Bush Notes

Flora and Fauna Late December

2011-12-29T13:52:00.005+11:00

There are dozens of these coming out in flower right now, but after an hour of looking through books and websites, I haven't yet been able to identify this plant. It grows to about 40-50cm high.

Having had a large huntsman in the house recently (see previous post) and recognising it easily, I was then surprised to find this on a tree trunk and discover it's also a huntsman - a Badge Huntsman (I think!).

We've been moving wood around and clearing up for bushfire safety reasons, but I've found lots of interesting creatures along the way. This leads to photos, which then leads to attempts at identification via the net! I think this is Friedman's Bark Cockroach.

Wildlife in the Hills

2011-12-19T07:25:00.004+11:00

A nice big huntsman decided to visit - I think he/she likes the warm bricks at night. Hopefully he/she won't make a habit of it! I like them better outside where they belong.
We have had some trees cut down recently for bushfire safety (way too close to the house - less than 5 metres) and found some caterpillars on the trees.
This is caterpillar 2 - also about 3 inches long.

Late spring arrivals

2011-12-14T18:38:00.005+11:00

As the rain continues, there are ever more plants springing up all over the place that I have never seen in the area before. This is fireweed, which has grown previously but now we have massive plants over a metre high everywhere.

Wasn't sure what this was initially, but it is only growing in the swampy areas (which we haven't had in ten years) - it's called Swamp Isotome.

And the kangaroo apple is flowering again, plus there are two more little ones growing. Lo and behold, all around the plant the grass is flattened where the kangaroos have been laying around - probably waiting for the fruit!

New Kids on the Block

2011-11-13T19:51:00.008+11:00

With all the rain over the past year or more (after 10 years of drought), it continually surprises me what I find popping up - plants I have never seen before, that obviously have been biding their time, waiting for sufficient rainfall to sprout again. Some I am having trouble identifying so all help gratefully received! I think the one above is either a trigger plant or a wax flower.
The stems are tall and the flowers grow up the stem - leaves at the bottom like a lily.

This one is a wattle mat-rush (thanks to my Wildflowers of the Brisbane Ranges book).

This is a very striking mat-rush, the many-flowered variety (I think).

And this is a lily I have rarely seen. We have a lot of beautiful fringe lilies, and a few others, mostly vanillas. I think this is a chocolate lily, although if I'd realised when I saw it, I could have sniffed to see if it really did smell of chocolate!

More of Spring

2011-10-16T10:45:00.005+11:00

I can see why this is called Love Creeper as it twines around whatever is nearest, usually bracken.
The first butterflies after winter are these ones - smaller and brighter than the thousands that come later in summer.
This wallaby seemed interested in checking us out - usually they bolt away as soon as they see us coming.

A Different Kind of Spring

2011-10-11T18:57:00.007+11:00

Purple coral pea - first time I have seen this on our place, and it's quite a big, sturdy bush. It's interesting to see what a difference the constant rain over the past 18 months has made. Plants such as this have emerged, and others, such as the lace flower, seem to have almost disappeared.

Another new one I haven't seen before, growing in the middle of the track. A very bright red - hard to miss. Running Postman!

Creeping Bossiaea, which has spread considerably.

Everywhere we walk, there are literally huge beds of these tiny Ivy-Leafed Violets. In the past there have been plants here and there. Now it has erupted into a virtual ground cover plant.
Again, on the other hand, the Blue Pincushions are hardly to be seen.

And of course the bracken continues to thrive and grow, in some places above my head. I'd like to cut the lot down, but also recognise that it creates cover for small animals as well as havens for finches and wrens.

Winter Notes

2011-08-14T16:08:00.007+10:00

I haven't posted for a while - it's been so wet and gloomy that I've hardly taken a photo worth sharing! But now have a few that were interesting (to me, anyway). The wombat has been very busy and we find plenty of diggings every weekend, along with poo markers. In this case, it managed a very neat line along the track! Couldn't resist a photo.

The rain brings with it a mass of moss, mostly on the ground but on logs, too. Not much in the way of fungi yet, probably because it's not warm enough.

This was hanging from one of the water tanks and caught my eye today. A tidy little place to hang some eggs? Or a different kind of cocoon? What might have constructed this?

As you can see, when we turned it around, the leaf is neatly sealed along its length. That wouldn't be easy to do with a brittle, dry gum leaf!
All thoughts from you on what might be inside are welcome.

Spring Flowers

2010-12-21T19:21:00.007+11:00

Common Fringe-lily (my favourites!)

