Sunday afternoon in the Muckleford bush was grey and gloomy, devoid of birds.
As I passed a lone Cherry Ballart beside the track, things changed in an instant. This marvellous species is a magnet for small birds and well worth using as a cue for searching. A mixed party of Superb Fairy-wrens, Brown Thornbills, Buff-rumped Thornbills, a pair of Scarlet Robins, a Grey Shrike-thrush and a Grey Fantail were all quietly foraging around the tree and amongst the foliage.
After some brief ‘googling’ I came across a nice paper from 2009 on the relationship between bird abundance and habitat features at Clarkesdale Sanctuary (near Linton, south of Ballarat) …
Generalised linear modelling showed that total bird abundance was positively related to the cover of planted native vegetation, native low shrubs and young wattles Acacia spp. and to the presence of indigenous Cherry Ballart ‘Exocarpos cupressiformis’.
I then recalled a note about Cherry Ballart that I posted in 2019, which includes a link to an article in The Conversation by Gregg Muller … well worth a read.
I’ll do some more research on this topic, so stay tuned.
Buff-rumped Thornbill, Tunnel Track, Muckleford Nature Conservation Reserve, 11th June 2023
Female Scarlet Robin
Superb Fairy-wren, immature male
Superb Fairy-wren (female)
Brown Thornbill
Reference: Loyn, R., Faragher, J., Coutts, D., & Palmer, G. (2009). Bird Responses to Targeted Revegetation: 40 Years of Habitat Enhancement at Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary, Central-Western Victoria. Australian Field Ornithology, 26(3), 53–75.
Natural Newstead 
Thanks so much Geoff,
I love Cherry Ballart. Snacked on them at the beach when we were kids. I’ve been gathering info about this terrific tree for an Instagram post, as it’s also a great dye and timber carving source. Might I quote from (and attribute) you when the time comes?
Also, my apologies for possibly looking blank when you greeted me warmly at the Newstead Arts Hub some months back. I was in another world and it was only after the moment passed that I realised it was you!
I hope I have another chance to talk soon. Yours in gratitude, Ilka
Thanks Geoff – Greg Muller’s piece is a ripper- beautifully written.
The under appreciated Cherry Ballart is a gift to our landscape. Thanks @Geoff.
I had an amazing experience of being enveloped by a swarm of fast moving small birds when standing under a Cherry Ballart tree near the Unknown Miner’s Grave at Moonlight Flat. I call it my Australian ‘Francis of Assissi’ moment and it has stayed vividly in my memory. Your article has given me an explanation.