Showing posts with label Tidbinbilla. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tidbinbilla. Show all posts

Thursday 31 December 2015

Last Post for 2015



My last day out in the bush for 2015 has been a trip to Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve, in the Australian Capital Territory. It is only a half-hour drive from the city and is tucked into a valley of the local hill range, the Brindabellas. This was an easy day out in a parkland type setting, and the clouds were flying high over the ridges on a clear mid-summer day.



The reserve is a great place to see the local wildlife without trailing through miles of thick scrub. A casual walk around the laid paths takes you past pools where platypus swim, in full view all day. And they are on calm water, so easy to see as their wakes ripple the flat surface. They can be tricky to spot on rivers, where they can pass unseen in the tumbling water.



As the sun was out, and quite warm, the skinks were out catching the heat. A group of Cunningham's Skinks Egernia cunninghami were conspicuous as they lay on a rock right next to the path. The main group were scurrying about in cracks in the rocks, with only their heads protruding from the shadows. They had obviously warmed up enough as they were busy clambering about. But this younger one was out in the open, basking in the dappled sunshine. It was even lying with its eyes closed, as it was so used to people walking by. When alarmed, they dart into a crevice and curl their spiny tails across the entrance. Those are sharp-edge scales on the tail, and they present a formidable barrier to any predator.



There are also some good views or plants from the path-side, such as this Mountain Spiral Orchid Spiranthes alticola which was growing on close by a pond.


Simple single orchid stems can be difficult to spot in thick cover, so it was good to just stroll along a clear path and see all these animals and plants - not to mention the two red-bellied black snakes which were hunting and sunning themselves close by on the banks of the streams.


Wednesday 4 December 2013

Platypus

A typical view of a Platypus on the surface between dives for food
Last week I was out at Tidbinbilla Nature reserve in the ACT, specifically to look for Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus and I saw three. The ponds and dams there are probably one of the best places to see these wonderful animals. Although mostly nocturnal, they do come out to feed around midday and if the water is calm and the light flat under an overcast sky they can be spotted paddling around on the surface between dives for prey.

The best way to spot them is to watch for ripples on smooth water
It is always tricky to capture a sharp image of a Platypus as their fur is always slick with water and they glisten in bright light. But it is simply satisfying to sit for a while and watch them as they carry on with their lives, quietly and unobtrusively. A trip out to Tidbinbilla is a true escape from the increasingly bustling city of Canberra.

Platypus are quite common but easily overlooked