It's summertime in Oz, and Dirk has a bunch of pretty pictures to share. It's been warm, and the birds are enjoying a splash in the baths. Here's a pretty Lori (Oz-speak for Lorikeet) who's just stepped out of the bath.
An Eastern yellow robin, bright little balls of yellow fluff in the rainforest, they always seem to be cheerfully flitting about, lighting up their little corner of the world. This guy was in Springbrook, at the Tallanbana picnic area. This is the trailhead for the Warrie Circuit, a track which has recently opened after being off-limits since we arrived in Australia. Apparently, there had been a landslide and some of the trail needed rebuilding.
Dirk claimed he saw also saw a Rufuous Fantail in the same Tallabana area, which I didn't quite want to believe (since I didn't see it) but we must take him at his word, since here is photographic proof! The description in the Pizzey guide describes this bird as "looks like darting flame with its fiery rufous rump/tail..." He does seem quite handsome, wish I had seen him as well!
Here is a female satin bowerbird. She looks rather demure, but is not very feminine in her vocalization--Pizzey describes her voice as "dingo-like 'wee-oo, harsh scolds, wheezes, rattles." We believe she's a lucky bird, though, because we think she must be the partner of the clever male bowerbird that Dirk photographed in our earlier posting. He had the beautifully bedecked bower that we saw during the decorating stage. Hopefully the happy couple have a nest of eggs tucked away in the forest and are raising a nice clutch of baby bowerbirds.
One day we were walking along the Miami beach (our local beach in Australia, not Florida!) and saw these fantastical looking creatures washed ashore. Only about 2cm long, they were rearing their "heads," obviously stranded, but still alive. We tried to rescue as many as we could, scooping them up in a handfull of sand and depositing them back into the ocean, but they were quite delicate and probably didn't stand a chance in the surf. Dirk didn't have his camera, so this photo is from the web, but we learned they are Blue dragon nudibranchs.
We trekked the 17-km Warrie circuit on a beautiful day, and saw only a few people during its length. Lovely waterfalls like this one (and see video, below), beautiful rainforest, and one new bird species, although this time it was me that saw them and not Dirk, so you may not believe me since I don't have the picture. I saw three red-browed finches--striking little guys with scarlet bills, eyebrows and rumps. Believe me!
We almost missed this orchid, as there were only a few of them, but it was quite tall (knee high) with a profusion of flowers. Close up, it looks like a little ghost with an intricate headdress. No idea what it is named... Just another wild orchid in the rainforest!
Again on the Warrie track, we stopped for a squiz at the "meeting of the waters" where two rivers joined. We barely spotted this miniscule little frog--he's only about 1cm in length, those are little stems of moss in the picture that are larger than his feet! We were unable to identify him in my "Wildlife of Greater Brisbane" book. We also saw tadpoles in the creek, and hope they were turning into frogs rather than the hapless nasty cane toads.
We saw lots (more than five) of these guys along the Warrie Circuit. They're quite large, about 26 cm in length. They are called "Land Mullets" and are a type of Skink. "Skinks are the dominant group of Australian reptiles comprising nearly half the total fauna. They are probably the most commonly encountered local reptiles."
One of the livelier Lori-jamborees. Maybe up to 20 birds came a few times! So funny, some were bolder than others and would just jump in for a good old time. Others would sidle up nervously and peer into the water, until somebody else impatiently bumped the scaredy-cat out of the way for a go at the water. Much squawking fun was had by all.
Molly gets pretty wide-eyed watching all the birds having their fun! (see the show in the video, below).
We took a day away from the Gold Coast to head down to Blissful Byron Bay and walked up to the lighthouse for this tranquil view.
Loris in the bathWaterfall along the Warrie Circuit
