Botany Nerds Ahoy
velocityjohnno wrote:
Yeah right
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-05/emperor-penguin-rare-sighting-oc…
A most beautiful bird with a salient reminder of what’s actually happening to planet earth. AW
& local parent maggies finally brought their babies into the yard for the first time today, it's all happening in bird land around here. They were cute!
blackers wrote:
Old mate should have taken the left at Albuquerque.
I reckon it's in the plot of Happy Feet...
velocityjohnno wrote:
Old mate should have taken the left at Albuquerque.I reckon it's in the plot of Happy Feet...
Thats a movie I suffered through as part of parental duties, mostly lost in the mists of time lucky . Yet I immediately thought of this... :)
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basesix wrote:
anything springing up?
Weeds and unwanteds sprouting everywhere at the moment. Will let them do their thang and then hack away. Too many short memories.
I forget that it is Spring there! All the leaves are turnin and fallin here, and the bears are active. (I wish there was a six week span every year where i had to EAT! and get FAT!)
wax24 wrote:
....(I wish there was a six week span every year where i had to EAT! and get FAT!)
Surely that is the purpose of the Thanksgiving into Christmas nexus? Lay down reserves to get you through the colder months. Enjoy.
Wow, nice day to surf today, super clean 4-5ft, light NW , it was ‘Sunny Boys’ and I’m a ‘Happy Man’. light NW, bigger tomorrow ,so good.
Literally, on the littoral line of demarcation amongst the drab of brown, green and red algae I found this wonderful colourful gem.
Not one to wear on any of your digits. AW
Heliocidaris erythrogamma
beautiful colour there @AW.. reminds me too of why I have teeny jars of sand from lotsa beaches i've enjoyed : )
basesix wrote:
beautiful colour there @AW.. reminds me too of why I have teeny jars of sand from lotsa beaches i've enjoyed : )
Basesix. Hi mate.
I optically comb shorelines ( and every other bio unit/s) before and after surfs, lot to see and a lot to learn, fascinates me.
I have the same. In 1984 in WA in the fried out Holden and Ford surf mobiles, I collected so many different coloured sands in a little glass bottle, lime green to cinnamon and everything in between. AW
A visual/comparative analysis of different species of Ozothamnus.
Native plants belonging to the daisy family Asteraceae (nee Compositae)
Very underrated and under utilised plants. Tough and hardy.
Ozothamnus turbinatus
https://images.app.goo.gl/Eb5t7sJbQ8kUCjUQ6
Ozothamnus diosmifolius ‘Red Gingham’
Ozothamnus ferrugineus
https://images.app.goo.gl/c7dnEchNbyEBmXCf9
Ozothamnus obcordatus
.AW
Just to clarify, this is a great thread, but i think someone misunderstood the sarcasm when i mentioned it in anorher thread. Just to b clear.
Love this thread!!
southernraw wrote:
Just to clarify, this is a great thread, but i think someone misunderstood the sarcasm when i mentioned it in anorher thread. Just to b clear.
Love this thread!!
Southernraw. Hi mate, I hope you are doing ok.
Never change course if you believe in something, Our existence on earth is not always about appeasing the masses. That’s all I will say.
This is a great thread and I wasn’t privy to you referencing it elsewhere.
Let bygones be bygones. Tomorrow is a whole new day, seize it. All the best. AW
Good onya AW. This threads rad.
Would never want it to change.
Currently surrounded by water and soft green algae watching the sunset. Magpies, pelicans, finches, ospreys, crows, seagulls, swans, ducks and birds i couldn't name all carrying on singing the songline of this beautiful place on the 35th parallel. Could b worse eh.
Cheers for the words.
Have a great evening AW
southernraw wrote:
Good onya AW. This threads rad.
Would never want it to change.
Currently surrounded by water and soft green algae watching the sunset. Magpies, pelicans, finches, ospreys, crows, seagulls, swans, ducks and birds i couldn't name all carrying on singing the songline of this beautiful place on the 35th parallel. Could b worse eh.
Cheers for the words.
Have a great evening AW
Southernraw. Sounds wonderful, all those birds and plants, well 35deg south, you’d be looking at Red-eared Firetails in that neck of the woods. AW
Ohhh I'll do some investigation AW. Thanks!
Currently watching a pelican jumping on the updrafts and going for a little soar. Just for fun it seems. Looks just like surfing!
