2011
Bondi Whale Festival Sunday 3rd July 10.00am to 3.30pm – Bondi
Pavilion forecourt in front of the Marine Discovery Centre
One of the
best things about winter in Sydney is that the whales start to go past our
shores – and the beginning of July is the peak time to see them!
Come along
to the Marine Discovery Centre in Bondi Pavilion to celebrate the 2nd annual
Bondi Whale Festival on Sunday 3rd July from 10.00am to 3.30pm.
Visitors
can meet “Venus”, a life-size 15metre inflatable Humpback whale and her calf
(photo on left); win great prizes by following the clues on the ‘Whale Trail’
and decorating your own ‘Save the Whale Tail’ (hundreds of which will be put
into the sands of Bondi at the end of the day to create a giant whale tail
visual that says ‘hands off our humpbacks’!).
Even if you
can’t come down on the day, why not download
a Whale Tail, colour it in and post to the MDC by Friday 1st
July for a chance to win!
The prizes
include a family whale watching boat trip from True Blue Cruises and lots of
others!
You can
also learn lots more about whales and what we can do to protect them with
experts from whale conservation organisations at info-stalls on the Pavilion
forecourt.
The
highlight of the day is a free guided whale-watching walk to Marks Park
Headland from 1:30pm (1.5hrs duration including a fascinating intro whale talk before
we leave). Bookings are essential; please e-mail marinediscoverybondi@yahoo.com.au
or call 9300 0242. Bring warm clothes and binoculars. Your friendly marine
mammal expert guide (Dr Michelle Blewitt)
will endeavour to answer all of your most burning questions, and as it is
during the peak of the whale migration past Bondi we are likely to see these
wondrous creatures first-hand; however, unfortunately sightings are not
guaranteed (we will definitely see an Aboriginal rock engraving of one mind
you!)
This
festival is on the day after National Whale Day on Sat 2nd www.nationalwhaleday.com.au, so
hopefully there will be able to be a big focus on how wonderful whales are
ahead of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting from July 11-14
where there is an agenda item Resurrecting
the “Compromise Plan” to Legitimize Commercial Whaling, which is
frankly quite a worry as our
whales may be able to be legally allowed to be hunted (yes, even some of our
beloved east coast humpbacks). According to the American Cetacean Society the
IWC (International Whaling Commission) annual meeting for 2011 the agenda has
been published and much to the surprise of the conservation NGO community, it
includes a Resolution by Chile, New Zealand, and the United States to “Maintain
Progress on the Future of the IWC” (the ‘Future of the IWC’ being an innocuous
name for the “Compromise Plan” advanced during the 2010 meeting to suspend the
international ban on whaling for a period of ten years). This means member
countries could possibly vote to end the 20 year moratorium on whaling!
We need as many Whale
Tails on Bondi Beach as possible to make a big sign to the world that
Australians say “Hands off our Humpbacks”!
It's not
all bad news - a special 2 for 1 discount for entry into the Underwater Bondi
Experience at the Marine Discovery Centre is available on the day, so please
bring your friends *
conditions apply.
Hope to see
you here!
Best, will
& MDC Team
This
event is made possible by sponsorship from Waverley Council’s
Environmental Services Sustainability Education Program – and is part of
the Bondi Winter
Magic Festival: www.bondiwintermagic.com.au
MORE
INFO:
To get up
to date information on the northern migration of Humpback Whales up the east
coast this season, go to NPWS’ great new website http://www.wildaboutwhales.com.au
– you can even become part of the Whale Tweeting club and give everyone an
alert as to where you have just seen whales http://twitter.com/wildaboutwhales.
The Oceania
Research Project, which has been studying and photographing Humpback Whales in
Hervey Bay for many years. Details of Humpback migration “The Never Ending
Journey”
http://www.oceania.org.au/education/migration/title.html
They also
have a book and DVDs (please mention that you heard about them from the MDC)
and you can apply to take part in their 2011 research expedition - 5 nights
living aboard a boat in Hervey Bay and helping with the research.