Forests NSW has a long history in wildlife identification and management and a continuing role in education, delivering wildlife schools across New South Wales.

According to Forests NSW south coast planning manager, Ian Barnes, the earliest wildlife school that can be recalled was in the late 1970s.

Two decades on, interest in forest wildlife became so focussed on threatened species that it sparked the need for a more specific wildlife school.

Today, threatened species management within NSW is governed by the Threatened Species Conservation Act which was passed through Parliament in 1995.

Wildlife schools continue to be an invaluable method for training and exposing Forests NSW staff to the latest findings and survey methodologies in threatened species management.

This success has lead to other state and federal government departments and private consultancy firms participating in these special schools.

The latest wildlife school was held at the Australian National University, Kioloa Coastal Campus, on the NSW south coast and focused on frogs, bats and reptiles.

Delivered by Frank Lemckert, Traecey Brassil and Brad Law from NSW Department of Primary Industries Science and Research, a total of 22 participants from Forests NSW, NSW Department of Environment and Conservation, the federal Department of the Environment and Heritage and private consultancies attended the course.

The school provided participants with both theoretical and practical experience in the ecology of individual species, identification methods and survey techniques specific to frogs, bats and reptiles.

Several live threatened species were available for viewing during the week.

For more information on wildlife schools and future participation please contact Frank Lemckert at NSW DPI on Ph: (02) 9872 0159.

This article appears in the Winter 2006 edition of Bush Telegraph Magazine.