Howdy AW, over here in KI snags on the barbie, sinking a few while watching a pair of red tailed cockies and mother and baby koalas in the tree in the backyard. Also some Roos hanging around and a few of those small birds with bright blue breasts flitting around. Life's good.
old-dog wrote:
Howdy AW, over here in KI snags on the barbie, sinking a few while watching a pair of red tailed cockies and mother and baby koalas in the tree in the backyard. Also some Roos hanging around and a few of those small birds with bright blue breasts flitting around. Life's good.
old-dog. Hi mate, talk about living the life.
What a picture you’ve painted in our minds, I can smell the snags from here.
You’ve got the full David Attenborough show on KI, what a great island for wildlife and wild folk, great island for food diversity as you know.
Those little blue birds with the blazing blue breasts are male Superb Fairy-Wrens in full adult breeding plumage, they love a bit of it, more so the ladies, at any one time, eggs in the nest may be a few, but sired by many a male, ‘promiscuity is not a dirty word ‘.
Good stuff pal. AW
southernraw wrote:
Good onya AW. This threads rad.
Would never want it to change.
Currently surrounded by water and soft green algae watching the sunset. Magpies, pelicans, finches, ospreys, crows, seagulls, swans, ducks and birds i couldn't name all carrying on singing the songline of this beautiful place on the 35th parallel. Could b worse eh.
Cheers for the words.
Have a great evening AW
I agree, this thread draws me back.
AW in my early days I did some Marine Science and Biology at Uni but my technical knowledge has faded with time. As someone who likes to spend a lot of time watching and being curious in our great lands would you mind sharing with me your suggestions for some starting points for Australian native flora and fauna books? To help build a foundational knowledge. Appreciated in advance.
Anyone into citizen science, this week is Frog ID week.
You download the FrogID app and go record every night at your local swamp, lake, whatever.
Super abundant frogs around here at the moment, after a wet spring, current storms and 4 wet years.
Roystein wrote:
Good onya AW. This threads rad.Would never want it to change.
Currently surrounded by water and soft green algae watching the sunset. Magpies, pelicans, finches, ospreys, crows, seagulls, swans, ducks and birds i couldn't name all carrying on singing the songline of this beautiful place on the 35th parallel. Could b worse eh.
Cheers for the words.
Have a great evening AW
I agree, this thread draws me back.
AW in my early days I did some Marine Science and Biology at Uni but my technical knowledge has faded with time. As someone who likes to spend a lot of time watching and being curious in our great lands would you mind sharing with me your suggestions for some starting points for Australian native flora and fauna books? To help build a foundational knowledge. Appreciated in advance.
Roystein. Great stuff, you’ve made my day, another interested biological nerd.
Sure can recommend books, I’ve a massive library. I will post this evening, currently on scaffolding bagging the brickwork on my house. All the best. AW.
freeride76 wrote:
Anyone into citizen science, this week is Frog ID week.
You download the FrogID app and go record every night at your local swamp, lake, whatever.
Super abundant frogs around here at the moment, after a wet spring, current storms and 4 wet years.
Freeride76. Hi mate, hope your clan is well.
Good reminder, thanks.
I’ve found Frog ID week a great opportunity to spawn young little citizen scientists, kids, they love it.
They listen, daily or in the evening, record the sound and check the app.
In ten minutes a few days ago whilst watching Rainbow Bee Eaters, a small water depression yielded, Spotted Grass Frogs, Growling Grass Frogs, Pobblebonks ( Banjo frog) , Southern Brown Tree Frog and Common Eastern Froglets, without really trying, so nice, kind of suggests the local ecology is doing ok. I’d love to hear what others are hearing and seeing. AW
Lots of tree frogs where I've been recording.
Eastern dwarf tree frog (Litoria fallax) my fav frog.
and Tylers Tree Frog (Litoria tyleri) one of the laughing tree frogs.
Thats a melaleuca wetland.
Other spots I go have pobblebonks, common eastern froglets, striped marsh frogs, tusked frog, eastern sign bearing froglet, bleating froglet, tinkling froglet, bleating tree frog, wallum rocket frog, graceful tree frog, rocket frog, wallum sedge frog, perons tree frog, whirring tree frog and whistling tree frog.
Those are the ones confirmed by Frog ID.
freeride76 wrote:
Lots of tree frogs where I've been recording.
Eastern dwarf tree frog (Litoria fallax) my fav frog.
and Tylers Tree Frog (Litoria tyleri) one of the laughing tree frogs.
Thats a melaleuca wetland.
Other spots I go have pobblebonks, common eastern froglets, striped marsh frogs, tusked frog, eastern sign bearing froglet, bleating froglet, tinkling froglet, bleating tree frog, wallum rocket frog, graceful tree frog, rocket frog, wallum sedge frog, perons tree frog, whirring tree frog and whistling tree frog.
