When the sun goes down in the Australian outback a completely new suite of animals come out of hiding. This includes Urodacus macrurus, a large (up to 10cm in length) species of scorpion that occurs throughout central Queensland. These scorpions avoid the harsh sun during the day bunkered down in their burrow. Instead, they prefer… Read more »
April 17th is World Bat Appreciation Day! Time to take a minute to think about what amazing animals bats really are. Bats are one of the oldest types of mammal (warm-blooded animals that suckle their young) and one of the most successful – about 20% of all mammal species are bats. It seems that learning… Read more »
While we acknowledge that there are still some parts of western Queensland that have received little or no recent rain, the downpours in areas such as Roma have stimulated frog activity that I haven’t seen since the last big wet years between 2010 and 2012. Standing on our home deck last night I could hear… Read more »
Many people travelling through Roma and Outback Queensland during Spring may notice the presence of fruit bats not present at other times of the year. These are Little Red Flying Foxes (Pteropus scapulatus), and are a bit different from the species of flying foxes on the coast which typically roost in large permanent colonies. Little… Read more »
On a wet summers evening a large toad-looking creature was spotted in the backyard. With an upright posture and dark colouring, we were sure it was a cane toad. Just as it was about to meet the fate of all other pest cane toads in our backyard, we happened to notice some rather bright red… Read more »
As the temperature begins to rise, so will the activity of local snakes. Reptiles such as snakes become more active in the hotter months and begin looking around for food. As they move around they can often be spotted in backyards, inside homes and local parks looking for a warm place to set up camp. … Read more »
We often get asked about Magpies and while its never fun to be on the receiving end of a Australian Magpie Cracticus tibicen’s defensive behaviour, it is understandable when you learn a little more about them. Why do Magpies swoop? They’re are very territorial birds. They’ll protect their territory from other birds throughout the year…. Read more »
I was looking at my diminished woodpile this morning and thinking that I might not need to cut any more this winter. We might just have seen off the worst of the cold. Spring is in the air! In the last week I’ve noticed the Little Noisy Friarbirds Philemon corniculatus (a kind of honeyeater) arriving… Read more »
Our Principal Ecologist and Tour Guide Craig Eddie took these photographs of a bower in some roadside vegetation in western Queensland. The bower belongs to our resident bowerbird in Outback Queensland – the Spotted Bowerbird Chlamydera maculata. Like all bowerbirds, they build a bower which is basically an archway constructed from grass stems and twigs. Each… Read more »
Winter, the coldest season of the year is here. Some of us can’t bear the mercury dropping below 20°C while the rest of us (including me) embrace winter with all the hot chocolates, cosy fires, snuggly blankets and warm winter fashion there is to have. One of the best parts about outback Queensland is the cool… Read more »
