Flyways Upcoming Screenings  Click for tickets

Flyways Upcoming Screenings  Click for tickets

Screen Australia presents in association with Screen Queensland and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation A Storyland, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, ZED, the WNET Group and Public Television Service, Taiwan

Screen Australia presents in association with Screen Queensland and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation A Storyland, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, ZED, the WNET Group and Public Television Service, Taiwan

A Randall Wood film

A Randall Wood film

Written and Directed by: Randall Wood
Narration: Mia Wasikowska  |  Composer: Cezary Skubiszewski 
Produced by: Rebecca McElroy and Randall Wood  |  Principal Editors: Andrea Lang, Scott Walton A.S.E.  |  Senior Editor: Judy Yeh  |  Writers: Alex Barry, Suzanne Smith, Rebecca McElroy, Trish Lake  |  Director of Photography: Randall Wood  |  Production Manager: Jenine Olliver   |   Executive Producers: Aline Jacques, Odilla O’Boyd, Trish Lake, David Elisco, Sean B. Carroll, Christine Le Goff, Manuel Catteau, Wuan-Ling   |   Visual Effects: Andres Gomez Isaza

Written and Directed by: Randall Wood
Narration: Mia Wasikowska  |  Composer: Cezary Skubiszewski 
Produced by: Rebecca McElroy and Randall Wood  |  Principal Editors: Andrea Lang, Scott Walton A.S.E.  |  Senior Editor: Judy Yeh  |  Writers: Alex Barry, Suzie Smith, Rebecca McElroy, Trish Lake  |  Director of Photography: Randall Wood  |  Production Manager: Jenine Olliver   |   Executive Producers: Aline Jacques, Odilla O’Boyd, Trish Lake, David Elisco, Sean B. Carroll, Christine Le Goff, Manuel Catteau, Wuan-Ling   |   Visual Effects: Andres Gomez Isaza

With the world’s migratory shorebirds and their epic Flyways under threat, scientists, are in a race to map their journeys.

Shorebirds fly thousands of miles each year along ancient and largely unknown migratory routes called Flyways. Species travel from feeding grounds in the southern hemisphere to breeding grounds in the Arctic regions and back again, flying up to nine days non-stop without food or water. 

They are the world’s greatest endurance athletes and their navigational skills on these marathon migrations are as extraordinary as they are mysterious. However, Shorebird numbers are crashing.

A recent study from the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and collaborators reveals that we have lost 1/3 of our North American shorebirds since 1970, or 17 million shorebirds. 68% of shorebird species are in decline. Some species, like Lesser Yellowlegs and Red Knots have shown 70-95% declines.

Toondah Harbour Under Threat

Toondah Harbour is part of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and is home to internationally significant wetlands listed under the Ramsar Convention — a global treaty established to “halt the worldwide loss of wetlands.” These wetlands provide critical habitat for global populations of migratory bird species — including six per cent of all Eastern curlews and 50 per cent of all Grey-tailed Tattlers. It’s a last remaining stronghold for these birds in Australia’s East Asian Australasian Flyway.

Former Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg has progressed plans for Walker Corporation — one of Australia’s largest property development firms owned by billionaire Lang Walker — to dredge the Ramsar-listed wetlands at Toondah Harbour and build 3,600 luxury residences including high-rise apartments, a hotel and conference centre, retail space and marinas on canals in the bay. The $1.3 billion proposal will destroy 42 hectares of the Ramsar site and is supported by the Queensland state government and Redland city council.

The decisions surrounding Toondah Harbour provide a clear case study for how broken our environment laws are, and beg the question: if a protected area like this is not off-limits to inappropriate projects, what signal does it send to other developers?