Showing posts with label Wildlife on Wednesday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wildlife on Wednesday. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Wildlife on Wednesday ... My Dry Season Visitors


Our dry season is in full swing now.  It's been a long time since we received decent heavy ground-soaking rain.  January saw some heavy rain fall from the skies above, but that was pretty much the end of our wet season.  It's supposed to last for around three months.  It didn't, and so the dry is far more pronounced this year.

We've had next to no rain fall since the end of April, and the last couple of months has seen a constant flow of winged visitors coming to the garden in search of water, nectar and seeds.  I've tried to capture as many of these visitors as possible since the beginning of our wintertime, which is mid-dry season for us.

I've seen loads of the honeyeater family of birds dropping by for a quick drink in our pond.

White-throated Honeyeater

Brown-backed Honeyeater

The Honeyeaters have also been enjoying the nectar of some of their favourite flowers, when they can find them.

Male Sunbird

Female Sunbird

Female Sunbird

Another female Sunbird

Yellow Honeyeater

The native Sterculia quadrifida, commonly known as the Peanut Tree, has been covered in seed pods and many birds are coming in to feast on the seeds inside.

male Figbird


female Figbird

Male and female looking for the best seeds.

The Figbirds have also been feasting on the fig fruit of our native Sandpaper Fig Tree,


but I've only managed to capture a shot of the Great Bower Bird feasting on the fig tree fruit.

The two Cadaghi Gum trees have been in bloom and attracting lots of birds including,

Helmeted Friarbirds

and Rainbow Lorikeets.

Right now though, blooms are light on thanks to the marauding mob of wallabies that have made our place their favourite restaurant in the last few weeks.  (For more on this, pop over to my other blog to see the latest post)  I'm seeing less and less of our visitors as it seems they've moved on in search of better pickings.


Even the regulars, such as the Kookaburras which are usually seen, and heard, on a daily basis are suddenly few and far between.  This fellow, seen after taking a quick shower under the sprinkler, is the only Kookaburra I've seen around here for ages.  The usual deafening din of the ealry morning Kookaburra wake-up call has become rather quiet of late, as it seems the large family has moved on for a while.

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Wildlife on Wednesday ... It's A Jewel Spider



I noticed a little spider sitting on an enormous web last week and wondered about it's identity.  It had quite a crab-like appearance.  Thanks to a couple of helpful readers I've since found out it's a Jewel Spider ... Austracantha minax.

The common name, Jewel Spider, appears to be related to the look of the smooth enamelled appearance of its abdominal surface.

It's also referred to as the Christmas Spider, because according to some of the information I've found online, they are usually found around Christmastime in our tropical Aussie gardens, which is our Summer.  Well that's not the case in this particular situation.  This spider is sitting out in the courtyard in early Winter.


It's a tiny little thing, about the size of my little fingernail.  The males apparently grow up to 4 mm, while females will reach 8 mm.  So mine must be a female.

This Jewel Spider has remarkable mottled white patterns on a black background on its back, and has six large projecting spines around its abdomen.  This is the reason for another of its common names ... the Spiny Spider.


Apparently Jewel Spiders build a vertical orb web about one to two metres above the ground ... which is exactly right in the case of the Jewel Spider out in my courtyard.



The support silk lines are apparently deliberately made visible, while the orb web remains invisible.  The anchor lines have many fluffy white balls on the silk which means large animals, like we humans, can actually see these silk support lines and avoid walking into the web and destroying it.


The female spiders sit all day and night on their webs.  Unlike most Orb Spiders that destroy their web after a day and move on elsewhere to build a new one. 

The male Jewel Spiders apparently hang around nearby on a branch.  I've looked for one, but haven't been able to find it yet.

These spiders eat flying insects which get trapped on the silk.



I'm adding a little video clip I managed to take with my old ageing camera.  It's not the best quality, but you can clearly see the Jewel Spider wrapping up its lunch.




Here's another little clip showing the spider repairing its web after the insect got caught in the silk lines.





Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Wildlife on Wednesday ... Some Mother Do Have 'Em!


Mother Agile Wallabies (Macropus agilis) can have a busy breeding life, and they can live for up to 10 to 14 years of age.  After I've related some facts, you'll understand why I think these girls love having a bit of a rest ...


... even if getting a comfy rest is almost impossible!!  I'm thinking this little joey is probably a little uncomfortable, but it's the mother who looks far more uncomfortable!!!


Female Agile Wallabies can start breeding when they generally around 18 months of age ... talk about child brides!!!  I guess the rewards are great though.  Not only is the species healthy in numbers, I've observed that mothers and their offspring can have a seemingly very close relationship.

Breeding happens any time throughout the year for our northern tropics Agile wallaby females.  It's almost a continuous cycle ... what is termed 'aseasonal'.



A joey is born essentially in a 'fetal' state, at a very early stage of development.  It's blind, has no fur and is about the size of a jelly bean.

(Photo courtesy of Google images).





What's simply amazing to me is that this neonate can then crawl from the birth canal, across it's mother's very furry abdomen and into the pouch where it finds a teat that it can attach itself to.   What an incredible feat!


 While gestation only lasts for a month, pouch life for a joey can last seven to eight months. The mother plays a very important role in protecting and nurturing the young one until it is able to fend for itself.


Some joeys seem to overstay their welcome though.  This fellow seems a little big to be still trying to get back into his mother's pouch.  Ouch!


Although ... with such a sweet face, could any mother say no!


Most joeys are weaned at around ten to twelve months, but will then follow their mother around for about another twelve months before they become fully independent.  This is termed being a joey 'at foot'.

Females will often mate shortly after giving birth to a teeny joey.  The fertilised egg that results from the mating remains dormant ... this is known as embryonic diapause ... which means its development is temporarily halted until the older joey actually leaves the pouch and the 'vacant' sign goes up!  This little one becomes a joey 'in waiting'.

All this means that female Agile Wallabies can actually have three babies at a time ... a joey 'at foot', a joey 'in the pouch' and an 'embryo in stasis'.  Now that's one very busy Mum!!


The female in the photo above had both the joey 'at foot' and a joey 'in the pouch' ... but it was impossible for me to tell if she had a teeny tiny dormant embryo in waiting.  It's certainly a possibility, if there was a male handy at just the right time.


Sleep on Mum, I say ... sleep on!  You need all the energy you can possibly muster if this is your life for over ten years.

I'm joining the Windows On Wildlife meme for the first time today.  I'd encourage any other bloggers with a post about wildlife that you'd like to share to join me on this relatively new blog meme.


Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Wordless Wildlife Wednesday ... I Know They're Around Here Somewhere!!

(Before viewing the video clip, please scroll down to the bottom of this page and stop the playlist playing).


Title:  I Know You're Out There ... I Can Hear You!






I'm joining Wordless Wednesday


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