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Friends of Watson Green Space

The Friends of Watson Green Space is a volunteer group which aims to support the biodiversity and amenity of Watson Green Space—a large urban park in Watson. Watson Green Space has been known over the years by various names including ‘powerline park’, ‘the runway’ and the Stirling Street Easement. It is loved by local dog walkers

Friends of Watson Green Space works in the area to reduce weeds, improve habitat for local birds and animals, contribute to citizen science activities, build community knowledge of the local ecosystem, and create opportunities for people to become involved.

Friends of Watson Green Space is on the lookout for a new convenor. If you are interested, please contact friendsofwatsongreenspace@outlook.com.

History of the Group

Friends of Watson Green Space was founded in May 2022 by local volunteer, Veronica Walker.

Watson Green Space is an urban park that runs between Aspinall Street and Antill Street in the suburb of Watson. It is bordered by the Watson Woodlands / Justice Robert Hope Park— home to critically endangered Box-Gum Grassy Woodland—which connects to the Mount Majura Nature Reserve on the eastern side through partially cleared land. The site attracts many dog walkers some who live locally and some who travel from other parts of Canberra to get there.

Friends of Watson Green Space acknowledges that this area is Ngunnawal Land, home to the Ngunnawal people for generations. Friends of Watson Green Space pays respect to the traditional owners of the area, and other First Nations people with a connection to this land. We pay our respect to the elders—past, present and emerging and acknowledge that we have a lot of listening and work to do to at a local level to bring about truth and healing.

Friends of Watson Green Space forms part of the Watson Community Association and is a member of the Molonglo Conservation Group—the not-for-profit coordinator of Landcare and Park Care groups in the Molonglo and Queanbeyan River catchments of southern NSW and the ACT.

Friends of Watson Green Space have an Activity Action Plan developed under the ACT Government Transport Canberra and City Services Directorate (TCCS) Urban Parks and Places Volunteering program.

In 2024, Watson Green Space was selected as one of seventeen sites as part of the Connecting Nature, Connecting People Urban Connectivity Areas Project.

Connecting Nature, Connecting People is an ACT Government initiative aimed at supporting the movement of species across the landscape, enriching and building the resilience of urban biodiversity, enhancing our community's connection to nature and helping cool the city.

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Ecological value

Friends of Watson Green Space is a volunteer group which seeks to engage the community in maintaining and enhancing the degraded and fragmented habitat in the Watson Green Space. The Watson Green Space is likely to have been an open woodland or grassland area with wetland areas or small creeks which would have been tributaries to Sullivans Creek.

Watson Green Space would have once connected to the Crace Grasslands Nature Reserve. Watson Green Space is adjacent to the Watson Woodlands / Justice Robert Hope Park. The Watson Woodlands / Justice Robert Hope Park is on the lower slopes of Mount Majura Nature Reserve and forms part of a large woodland ridge system that stretches from the hills in Gungahlin, Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve and Goorooyarroo Nature Reserve, through to the Majura Valley, supporting wildlife movement through this area.

Waterways still flow through the Watson Green Space from Mount Majura and the Watson Woodlands—feeding into the Sullivans Creek network. Watson Green Space has two significant water bodies – one, a man-made dam known as Billabong Pond (now of city-wide fame as the site of the Watson Stick Library) and unnamed marsh pond to the southwest of Billabong Pond and next to Canberra Potters.

There are a significant number of remnant Yellow Box Gum trees on the site which provide nesting hollows for Gang Gang Cockatoos (Callocephalon fimbriatum), Galahs (Eolophus roseicapilla), Laughing Kookaburras (Dacelo novaeguineae), Little Corellas (Cacatua sanguinea), Sulphur Crested Cockatoos (Cacatua galerita), Rainbow Lorikeets (Trichoglossus moluccanus) and Common Ringtail Possums (Pseudocheirus peregrinus) to name a few. Tawny Frogmouths (Podargus strigoides) are commonly seen in the area and are a local favourite. These species have been photographed in the Watson Green Space and photographs are regularly shared on the Friends of Watson Green Space Facebook page or uploaded to Canberra Nature Map.

In addition, the Watson Green Space and Watson Woodlands are visited by migrating birds including the Swift Parrot (Lathamus discolor).

The site is visited by Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) and the occasional Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus), particularly in times of drought. One long term local resident reports seeing microbats at dusk every Summer. The species of bat is not known to Friends of Watson Green Space; however, the Australasian Bent-winged Bat (Miniopterus schreibersii subsp. Oceanensis) is listed by the ACT Government as a threatened fauna in the Watson Woodlands / Justice Robert Hope Park.

