Look at me

Amidst grey clouds and spots of rain we went for a long walk to the upper reaches of the Georges River scouting out possible platypus and owl locations. 

Along the way this delightful Variegated Fairy-wren graced us with his presence. He jumped among the branches showing off his breeding plumage, whilst the female timidly stayed hidden in the bushes.

Sad demise of a Collared Sparrowhawk

Over the last month we have been watching a group of birds flying between the trees near Lynwood Park soccer oval. At first the birds where so high up it was hard to identify what they where. After a few days we figured out they where Collared Sparrowhawks. 

For the last few days they have been missing and this morning we found one of the them dead. It appeared to be a juvenile and had an unusual dark green foam around its mouth and lots of greenish poo. The neck was very floppy but there where no visible external wounds.

So we wondered had the bird:

• eaten a poisoned animal
• been chased by a predator bird into a tree and crashed
• or what?

Windswept cliffs make for messy hair

Rosco on the return walk having a rest

Today we went for a walk near Kiama, along the coast from Loves Bay to Werri Lagoon. The Kiama Coast Walk was opened in 2009 and is 6 kilometres long. Along the way you see cliffs, smashing waves and sea birds soaring into the clouds.

Cold water and dragons

Stephen abseiling Bowens Canyon, Mt Wilson, NSW

Eastern Water Dragon

Today the water was freezing in Bowen's canyon, At the exit point of most Blue Mountains canyons you share the rocks with an Eastern Water Dragon. They come in a variety of sizes and colour markings, the one pictured is a female or juvenille. The spikes along their spine make them look prehistroic however they will happily eat crumbs from easter buns as they scamper around the rocks.

Many Eastern Water Dragons appear to be territorial and the same dragon can be at the exit point in the same canyon year after year. Wonder what they they do for entertainment in the winter months when there are no canyoners passing by.

Who are you?

No, this is not a philosophical blog post on the meaning of a life but a challenge to name an unidentified creature. Found at the start of Lady Carrington Drive in Royal National Park on an owl spotting expedition. We came across what looks like a small mouse when traipsing in the dark alongside the creek. The little creature was on a branch when we first spotted it. It played around on the branches whilst we took a bit of video footage and then nimbly ran down the tree and hopped off towards the river into the night. The poor quality image is captured from the video footage. The characteristics that we observed included:

• Body size between 5 - 10 cm
• White belly
• Grey fur on top
• Tail appeared shorter than overall body length, black near end
• Black eyes
• Pointy and pink nose
• Dominant ears with white fur on inside

Update February, 2012 - a response from Fiona Brell,  Australian Museum
Our creature is a young Brown Antechinus. Thanks, Fiona!

Dear Catherine,
Thank you for your enquiry. Your image shows a young Brown Antechinus, Antechinus stuartii. It is a native predatory marsupial mouse, a distant relative of the Tasmanian Devil. The fact that your animal had a short tail is probably due to an accident as the tail length is normally almost equal in length to the body.
More information about this species can be found at the following website:
http://australianmuseum.net.au/Brown-AntechinusPlease let us know if we can be of any further assistance.
Kind regards,
Fiona Brell
Interpretive Officer

The Christmas Day Koala

It was Christmas Eve, the presents were wrapped, the gingerbread decorated and Rosco was looking good. All was ready for the onslaught of relatives on Christmas Day. Purely as a precaution to allow more time for cooking on Christmas morning some presents where opened on Christmas Eve. One of these was a very exciting Led Lenser torch, the P7. So as the fairy lights of Sydney turned on and children everywhere where waiting with anticipation we set off to the local bush for a test run. What a torch, we found our usual Koala, then a fox a football field away and then a pair of juvenile owls.

Finally, as we where about to reenter suburbia a new Koala was spotted, close to the road and with easy access for everyone. Early Christmas morning Stephen and Rosco checked it was still there, then after lunch and before pudding a trip to view the Christmas Day Koala was made by assorted family members. Finally they got to see one of Campbeltown Koala’s. 

Weeds are everywhere

Scotch Thistle is a major weed in our area. The plant is propagated by seed and grows up to 2 metres high. Scotch Thistle is native to Europe and western Asia however it has naturalised in many other parts of the world including Australia. The spread is currently from Queensland / NSW boarder right around to Adelaide.

The colour and intricate pattern of the thistle is very appealing however the stings on your skin and spikes on your clothes are very unpleasant. This is one weed that is not going away.