Gardening with Wombats

Nouvelle-Hollande:Le Wombat
From Voyage de decouvertes aux Terres Australes
C.A. Lesueur, Paris 1807

Lumbering out from the forest to investigate what had just been planted was a large brown wombat. When the sky is overcast and the day is cool, they can make an appearance in a garden close to bushland to see what tasty grass or sedge plants they can nibble on or dig completely out of the ground so that they can sample the roots. This can be a bit disheartening when you are trying to establish a new garden.The one I encountered today seemed oblivious to the four people working nearby as he took his time to have a look around pausing only to scratch his rump for fleas or sniff the air. Where was my camera when I needed it close by.
Sadder though to see a dead one beside the road on the drive home, its bloated hide spray painted with a yellow cross to warn motorists of its presence.

NAIDOC Week 4-11 July

NAIDOC, National Aboriginal Islander Day Observance Committee,  Week is a celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures and an opportunity to recognize the contributions of Indigenous Australians in various fields.

Cicada

The 'Greengrocer' Cicada (Cyclochila australasiae)

Outside my window in the evening this little fella joins with his mates to make about 150dB of shrill sound...a trilling experience to be sure. At this time of year,during the day, if you drive along any east coast road , you will suddenly come across a patch of trees which seems to be full of deafening Cicada song .The noise ends equally abruptly on leaving the patch of scrub. The main purpose of all this noise is to bring the "tribe" together and as a mating call to attract females. The female lays eggs on bark on tree branches high above the ground. She does this by sawing into the bark from a structure in her abdomen and laying 6 to 10 eggs in the slit in the bark . Many of these slits may be made , usually in a herringbone pattern along the branch.On hatching, the tiny nymphs jump off the branch to fall to the earth below. In their thousands they come showering down with a sound like rain on the leaves. Many die in the process of finding a suitable place to burrow underground to start their long life as subterranean nymphs.The most famous Cicada is a species from North America which spends 17 years underground. During this time they make themselves a little cell ,astride and piercing a rootlet as a source of food. On emerging they cast aside their old skin which is usually left behind on a wall or tree trunk as pictured below.

Through the split in the back of the cast skin something can be seen of the internal structure of the tracheae which forms the respiratory system of insects. When the cuticle is cast ,its extensions within the body are cast, too, and the linings of the tracheae trail from inside the cast skin. That is that small white curly bit in the photo. Fascinating stuff if you love cicadas and they seem to have a big fan club worldwide . I even came across a website called "Cicada Mania'.

Snakes alive

Red Bellied Black Snake (Pseudechis porphyriacus)1794
by James Sowerby (1757-1822)
'Zoology and botany of New Holland and the adjacent Isles'State Library of Victoria

The hot weather has brought out all the reptiles from hibernation and the most common local snake is the red bellied black . Just in the past week a local man was bitten by one when he went to pick up his surfboard which he had left on a grassy headland. The snake was hiding underneath the board. A friend found a 1 metre one in his garden sadly killed after getting entangled in some garden netting. When caught in this way, this snake releases a strong smelling fluid from its vent as an auxiliary means of defence. Though venomous, its bite is not fatal and it often only strikes in a half-hearted fashion and mostly in bluff. But even a small bite can be painful due to the prevailing haemotoxic elements in the venom. The reason it is fairly common is that it can produce up to 40 live young which are about 20cm (8inches) long. It is also a skilful swimmer and can even stay under water for a period of time. If you come across one in your garden it is best to telephone the animal rescue service (Wires) for help with relocating it back to bushland.

End of Summer

Blue-bottle or Physalia or Portugese Man-o'-war

A coconut from the tropics

Despite wild seas ,lots of rain ,and water temperature turning colder by the minute, there is still lots to enjoy at the local beach. A coconut washed from afar covered in mussels and thousands of Blue-bottles appearing as a tangled mess at the high water mark made an impression today. Blue-bottles belong to the family Coelenterata (from koilos meaning hollow and enteron meaning intestine) and the group Hydrozoa (hyd water and zoa animals) In Coelenterata, which also include jelly-fish, corals and anemones ,the alimentary canal is not marked off from the body cavity so one space acts for both. The blue balloon like "float" is unique as it has accurate divisions into halves and quarters along the seam . They also make a loud popping sound when you step on one just for fun. Below the float hangs a cluster of dark blue polyps which have different functions, digestion,reproduction and defence.The defence tentacles are loaded with stinging capsules which leave a long red welt across your body if you happen across one while in the water.Ouch!

So from now less time at the beach and more time in the garden.

Physignathus lesueurii The Eastern Water Dragon

Pysignathus lesueurii 
The Eastern Water Dragon

If you have a large pond or a creek as part of your garden you might be lucky enough to have one of these friendly reptiles in your garden. They always stand their ground when you come across one, look at you with a fixed eye perhaps deciding whether you are food or foe.They usually grow to about a metre in length and are found along the entire east coast from north Queensland to Victoria near creeks and rivers.Often they sun themselves on a branch hanging over the water and drop into the water when danger threatens.This dragon lays eggs at the end of a tunnel made in the bank of the river.