A mix of CSU staff and students volunteered their time to plant 140 species of native trees, shrubs and ground cover in a four-hectare section fenced off as a wildlife corridor, which circles around a dam and is used by birds to find food.

Co-ordinator of the tree planting school of agriculture and wine sciences lecturer Dr Cilla Kinross said most birds preferred to have vegetation to fly through and avoided flying over open ground.

“It will help link up the various wildlife corridors around campus, so they have a network of corridors to move around campus with, almost like a circuit,” Dr Kinross said.

She said 25 different species of plants were planted, including those from the eucalypt, acacia and banksia genera, which Dr Kinross said was important to give the area high biodiversity.

“It will help bring back a higher diversity of birds,” Dr Kinross said.

“We have thornbills, honeyeaters, whistlers. What we’d like to do is attract more robins back to the area. The idea is to plant more trees to get the yellow and a range of pink and robins local to the area back.”

First-time tree-planting volunteer Aranee Manorathan said a friend encouraged her to help out on the day.

The second year physiology student said it was important the university took measures to protect the environment.

“It feels like I’m doing something for the environment. It’s important to take care of the environment,” Miss Manorathan said.

The project was organised through CSU Green.