Ivy-leafed violets

With all the winter rain and now more rain, plus some sunshine and warmth, the spring flowers are bursting out all over, with more on show right now than I've ever seen. Along with them have come the butterflies! It's been seven years (since last decent rain) since I've been able to go walking and be surrounded by butterflies rising up from the undergrowth. It's a truly magical experience and one I wondered if I'd ever see again, to be honest. The drought seemed to kill off nearly everything living up there, even the ever-present bracken.Common Brown Butterfly

While the Bossiaea came and went a few weeks ago, gradually more and more wildflowers have been emerging, not just in ones and twos but in great swathes everywhere! Even the bluebells have re-emerged after an early flowering.
Last weekend I saw the following: Vanilla lilies, Milkmaids, Fringe-lilies, Early Nancies (above), Pink Fingers, Sun orchids, Mat rush, Billy-buttons, Bear's-ear, Bottle daisy, Cotton fireweed, Blue pincushions (hundreds), Bluebells, Sundews, Rice flowers and violets.
Unfortunately, we're also getting an influx of dandelions, due to a neighbour who has a huge paddock next to us that is thick with them. Time for action!

The Months Have Zoomed Past!

2010-12-21T18:51:00.005+11:00

I can't believe it's more than four months since I last posted! I was sure I had at least put some photos up. I have been taking plenty of photos, all the same, just not getting to place them on the blog. (Mental slapping of hand.) What I can report is that there has been rain ... and rain ... and rain. So much so that I have been witnessing wetness in previously unheard-of, unseen amounts. The creek, which has only run once in the past seven years (and then only a dribble under the bracken) is almost a waterfall in some places, and there is water running down the tracks and creating new creeks of their own!

Around the house, we've been seeing the results of living on granite sand. Unlike clay, the water doesn't run off or turn into mud. Instead it runs through, so we've been dealing with unexpected underground water. Don't you just love soil testing companies who tell you what you've got (which you already know) but don't give you any information on what this means when it rains a lot? Or is it that it's been so long since we've had lots of continuous heavy rain here that they've forgotten how to provide useful information about stormwater and where it might go?!

Falling Trees and Wombats

2010-08-15T20:09:00.007+10:00

It seemed to be one of those days today. We were 100 metres from our front gate and there was a tree across the road. It had fallen about five seconds before we got there (we knew this because we passed another car about 4 seconds beforehand, and I think the tree had come down just after he'd gone past). Can't help wondering how close it was, whether he saw it in his rear view mirror! Anyway, he flashed his headlights at us as a warning, which was good.

It took half an hour for the local CFAs and council person to arrive with chainsaws - in the meantime someone else had come along and made a start. The tree was soon cleared, but as last night was really windy, we did wonder how things were on our place. Luckily only one small tree down and not near the house.

But on our walk later in the day, we came across a small, rather wet wombat, who very obligingly stopped in the middle of the track and let us take photos. And a couple of short videos, that won't upload in their present format! Hopefully I'll get them uploaded somehow soon.

Last Fungi and Plenty of Moss

2010-08-04T09:45:00.006+10:00

We've had a huge amount of rain, evidence being waves of leaf debris on the tracks, washed down into patterns. And the mud. And everything being soaked. Most of the fungi has gone, apart from tiny growths here and there, mostly on tree trunks.
Now we have lots of moss - often in bright green patches, although there are some places where the ground is covered in it for many metres.

Moss pathway, leading up to what I think is heather!

Fungi Outcrops

2010-06-27T10:30:00.003+10:00

Going for walks has been fun, as mushrooms and toadstools of all sizes, shapes and colours have been on the tracks and in the undergrowth. Lots of tiny orange ones started erupting a couple of weeks ago. Then I went down another track where there are several large trees on the ground, and found little "villages" of fungi along the trunks.
Now that it's rained quite a bit this week, and is getting very cold (due to snow on the mountains further north), I suspect a lot of these will shortly disappear.

Late Autumn Pics

2010-06-02T19:05:00.006+10:00

With autumn rains continuing, and it not being too cold yet, we are still getting lots and lots of fungi of all sorts popping up. New varieties every week, almost. This coral fungus is amazing.

Last week I saw on the Postcards TV show that someone was running "picking wild mushrooms" tours on the Mornington Peninsula. I'm sure there are enough on our property to feed about a hundred people, but in the back of my mind is the story about author Nicholas Evans who, in late 2008, ate wild mushrooms in Scotland (along with several of his family) and they all became severely ill. The ultimate long-term effect was a total loss of kidney function, with no idea of when or if they might recover. So I'm leaving ours alone, as I have no references that will accurately tell me what I can eat and what I can't (and I'm not that keen on mushies anyway).
Initially, most of the fungi growing were huge (and still are) but now all the tiny ones are coming out, both white and orange. You have to look closely to see them.

And these are some of the sundews that are also growing in large patches. We also have the ones with the red edges but those photos didn't come out clearly enough.

