Great Knot
This is a endangered shorebird which has been seen to habitat in the wetlands and shores of Western Port Bay. Each year, these birds, along with many other shorebirds, will make the extraordinary trip from Australia to Siberia to breed, then come all the way back during the winter of the North. They do this every year, flying between hemispheres without stopping for up to weeks, only stopping for short breaks to feed in Southern and Central Asia. Due to the destruction of key wetlands, their numbers have shrunk.
Swamp Skink
This is an endangered lizard which walks the swamps of Victoria. It can grow up to 25cm in length and has a colour which ranges from greenish to yellowish brown. Due to a range of factors from drainage of swamp territory, urban development, water quality to feral predators like cats and foxes the number of Swamp Skinks has dwindled. The Cardinia Shire, Baw Baw Shire and Mornington Peninsula area has one of the largest recordings of still existing Swamp Skink habitats.
Short-finned Eel
This is an eel which can reside in the intels, rivers, ponds and so forth in South Eastern Victoria. Much like the shore bird they have extraordinary migratory habits. When they reach maturity, they will travel from freshwater to the sea, migrating thousands of kilometres to the Coral Sea near New Caledonia to breed. The new spawns start off as transparent, called ‘glass eels’ where they will keep growing on their journey back to the freshwaters of South Eastern Australia or New Zealand. They can even travel on moist land to jump between rivers. Same as Shorebirds, it’s not certain how they all know where and when exactly to travel to places some may have never been before.