Those are the ones confirmed by Frog ID.
Freeride76. Wow, that’s an impressive list, the varying calls must make for great listening and learning. Well done on identifying them.
Any Rainbow BeeEaters hanging around big hives in the Melaleuca sp. wetland ?
The bees love those glades of trees. AW
Tons of rainbow bee eaters everywhere AW.
They like the beach here too, nests in the sand near coastal banksias.
Heard a channel bill cuckoo the other day but haven't heard any of the other summer migrants yet.
Normally see first flocks of white-throated needle tails around now.
freeride76 wrote:
Tons of rainbow bee eaters everywhere AW.
They like the beach here too, nests in the sand near coastal banksias.
Heard a channel bill cuckoo the other day but haven't heard any of the other summer migrants yet.
Normally see first flocks of white-throated needle tails around now.
Freeride76.
I concur about the Bee Eaters. On my recent travels up your way and up further north, they were my bird species with the highest number in one sighting.
For example, in Coolum in a beach park right near a remnant strip of littoral forest, they were attempting to nest in the sandy soil of the very green couch grass lawn that had people walking dogs, kids playing, they were not fussed at all.
I thought give up, no chance of nesting there.
To qualify, anytime I say for example I looked up to the powerlines, it was this species with a high number count more than any other bird, they were like sparrows. Couldn’t believe it, one to cherish, the beautiful calls and then seeing a pair, m&f with their tail streamers very evident. She has shorter ones than the fella.
Here’s a photo of the attempt to nest in broad daylight.
Channel Billed Cuckoo’s great quirky birds. Good stuff. AW
Living in a place that doesn't have overt signs of seasonal change (autumn leaves, winter snow, etc.) but there's so many signals I love, Rainbow Bee-Eaters being high on the Spring list. Fantastic little creatures with such a distinct call. Guaranteed to spot them nesting on the northern banks of Currimundi Lake.
Yellow-tailed black cockys another, turning up to shred the she-oaks (I've heard them screeching recently, but given the flat spell haven't been out much to see them), always a welcome return. Fabulously charismatic birds.
Speaking of ICOLLs and cockatoos, the name-sake one is a home to acid frogs. Have to check out that Frog ID app out next time I stay down there, thanks FR.
Not sure where you are based Roystein but Leon Costermans Trees and shrubs of South East Australia is the shiz for plant ID in Vic and Southern NSW. Field Guide to Birds of Australia by Pizzey and Knight is commonly available and a reasonable starter for birds. I'm sure AW will have some better advice.
Roystein wrote:
Thanks blackers
East coast the focus
Roystein, Blackers. Hi to you both.
Spot on with the plant book. Also any Wrigley & Fagg publications are great also.
May I suggest this, the easiest way to get your biological mojo up and running again is to think of ecology first.
I always recommend to people to obtain a bird book first.
The most definitive, accurate and up to date comprehensive bird book is The Australian Bird Guide. The one in this photo is the big book $50, a small compact version for your backpack is $35.
The reason I recommend starting with birds is it’s easy to start looking around your home and your local areas. If you go enough you will see what type of vegetation they inhabit, visit, feed etc, simultaneously you are accidentally introducing yourself to vegetation types, the flow on effect is contagious you’ll be learning before you know it. To learn quickly you really need to become a bit addictive to the task.
For birds, mentally apply this acronym to your brain, GISS, ‘ general impression of size and shape, take mental photos, look at the birds bill, what’s it adapted for, long and curved for reaching into the corollary tubes of flowers, therefore you are dealing with nectivores like spinebills and other honeyeaters.
Is the bill short and triangular, it’s mostly likely a seed eater, sparrow, finch etc.
Before you know it you’ll start to see the ‘forest for the trees’.
Visit State and National Parks or any existing ecosystem, take photos.
I have a thing I’ve stuck to all my life , I never walk past a plant unless I can identify it.
Reason being, because if I walk past it in the future I still won’t know what it is and I’m petrified someone will ask me, hey what’s that plant and I won’t know it.
Keep applying these principles to other biota, you’ll soon become proficient in many fields, it’s so rewarding because ultimately you connect all the dots of the biological world and you’ll have a light bulb moment where you say to yourself, I understand why. Good luck, I know you’ll succeed. All the best.
I’ve got books on most subject matter, prompt me if I can be of any assistance.