It's Fungi Season

2010-05-14T16:36:00.007+10:00

Are we seeing signs of the drought really breaking at last? In six years, I've only seen one early winter showing of lots of fungi on the property, and most of this was "small stuff" - bunches of small and tiny toadstools in damp places. But in the past three weeks, the amount of new fungi everywhere has been astounding. Species I've never seen before, and huge toadstools literally forcing their way up through the ground all over the place.
Yesterday I found several varieties that were new to me, and unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me. These photos are from last week.
As I said, these large ones are coming up under leaf litter, pushing branches aside, popping out of the middle of the track, and growing in rows (some look like a line up of alien space craft just landed!). At first they're rounded, then they open out and look like this.
In one very damp area on the south side, these ones had mould on their tops. They looked a bit like pizzas (not very botanic of me, but then I am a writer, not a scientist!).
And after they've been out for a while, they turn even further up, like this. At that point, I think when it rains, the water in the hollowed tops then rots them and they sink away out of sight again.
The other thing I've noticed is large patches of sundew - these have flat leaves so I'm guessing they're scented sundew, not pygmaea (which in the photos I've looked at seem to have red edges). Hopefully I'll get a photo of this one next week.

Caterpillar Question

2010-01-17T16:43:00.003+11:00

This was on the ground by the front gate, and could possibly have dropped from the gum tree overhead. It was about 3cm long, and a bright green. I've checked online and it doesn't seem to be a goat moth caterpillar or a witchety grub (wrong colour). Whatever it becomes at the end of its cycle is likely to be large! Any ideas, anyone?
There is so much bracken on our property that often all you hear of animals and lizards is a thumping or skittering as they run away. I caught this guy napping. His head popped up and he stared at me as if stunned, then after a few long seconds, decided to make a run for it.
This particular walk was full of kookaburras - I think I heard several different choruses from at least a dozen different bird groups. I'm convinced that they warn everything that I'm coming!

Looking Closer...

2010-01-05T18:55:00.004+11:00

One of the things I've learned since owning this expanse of woodland is to look closely at all kinds of things, whether they be on the ground, in the air, on a tree... whatever. Of course, not being a scientist, I tend to see things that I can only guess at. The bug above would not be an insect since I was taught at school that they have six legs! Is it some kind of millipede?

And these were sitting on the gravel next to the car, getting very cosy with each other. I've seen the stripy caterpillars (larvae) in Melbourne that people say spit at you, but these were about 1.5 cm long and hanging around in this small group.
Any guidance as to what either of these are would be appreciated!

On the other hand, after watching some birds out the front of the house and making close observations through binoculars, I was able to later find my bird book and identify them as white-winged choughs. And I was right - they did behave just like my chooks did in the back yard as they scratched and dug and pecked.
Their curved beaks and red eyes make them easily identified as not crows! Now all I need to do is keep an eye out for their mud nests.

The Effects of Rain

2009-12-20T14:51:00.004+11:00

Tall sundews started springing up in October.
The bracken (unfortunately) also started springing up and is now everywhere again, but at least it provides cover for the roos and birds and all the other things that rummage around in the undergrowth.
The wildflowers have gone berserk, especially these bluebells. I've never seen so many, all over the place, before. The blue pincushions up the north end are also numerous. Not so many vanilla lilies and fringe lilies yet, and hardly a riceflower to be seen.
Maybe this will be the summer we see the butterflies back in large numbers again? It's been six years now since that first summer where dozens flew around you with every step. Sigh.

Sap and ... what?

2009-10-11T19:13:00.004+11:00

Spring is on the way, I guess, and I have photos to post ... when Blogger decides to stop being on a go-slow. So the gum trees are getting excited, and I keep finding little knobs of red sap on the ground. This is on a tree, though.
And this is ... mould? I think I've posted a similar photo a year or more ago, and someone suggested it was a type of mould or fungus, but this specimen wasn't in a damp area. It was sitting on the side of the track in the grass and leaves. It did look wet, though.

The Joys of Lichen and Moss

2009-08-08T17:31:00.006+10:00

It's like a little forest on top of a tree stump...

Yet another year of little rain. On the one hand, I can say that our 20,000 litre tank supply is full after only about 3-4 weeks, yet by looking around the area carefully as I walk, I could see that there wasn't much evidence of persistent soaking rain - usually I see fungi on tree trunks, a lot of moss and lichen, toadstools and fungi everywhere on the ground. This year was very sparse up until about 3 weeks ago (when our tanks started filling). But I hate to think what might be ahead of us this summer.

Conservation at all costs?

