Murray River Cruising part 1

28 May

Dear Reader:

As we release the mooring ropes and pull away from the dock, I notice an Australasian Darter or Anhinga, stretching its neck out to mimic the branch it is perched on.

Anhinga or Australian Darter or Snake Bird

I am taking my annual houseboat trip on the Murray River from Mildura which is just over the South Australian border in Victoria. The trip from Adelaide takes around four hours and on this occasion I was lucky enough to sight emus on several occasions.

A wheat field of Emus

While we are cruising at a leisurely 6 kph I am scanning the banks for interesting images that capture different aspects the river.

Entrance to a billabong

A wide variety of boats use the river, ranging from rebuilt paddle steamers to ski-boats, fishing craft, canoes and houseboats. Most of the ‘boaties’ give a casual wave as we pass them.

Reproduction of a classic Murray Paddlesteamer design
Fisher working the snags near the bank

Numerous bird species inhabit the Murray’s banks, billabongs, reed beds and open water. I spot a Pied Cormorant perched in a long dead tree and quickly focus before the moment is lost.

Pied Cormorant

We search for a place to tie up and carefully manoeuvre the boat into the shallows then secure the ropes to large trees on the bank. There is little current near the bank and I watch dragonflies and damselflies trace their erratic flight paths over the water.

Red and Blue Damsel (Xanthagrion erythroneurm)

After disembarking, I walk quietly through the scrub then sit on a fallen log to search the leaf litter and fallen branches for the small creatures inhabiting this understory environment.

Fence or Snake-eyed Skink found under bark and in leaf litter and fallen branches

As evening approaches I make my way back to the boat photographing a pair of Black Swans under the mooring ropes as I climb aboard. They are probably looking for scraps from houseboaters. However attractive, feeding native birds is not a good idea as many processed foods can be damaging to their health.

Black Swans by the houseboat

My day cruising the river is done and I am rewarded with the most appropriate of endings; a spectacular sunset over the river.  

Murray River sunset

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The camera used for this post is a Nikon Coolpix P900

This is challenging but wonderful experience which is quite suitable for families.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/

https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs/

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The tip of the Fleurieu

28 Apr

Dear Reader:

The school of Silver Drummer and Banded Sea Sweep mill around the rocky outcrop off Cape Jervis SA.

Silver Drummer (top centre) and Banded Sweep

I am exploring the southern tip of South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsular using images that show a few of its many features and attractions.

Australian Pelicans Goolwa bird reserve

Cape Jervis is the transit port for the Kangaroo Island Ferry as well as being an interesting wildlife destination in its own right.

Kangaroo Island ferry at Cape Jervis with KI in the background

Numerous seabirds live in this area including: terns, gulls, cormorants and various birds of prey. At different times I have observed Sea Eagles and Nankeen Kestrels.

Nankeen Kestrel hovering

Just before Cape Jervis, a dirt road leads to Fishery Beach where an undersea cable crosses beneath Investigator Strait to KI. I spend a little time snorkelling close to the shore where I photograph a school of Zebra Fish.

Zebra Fish

Range Road Curls around the foot of the peninsular passing through pasture, scrub and grazing country. Near the beginning of the road there is an entrance to the old Talisker mine. Numerous small birds inhabit the dense scrub around this area and the old buildings and machinery provide some historical context.

Crusher house and boiler
Crescent Honeyeater

One of the main attractions of the southern Fleurieu is the Deep Creek Conservation Park; a wonderful place to photograph Western Grey Kangaroos and the occasional Echidna.

Lone roo Deep Creek Conservation Park
Roos in the mist Deep Creek CP

My next stop on this trip is Victor Harbor, where I watch a succession of recreational fishing boats head out to sea while I enjoy a tasty seafood lunch at Whalers Seaside Dining.

Setting out from the Victor Harbor boat ramp

Having reached Victor from the city via South Road and Range Road I decide to return to Adelaide along the B37 (Strathalbyn Route) after a 4WD run along iconic Goolwa Beach towards the mouth of the Murray River.       

