Friends of Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands

Welcome to the Friends of Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands

The Hide is open on most weekends and we invite you to come and get to know what lives behind the reeds

Details of opening days below.

Open	Closures
The Hide is open Saturdays and Sundays between 1 and 5 pm as shown below:-	-
Quarter 1 2025 - Sat 4 January to Sunday 30 March	Two Days : Saturday 8 Feb and Saturday 8 March
Sunday 2 February is World Wetlands Day- FESWI will hold a special event at the Bird Hide and details are below on this page	-
-

If you would like to volunteer for duty in the Bird Hide – you don’t have to have specialist knowledge, just be willing to engage with visitors – please email: vicepresidentfeswi@gmail.com

World Wetlands Day celebrates the signing of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance in Ramsar, Iran, in February 1971 and important role wetlands play in our environment and in conservation of migratory bird species.
We are lucky in our community to live with the Edithvale- Seaford wetlands, which is among these Internationally important wetland areas.

FESWI is celebrating World- Wetlands-day on Sunday 2nd February, between 1:00pm - 4:00pm at the Bird Hide in Edithvale Road. The Bird Hide will be signed and is 350 m west of the Education Center, toward Station Street. There will be –

Displays in the car park about the wetlands and their inhabitants - Local Birds, Migratory Birds, Frogs, Water Bugs.
Lots of activities for kids (Frog Quiz, Life Cycle Quiz, Migratory Birds Quiz, Fact Finding Treasure Hunt, Jigsaw Birds & ID birds)
Competitions (colouring in, guess the number).
Giveaways/handouts/take home activities.
Prizes.
A live Australian animal exhibit - a variety of lizards, pythons, a glider, frogs, and a wombat for attendees to interact with and get photos with.
Walks

Getting there and parking
Limited parking is available at the Bird Hide and around the Edithvale Recreation Area to the West . Edithvale Station is located less than a kilometre west down Edithvale Rd.

Facts about wetland areas:-

Almost 20,000 different plant and animal species depend on wetlands across the globe.
Wetlands naturally filter out pollutants from water, such as fertilizer runoff or heavy metals.
Wetlands can be used as low-cost natural water filters by treatment plants.
Wetlands can store up to 50 times more carbon than rainforests can.
Africa’s wetlands cover more than 131 million hectares of land.
Africa’s wetlands include rice groves, river basins, peatlands, and flooded forests.
Wetlands help to prevent flooding.
The largest wetlands in the world are the Pantanal Wetlands.
The Pantanal Wetlands cover between 54,000 and 75,000 square miles.
The only continent without wetlands is Antarctica.
Wetlands can be subdivided into different types, such as swamps, lagoons, mangroves, and floodplains.
Over 50% of the world’s wetlands exist within peatlands.
Wetlands can be used to combat global warming.
Wetlands are always under the threat of extinction.

The objectives of FESWI are to :

Promote and encourage the protection, rehabilitation and enhancement of the wetland area for the benefit of indigenous flora and fauna.
Encourage scientific study of the habitat, fauna and flora of the wetlands area.
Promote awareness and appreciation of the wetlands area as a significant habitat for migratory birds, for breeding waterfowl and for wading species.
Exchange information on bird species, other fauna, flora and habitat with other interested organisations and authorities both locally and overseas.

The Friends of Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands is a member of the Port Phillip Conservation Council.