2009-07-19T19:50:00.003+10:00

This is a tree. A very large gum tree - actually only half of it, because the other half (it was a double-trunker) fell the other way. You may discern that under this tree is a shed. Or what is left of it.
This is one of the trees that we wanted to cut down, but were told we were not allowed. This is an old and historic tree, the council man said. It must be preserved. This was three years ago when, even then, it was obvious the two trunks were gradually moving apart, and the tree falling was inevitable.
This tree is no longer old and historic. It is FLAT on the ground and it is becoming FIREWOOD. Unlike many of our other varied and beautiful gum trees, which are numerous and have birds and animals in them, this tree was clearly doomed, even to those who didn't know much about trees. Now it has gone. Our task is to try and extract our stuff from the shed, bit by bit.
The tree cannot be left for native habitat. There are many other fallen trees doing this job much better. Hopefully now it has gone, it will leave room for new trees.

Fungi at last

2009-06-28T13:48:00.003+10:00

We've finally had enough rain for the fungi to start popping out. Always lots of orange ones (above).

But I've never seen these before! I did a quick search of the fungi identification websites (but as I have no idea about their scientific names and families, I didn't get far). However, I did find one illustration of a green fungi called Amanita austroviridis. Is this it? Anyone know?

When Was This Bushfire?

2009-05-13T16:58:00.004+10:00

I saw another photo yesterday of the bushfire devastation at Kinglake - the vast expanses of what look like burnt sticks, once a forest. On the weekend, I took these two photos. We don't have many trees like this, but there are a few. Big old gum trees with the insides burned out, that are still growing, one way or another. The bushfire that went through this area (and I'm told it was a bad one) was in 1969!

Little Rain, Little Change

2009-04-19T10:26:00.002+10:00

Over the past few weeks there has been a bit of rain, enough to green up the sides of the roads, but ultimately it hasn't done much at all for the bush. All that has happened is a bit of new bracken has come up (the slight tinges of green you see above), but nothing more than that.

I have no new photos of plants or flowers, because everything still is just dead. We see kangaroos regularly, and our one lone swamp wallaby, but haven't spotted the wombat - just the piles of poo where he's been! I have to be content with small delights - a magpie gliding up to a branch, its wings spread to show the beautiful black and white pattern; the wrens squabbling in the bracken; occasional kookaburras swooping around and sounding off. The butterflies have disappeared early this year - usually by mid-April there are still plenty around. Melbourne dams are sitting around 28% full (72% empty) and the forecast says no real rain until June. It all continues to look pretty grim.

Signs of Drought and Heat

2009-03-08T10:56:00.004+11:00

Last week the area experienced high winds, around 100 kph, so we were wondering how many trees might have come down. Luckily, very few - mostly branches, like the one above. The trouble is, when you take a closer look, there's an obvious reason why the branch decided to drop. It was rotten inside. Makes us wonder how many more are like this.

One of the effects of the continuing hot weather and drought which is most apparent to us is the butterfly population. I had great hopes around Christmas that our butterflies would be back in big numbers this year - they've been declining in the past six years. Yesterday, instead of being surrounded by them as I walked, there were just a few here and there. Hopefully, the ones I saw a couple of months ago went around madly procreating for the next season. The most common ones are yellow and brown (several different species), but of course once they land and close their wings, they disappear! This one obligingly opened up a couple of times.

Tinder Box

2009-02-15T20:03:00.004+11:00

In the past two weeks, as you can see, 98% of our undergrowth (mainly bracken) has died and turned to perfect fire fuel. When this happens, it's even easier to see the amount of dead branches, twigs and leaves underneath. Is this dangerous? Absolutely. We'd love nothing more than to find some magic way to get rid of it. But ...
A lot of this bracken is home to small birds like finches, a tonne of lizards and skinks, not to mention all the other invertebrate life that these all feed on. If the solution is burning, what happens to the wildlife? If the result is a huge bushfire, they die anyway.
At times, the dilemma seems so unresolvable, you don't know what to do, other than pray.

Seen Recently...

2009-01-25T11:46:00.006+11:00

Several of these cone-shaped edifices have been seen around - what built them? I sat and watched one, and discovered a long, blue-black wasp busily going in and out.

Recent Observations

2009-01-03T11:22:00.002+11:00

There were two of these in the rock-hard gravel road - the best place to dig in? No danger of falling soil or rocks perhaps. No inhabitant in sight, not that I was going to poke around in there anyway. I guess this is a spider home, but what kind of spider? My brief research on the net says it is probably a trapdoor spider.
We usually only see fungi in winter, when it's wet. However, a recent weekend of rain saw half a dozen of these pop up along the bottom track. At first they look like huge puffballs, and then expand outwards into these. This one was around five inches across.