Entrance to Goolwa beach

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The cameras used for this post are Sony RX, Nikon P900 and Nikon Coolpix AW100  

This is an easy drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors with the exception of the 4WD section which can be tricky depending on tides and wind.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/

https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs/

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Tasmania’s Flinders Island….Day 1

18 Apr

Dear Reader:

The Black Tiger Snake is a good two metres long with its head raised towards me. However, I am safely seated in the driver’s seat of the rented SUV.

The reflection in the side mirror suggests a cautious approach to photographing a large Black Tiger Snake

I am spending seven days exploring Tasmania’s Flinders Island in Bass Strait, the largest of the Furneaux Island group. My apologies for straying from my usual South Australian blogs but this fascinating Island is certainly worth a few posts.

Typical Flinders Island coastline

Nautilus, the coastal rental we are staying in, is truly wonderful; beautifully appointed and self-contained it offers panoramic views of the coastline.

View from Nautilus’s main living area

Unpacked and settled in, I take the path through the back garden and a  few metres of scrub emerging onto a granite platform which typifies this section of coast.

A gap in the scrub leads to the coast
Nautilus from the bottom of the garden area

The rugged outcrops and cliffs extend both ways along the shoreline, punctuated on the eastern flank by a bay with and stretch of golden sand. The sand yields Topaz crystals called ‘Killiekrankie Diamonds’. named for the tiny settlement and beach where they are found.

Killiecrankie’s bay and beach

A small bench sits on the border between scrub and granite. It is the perfect place to enjoy the striking scenery and look out for seabirds, dolphins and other coastal wildlife. I do not have to wait too long as a pod of dolphins cruises past several hundred metres out to sea while both Silver Gulls and Pacific Gulls fly along the seashore.

A Pacific Gull flies past

The sun is getting lower in the sky and there is just enough time to explore one of the many rockpools worn into the granite and accessible at low tide. This cursory look reveals periwinkles in the splash zone, limpets along the waterline and an occasional red anemone.

Rockpool in the granite coastline
Three Limpets amongst the Periwinkles….both use their tight sealing processes to retain water and can survive low tide exposure

Evening is closing in and it’s time to get back and start preparing dinner. Approaching the steps leading to the house, I notice a Red-necked or Bennett’s Wallaby in the driveway. It doesn’t seem too perturbed by my presence and hops into the nearby tree-line then stops and looks back at me.

A Red-necked Wallaby bounds across the path behind the house

My first day on Flinders Island has been quite exciting and I hope for more revelations as the week goes by.

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

Other animals seen, heard but not photographed, Kookaburra, Fairy Wrens, Black Currawong, cormorant species

The camera used for this post is a Sony RX10 111

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/

https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs/

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Dragons

26 Mar

The diminutive dragon lifts its body and head in a territorial display.

Painted Dragon….one of our smaller species

I am walking along Tennyson beach in the early morning in search of two of our South Australian dragon species.

Tennyson Dunes and beach

By pure chance, in a scrubby clearing I spot a Bearded Dragon poised on a dead branch waiting for prey.

Bearded Dragon

My job is done and it is time for breakfast at the Grange Caffe.

A short post

Cheers

Baz

Other animals see, heard but not photographed: (Heron, Brown Snake)

The camera used for this post is a (Nikon P900)

This is an easy walk and drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors with public toilets, barbecues, parking and other facilities nearby. It is dog friendly.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/
https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs

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Wirrina Foreshore Reserve

25 Mar

Dear Reader:

The Western Grey Kangaroo stops feeding and looks at me, twitches its ears then hops deeper into the bushes where it is joined by a second roo.

Western Grey Kangaroo
Then there were two

I am driving along the access road to Wirrina Cove marina, where I will walk along the Wirrina Foreshore Reserve. It is a rather overcast day which adds a few extra photographic challenges.

