It is with great sadness that we have resigned ourselves to post the news that Abi has picked up full time work elsewhere and has moved out from Araucaria Sanctuary to be closer to Ben and her now full-time jobs. We are going to miss her immensely!
Abi joined WIRES shortly after arriving in Australia (from the UK) in late 2019 (as the fires threatened). She was keen to get wildlife caring experience – particularly with bats. Abi did Hotline training at Araucaria in December and, with Nona departing for India, the opportunity was perfect for her to move in at Araucaria “for a couple of months”.
Abi fitted in so wonderfully… the joeys loved her and she was an enormous help with so many things. When COVID struck, bunkering down with the joeys and having quiet time for her book writing worked wonderfully for us all. Abi became the “pademelon queen”, taking the running with the little-uns that came into care.
Then we got a Squirrel glider joey into care and Abi took the running on raising little Acorn. Abi fell in love with gliders, and ended up raising and releasing quite a few in her year staying at Araucaria – particularly Maple, who was a tiny 11g joey who Abi cared for right through to release. Then in Flying-fox birthing season Abi (who was vaccinated) helped raise several little pups.
Aside from her help with wildlife rescue and care, Abi resurrected the vegetable garden so we had produce during COVID lockdown. She helped with tree propagation, planting and maintenance on the property and Ben learnt to climb trees to help put nest boxes up. Abi’s skills were numerous, from sewing pouches and growing mushrooms to making wine from the Rose Apple tree, Abi’s talents knew no bounds! AND she designed our Araucaria Sanctuary logo!
Abi and Ben did lots of bushwalking locally, and she has been pivotal in mobilising the community to save Bungabbee Forest from logging. Abi bought a spotlighting torch and got some great night shots of critters at Araucaria and at Bungabbee. And of course there is our forthcoming children’s book, a co-creation between Abi and Renata (stay tuned!).
It is impossible to list all the many things that Abi has contributed at Araucaria, and we are very fortunate to have had the 15 months of her helping us and the many animals. Fortunately, Abi isn’t too far away (yet) and will be visiting Araucaria regularly… but we do miss her enormously already.
Here are some more pictures from Abi’s stay!
