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Tough Toucans; anything but clowns!
A quick search of the internet will reveal plenty of anthropomorphic throw-away lines like "it's impossible to take toucans seriously". That could only be written by someone who's never watched wild...
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Kirstenbosch: one of the world's great gardens
Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden really is one of the world's great botanic gardens and a delight to visit. This post is based on a visit we paid to it in May this year. It was my third visit,...
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Cycads; ancients with an amazing sex life!
Cycads, now a small part of the world's vegetation landscape, once dominated it. Their fossil record goes back unambiguously to 280 million years ago, with ages of over 300 million years often...
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Nitmiluk National Park; sandstone spectacular
Kakadu National Park in the Top End of the Northern Territory of Australia, protecting some 20,000 square kilometres of woodland and sandstone escarpment, is one of the world's great parks (see here...
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"I Thought There Was Only One!"; of zebras, ostriches and more
The year is winding down, but there seems so much to do still. Accordingly this will be a fairly low-key post, based on a comment I heard with regard to our African adventure earlier this year, both...
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Farewell to 2019!
Continuing my tradition of recent years, to mark the changeover of years I've selected just one photo* from each month of 2018. As ever I don't make any pretences to photographic excellence, but have...
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Talking of Storks
As much of the world is very well aware, Australia has been dominated by unprecedented fires, in extent and intensity, and it's hard to think and talk about anything else. That seems a good reason to...
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Remembering Namadgi: celebration of a great park #1
As I write this, Namadgi National Park, which comprises some 45% of the area of the Australian Capital Territory where I live, is burning again. So far it has already consumed some 15,000 hectares of...
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Remembering Namadgi: celebration of a great park #2 plants
This three-part post began here last week; you may want to start there if you missed it, to get a sense of what this is about. In essence it's a tribute to a wonderful park, which is currently burning,...
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Remembering Namadgi: celebration of a great park #3 little animals
This was to be the finale in my weekly series both celebrating this wonderful park that is Canberra's back yard and contemplating its setbacks in the great fire which has burnt out just over 80% of it....
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Remembering Namadgi: celebration of a great park #4 bigger animals
We have now got to the final instalment of this celebration of a great park, Namadgi, which is Canberra's back yard. Sadly it has been grievously burnt in the past few weeks, but the fire is...
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Anteaters, armadillos and sloths; the original South Americans
South America is a joy for mammal-watchers; for the lucky and well-guided visitor mammalian treats include Jaguars, tapirs (three species), otters (four species, including the magnificent Giant Otter),...
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Lower Glenelg National Park, Victoria; a haven
Well it was a haven for us last week anyway. We set out on a Saturday morning, when it was still OK to do so, hoping to attend a family wedding in Adelaide. By Sunday everything was crumbling, and we...
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Birds and Flowers
As we in the south of the world head into the colder time of the year, the north is welcoming spring. In Australia we are still firmly (and quite properly) restricted in our activities, though mostly...
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Serengeti Sublime; #1 landscapes and mammals
I suppose every naturalist has a wish list of places we really want to see elsewhere in the world. Mine began to develop at a fairly young age, and is pretty predictable, fuelled by wildlife...
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Serengeti Sublime: #2 birds
Last time I introduced this superb park, one of the highlights of my natural history life - not least because of decades of anticipation! - and some of its non-feathered fauna. Say 'East Africa' and I...
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Mud, Glorious Mud
Yes, I know I've pinched that title from Flanders and Swan, but I promise not to mention hippopotamuses. I've pondered this post for some years, since watching swarms of parrots coming to the wonderful...
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Spinifex; the prickly heart of Australia
Huddled along the moister parts of Australia's shores, most Australians have, inevitably, a limited concept of what most of our country is really like. For instance at least 20% of the entire country...
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Peru's Spectacular Desert Coast; Paracas and the Ballestas Isles
For most of us, there is something truly remarkable about a desert running right to a coastline. It happens on the west coasts of all three southern vegetated continents, but perhaps nowhere as...
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Tapitallee; a yard to remember
Just last week, in the midst of the chaos of the current world, an era came to an end, noticed by only a very few. It was time for Lou's parents to leave their home, which they had built over a quarter...
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