife Shoalhaven magazine, president of the group, Rob Dunn summed up the award-winning Aussie bird film…

“This film explores the ongoing debate of the Superb Lyrebird’s mimicry of humans, as well as other birds. Insights [from experts] all teased out competing views in this amazing story.”

The feature touches on the devastation of the 2019/20 bushfires. These fires ripped through the coastal forests and severely impacted the Shoalhaven region. Since this time, the group has conducted enormous research and rigorous reports to examine changes in bird species richness and abundance. Their incredible work on the Bushfire Research Project (BRP) is thorough and inspiring.

“As birders, we think we know a lot about lyrebirds…” Rob said in the winter edition magazine… “But a special insight is given in the film by Frances Bodkin, a descendent of the Bidigal clan of the D’harawal Peoples…”

“We have a saying… to look to tomorrow, you must first know yesterday. And that’s exactly what the lyrebird does – it listens and learns.” –Frances Bodkin

Through ticket sales, the film night raised $1250 for the group. The organisation will draw on the funds to support its next major events as part of Bird Week, with Birds for Beginners talks and bird walks, and the Bird Haven Festival Conference on 22 October.