Foundation for Rabbit-Free Australia Inc, Media Release, 27 February 2024
What happens when a bush concert is facing cancellation, and how can Easter Bilby help? That’s the storyline in ‘Banjo Frog’s Concert Spectacular’, a new children’s book released by Foundation for Rabbit-Free Australia in conjunction with Wakefield Press.
It is all part of a new ‘Easter Bilby’s Friends’ initiative from the Foundation, aimed at sharing stories about the native plants and animals harmed by rabbits, and the people doing their bit to help the plants and animals recover.
‘Foundation for Rabbit-Free Australia has a vison of Australian landscapes that are productive, have healthy diverse vegetation, and support native animals and livestock; free of the nation’s worst vertebrate pest, the wild European rabbit,’ said Wayne Meyer, Chair of Rabbit-Free Australia.
‘We promote research into better ways to control wild rabbits, and raising awareness about rabbits and the harm they cause is part of our role,’ he said.
The ‘Easter Bilby’s Friends’ initiative is spearheaded by children’s books and supported by a Easter Bilby’s Friends website.
‘Banjo Frog’s Concert Spectacular’ is the first of a planned series of books, with one to be released each year telling stories from different parts of Australia. ‘Banjo Frog’s Concert Spectacular’ will entertain children and adults alike, while also providing an environmental message and concluding with a sense of hope and new life – the essence of what Easter Bilby is all about,’ said Adj Prof Meyer.
The book is the work of creative forces Kristin Martin (author) and Bianca Richardson (illustrator), and features a banjo frog, southern brown bandicoot and glossy black cockatoo, as well as Easter Bilby. It and the website were recently launched in Adelaide and followed up with a launch at Rapid Bay as a ‘thank you’ for the community in which the book is set, the southern Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia.
For more information see the Easter Bilby’s Friends website or order a book from Wakefield Press. A final Banjo Frog event will be held in Mount Gambier on Sunday, March 17. Details here.