A Gift on Boxing Day

2008-12-27T17:50:00.003+11:00

I cannot tell you how many times I have gone out walking at different times of day (often dusk) and after more than six years, never seen a wombat. I've seen plenty of evidence - scratchings, droppings, holes under the fence - but apart from a distant sighting of a wombat scurrying up the side of a hill (and I didn't have my glasses on), it has been a whole lot of nothing.

But yesterday, I went for a walk and decided to head up the other side of the creek. This is a dry creek (has had running water in it once in six years) and I often don't bother to cross it. There is no west boundary fence so who knows where our property ends? However, this day I decided to walk that way for a change, and followed a fairly well-worn path made by animals. As I came down the side of the slope towards the creek, I scared a swamp wallaby down in the reed that took off away from me. I stopped to get some grass seeds out of my sock, and then headed back.

Another thump and scurry - swamp wallaby again? No. I froze and waited. (After a while, you realise that's the only way to see animals - stop and don't move.) And there, about 12 feet away, was a wombat. At two in the afternoon. In broad daylight. It froze too. I took some photos, in case it bolted, but they were mostly of a grey mass in the bracken. I edged around to get a better view, and froze again. There he/she was, facing me, sniffing the air.

Luckily, the breeze was blowing towards me. I edged around a little more and sat. The wombat waited. I waited. I took lots more photos. I wondered if it was a male or female. (How do you tell without tipping them upside down? As if that's going to be possible.) Then a small branch fell from a gum tree behind me and the wombat thundered away, down into its hole. The hole was actually only about a metre from where it was standing, so why it didn't head down there straight away was a mystery. Never mind. My six years of waiting and looking was finally rewarded. I am one very happy wombat watcher!

Spring Flowers December

2008-12-06T20:34:00.005+11:00

It's so lovely to walk around at this time of year and see all the wildflowers blooming. Some have already been and gone, but some are just now coming into their best shows. This (above) is new to me. I'm not entirely sure what it is, and it is only blooming in one spot that I've found. My best guess from the book I have is Grass Trigger-plant. Am I right?
These are my favourites - Fringe Lilies. I could have posted three photos but hopefully this is the best!
Along the north side of our property, where the sun gets through more, there are dozens of Blue Pincushions. It's not until you get up close that you can see the pins! I noticed today that there are hundreds of bluebells growing all over the place. I've not seen them in such numbers before. Is this because we've had more winter rain? Will this mean more butterflies this summer? Time will tell.

Spider in Hiding

2008-11-29T17:57:00.005+11:00

He started in his web - a few strings near the water tank - then moved to the side of the shed.
But when people started getting too close and being annoying, he tried to hide. It's intriguing that, although it's not terribly clear on these photos, that his abdomen has markings that look just like a face!

Spring Violets

2008-10-26T19:49:00.006+11:00

Native violets, also known as Viola hederacea. When I looked this up on the net, I got mostly gardening sites that talked about native violets as weeds that can take over your garden. But they apparently like damp conditions, which is why I'm seeing so many right now. We had a reasonably wet winter up on the property. This is the one everyone talks about - lilac and white. And these are tiny. I had to get down on my hands and knees to look properly and photograph, and even then, the flowers are slightly out of focus.

But there is another kind of native violet growing on the property, which my trusty Trigg guide tells me is Showy Violet (Viola betonicicfolia). This one has no white in it at all. All small, all delicately beautiful.

Kookaburra Pair

2008-10-12T15:57:00.004+11:00

First they were hanging out together, having a chat and a laugh or two...
... then it was just one.

Early Spring Flowers

2008-10-05T11:51:00.004+11:00

Not much out yet, as you would expect. We've had some sunny, warm days but plenty of cold ones too. Of course, one of the first out has to be Early Nancy!
My trusty reference book, Wildflowers of the Brisbane Ranges, tells me that this plant - Creeping Bossiaea - grows in open moist forest. I mostly find it up the top end of the property near the track and fenceline where it gets more light. The extra rain up there this winter has meant this has spread quite a bit, making a great display of yellow and burnt orange.

Winter Moss

2008-10-04T19:36:00.004+10:00

There has been a fair bit of rain up our way, much more than in Melbourne itself, so there is plenty of moss around (although not much fungi on trees this year). This yellow stuff only grows in one part of the property, where it is more open and with more sunlight.
Does this mean it's not really moss?!
Whereas down in the creek bed, which is dry (no running water, just some damp), this moss is growing well on the base of an old pussy willow tree. This tree is the only one of its kind on the whole property, so I'm curious as to how it got to grow in the creek.

Bobbing Along

2008-08-31T12:13:00.002+10:00

One thing about trees having no leaves at this time of year - you can manage the occasional bird photo. This was not taken with my camera (it has a poor zoom) - the scarlet robin (male) stayed in one place for quite some time. No mate in sight, but his red chest was so stunning among the winter grey trees that she may just have been overshadowed.

