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Gondwana Ecology Group

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25.01.2022 26 September - World Cassowary Day (bird pictured is the Southern Cassowary) These elusive, magnificent birds occur in north-east Queensland, Papua New Guinea and some surrounding islands. They are listed as endangered. Loss of habitat is a major threat. Other threats are road accidents, dog attacks and feral pigs which are in direct competition for food. They are Australia’s heaviest bird (males weighing about 55kg and females 75kg), and the only bird taller than them is th...e emu. They are essential in the rainforests as some seeds are so large, that no other animal can swallow and disperse them. Cassowaries prefer fruit, but will eat small animals, fungi and some plants. What can we do to help? - drive carefully in Cassowary country - never throw food out the car, where cassowaries could be encouraged into the road. Find out more: www.worldcassowaryday.org

24.01.2022 Not Just a Duck - Pink Eared Duck Look at these cuties! Theyre like zebra ducks with pink earings They form monogamous (probably life-long) bonds. They are most commonly seen in pairs. Even when they are in groups, they remain as groups of pairs. Some of their unusual behaviours: 1. In groups they can often be seen as swimming in lines of twos.... 2. They vortex feed in pairs 3. They eat microscopic organisms which they obtain by sucking up water in the front of their uniquely shaped bills, and then filtering it out of the grooves in the side Pink eared duck are found throughout mainland Australia and occasionally in Tasmania. A good place to see a wide variety of birds (both those that really like water, and others) is at a sewage works. These images were captured at one such place

23.01.2022 Blue-winged Kookaburra These are large kingfishers, and are only slightly smaller than the Laughing Kookaburra, having a distinctive pale eye. Blues occur in northern Australia and in New Guinea. In northern Queensland, both Blue and Laughing occur. Both birds have a loud, raucous, cackling call that has been described as extended mechanical laughter. The call of the Blue Kookaburra is said to lack the humour of the Laughings call .

21.01.2022 Did you know ducks have inbuilt safety goggles? Zoom into the eye - the nictitating membrane (3rd eyelid) is visible. You might say....whats so special about that? Many animals have a nictitating membrane. Youd be right. The interesting thing is that in this duck and other diving animals, the membrane is transparent. So when they dive, they can see through the membrane while it protects the eye. The bird pictured is a pacific black duck.

21.01.2022 Not Just a Duck - Pacific Black Duck Theyd found throughout Australia except in the arid regions. Their range also extends throughout the Pacific region. Interesting the only black feathers they have is the distinctive stripe across the eye. Even more confusing is in New Zealand they are known as Grey Ducks, but there is barely any grey in the plumage. Inspiration behind the Not Just a Duck series: ducks are often overlooked, especially the common ones. Even people who profess passion for our feathered friends could be guilty of this. In their effort to find something rare, exotic, or brightly coloured, may walk past a duck, because its just a duck. This series is going to look at fascinating facts about ducks, common and not so common.

21.01.2022 Happy world turtle day! The attached video (Thanks Erin Watson) is of a Green Sea Turtle gently cruising. The carapace (turtle shell) colour of the green turtle can vary from olive green, to yellow, to dark brown. Its interesting it has been named green turtle, not because of the carapace colour, but because it has a layer of green fat under its shell. It is believed this uniquely coloured fat comes from its marine grass and seaweed diet. Unlike other turtles green sea turtles are vego. World turtle day was started in the year 2000 to increase awareness, knowledge and respect for turtles and tortoises, and to encourage human action thatll ensure their survival.

20.01.2022 Azure Kingfisher Azure kingfishers are small (about 17cm). They frequent waterways on the north and east coast of Australia, where they perch on low overhanging branches. They eat fish, crabs, aquatic insects and sometimes frogs. In true Kingfisher style, they often bash their prey on a branch before swallowing it head first. This image was captured while we were in a boat on the hunt for another Kingfisher (Little Kingfisher) when we were so fortunate to stumble on this one and get really close (love the red feet!).

20.01.2022 We are proud to be involved with Birdlife Australias Powerful Owl Project. The project has many aims, including educating and training citizen scientists to monitor the distribution and abundance of breeding success of owls. Ultimately the project data will be used to help conserve the powerful owl. There are 2 ways for the public to be involved: 1. By reporting Powerful Owl sightings (including injured and deceased owls) to the project;... 2. By becoming a trained volunteer to collect important ecological data at allocated breeding sites. For more information have a look at the website: https://birdlife.org.au/projects/powerful-owl-project Photo: taken in Brookfield

20.01.2022 Not just a duck - Australian Wood Duck These ducks are widespread throughout Australia. Wood duck form monogamous breeding pairs that stay together year round. Female: paler with stripe through eye Male: darker head

18.01.2022 Sacred Kingfisher These are medium sized kingfishers measuring 20-23 cm. They are fairly common on mainland Australia. They also occur in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, New Caledonia and Indonesia. Even although they are called kingfishers, they seldom eat fish. Their diet consists mainly of insects and other small terrestrial prey.

15.01.2022 Have a look at these amazing koala detection dogs! We have been thrilled to work with OWAD Environment on a number of our projects. https://youtu.be/35yWlMTe_jw

14.01.2022 There are worse workplaces - Justin cycling through Gondwana rainforest in his Gondwana kit

14.01.2022 These images were captured during a recent field trip to the Mallee region of South Australia (including Birdlife Australias Gluepot Reserve). Mallee refers to the type of vegetation/ecosystem characterised by multi-stemmed eucalypts. Mallee vegetation not only comprises special flora, but also provides habitat for unique and often endangered fauna.... This landscape is sometimes undervalued and referred to as dry and barren, but you dont need to spend much time in the mallee to realise how special this ecosystem is.

