William and Patricia Fortier are the owners of Ambervale, a property located in Lisarow, approximately 7km North-East of Gosford, New South Wales. The property is a disused hobby farm now acting as a dedicated wildlife sanctuary, with William and Patricia also being involved in wildlife rehabilitation and agriculture on the land. It is their intention to restore and rehabilitate wildlife habitat on Ambervale, with an emphasis on the diversification of biodiversity in the area. William and Patricia hope to educate and encourage locals to follow his lead in extending a vegetated corridor to the nearby Katandra Reserve. The sanctuary is also a member of the Land for Wildlife program.
The sanctuary covers 3.17 hectares primarily featuring regenerated native grasses, blue gums and other native vegetation species. The property is adjacent to a wetland and features a wildlife corridor that runs along a ridge.
The wildlife species present on Ambervale are numerous and include swamp (Wallabia bicolor) and red-necked (Macropus rufogriseus) wallabies, ringtail (Pseudocheirus peregrinus) and brushtail (Trichosurus vulpecula) possums, antechinus (Antechinus spp.) and native bush rats (Rattus fuscipes). A number of breeding raptor species such as peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus), little eagles (Hieraaetus morphnoides) and whistling kites (Haliastur sphenurus) are also present, as well as several native reptile species and an abundance of frogs and insects.
