A Glebe resident who hasn’t been around as much as he used to…

A superb fairy wren

The Glebe Society received grant funding from the City of Sydney for a project aimed at community education and habitat conservation for Superb Fairy-wrens (more commonly known as Blue Wrens) in the Glebe/Forest Lodge area. A sub-committee of the Glebe Society was established to manage the project. The formal objective was to preserve and enhance the habitat for Superb Fairy-wrens in Glebe through research, on ground works and community education activities to achieve biodiversity conservation outcomes for the long term benefit of the whole community.

The Society engaged Sue Stevens, a Sydney-based ecologist, to research and map the current status of Superb Fairy-wrens in the project area and to produce a report including recommendations to the City of Sydney and other land managers such as Light Rail for conservation and management of Superb Fairy-wrens in Glebe. Thank you to all the people who helped with the community surveys! Click here to read the Superb Fairy-wren Report for Glebe and Forest Lodge

  • They live as a family group.
  • Only the mother sits on the eggs. The others in the group feed and protect the nestlings once hatched, leaving the mother to lay up to three broods per season.
  • Wrens have relatively weak powers of flight but long legs, so they spendmost of their time on the ground or in shrubs, going in a series of hops as they gather food.
  • They forage in groups – that way, insects disturbed by one bird may fall victim to another.
  • Nest building is done entirely by the female in 3-4 days, using spiders’ webs, fine twigs and grass then lined with wool, feathers or animal hair.
  • Plant a corner of your garden with native shrubs, especially those with prickly leaves and branches.
  • Keep a watchful eye on your dog and cat if you know Superb Fairy-wrens live nearby.
  • Plan your garden so that, over time, there is a variety of shrubs and open mulched areas or lawn

For more information:

Documents (.pdf format)

Links

  • Birds in Backyards – please use this link to record your sighting of wrens in Glebe
  • Blue Wren Habitat Conservation