AROUND 70 people turned out for Bellingen’s first Threatened Species Bake-Off at the Memorial Hall studio on National Threatened Species Day, Monday 7 September, sampling and voting on close to 30 cakes spread across four tables.
Entries spanned three divisions – Under 15s, Open Community, and Businesses, Schools, Agencies and Volunteer Groups.
Judging was left entirely to the public, with People’s Choice voting deciding first, second and third place in the Under 15s and Open Community divisions, and a single first prize in the business and groups category.
A near life-sized Largetooth Sawfish cake took out second place in the Under 15s, while a mud cake featuring the Spotted-tailed Quoll and Rose-crowned Fruit-dove took out the Open Community category.
Attendees were delighted by the focus on local species, including the Glossy Black-cockatoo, Grey-headed Flying-fox and nomadic Regent Honeyeater.
Special mention went to the visiting Mount Kaputar Pink Slug, a lesser-known but equally attractive species from inland NSW. The cake was created by the Never Never Catchment Group and won the Businesses/Groups category.
First prize in the Open Category was a Bird Language retreat with Andrew Turbill (aka Andrew The Bird Guy), while second and third prizes included a Jetty Dive whale-watching cruise and an Alternatives Bookstore voucher respectively.
The winner of the Under 15s received a Bellingen Canoe Adventures tour, while the winner of the Businesses & Groups category received a locally made artwork by Crystal Tate.
A panel of local biodiversity experts spoke on the Shire’s more than 130 threatened species, touching on insectivorous bats, shorebirds, threats to threatened ecological communities, the cultural significance of biodiversity, cultural burning practices, and how Landcare and environment groups work together to build habitat corridors across the Shire.
Panellists included representatives from Yurrungga Aboriginal Corporation and the Saving Our Species program, alongside local naturalists.
River and Biodiversity Officer Celeste Lymn, who organised the event, said she’d been anxiously awaiting the big day but was thrilled with the turnout.
Buoyed by the turnout, Council is already considering running the Bake-Off again next year — potentially in Memorial Hall’s main space to fit the crowd.
Local baker and ecologist Jess enjoyed the event, “Biodiversity conservation is such a challenge for society, and community events like this get us talking about and celebrating our love of nature — that is so important.”
Every baker went home with a free native plant, courtesy of Boggy Creek Natives.
While the local event is not formally linked to the national competition, any baker can also share photos of their creations on social media to go into the running to be crowned the national winner.
The cut-off for online entries is 15 September, 2026 and entries may be emailed to threatenedspeciescommissioner@dcceew.gov.au
This year is the national event’s 10th anniversary with a judging panel including Landcare Australia chair and musician Peter Garrett.
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