Beginning of the walk

Like other parts of the Fleurieu the story told by the rock formations is fascinating. The areas geoheritage includes: deep sedimentary basins, massive plate tectonic collisions, glaciation and mountain formation.

Rock formations along the shoreline

At low tide the rocky foreshore is a maze of rockpools. Within each of these ecological niches lives a wonderful variety of marine organisms such as anemones, sponges, seasnails and crustaceans; to mention just a few.

Shore crab species on the edge of a rockpool
Turban Shell

Banks of seaweed cover some parts of the shoreline and I am amazed to see an Australian Magpie probing the weed. Closer observation suggests it might be gathering nesting material.

Australian Magpie in seaweed pile

After spending some time exploring the edges of the pools, I move back to the trail to capture a few images of the typical birdlife. There are White-faced herons stalking the shallows, Pied Cormorants and Masked Lapwings resting on the rocks and a pair of grebes further out to sea.

White-faced Heron

Having captured images of molluscs, birds, crustaceans and marsupials, I turn my attention to plants, insects and other life forms. Butterflies and native bees are feeding on flowering Scabia blooms, lichens coat the rock formations and Cushion Bushes colonise niches in the rock formations.  

The weather closes in and it is time to leave the walking trail. However, I am determined to return on a warmer, sunnier day with some snorkeling gear to further explore this fascinating area.

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The camera used for this post is a Nikon Coolpix P900

This is an easy walk and drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors. It is dog friendly.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/

https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs/

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Driving the James Track to the Myponga Conservation Park

11 Mar

Dear Reader:

A Short-billed Corella perches in the fork of a gum tree. Its raucous call resonating through the still morning air.

Short-billed Corella

I am driving the largely unsealed road between Myponga and the conservation park of the same name. For a summer’s day, it is refreshingly cool but the dryness of the surrounding countryside tells a different story.

James Track

A few minutes after seeing the corella, I catch a glimpse of a group of Straw-necked Ibises strutting through the pale, yellow grass. They turn to watch me then fly off towards the coast.

Straw-necked Ibises

Further down the road there are dozens of Rose-breasted Cockatoos (Galahs) in a stand of trees. All but one takes to the air as I leave the car to take a shot of them. The plucky little bird drops out of the gum tree and hops onto an old, circular concrete well and starts to drink.

Just taking a little drink

The road takes a sweeping bend and starts to climb. I find a good vantage point and scan the broad expanse of dry pasture with my telephoto lens. What I missed from the vehicle soon becomes apparent. There are Western Grey Kangaroos scattered across the landscape in small groups of two to six animals.

Roos in the landscape
Western Grey Kangaroo (through the telephoto lens)

The terrain changes from lightly wooded pasture to scrub with an overstory of smaller eucalypts. Several kilometres on, I reach a gated entrance to the Myponga Conservation Park alongside a local property.  

Change if terrain near the park

Taking care to close the gate behind me I drive through a combination of rolling hills, farmland, and dense scrub. The track is about two kilometres long and ends in an open space wide enough to turn around.

Inside the park

Two trails; The Echidna and Wren, branch off from the end of the road into the park and alongside some farmland. As a bonus, there is a spectacular view across the hills towards the ocean.

Trails at the end of the park

My goal for today achieved, I drive back along the trail. At the gate I meet a local property owners and chat to him about the area. He tells me that the park is best explored in spring when the plants are in flower providing food for a range of animals.

Myponga Conservation Park gate

I return to Myponga back along The James Track where I enjoy the delights of the local bakery before heading home to review my images and make a note in the diary to return in the spring. 

Bakery delights

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The camera used for this post is a SONY RX10 Mark 3

This is an easy drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/
https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs
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Giles Conservation Park near Norton Summit

15 Feb

Dear Reader:

I can hear small birds in the undergrowth and scan the leaf litter and low bushes with my telephoto. Nothing at first then just a glimpse of a wren but it is a beautiful Milkmaid Lily that Catches my eye.