Edit. Don’t waste money on shit binoculars, buy an expensive pair once, you’ll have them for life, most of the worlds birders use Swarovski , the clarity is incredible and I’m one of them. AW
Sprout wrote:
Living in a place that doesn't have overt signs of seasonal change (autumn leaves, winter snow, etc.) but there's so many signals I love, Rainbow Bee-Eaters being high on the Spring list. Fantastic little creatures with such a distinct call. Guaranteed to spot them nesting on the northern banks of Currimundi Lake.
Yellow-tailed black cockys another, turning up to shred the she-oaks (I've heard them screeching recently, but given the flat spell haven't been out much to see them), always a welcome return. Fabulously charismatic birds.
Speaking of ICOLLs and cockatoos, the name-sake one is a home to acid frogs. Have to check out that Frog ID app out next time I stay down there, thanks FR.
Sprout. Hi mate, nice murmurings from around your hood. I see there’s heaps of green bush land behind you there, a National Park also. Must get some good birds, fish and frogs. AW
Did ya see this story AW ? https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-08/emperor-penguin-found-in-souther…
Supafreak wrote:
Did ya see this story AW ? https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-08/emperor-penguin-found-in-souther…
Supafreak. Hi mate. I did thanks, very interesting.
Sounds like he’s in good hands, I look forward to see what repatriation plan they’ll come up with. Most likely a very long boat trip or a flight back to the shelf..
He’s appearance, in my opinion, underlies concerns in his homeland, water currents have been warming and I’ve previously mentioned Antarctic Bottom Water is not in good shape either. Us humans are a blight on global biota. All the best. AW
Amazing breeding congregation of Graceful tree frogs this morning in the reed wetland on the Point.
That downpour last night really fired them up.
Beautiful little bright green frog with yellow underside about the size of your thumb.
Saw something along those lines years ago on a vacant block of land with a swampy creek area next to it near my house. Pouring rain but the noise these green tree frogs were making was unbelievable which was what made me go see what was happening and i couldn't believe the amount of frogs that were there ,hundreds if not thousands covered this block all singing their song.........never seen it since or before that ......natures great overture.
Some good discussion above.
Bit of rain here and old mate green tree frog is croaking in my down pipe not more than 2 metres away from this honey eater
seeds wrote:
Some good discussion above.
Bit of rain here and old mate green tree frog is croaking in my down pipe not more than 2 metres away from this honey eater
Seeds. Good stuff.
That’s a bloody postcard photo of a Blue-Faced Honeyeater, very chatty birds with various calls and calling. AW
freeride76 wrote:
Amazing breeding congregation of Graceful tree frogs this morning in the reed wetland on the Point.
That downpour last night really fired them up.
Beautiful little bright green frog with yellow underside about the size of your thumb.
Freeride76 & Simba. I’ve got frog envy, amazing, the cacophony of calls may be deafening.
I’d say your ecology is in pretty good nick. Great that you take the time to know and learn about the animals that share their habitats with us humans.
Doesn’t everyone want to know what biota is around them, I do. AW
Went back there this arvo- the graceful tree frogs had done their business.
It was marsh frogs going off with their "tock" calls.
freeride76 wrote:
Went back there this arvo- the graceful tree frogs had done their business.
It was marsh frogs going off with their "tock" calls.
Freeride76. Hi pal.
Peron’s striped marsh frog ( Limnodynastes peronii) or a different species ? AW
really enjoying the insights in this thread,
keep it going fellas,
wish i had more time , my father has a landscape architect degree and loves native plants.
also my grandfather on my mothers side was an avid gardener. i remember being dragged to the redcliffe horse stables as a kid to shovel horse shit for his veggie patch.
good times
tip-top1 wrote:
really enjoying the insights in this thread,
this thread is the bomb tip-top!
alas, last weekend, I became officially domestic fowl-less.. foxes got my last lone guinea fowl a few months ago, and sadly for my little tribe, the two lone hens (16 year old crones, seen it all, one with only one eye), lovely ladies, both, got pegged. A neighbour's dog (not sure which one) busted through the wire of their pen and left them headless and laying in the driveway. tough way to go, good life, but.
please allow me to post this humorous chicken tribute : )
Yep AW. Striped Marsh Frog.
( Limnodynastes peronii)
Had a nasty fox attack this winter Basesix.
fun game, making an effort to work out which frogs in your area like which bits..
lotsa resources and sites to identify and have a listen to the sounds they make
https://www.frogwatchsa.com.au/learning-resources/frogs-in-sa
https://frogs.org.au/frogs/ofSA/The_South-East
(these specific to sa, as an idea)
(never eyeballed a striped one here @freeride, just the spotted, but heard 'em)
Seems a keen interest for some, so why not.