Prizes for finding essential eucalypt

Children and their parents will be busy studying the trees at Broome Courthouse Markets during the Find the Ghost Gum competition this weekend.

The tree-spotting tournament celebrates National Eucalypt Day and asks participants to locate the elusive Cable Beach ghost gum, or Gunurru in Yawuru from 8am to 10am on Saturday.

The event is open to age groups from under 13, to age 14 to 17 and over-18s, with rewards for finding trees including cinema passes and Bunnings vouchers.

Environs Kimberley ecologist Dr Steve Reynolds said the rare tree was an important resource for birds, bats and native bees.

“Most people will have seen the Cable Beach ghost gum around Broome but wouldn’t be aware of how rare it is, and this is a great way of finding out more about it,” he said.

The project is funded by Eucalypt Australia in partnership with Environs Kimberley, the Society for Kimberley Indigenous Plants and Animals, Nyamba Buru Yawuru and the Broome Botanical Society.