Olivia and Bill Clarke
Among the many challenges of 2020 and again in 2021, has been the impossibility of holding Angair’s traditional, popular Wildflower and Art Show.
Bill and Olivia Clarke have addressed that challenge, working tirelessly to lead production of an online Angair Nature Show.
It is their particular interest and skills in digital technology that are at the core of their contribution to Angair. Bill brings extensive project management and IT experience. Olivia’s career focus has been the effective use of technology for learning. They initiated the digital asset management project (DAM). This work involves digitising the extensive collection of photographs and drawings of flora and fauna, as well as the diverse range of activities of Angair, collected over its 50-year history. This repository has been a crucial resource for creating the virtual nature show.
Their remarkable diligence and focus have proved invaluable in what has been a massive task. Essentially beginning with a blank canvas, this website has been designed, constructed and brought to the public domain.
They have inspired and coordinated a very diverse group of contributors: interacting with insight, persistence and good grace
Gail has coordinated the development of all the wonderful self-guided and videoed spring walks you see on the Nature Show website. She has led a dedicated team of volunteers who all share her passion for informing others about the extraordinary natural environment we have here in Anglesea and Aireys Inlet.
When I started to photograph birds and wildlife, I focused a lot on the birds of prey – eagles, falcons etc. When I slowed down and looked for the smaller species, I was amazed at the abilities they have. Little birds don’t really stop or slow down, to photograph them and capture them in a nice way is a hard task. Most birds are adept at flying, but watching a Superb Fairy-Wren fly at top speed through a shrub or a vine is quite amazing, the decision making and the coordination to do such is a great wonder. All the birds are a great wonder, I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I do
I started being Interested in birds in the early 1970s and birded alone for a few years using a bird book. I eventually joined Birdlife Australia, or the Bird Observers Club as it was then. This meant I was able to share information, and learn so much more about birds from experts. I had tried, but given up on learning about plants as no one book had the answers, and I had no mentors. In 1990, when we bought a house in Aireys Inlet, I joined Angair and finally found the perfect avenue for ‘scratching the itch”. I was blown away by my first Angair Flower Show and my first bus tour with Gwen, who was an early mentor. I was fortunate also to have Mary White as an early teacher, and then Margaret MacDonald and others such as Chris Morrissey. Mike Traynor the bird group leader, was a fount of bird knowledge. Birds and plants had finally come together for me. The only, and continuing, problem when going on walks is whether to look up or down! But then there is also fungi, bugs, and marine … So much to see and learn about! And what an amazing natural environment in which to live, with such bountiful and accessible biological diversity.
I am an enthusiastic bird photographer spending my retirement on the Surf Coast in Aireys Inlet, Victoria, after a career in education. I have been a hobby photographer since childhood but my interest in bird photography really began when I spent weekends in Aireys Inlet taking quick snaps of birds to use later as an aid to identification. 
I soon applied an artistic eye to the photographs and as my skills and equipment improved I sought to document the local species for publication. My aim is to increase awareness of birds and the need for habitat preservation.
Conservation Photographer
Margaret’s interest in the Anglesea-Aireys Inlet environment grew when she moved to Moggs Creek in 1989. She and her sister Kathie explored the district enthusiastically. Margaret also took every opportunity to accompany Mary White on field trips. Mary was keen to share her knowledge and Margaret equally keen to learn about the local flora and fauna. Mary became her mentor.
My first visits to Anglesea were as a scout camping in Eumeralla in the 1960’s. This instilled a strong love of the bush, the heath and the coast that has stayed with me throughout my life. I was an active photographer in my teens and twenties however family and work commitments dominated the next three decades. After reducing my work commitments as a scientist and moving (near) permanently to Anglesea with my wife Ursula in 2019, I have been able to contribute more time to Angair activities including a passion for bushwalking while documenting the seasonal changes in local flora and fauna photographically. Digital platforms including iNaturalist and Angair’s Digital Asset Management system provide powerful repositories for citizen science now and into the future. While the majority of my photos to date have been taken on my beloved Google phone – which works well for plants – I have recently started lugging around an SLR and big lens in an attempt to capture more images of local fauna.
Digital Image Editor