Milkmaid Lily

The Giles Conservation Park is a twenty-five minute drive up Magill Road from Adelaide’s CBD to Norton Summit; then a further five minutes along Lobethal and Woods Hill Road. I park opposite the park entrance and enjoy the view of green undulating farmland. There are Australian Magpies and a few Ravens in the fields.

Farmland opposite Giles CP

After leaving the wrens and Lilies my next surprise is a rather unusually marked Koala in a tree just a few metres along the clearly marked Ridge Trail.

Koala

Being late Spring, there is a proliferation of blooms along the trail including: eucalypts, wattles, lilies, peaflowers and native primroses. And, there are also an introduced weeds, one of which is quite intriguing the aptly named Rattlesnake Grass.

Red Parrot Peaflower

Forester Moth on Native Primrose

Rattlesnake Grass

Some animals give away their location with a subtle shuffle in the grass, not so the Kookaburra. Midway up a tall Stringybark a Laughing Kookaburra perches and calls to its mate deeper in the scrub.

Laughing Kookaburra

Koalas and kookaburras are relatively easy to spot but there is a myriad of smaller animals that live amongst the foliage, flowers and leaf litter which are much harder to detect. Insects, spiders, skinks and beetles are just a few examples of this lower but critical part of the food chain. Unfortunately the number of these creatures is becoming dangerously low because of pesticides, habitat loss and other human induced threats.

Common Garden Skink

Plague Locust

Having walked several kilometres and taken many photographs, it is time to head back to the city. However, I would never consider leaving the Norton Summit area without enjoying lunch with a view at the Scenic Hotel.   

Scenic Hotel Norton Summit

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The camera used for this post is a Nikon Coolpix P900

This is an easy walk and drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors with limited parking.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs/

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Murray River: Murtho Forest Reserve

21 Jan

Dear Reader:

As I walk across the top of the cliffs from the reserve’s entrance, I notice a Rainbow Bee Eater perched on a dead tree branch. The first one I have seen in Australia.

Rainbow Bee Eater

My next stop is an observation tower which provides splendid up and downstream views of the Murray River.

The observation tower is flanked by cliffs, river and scrub

Murtho forest reserve is part of the greater Riverland Biosphere Reserve. It lies 20 kms northeast of Renmark. There are several walks through the park as well as a camping area, boat launching facilities and the observation tower.

A houseboat makes its way down the river

Honeyeaters are common throughout the forest and I am lucky enough to photograph three different species in the area around the tower; White-plumed Honeyeaters, Singing Honeyeaters and the less common Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater. The latter species is perching on a protruding, dead branch above the river and it takes several shots to identify it.

White-plumed Honeyeater

It is hard to shift your gaze from the wonderful scenery; red cliffs, a slow meandering giant of a river as well as billabongs and wetlands on the far bank.

Wetlands opposite the forest

Leaving the viewing platform, I drive to the camping and boat launch area. There are quite a few flowering shrubs and ground covers in this location including an Eremophila species and Pigface, a common coastal succulent. I notice several different types of butterflies and a Hoverfly feeding on the blossoms.

Eremophila species

As the cloud cover thickens I decide it is time to drive back to Renmark with a short stop on the way at the Paringa Hotel for a drink and lunch.

Local watering hole

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The camera used for this post is a Nikon Coolpix P900

This is an easy drive and walk which is quite suitable for families and seniors. It is dog friendly.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/
https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs

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Range Road West to Victor *Harbor… 1

25 Dec

Dear Reader:

There are Marbled Xenica, Common Brown and Painted Lady butterflies on the Egyptian Rose blossoms along the roadside. Superb Fairy wrens flit amongst the bracken and Grass Trees.

