Serendip Sanctuary

Serendip Sanctuary is a 250 ha protected area in Victoria, Australia, near the You Yangs and the town of Lara, some 22 km north of Geelong and 60 km south-west of Melbourne. Originally used for farming and other purposes, it was purchased in 1959 by the State Government of Victoria for wildlife research and the captive management and breeding of species threatened in Victoria, such as the brolga, magpie goose, Australian bustard, and bush stone-curlew.

The sanctuary contains many different types of wetland and is home to many plant species as well, such as river red gums, tall spikerush, and tussock grass. Serendip now focuses more on environmental education about the flora and fauna of the wetlands and open grassy woodlands of the Volcanic Western Plains of Victoria. It was opened to the public in 1991 and is now managed by Parks Victoria.

Serendip Sanctuary is located in the traditional Country of the Wadawurrung People. Wadawurrung Country covers over 10 000 square kilometres from the Great Dividing Range to the South Coast, including the Geelong and Ballarat greater districts. According to the Dreamtime legend, Wadawurrung Country was created over 60 000 years ago, when ‘Bunjil’, a Wedge-tailed eagle, summoned six men, all who were birds, to help create the land, the people and all living organisms. Bunjil taught the people social laws and rules, and how to respect the land of his creation. Once Bunjil had finished, he gathered his wives and his children, ordering ‘Belin-Belin’, who was in charge of the winds, to release a wind so strong it created the trees and plants. Belin-Belin's final release of wind was so strong it carried Bunjil and his family to the heavens. Bunjil became the star, Altair and his wives became stars on either side of him.

The first European settlers arrived in Geelong in 1836, entering Wadawurrung Country. The rapid colonisation introduced a wave of disruption on the land, people, animals and culture. Country dispossession, language erasure and cultural nomenclature were prolifically diminishing Wadawurrung culture. The Wadawurrung population began to perish following the introduction of foreign disease including smallpox, plagues, and sexually transmitted diseases that were carried by the European settlers and their animals. Traditional native animals became endangered from the failed fusion of exotic animals such as rabbits, foxes, and dogs, that preyed on traditional animals and food vegetation resources. Wadawurrung culture never recovered from the rapid colonisation and subsequent environmental, health and culture changes, thus diminished their prevalence as a result.

Serendip Sanctuary is fitted with various tourist-friendly facilities for recreational, educational and bird watching purposes. Facilities include:

Barbecue area Toilets Walking trails Outdoor learning centre Classroom Picnic area Bird hides Flight aviaries

Serendip offers an extensive range of tourist activities. Such activities include bird watching, bushwalks, tours, and provided recreational areas for visitors. Serendip is home to over 150 species of native birds, fitted with accessible bird hides and flight aviaries for bird watching. There are four interconnecting walking tracks throughout the park for viewing of wildlife. Parks Victoria offers a free Junior Ranger's Program at Serendip, where families with young children can partake in educational park-based activities during school holidays and weekends.

Serendip is involved with various breeding programs for endangered bird and animal species. The park provides a holding facility for captive breeding and management of the Eastern Barred Bandicoot as part of the National Recovery Plan for the Eastern Barred Bandicoot. Serendip is involved with repopulation of various bird species including the Magpie Goose, Australian Bustard, and the Brolga. The park provides a captive breeding program for these bird species to rehabilitate rare or near-extinct birds on the Western Plains.

Serendip is positioned within the grassy woodlands and wetlands in the Volcanic Western Plains of Victoria. The biodiversity among these environments allows many native florae to thrive. Plant species that exist within Serendip include a variety of trees, shrubs, graminoids, and ferns. Some of these include Austral Bracken, Wattle, Narrow-leaf Peppermint, Yellow Box and Red River Gumtrees, Tussock Grass and Water Ribbon Arrow Grass.There is a diverse range of fauna within Serendip due to the various ecological habitats including the wetlands and grassy woodlands. Animal species range from birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles. The most prevalent animals include the Australian Bustard, Brolga, Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Swamp Wallaby, Herons, Ducks and Magpie Geese.

Serendip is composed of wetland and grassy woodland ecosystems allowing for different flora and fauna species to thrive in diverse habitats. The park exhibits the open wetlands of the Volcanic Western Plain through its three main wetland types; open wetland, shallow freshwater wetland and marshland. The permanent open wetland located on the North Arm is responsible for thriving fish populations providing food for different breeds of fishing birds within Serendip. The shallow freshwater wetland is ephemeral to Serendip, with a pattern of desiccation every 2–3 years. This specific wetland is dependent on water flow from the You Yangs water catchment. Serendip has marshland (or marsh wetlands), forming transitions between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The marshlands consist of varying depth, dominated by copious grasses, ruses and reeds.Grassy woodlands are another prime ecosystem within Serendip. These areas are limited within the Victorian Volcanic Plain due to farming practises, burning regimes and weed invasion, making Serendip's grassy woodlands of high conservation value. Serendip's grassy woodlands are primarily made up of eucalypts creating an open tree canopy with a native understorey.