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Published: Friday, 10 February 2012 13:55
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Written by Keith Lightbody

Perth has many interesting native birds right on the doorstep. You can walk to some of the locations mentioned below or catch a free Central Area Transit (CAT) bus*.
John Oldham Park - a series of lakes near the Narrows Bridge interchange. Hundreds of birds breed or visit here including cormorants, ducks, darters, coots, grebes, swamp hens, egrets, herons and black swans. A pair of black swans regularly breed here when conditions are favourable. Amazingly they often take the growing cygnets safely across 4 lanes of traffic to feed in the Swan River. Directions: get off the free Blue CAT bus at stop #19: Mount Hospital.
Kings Park - an internationally renowned bush treasure with a huge range of flora and birds - magic in spring but worth a visit all year round. Just some of the birds here include parrots, cockatoos, pardalotes, wattlebirds, honey eaters, wagtails, bronzewings, swallows, kingfishers and kookaburras. Birds Australia has a complete list of birds in their online guides** - including for Kings Park. On hot summer days it is best to visit early in the morning or late in the afternoon when it is cooler.
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Published: Wednesday, 08 February 2012 10:19
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Written by Melissa Luyke

It may not seem likely from the outside, but stepping inside the ground floor of 20 Kalinda Drive, the site of the former City Beach High School, visitors are immediately whisked away to a little piece of Japan. With tatami mats, shoji screens, Japanese dolls, and sake barrels on view, it is easy to believe that the Hyogo Prefectural Government Cultural Centre office is actually located somewhere in downtown Kobe rather than coastal Perth.
Established in 1992 to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the thriving Sister-State relationship between Hyogo Prefecture and Western Australia, the Cultural Centre is fully funded by Hyogo Prefectural Government in an aim to promote awareness of the Sister State relationship, act as a bridge of communication between Hyogo and WA, and support Japanese language and culture education in WA.
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