Talking about rocks (well, I was – in the last blog post), our Meetup group had a lucky encounter at one of our recent events. But it didn’t start out that way. Normally I do a reconnaissance before leading people to an obscure location. But this time I thought: oh, I’ve been there before, I’m […]
What the Ranger Revealed Read More »
Aboriginal, Did You Know?, Landscape Images, New South Wales, Travel Photography
Here’s something to make all fathers think. Be thankful you weren’t born an emu. Your lot in life would have been tending all the eggs – a dozen or more at a time (some even fertilised by rival males!) – no time to lubricate your parched throat and you would suffer dramatic weight loss. And
Happy Feather’s Day! Read More »
Bird Images, Did You Know?, New South Wales, On the Beaton Track
You’ve all heard about the rampaging Cane Toads, right? How for the first few decades after introduction they stayed in Queensland? Then suddenly, say about the year 2000, they spread. Like the plague. They even hit the Kimberley in the west and Sydney in the south. One reason they are so rampant in their reproduction
As a nature and wildlife photographer I’m outdoors a lot and I often get into scrapes. They make entertaining stories to share on blogs and elsewhere. One time, however, it was my photographic subject that got into one – or almost. I was walking home one cool August night, in the quiet seaside village of
A Powerful Story (or The One That Got Away) Read More »
Did You Know?, Nikon, Threatened species, Wildlife PhotographyWho would have thought that little Jibbon Lagoon would ever have a claim to fame? If you are wondering where you can find this little creature from the black lagoon, Jibbon is at the north end of Royal National Park. Which as you all know is on Sydney’s doorstep. Here’s a photo I
The Little Flea from Jibbon Lagoon Read More »
Did You Know?, Nature PhotographyI ran into some orchid hunters on the weekend and instead of doing what I was “supposed” to do, I played hooky and went out into the fields to play with my new friends. It was well worth the effort (fun?) because we may have stumbled on to something new to science. Orchids are some
Orchid Fly – New to Science? Read More »
Did You Know?, Macro PhotographyNew Year’s Day started out warm – at last. It has been one of the coldest summers anyone can remember. Insects have been low key so it was a delight to find them calling from above my head, as I headed out on my first exploratory bushwalk of the year. This late in the summer
One Minute with Nature: Cicada’s Summer Song Read More »
Did You Know?, New South WalesThe Outback when it is wet is amazing. When it floods and takes human lives, and livestock, then it is truly terrible. The damage caused by the recent Queensland floods was so so extreme because it mainly hit the heavily populated coastal towns. Further inland, the Outback towns are used to the river channels breaking
Outback birds take to nesting Read More »
Bird Images, Did You Know?, On the Beaton Track, OutbackI arrived at Cooper Creek, in South Australia’s Channel Country, in the middle of this year’s unusual rains. The scene I planned to photograph was grey and ordinary. But after spending an hour or two – and after I stopped whinging about the gloomy skies – the real beauty of the scene emerged. To get
Magic happens when you least expect it Read More »
Did You Know?, On the Beaton Track, OutbackA recent media release announced that scientists had measured the most carbon dense forest in the world. No, it’s not in the Amazon – it’s right here in Australia and I know it intimately. I worked hand in hand, for over a year, with well-known ecologist David Lindenmayer, one of the team of scientists who
Is this the Most Important Forest in the World? Read More »
Did You Know?, Ecology, Habitats, Victoria