Winter and Spring

2008-08-29T15:53:00.003+10:00

After more rain, there is some amazing lichen and moss around. The moss is a brilliant green, the lichen very beautiful up close.
And the first flowers emerge.

What Is This?

2008-08-07T09:40:00.004+10:00

I know what these are!

It's this that I am curious about, This white stuff was about five inches across, and felt quite thick and spongy.
Is it a fungus of some kind?

Fungi Again

2008-07-12T11:35:00.002+10:00

Fungi might look delicate, but they are determined to push their way through anything to get up and out there.
And they like company!

More Fun Fungi

2008-07-12T10:22:00.004+10:00

June and some rain

2008-06-22T10:26:00.004+10:00

There has been a surprising amount of rain up our way - I say surprising because we haven't had it in the city, but then our bit of land is around 500 metres above sea level, which makes a difference. So the moss and fungi are sprouting. The plant above was on the side of a huge granite rock - two growing together. I can't identity either, but they look to me like either sphagnum moss or lichen of some kind.

I love the way these grow anywhere, and often out of cracks in trees. This was a dead tree on the ground, but I've also seen neat rows of fungi in tree stumps and in live trees.

Mt Samaria

2008-05-30T17:07:00.005+10:00

Although this is a blog about our bit of bush just out of Melbourne, I couldn't help posting these photos from Mt Samaria. We went up there recently (I was researching for a kid's book I'm writing) and I was struck by the different vegetation that grew at the top of the mountain. Not to mention some of the other "growths" such as this huge termite mound. It was about 1.8 metres high (6 feet). Mt Samaria is actually a state park, and the top of the mountain is 953 metres above sea level, hence the dampness and cold.
Whereas I won't see any fungi at Lancefield for a while yet, unless it rains a lot more, these were happily growing near where we parked our car, just off the road.

Higher up, many of the rocks had lichen and moss on them, and there were plants obviously thriving in the cold, wet climate up there. We walked down one track towards Wild Dog Creek, and I tried another towards the summit. Lots of gum trees but a fair range of other kinds of trees as well, which made a nice change!
Down below, the vegetation was similar to Lancefield with mostly gums, some bracken and a lot of plants that looked like kangaroo paw, or something similar. It was a very interesting afternoon, which also included vast amounts of wombat poo and scratchings, but I never got to see a wombat. They must know I'm around!

At last, a bird

2008-04-14T16:05:00.003+10:00

This is the first photo I've been able to take of a bird. Why? Because my camera zoom is totally inadequate, and the birds are usually too far away (or too fast for me). So this one was taken with a borrowed camera, and I got it because the bird happened to be on the tree right next to the shed, and obligingly stayed there for a while.
Now, identification. My bird book has a million options, but I think this is a White-throated Treecreeper - I know the treecreeper bit is right by the way they move up and down the tree trunks (I'd called it a brisk trot rather than a creep!).

From Out of the Earth

2008-04-07T15:55:00.005+10:00

We found two of these last weekend - one on the ground next to its hole and one half out. Of course the casings were empty, and we guessed that they had been the pupa of something large, as they were around three inches long.
Friend Snail came to the rescue and told me they were very likely to be goat moths - or were goat moth pupa before the moth came out and flew away. That sent me Googling to discover that the larva is from the witchety grub family (of edibles!). I can see why a few of these would make a good meal. If you could eat them raw, as the Aborigines do.
Apparently the goat moth larvae like wattles - or acacias - and the larva burrows deeply into the trunk of the tree. When it's ready for the next stage, it burrows down into the ground where it stays until "hatching". Often it doesn't come completely out of the ground, but leaves the casing behind (as in the photo above).
I imagine these are big moths, although I couldn't find anything that told me their average wingspan, but we'll be keeping a lookout for them at dusk.
This might also explain why so many wattle trees up there tend to fall over!

Sightings

2008-03-29T12:27:00.003+11:00

Lately, I've been using my binoculars more and checking out the bird life. On the weekend, I saw three king parrots, but other birds were harder to identify. I need to take my bird book with me and do it on the spot!

In the past four weeks, I've seen the echidna again, but also we finally spotted the wombat at dusk. He was a fair way off, heading up the hill, so no photos as he had disappeared by the time we got up there (he was probably wondering who the mad people were thrashing through the bracken behind him!). Consequently, I'm posting a photo instead of one of his many holes.

The other sighting was of a koala. This is only the second time we've seen one on our property, so it was pretty exciting (well, it was for my husband, as when I went up past the rocks, I couldn't find it). There is plenty of evidence though - gum trees with lots of scratches and shredded trunks. I have borrowed a copy of "Tracks, Scats and Other Traces" by Barbara Triggs from the library so that will come in handy.