13.01.2022 Gondwana Ecology Group is a proud sponsor of the Gondwana Prize for The THECA Art show. This year Gordon Wilkinson was the worthy winner for his work ‘Corroboree’. Congratulations Gordon! Pictured below Gordon receiving prize from Margaret of THECA.

12.01.2022 Forest Kingfisher They occur on the eastern coast of Australia from the Macleay river in NSW to Cape York. We were really fortunate to capture an image of both male and female. Males have a complete white collar(left) and females dont. They often use power lines (as captured) or open beaches as their vantage point for hunting. Most prey is caught by pouncing and seizing it from above, and then returning to perch where the prey is bashed to kill it.

12.01.2022 There are many challenges in bird photography. This was a first for me

11.01.2022 Portrait of a male Australian wood duck. These duck are sometimes called maned duck - can see why

11.01.2022 How fortunate was this sighting! Thanks Mark Cramond for your video - captured a couple of days ago along the Brisbane river. Mark posed an interesting question? He asked if it was normal to see echidnas now, as he thought they may be hibernating. After doing some research we found Mark was 100% correct - echidnas hibernate from about March. Which is quite unusual because its still quite warm in March and theres still plenty of food. They wake up in June/July to mate. Echidnas are a long lived species - they live for about 50 years in captivity and they are thought to live for about 45 years in the wild. Maybe slowing down pays dividends?

11.01.2022 Little Kingfisher This is Australias smallest Kingfisher measuring only around 12cm. Similar to the Azure Kingfisher, these birds perch on branches overhanging rivers and streams. They only occur in coastal Northern Territory and north east Queensland. I cant remember how many unsuccessful excursions weve had in attempting to see this bird. This image was captured during our last mission to find it. The day was coming to an end and the light was fading fast, we were so happy to not only see it, but capture proof of our sighting

10.01.2022 Buff-breasted Paradise-kingfisher This striking bird is the next biggest kingfisher(measuring 29 - 35cm) - thanks to their long tail. They are migratory, spending around October to April in coastal north east Queensland where they breed. Most head off to Papua New Guinea and Cape York for the winter months. When they first arrive they are quite tricky to see because they sit near the tops of the trees selecting territories and mates. They become easier to see once they start building their nests in old termite mounds, and even more so when they are feeding their young.

09.01.2022 Australia is home to 10 native species of kingfishers, of which the most easily recognisable is the Laughing Kookaburra (pictured). Kingfishers as a family are glamorous birds and they are sought after by birdwatchers and photographers alike. From an ecological point of view they can be indicative of a healthy ecosystem. Over the next week, we will feature a number of these species.

09.01.2022 2 February - World Wetlands Day Wetlands support a staggering 40% of all the worlds species. Sadly, many of these species are at risk of extinction. Wetlands are disappearing three times faster than rainforests. Lets consider our wetlands, not just on one day, but as an essential part of our everyday decision making. Photo: Justin celebrating World Wetland Day in the Riverlands, SA

07.01.2022 Shingleback Lizard These lizards are big - adults weigh between 600 - 900g. Interestingly, unlike many other lizards, they are monogamous. They return to their mate every year, up to 20 years. Shinglebacks were in the news yesterday - it appears as though parasites have been influential in the formation of a new subspecies. Read full article here: ... https://mobile.abc.net.au//lizard-evolution-rese/11981124 . . #shinglebacklizard #shingleback #wildreptiles #wildreptile #aussiefauna #gluepotreserve #gluepot #australianfauna #australianreptiles

06.01.2022 Albert’s Lyrebird The only place in the world these birds occur is in the mountain ranges of the far North-East NSW and far South-East QLD. They’re shy forest birds that are heard more often than seen. We were very happy to have captured this image. Their call is melodic, and echos through the rainforest. What’s often surprising is they are wonderful mimics, and they then weave this mimicry in through their regular call. We heard one calling and interwoven between regular calls, was a great representation of a dog barking

03.01.2022 Some birds we saw in the Mallee- while the countryside can seem dry - the birds colours certainly make up for it

02.01.2022 Justin has visited Mount Lewis National Park many times to observe the unique fauna. The park is exceptional because it has elevated rainforest (up to 1200m) with many endemic species. One of the rare species, the the Blue-faced Parrot-finch, was observed feeding on grass seed despite the heavy rain at times. We would like to acknowledge and thank Dell Richards for his company and local expertise.

02.01.2022 Whos noticed all the Blue Tiger butterflies in the last couple of months? These butterflies are mostly a tropical butterfly and occur year round in North Queensland. Over the summer months, they migrate south and can be found in NSW and Victoria. When the cooler weather arrives, they migrate north again, passing through South East Queensland during April and May. We look forward to another spectacle next year

01.01.2022 Happy World Bee Day! We celebrate all the pollinators - bees, butterflies, bats and others. Without them many of our flowering plant species and ecosystems wouldnt survive.

01.01.2022 World Environment Day This years theme is Celebrate Biodiversity Why does biodiversity matter? The bigger the variety, the better, because every living thing is dependent on other living things for survival. How can we celebrate biodiversity?... By making conscious decisions (big or small) for the benefit of the environment See photo captions for some simple ideas to implement See more