PLANS are in motion to fill the Ess Lagoon with wildlife – although it won’t be the kind to harass you for food or attention.

Year 11 and 12 students in Casterton Secondary College’s personal development class are working with the Glenelg Shire and the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority to install around a dozen life-sized sculptures of native animals along the trail surrounding the lagoon.

Already, there is a metal artist on board for the project – Melissa Beaty from Lake Bolac’s Parupa Metal Art – and last week, students visited and surveyed the lagoon to determine the best places to host each of the animals.

They range from Australia’s most famous marsupials, to birds among the trees and fish just out of the water.

College Vice-Captain, Kais Parsons said they would be seeking out locations with ample space and capacity to hold each animal.

“Also, we don’t want to interfere with anyone’s fishing spots, of course,” he said.

One consideration he noted was allowing ground-level animals to be thicker and heavier.

“If someone tried to steal them, they’d be too heavy for them to move, basically,” he said.

It is hoped the sculptures will boost tourism in the town, with the eventual plan being to add QR codes to each one to link visitors to more information about the animals, such as their biology, habitats and endangered status.

Faith Roper and Jo McKenzie have jointly guided the cohort in their project.

At this stage, it is hoped at least some of the sculptures will be in place before Christmas.

Some, such as the fish to rise above the lagoon, will have to wait until February next year, when the water level is down.