Common reptiles in the area include Eastern Blue Tongue Lizards (Tiliqua scincoides scincoides) and Shingle Backs (Tiliqua rugosa aspera). Residents have also sighted Eastern Brown Snakes (Pseudonaja textilis) and Red Belly Black Snakes (Pseudechis porphyriacus) in the area.

FrogWatch has been monitoring Billabong Pond since 2005 and a total of eight species have been detected – the Eastern Banjo Frog (Limnodynastes dumerilii), the Spotted Marsh Frog (Limnodynastes tasmaniensis), the Striped Marsh Frog (Limnodynastes peronii), the Eastern Signbearing Froglet (Crinia parinsignfera), the Common Eastern Froglet (Crinia signifera), Peron’s Tree Frog (Litoria peronii), the Whistling Tree Frog (Litoria verreauxii), and the Smooth Toadlet (Uperoleia laevigata). Billabong Pond is also monitored by WaterWatch.

Waterbirds frequent Billabong Pond and it is one of the best places to sight the Buff Banded Rail (Hypotaenidia philippensis) which is uncommon in the ACT. Other waterbirds that live at or visit the pond include the Pacific Black Duck (Anas superciliosa), the Purple Swamphen (Porphyrio porphyrio), the Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), the Little Black Cormorant (Phalacrocorax sulcirostris), the Black Swan (Cygnus atratus), the Australian Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus australis) and the Masked Lapwing (Vanellus miles). Eastern Long Necked Turtles (Chelodina longicollis) are commonly seen at the pond.

Ringtail Possums (Pseudocheirus peregrinus) are common in the area; however, recordings of other mammals are limited. Kreffts Sugar Gliders (Petaurus notatus) have been recorded nearby on the lower eastern slopes of Mount Majura Nature Reserve and may be present at the site.

There are several invasive species at the site which is of concern given its proximity to the Watson Woodlands. Common invasive species include Serrated Tussock (Nassella trichotoma), African Lovegrass (Eragrostis curvula), Chilean Needle Grass (Nassella neesiana), Capeweed (Arctotheca calendula), St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum), Paterson’s Curse (Echium plantagineum), Cootamundra Wattle (Acacia baileyana), Privet (Ligustrum spp.), Chinese Pistachio (Pistacia chinensis), English Ivy (Hedera helix), Cotoneasters (Cotoneaster spp.), English Hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata), Sweet Briar Rose (Rosa rubiginosa), Algerian Oak Trees (Quercus canariensis), Blackberry (Rubus spp.) and Periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus).

Some native grasses and forbs have been identified at the sight although detailed mapping has not occurred. There is a large patch of Rough Spear Grass (Austrostipa scabra) at the site, as well as some patches of Native Geraniums (Geranium solanderi), Native Bluebells (Wahlenbergia capillaris), Common Everlasting (Chrysocephalum apiculatum) and Climbing Saltbush (Chenopodium nutans).

Large numbers of Southern Blue Gum Trees (Eucalyptus globulus) have been planted along the Eucalypt Walk which runs parallel to Piddington Street. While these trees are not local and can be considered invasive, they provide a valuable food source for Gang Gang Cockatoos and are important nesting sites. Unfortunately, these trees also have no understory and therefore provide excellent habitat for Noisy Miners — the establishment of an understory and midstory would enhance the habitat value of these trees.

Small woodland birds are rarely seen—although long term residents report that they were once common when shrubby native vegetation grew under the powerlines. Small woodland birds are unlikely to return to the site without a reintroduction of understory and midstory plantings.

What's Going On

Citizen science: Watson Green Space has its own dedicated map on the NatureMapr Canberra Nature Map site. Canberra Nature Map is an amazing resource that allows you to contribute to Citizen Science by uploading sightings of the plants and animals, the photos are then viewed by expert moderators who identify the sightings. Please check it out and consider adding some sightings when you're on your next walk: Watson Green Space sightings and expert verified observations - Canberra & Southern Tablelands

Connecting Nature, Connecting People Urban Connectivity Areas Project: For this project, Friends of Watson Green Space plan to improve the connectivity between Billabong Pond and the marsh pond. This will include removing weeds and planting local native and threatened groundcover species and adding habitat logs and rocks between the two sites. This will provide safer passage for amphibians, reptiles and small mammals travelling between Billabong Pond and the marsh pond. We are working with Allan to seek the necessary approvals before work can commence.

Grassy woodland project: Volunteers are suppressing the weeds around the base of the Watson Green Space ‘Meeting Tree’ and replace them with plantings of native grasses and wildflowers.