Loses His
Written by Josie & Matthew Wright-Simon Illustrated by Robin Green
50% of the proceeds from this book will be donated to the MurrayCare Foundation Published by the River Murray Urban Users Local Action Planning Committee <www.murrayusers.sa.gov.au> Text copyright © M & J Wright-Simon, 2006. Illustrations copyright © R Green, 2006. The moral right of the authors and illustrator have been asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this book, unless specifically permitted under the Copyright Act 1968 as amended. National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data: Wright-Simon, Josie. Rusty Loses His Loop For children aged 4 to 7 years. ISBN 0 9578087 8 X. 1. Birds - South Australia - The Coorong - Juvenile fiction. 2. Coorong, The (S. Aust.) - Juvenile fiction. I. Wright-Simon, Matthew. II. Green, Robin, 1977- . III. River Murray Urban Users Local Action Planning Committee (S. Aust.). IV. Title. A823.4
Written, illustrated, edited and designed by Ecocreative <www.ecocreative.com.au> Printed with vegetable inks on paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council <www.fsc.org> This recycled paper has 80% post-consumer waste and 20% chlorine-free virgin fibre.
Printed and distributed with the support of the South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board and the Department of Education and Children’s Services of the Government of South Australia.
Loses His
Written by Josie & Matthew Wright-Simon Illustrated by Robin Green
When the first cold winds of winter blow through Siberia, Rusty the Red-necked Stint flies to the other side of the world, to his second homeâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the Coorong in South Australia.
“I love it here,” says Rusty to Ngori the Pelican as they chase each other in and out of the tall, green reeds. “Me too,” says Ngori.
Rusty wades along the mudflats finding things to eat. He likes the polychaete worms best of all. He dips his beak into the soft, wet mud to find them.
At the end of the summer, Rusty is bursting with energy and ready for his long flight.
â&#x20AC;Ś all the way back to Siberia.
One year, Rusty arrives at the Coorong and looks around with a little frown. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Something is not quite right here,â&#x20AC;? he says.
“The water is too salty,” explains Ngori, “plants are getting sick and there are less fish, bugs and worms for us to eat.”
When Rusty heads off for Siberia, he is hungry and not as energetic as usual.
â&#x20AC;Ś but he does not loop. Rusty is just too tired to loop.
A year later, Rusty returns to the Coorong to find that the water is even saltier than before. “There just isn’t enough fresh water to keep the plants and animals healthy,” says Ngori.
Rusty spends so much time looking for food that he hardly gets to play with Ngori at all.
On the flight back to Siberia,
â&#x20AC;Ś but he does not dart and he does not loop. He is just too tired to dart or loop.
There is even less fresh water in the Coorong the following year.
“Where are the other birds?” Rusty asks. “They have gone somewhere else to look for food,” replies Ngori. “I hope they come back soon,” says Rusty, sadly.
Rusty heads back to Siberia with an empty stomach and a heavy heart.
â&#x20AC;Ś but he does not spin and he does not dart and he does not loop. Rusty is just too tired to spin, or dart, or loop.
Flying over farms and towns the following year, Rusty notices people everywhere are using TOO MUCH WATER. “This is where the Coorong’s water is going,” says Ngori.
“Oh, Ngori,” cries Rusty as they land on the salty mudflats, “if it is worse next year, I will need to go somewhere else to find food. If only people could use less water …”
Rusty says goodbye to Ngori and sets off for the long flight.
He does not dive and he does not spin. He does not dart and he does not loop.
all the way bac n w k to Ru do d sty n Sib a p eri sim u s a. g ply b n i w eats his
Photograph: Greg Holland
Rusty Loses His Loop is based on real predicaments faced by Red-necked Stints and other animals at one of the world’s most important wetlands. Only weeks after they hatch in Siberia, these tiny migratory birds fly south for the winter. Many bird species make the lagoon and estuary mudflats of South Australia’s Coorong their second home. Red-necked Stints habitually return to the same place for their entire lives, covering a distance equivalent to that between the Earth and the moon! Extraction of water for human use along the length of the River Murray has led to a lack of ‘environmental flows’ of fresh water in the river system. This has had a particularly negative effect on the ecology of the Coorong and the Murray Mouth, the river’s only exit point to the sea. Coorong salinity levels have risen to many times that of sea water in areas that once had a better mix of fresh and salty water. This has seriously affected species represented by characters in the story. Rusty Loses His Loop depicts some of these impacts and identifies the human use of River Murray water as the main cause of Rusty’s problems. After reading this story to children, it is important to discuss how we can help Rusty and his friends (rather than put the book straight back on the shelf). The creators of this book have put together a booklet for teachers that is freely available online for anyone wanting to find out more.
Red-necked Stint (Calidris ruficollis)
This booklet provides background information and many fun, educational activities to help children (and grown-ups) learn more about Red-necked Stints and what we can do to help restore the health of Australia’s rivers. Visit www.murrayusers.sa.gov.au/rusty and follow the links. A bit about names Polychaete (pronounced “polly-keet”) worms are Rusty’s favourite food. Polychaete means ‘many bristles’. These marine worms belong to the same family as earthworms and leeches. Ngori, Rusty’s best friend, is an Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus). Pelicans are very well known at the Coorong and have long had a special significance to the region’s Indigenous people, the Ngarrindjeri. The ‘Ng’ in ‘Ngori’ is pronounced like the ‘ng’ in ‘sing’ and sounds similar to a noise pelicans make. The book’s publishers thank the Ngarrindjeri Heritage Committee Inc. for permission to use this word in Rusty Loses His Loop.
A little bird named Rusty flies from Siberia to Australia to find his Coorong home is starting to change. The water is too salty. Plants are getting sick and the birds are getting hungry. Every year Rusty returns to find the situation is getting worse and worse. More fresh water is needed for the Coorong and River Murray to become healthy again. ISBN 0-9578087-8-X
This book invites us to become part of the solution: letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s start saving water now!