Tag Archives: Australia

Lime Lava

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Lime Lava

Don’t step on living carpets of lime lava.

  • Lime lava plants are evergreen plants native to New Zealand and the eastern states of Australia; and they prefer higher than normal elevations in subtropical habitats.
  • A ‘lime lava’ plant is also known as a ‘two-flowered knawel’, ‘knawel’, ‘cushion-bush’, ‘cushion plant’ and ‘Canberra grass’.
  • The scientific name of the lime lava plant is Scleranthus biflorus, and it is from the family Caryophyllaceae, the family of carnations.
  • Lime lava plants typically grow horizontally as a perennial plant, and they have very small leaves that are between 0.5 to 1 centimetre (0.2 to 0.4 inches) in length.
  • From a distance, a lime lava plant has the appearance of moss, and the plant boasts a colour of vibrant green.

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  • Lime lava plants are used most often for decorative purposes, commonly to line garden edges, featured in rockeries, or as a ground cover.
  • Full sunlight is the best condition for growing lime lava plants and they also prefer moist conditions.
  • Lime lava plants have trouble growing in areas where water collects; and they are generally frost resistant.
  • Lime lava can grow to be 15 centimetres (6 inches) in height and 50 to 80 (20 to 32 inches) centimetres in diameter.
  • Lime lava flowers are very small, and green to yellow in colour, and they flower during spring to autumn.
Bibliography:
Canberra Grass, 2014, Burke’s Backyard, http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/fact-sheets/in-the-garden/grasses-ground-covers-lawns/canberra-grass/#.VK9d-IuUd8E
Hibbs B, A patch of lime green – Scleranthus biflorus, 2012, Garden World, http://gardenworld.com.au/2012/06/13/a-patch-of-lime-green-scleranthus-biflorus/
Scleranthus biflorus, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scleranthus_biflorus
Scleranthus biflorus, 2015, Bushland Flora, http://www.bushlandflora.com.au/individual_plant.php?p=Scleranthus%20biflorus&uid=1677
Hadlow B, Scleranthus biflorus, 1981, Australian National Botanic Gardens http://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/gnp11/scleranthus-biflorus.html

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Children’s Stick Insect

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Children’s Stick Insect

Children’s Stick Insects are masters of camouflage.

  • A Children’s Stick Insect is a winged insect native to eastern parts of Australia, that are medium in size, compared to other stick insects.
  • Children’s Stick Insects have the scientific name Tropidoderus childrenii and are from the family Phasmatidae, a family of stick insects that can regrow their own limbs.
  • ‘Children’s Stick Insects’ are also known as ‘yellow-winged spectres’ and they have the ability to fly, although females are less likely to do so.
  • Children’s Stick Insects range from 11 to 14 centimetres (4.3 to 5.5 inches) in length, and they have long legs.
  • The diet of a Children’s Stick Insect consists solely of Australian native eucalyptus leaves, and they spend most of their time in trees.

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  • A Children’s Stick Insect has the ability to release its limbs, allowing it to escape from predators when caught.
  • Children’s Stick Insects range from green, red, brown, cream, pink and purple in colour, depending on the gender and the age of the insect, and wings are typically a faint yellow to green.
  • Camouflage is one of the primary protection techniques used by Children’s Stick Insects, as they often have the appearance of leaves.
  • Children’s Stick Insects lay small ovoid eggs in the trees, that drop down to the ground and are typically grey in colour, and they take approximately four months to hatch.
  • Fellow stick insects occasionally mistake Children’s Stick Insects’ wings for leaves, and as a result eat them, but they are generally not bothered by it, as the wings are insensitive.

 

Bibliography:
Chapman A, Children’s Stick Insect (Tropidoderus childrenii), n.d, OzAnimals.com, http://www.ozanimals.com/Insect/Children’s-Stick-Insect/Tropidoderus/childrenii.html
Children’s Stick Insect – Tropidoderus childrenii, n.d, Bugs Ed, http://www.bugsed.com/fact_sheets/childrens_stick_insect.html
Tropidoderus childrenii, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropidoderus_childrenii

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Quoll

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Quoll

Can you spot the cute and spotty quoll?