Marbled Xenica

Painted Lady

I am driving the length of Range Road West between the Cape Jervis turn off and the sealed road to Victor Harbor. This gravel and dirt road passes through dense bushland, lightly wooded farmland and commercial pine forest.

Scrub near the Range Road West and South Road junction

A weathered cattle and sheep corral catches my eye and I find a safe place to pull over and explore the classic old structure. As I approach, a Western Grey Kangaroo emerges from a nearby patch of scrub and bounds towards a group of sealed hay bales where it stops and looks back at me.

Stock pens and corral

Still watching you!

My next stop is a dried-out farm dam where a small group of sheep are sheltering. One has been shorn and the rest have full fleeces. I have to scramble through the scrub between the road and a property fence-line to photograph them.

Getting a bit of shade

Further along the road, A small herd of cattle are sharing the lush pasture with both Little Ravens and Maned Ducks.

Maned Ducks

At the junction of Range Road West and the paved Delamere to Victor Harbor Road, I make my final stop alongside a ramshackle storage area for fencing posts. Several cows are resting in the shade and a small flock of Sulphur Crested Cockatoos are foraging alongside them. As I approach, the birds fly into an ageing eucalypt while the cows ‘typically’ take little notice.   

A mixed bag of rural life

Sulphur-crested Cockatoos

……….to be continued

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

*Correct spelling for town’s name

The camera used for this post is a Sony RX10 Mark 3

This is an easy drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors with

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/
https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs

Pangarinda Botanic Garden, Wellington SA, part 2

1 Dec

Dear Reader:

As we walk around the waterhole, I notice a large spider clinging to the corner of a fallen branch. Closer examination reveals it to be the shed carapace of a large Huntsman Spider.

Spider carapace

We are continuing (see previous post) our walk around the Pangarinda Botanic Park in Wellington East. We have reached a waterhole which is currently dry but surrounded by flowering Grass Trees and Kangaroo Paws. Nearby there are many other native bushes, many of which have ID markers. 

Grass Trees and scrub

Kangaroo Paws

Hundreds of insects are feeding on the tiny flowers which coat the Grass Trees. Most are introduced Honey Bees. However, there are some larger bees that might be natives as well as ants and a butterfly species which I do not recognise.

Flowering Grass Tree and butterfly

The next section of our walk is dominated by numerous Eremophila species. These beautiful flowering bushes have delicate curved, tubular flowers in a wide range of colours. Many varieties are well adapted to dryland conditions. Eremophilas are often used in gardens as they attract honeyeaters and other small, nectar feeding birds.

Eremophila polyclada

New Holland Honeyeater in yellow Eremophila

It is getting late in the day and with an hour and a half drive in front of us there is time for one last stop. We are only a couple of minutes’ from the Wellington ferry and it would be remiss not to spend a few minutes by the river.

Wellington ferry

Wetland pool near the ferry with old mechanical windmill

There are a couple of small  reedy, pools alongside the ferry ramp and we can hear Australian Reed Warblers calling. Tiny fish swim in small schools near the surface of the water.  In the distance Black-tailed Native hens are feeding in a paddock. 

Australian Reed Warbler, near Wellington ferry, credit David Morris

 

Black-tailed Native Hens at distance

Our day complete, we turn for home and enjoy the wide variety of dryland landscapes this part of South Australia has to offer.

Rural landscape near Wellington

Cheers

Baz

Additional notes

The camera used for this post is a Nikon Coolpix P900

This is an easy walk and drive which is quite suitable for families and seniors with public toilets, picnic area, information maps, tags and placards and parking. It is dog friendly.

Please pass on this blog title and or contact information (URL) to any person or organisation with an interest in taking walks and enjoying wildlife in SA.

Click on these links and see more South Australian stories and pictures in my Weekend Notes articles as well as locating similar blogs on Feedspot’s top 20 Australian wildlife blogs

https://www.weekendnotes.com/adelaide/writer/452/
https://blog.feedspot.com/australian_wildlife_blogs

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