More Trees

2008-03-16T12:17:00.005+11:00

It doesn't seem to take much for a tree, especially a gum tree, to start up again. Maybe that's because of bush fires, because you will often see a burnt out area with blackened gums where the trunks are literally blooming with new growth. This tree has been down for nearly a year, but with a couple of decent rainfalls recently, we're seeing quite a bit of this new growth from broken trunks here and there.
We talked to a local man recently who told us that our property (and adjacent forest) was totally burned out in 1951. This explains why a lot of our trees are not very big and old, of a similar height and girth, and all look like they sprinted upwards at once to grab the light.
This means that we don't have many old trees with holes which is, of course, where wildlife such as owls and possums live. However, I spotted these down the southern end, and have since found more to the west.
I'm also finding a lot of things on the ground that someone once told me was 'owl vomit' - in other words, what the owl spits out after eating small animals. However, what I'm finding are things that are full of insect casings. They don't look like scats. Any clues, anyone?
My guess is that this is one of the original old trees from 1951. Its insides are mostly burned, and the rest of the tree is dead, but it's still standing, as are several others nearby. They are all large trees, which makes me wonder what kind of forest was there before the 51 fire. Very sad if it was largely trees this size, but it's also possible that it was only the biggest ones that stayed standing and the small ones that went.

By Gum!

2008-03-07T08:36:00.004+11:00

The gum trees (eucalypts) on our property are many! And often hard to identify as my only book that covers trees has no photos and some minimal descriptions of leaves. This is, I believe, a ghost gum. Its white trunk and branches are so vivid against the rest of the green and brown that it is outstanding to see. This one was highlighted by sunshine, but at night in the moonlight I can see why this is their common name.
I think this is a candlebark gum. I've read that these were given their name by early settlers because in bushfires the curled bark (that hangs down in long strips) looks like candles when it burns.
Stringybark - again named for how it looks, I would say. The younger stringybarks are not as rough but this one is older and wiser.
We also have peppermint gums and ironbarks, plus a few other varieties that I can't yet identify. One day I'll find a decent book!

Summer Heat

2008-01-29T10:13:00.001+11:00

As it gets hotter and drier, there's not much happening flower-wise. At the end of December I found this - a Sticky Everlasting - and a few more Hyacinth Orchids. There has been more rain this year than we've had for a while, so the bracken is not dying off as it has done before.
We've spent the past two weekends putting a culvert in at the bottom gate, so no time for walking and photos, unfortunately.

Flora and Fauna!

2007-12-30T14:46:00.001+11:00

This echidna was determined to stay with his nose under the leaves until I went away. We saw him along Burke and Wills Track, and had to stop and take a photo.
At the moment there are quite a few acacia seedlings coming up - this is a Silver Wattle, I think. They often don't last, due to the canopy starving them of light, but those that do persist and grow into trees tend to be spindly and fall over after a few years. However, down the south end there is more light and there are some bigger trees that look wonderful when in flower.
I have only found a couple of these and I'm guessing when I say they're Pink Sun-orchids, but I'm pretty sure they're Sun-orchids of some kind because of the stamens.
There are still lots of bluebells around, but most other things I've posted photos of so far have gone. It'll be interesting to see what the summer flowers might be.
I have spent the last two visits up there with my home-made weed wand, attacking all the dandelions. It's the only weed we seem to have a bit of, and I'm determined to try and get rid of as many as I can. However, as the neighbour's paddock is full of them, it's going to be a long battle!

Beetle Who?

2007-12-16T19:55:00.000+11:00

I have a terrific book on plants in my area. Another good one on birds, although a bit complex perhaps for identification. Insects? Nada. This specimen was the second I saw today. Beautiful gold back sparkling in the sunlight, with a little band around its neck.
Any clues, anyone? Snail?

December 16th

2007-12-16T19:40:00.001+11:00

Just for a change, some fauna instead of flora. According to the website I consulted, this is: Common Brown - Heteronympha merope - This widespread butterfly is common along the hills face zone and in the Adelaide suburbs. The caterpillars feed on native and introduced grasses. Wingspan - female (top) 64mm, male (bottom) 56mm.
There are lots of these butterflies at Lancefield, and I was really happy to see so many today, along with Wanderers. The drought affects them immensely, I imagine because of less flowers and flowering trees to feed on.
I've posted this flower before, but it's so gorgeous, I had to do it again. Common Fringe Lily. Nothing common about this!
First time I've sighted this so far. A Rosy Hyacinth Orchid. Just the one, in among the bracken.
I spent a lot of time today with my home-made Weed Wand (soaked in weed killer) walking around stabbing dandelions. It's one of the few weeds we have. Then when we drove out of the property to go home, here is the neighbour's paddock full of them. I will fight on!

