Whats that bloodcurdling shriek?
– Melanie Sim You could be mistaken for thinking someone is being murdered but no, that is just the call of the Curlew. Many a farmer would know of the Bush Stone curlew with it’s distinctive and spine tingling call and now landholders along the Southern Riverina are doing all they can to protect it. Foxes are one of their biggest predators. So to keep these predators at bay, Walla Walla landholder Allen Rainer has begun an extensive baiting program. But when Allen first heard the Curlew cry, preservation was probably far from his mind. “When we bought this farm, 25 years ago, we’d never seen or heard a curlew and I can still remember the bloodcurdling shriek that came from the back of the house, people wonder who’s been murdered down along the creek, but they’re a gorgeous creature they just stand all day about six feet apart. They get used to people and vehicles and they don’t even hide – they’re quite happy. It wasn’t until a few people told us that they were very, very rare birds t
