Around Victoria today, the soaring heat made it impssible to do much outside. It even seemed too hot for the cats to be bothered doing much, until Clio ran past us with something large dangling out of her mouth. My first view of the Jacky Dragon was the underside of the tail and one leg … Continue reading Jacky Dragon
Fruit and Vegetables
It has been a long time since I wrote about our vegetable garden and orchard. Partly this is because I became entranced by our birds and began compiling a species list, and partly it is because there wasn’t a lot to write about. Everything had already been planted – mostly by the previous owners – … Continue reading Fruit and Vegetables
Jetty Buddies: Pied Cormorant and White Faced Heron
I was fascinated to see two very different water birds sitting side by side on the jetty. A wader, the White Faced Heron has long yellow legs and a long sharp beak. It’s feathers are fluffy as they are not immersed in the water when the bird fishes. In contrast, the Pied Cormorant has short … Continue reading Jetty Buddies: Pied Cormorant and White Faced Heron
Swamp Wallaby
Our Christmas present this year is a photo of a Swamp Wallaby! We’ve sighted a #kangaroo or wallaby from a distance twice before, and have seen scratchings in the ground, so we knew they were around. However, like many Australian mamals, kangaroos and wallabies are nocturnal creatures. We owe this photo to an early clock-radio … Continue reading Swamp Wallaby
Bark, Leaves, Buds and Fruit
There are very few native flowers in bloom at the moment, the grasses are drying out, and the trees – always prominent in our landscape – are capturing my attention more each day. This is partly because I’m learning about bushfire habits, and partly because I received a field guide to trees as a gift … Continue reading Bark, Leaves, Buds and Fruit
Learning to love succulents
I could not understand why the garden beds were planted with so many succulent plants when we first moved in. To me, they were unattractive and at odds with the lush growth of a cottage garden, which I preferred, and also with the natural bushland, which abounds here. My initial intention was to pull them … Continue reading Learning to love succulents
Crimson Rosella
We are lucky to have a small population of Crimson Rosella living on our property. They, along with the Galah’s, have been constant visitors to our bird feeder ever since we moved in. First to notice that we have put out seeds each day, they live in the trees near the house. When feeding, they … Continue reading Crimson Rosella
Fire Plans and Pumps
Recently, we’ve been to a few Community Fire Authorityn (CFA) information sessions. These sessions are aimed at ensuring property owners are aware that we are coming into the ‘fire season’. This is the time of year when, due to the combination of high heat and low humidity, vegetation is dry and bushfires are more likely … Continue reading Fire Plans and Pumps
The end of the painted parrot
When we bought our house, a colourful wind parrot adorned the near end of the jetty. From the house, it looked almost realistic. More than one person thought it was a real bird, and went down to investigate it. In high winds the rotating wings gave the illusion of fluttering, and it was very cheery. … Continue reading The end of the painted parrot
Great Cormorant
We’ve had a few cormorants here before – the pied cormorant, and the little black cormorant – so when we saw this huge bird sitting on our jetty, we both exclaimed “What’s that!” and rushed for the Field Guide to Australian Birds. Turns out this is the Great Cormorant which can grow up to … Continue reading Great Cormorant
Taunting Kookaburras: Photographing our environment
Every night, just when the light is too low to capture them on film, I hear kookaburras laughing in the trees. It sounds like they are taunting me because try as I might, I simply can’t get a good photo of one. During the day, the kookaburras call from neighbouring properties, or the opposite end … Continue reading Taunting Kookaburras: Photographing our environment
Eastern Spinebill
A pair of Eastern Spinebills, also nectar feeders, can squeeze through the lattice fence into the fernery. Thankfully, this pair seems to have mastered the process of getting out of the cat enclosure as well as breaking into it. The cats don’t seem to have noticed their presence, which is a huge relief! … Continue reading Eastern Spinebill
Yellow-Faced Honeyeater
As I stood in the kitchen chopping food for lunch, I noticed frantic flapping in the cat enclosure. The trapped bird was a Yellow-Faced Honeyeater which must have come in through the lattice fence. Small birds are able to hop through the squares created by the lattice which forms the side wall of the fernery. … Continue reading Yellow-Faced Honeyeater
Inside the fernery
Many of the plants in our fernery were there when we bought the house, but we have been playing around with a few things. The cats also have free access to this area, which is shady and cooler on a hot day. This series of photos is not captioned. If you receive this in an … Continue reading Inside the fernery
The Ballet of the Australian Wood Ducks
After the hot weather we received last week came s few storms. A dead tree was close enough to our house that, if was uprooted, it may crush the decking and lounge room, so we took preventative action and cut it down. The Australian Wood Ducks seem to have adopted the trunk as a stage … Continue reading The Ballet of the Australian Wood Ducks
Superb Fairy Wren Nest
When Richard walked underneath the trellis arch at the front of the house, he noted baby bird tweets. Careful inspection revealed a tiny Superb Fairy Wren nest Hidden in the bushy part of the climbing plant. Adult wrens were protesting loudly, but we did not touch the nest itself. I had been thinking about repacing … Continue reading Superb Fairy Wren Nest
White Necked Heron
The latest addition to the bird species list is the White Necked Heron. We have one drop in every now and again, but only for an hour or two at a time. The photos of the herron on the jetty were taken on a differnt day to the images of the heron wading in and … Continue reading White Necked Heron
Xanthorrhoea Resinosa and Butterflies
On Wednesday I took a walk around our bush block in the golden glow of a setting sun. Butterflies were everywhere. Every time I came across a Xanthorrhoea Resinosa flower spike, I saw butterflies feeding on the nectar. This is a case of images speaking louder than words. Enjoy the photos!
Galah
Of all of the birds we have on our land, the Galah is probably my equal favourite, along with the Superb Fairy Wren and the Australian Wood Ducks. Compared with other parrots, it is not noisy or showy, but quietly goes about its business. We’ve had galah’s here ever since we bought the property – … Continue reading Galah
Long Billed Corella
Occasionally we have heard Corellas calling to each other as they fly overhead and once we saw a pair on a tree over out back fence, but until today, we had not actually seen one on our land. Today we had two Corella outside our study window, with three Galahs and a Crimson Rosella for … Continue reading Long Billed Corella
Coming to the rescue: Lizards, Wrens and Spinebills
As I write this, there is at least one very scared skink lizard hiding under the filing cabinet in our study. Yesterday I rescued two lizards which Luna brought in to me. Today I was given reptile gifts by both cats, and managed to rescue four or five of them (I lost count) but unfortunately … Continue reading Coming to the rescue: Lizards, Wrens and Spinebills
Rain, Heat and Fire Plans
This week has seen a shift in the weather. As I walked around on Monday, the dry soil and drying grasses seemed so different from the lush green growth we have had here for most of our time. I didn’t see many native flowers in bloom, and the bracken had grown in areas which needed … Continue reading Rain, Heat and Fire Plans
Golden Stag Beetle (Lucanidae, Lamprima aurata)
Every time we venture into the garden we come across another unusual find – a bird, insect or plant always captures our attention. This weekend, Richard found a beautifully coloured Golden Stag Beetle. It has taken me a few days to find out what it was (thank you Google). I managed to narrow it down … Continue reading Golden Stag Beetle (Lucanidae, Lamprima aurata)
Luna and Clio’s first day in the enclosure
In our previous house, Luna and Clio had free access to a patio enclosed by cat netting. They both love being outside, basking in the sun or chasing insects. For the past few months in our new house, they have had to be content with sunbaking next to a full length window, or watching birds … Continue reading Luna and Clio’s first day in the enclosure
Fifteen Acres 