Mid-December

2007-12-11T09:55:00.000+11:00

It's been a month since I was here, due to work and being overseas, so I wasn't sure what would now be out in flower. I thought I had missed most of the lilies perhaps, but not so. Above is St. John's Wort - interesting to see it in the wild and not in a vitamin pill bottle!
There weren't as many of these as I had hoped, but as they are quite delicate and sometimes hard to see amongst the bracken, I'll keep looking. This is a Pale Vanilla Lily, quite beautiful the way they are strung out along the stem like this.
There were also lots of Blue Pincushions (more than I've ever seen before) and Bluebells in two different sizes. I also have a photo of something I think is a Lobelia, but it doesn't match the photo in my reference book so I'll check it out further.

Daisies

2007-11-14T11:48:00.001+11:00

A Cut-leaf daisy - there aren't many of these out, just a couple of plants near the east track.
I think this is a Slender Bottle-daisy because although it looks big here, it's only a few centimetres tall and the flower is smaller than a five cent coin.
Now this one is a bit of a guess, and I'm saying it's a Prickly Starwort because of the stamens.

Today's Flowers

2007-11-11T18:53:00.000+11:00

It pays to read the instruction manual for your camera. I have discovered how to take really close close-ups with mine (ultra macro) which made a huge difference today. Of course, the fact that so many flowers were blooming was even better, so I went a bit berserk. Now to my trusty ID guide. The white flowers are Milkmaids (don't some of these have great names?).
This is, I think, a Showy Violet, but it's much more purple than the one in the book, so...
This one is easy because it's so distinctive. It's a Common Fringe Lily. For obvious reasons.
And this only blooms near the front gate, up the top end. This is a Blue Pincushion. There were quite a few daisies of all shapes and sizes, which I'll upload shortly.

Orchid

2007-11-03T16:03:00.000+11:00

This is a Rosy Hyacinth Orchid. I haven't seen any yet but this photo was from January this year, so maybe they are summer bloomers.

Fungi

2007-10-27T09:48:00.000+10:00

These photos were taken back in July, when it was wet and cold. It's the first winter when I've seen this many mushrooms and toadstools and fungi on things. It's amazing how they can grow like rows of fans out of the tree bark, or in a neat row along a crack in a tree stump.
And then I'll be walking along a track and suddenly there's one popping out of the leaf debris on the ground.

Bushfires

2007-10-24T19:13:00.000+10:00

At the moment, the huge fires in California are in the news. Over a thousand homes burned, and no end in sight. Here in Australia, we are finally learning from past mistakes and taking our preparation seriously. For our property, one of the things we had to do was get a safety report done - this outlines how to protect our house and ourselves, if a fire comes and we decide to stay and defend our house (which, I might add, is not built yet but will be as fireproof as we can make it). This photo might show you the main problems - lots and lots of gum trees (the eucalyptus oil in these trees burns extremely well!) and dry undergrowth. We will have to clear out to at least 15 metres - 50 feet - around the house, plus have a water tank just for fire-fighting water.
The photo at the top shows you what it looks like when the bracken has died. Everything is dead and brown - this has happened twice in the last five years because of the drought. Usually the bracken is the last thing to die.

The other problem is that we've also had some big winds, and trees that are under stress tend to just give way, so we end up with lots of stuff on the ground. Now, the environmental people will say this is great because if we leave it there, we are creating habitat. But around the house, you can't afford to leave it there. It's a quandary.
I like seeing the rotting trees with all the activity around them - wombat scratchings, lizards and skinks, insects and birds, other plant life - but if the drought continues, we're going to have more trees on the ground than growing upright!

A Beginning

2007-10-21T11:15:00.000+10:00

As it is spring now, I'm starting to see a lot more flowers, and waiting impatiently for the lilies and orchids to bloom. Within our property, there are several different areas of plants - what I find in one area (say, around the rocks to the north-west) is different to what is in the gullies to the south-east. Here are some plants in flower right now.
This small white flower (on the left) is a Caladenia - one of the orchid family. According to my book (Wildflowers of the Brisbane Ranges by Clive and Merle Trigg) it's a blue Caladenia - but an albino one!
I have to add here that my identifications should be taken with a spoonful of salt, as I am not a botanist at all. Just a keen observer and photographer.
On the right are Common Rice-Flowers. We don't have many of these, mostly up the top end out from under the canopy.
After much deliberation, I think this vibrant yellow and red flowered plant is Creeping Bossaeia. Again, this grows up the top end of the property, away from the denser tree areas.
This one is a guess from me - I think it's either a Common Hovea or a Coral Pea (or a pea of some kind). If anyone knows better, please do tell me.
This only grows in a couple of places, down the south end where it's damper from water run-off.