Month in pictures
July – August 2020
There are signs that the season is about to turn. The distinctive calls of Fan-tailed Cuckoos ring through the forest. Pardalotes and Wood Ducks search for nest sites. Large mixed flocks of honeyeaters feed noisily in the canopy. And last week, termites swarmed in flight.
We’re feeling optimistic. Recent rains have saturated the soil and charged local waterways. Burnt tree trunks and shrubs are ever bushier as they continue to sprout new leaves. Yellow-bellied Gliders have been calling during night time forays into nearby trees. The variety of small plants is already extraordinary and more appear each week. We’ve added three more orchid species to the post-fire list, and various other plants are beginning to flower. There are still few insects, but that will change rapidly in the weeks ahead.
The Spotted Pardalotes’ choice of nest sites is quite a surprise. They’ve been clearing out a hollow in a tall eucalypt, about 20m above the ground. This is most unusual. Spotted Pardalotes usually nest in ground-level burrows, digging into earth banks or termite mounds.
Below is a short compilation movie that Paul put together last week as we watched both the male and female excavating deep inside the eucalypt.
Spotted Pardalote heading into the tree hollow, 20m above the ground.
Did you hear the Rose Robin calling in the background?
From August into early September: the forest comes to life with a burst of flowering, the emergence of insects and reptiles, and the breeding frenzy of birds.
The seasonal transformation begins in August, and with each passing week we welcome arrivals. Here is a compilation of my favourite sightings from the past two months.
A look at some of the activity in the forest and its adjacent river in the cooler months of the year.
As autumn draws to a close, we look at the changes this season has brought to a wide range of organisms in the forest - the completion of some life cycles, the beginning of others.
December through February: the hunters, the flies, familiar faces and several exciting firsts for our home list
In just two short weeks life in the forest has transformed. Flowers are blooming everywhere, insects are reappearing en masse.
A photographic tour through October and the first days of November, with our predictable bias toward the invertebrates.
