Supporting biodiversity

Protecting the richness of the living world is central to our life support system.

Biodiversity is the variety of all living things; the different plants, animals and micro organisms, the genetic information they contain and the ecosystems they form. Discover the levels of biodiversity that work together to create the complexity of life on Earth.

Community gardens

Growing fruit and vegetables to eat from your own garden can be rewarding. Your local plant nursery should have some options, or at least a range of common seeds so you can tend nutritious plants from scratch.

Community gardens are also a way to share the care - and the bounty!

Learn more about permaculture, or join Permaculture Australia.

Protecting our biodiversity

Cats are awesome pets. But when left to roam outdoors, they are a threat to our native animals. Pet cats kill around 390 million animals per year in Australia. And while feral cats have caused some ground-dwelling birds and small mammals to go extinct in Australia, pet cats kill 30–50 times more animals per km2 around towns than feral cats do in the bush. Find out more about cats in Australia.

Keeping cats indoors keeps them, and our wildlife, safe. A cat can have an enriching life at home with climbing spaces, hiding areas, scratching posts, toys—and, of course, company and attention.

Frogs are vital to healthy ecosystems around waterways. So when you hear frogs call, that’s a good thing!

When you record the sound of a frog call through the Australian Museum’s FrogID app, it identifies the call from the 240+ known frog species in Australia. And, when you use the app, you contribute to a national citizen science project that helps scientists learn more about what is happening to Australia’s frogs.

Bees are essential to any ecosystem with plants. This is because the bees have ways of transferring pollen between different parts of plants, so the plants can reproduce.

There are around 1,700 native Australian bee species. Native bees pollinate native plant species. Many Australian plants can’t be pollinated by introduced bees such as the European honey bee.

You can attract and nurture native bees by helping them find a home. You could try building a ‘bee hotel’ by drilling holes into a piece of timber. And grow native flowering plants.

Find out more about Australian bees at Aussie Bee and Australian Native Bee Association.