The Monaro is comprised of a number of ecological communities, one such community being the endangered natural temperate grassland. These grasslands are not only iconic to the Monaro basalt country, but are also home to a rich variety of unique flora and fauna, many of which are now listed as threatened. Upper Snowy Landcare Network is engaged in a number of advocacy and education programs aimed at boosting awareness of our grasslands, and the incredible forms of life found within them.
Grassland Earless Dragon Program
Throughout the second half of 2024 we have been rolling out an educational program, partnered with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment, and Water, to educate students about the Monaro Grassland Earless Dragon, a threatened species endemic to the Monaro region. We are delivering a presentation to students, aimed at teaching them about the dragon’s habitat and diet, physical characteristics, current monitoring programs, and the key threatening processes leading to their decline including land management regimes and feral species. This is followed by an identification activity, and a craft activity where students get to paint their own 3D model of the dragons. These models were scanned from a Earless Dragon specimen and then 3D printed.
We have attended 5 schools across the Monaro region, engaging with about 140 students who have responded with interest and enthusiasm to learning about this unique reptile. We are hoping to teach people the value of these grasslands through inviting interest in the species which live in them and are found nowhere else in the world.