  • Quolls are six living species of a genus of marsupials, and four are native to Australia, while the remaining two are native to New Guinea, in the Pacific Ocean.
  • Quolls have the scientific name Dasyurus and are from the family Dasyuridae, the family of New Guinean and Australian marsupials.
  • Quolls typically grow to be 25 to 75 centimetres (10 to 29.5 inches) in length and grow to be 0.3 to 7 kilograms (0.7 to 15 pounds) in weight.
  • ‘Quolls’ were named by Australia’s notable European discoverer, Captain James Cook, derived from the native Aboriginal name, but the term only became popular in the 1960s, and were previously known as ‘native cats’ and ‘tiger cats’.
  • The diet of quolls typically consists of birds, insects, reptiles, and small mammals, as well as nuts, fruit and other vegetation, and the larger species also eat larger mammals including echidnas and possums.
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Quoll
Image courtesy of Joshua Cunningham/Flickr
  • Up to thirty quolls can be born to a single mother at one time, although the very young ‘pups’ will die until only six remain, due to the number of teats available.
  • Five species of quoll are near threatened, while the sixth is endangered, and numbers are diminishing due to habitat loss; consumption of poisonous bait for pests; and the existence of introduced species of animals in there native habitat, including poisonous cane toads that are eaten, and foxes and feral cats that either hunt or compete against the marsupial.
  • Quolls are most active at night time; typically have a life span ranging three to six years; and are preyed on by crocodiles and snakes.
  • Quolls have a fur coat coloured black, brown, grey or tan, which is patterned with lightly coloured spots, and they have a long tail and a pointy snout.
  • Although they typically live on their own, quolls in a single area usually toilet in the same spot as their fellow species.
Bibliography:
Quoll, 2013, A-Z Animals, http://a-z-animals.com/animals/quoll/
Quoll, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quoll
Department of the Environment and Heritage, Quolls of Australia, n.d, Australian Government, http://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/resources/8ad3915e-57ee-4eb8-afd0-4f6bed036896/files/quolls.pdf

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Giant Clam

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Giant Clam

You may not be a giant when next to a giant clam.

  • Giant clams are very large bivalves, shells with two pieces that are hinged together, and are native to the Indian and Pacific oceans, in coral reefs.
  • The giant clam has the scientific name Tridacna gigas, and is a mollusc from the family Cardiidae, the family of cockles, and it is commonly believed to be the largest extant bivalve, and while it is the heaviest, longer specimens of Kuphus polythalamia have been found.
  • Giant clams typically range from 90 to 120 centimetres (35 to 47 inches) in length, and can weigh 100 to 200 kilograms (220 to 440 pounds), although they can grow larger.
  • The diet of a giant clam primarily consists of nutrients produced by algae that the clam plays host to and with which it lives in a photosymbiosis relationship, and it also consumes plankton and sometimes other plant and animal matter.
  • Giant clams possibly grow around 12 centimetres in length annually, until maximum length has been reached, and they have a lifespan spanning approximately 20 to 100 years in the wild.
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Giant Clam
Image courtesy of Malcolm Browne/Flickr
  • Once a giant clam has found a favourable location, it settles there and does not re-position itself ever again, however, they do have predators, that include eels; fish; starfish; and snails, that are smaller than the clam itself, and once attacked, they will be slowly eaten by their enemies.
  • Giant clams are vulnerably endangered due to coral reef habitat destruction as well as over-fishing partly due to the clam being considered as a delicacy.
  • Giant clams usually close in self defense, but quite slowly, and often not all the way, and while they have often been regarded as highly dangerous and fatal, this is considered a myth and no known fatalities have occurred.
  • Giant clams have a combination of colours that vary, and include yellow, red, orange, green, pink, blue and brown, and it is said that every clam is unique in its appearance.
  • Giant clams are said to be able to produce 500 million eggs at once, that are released in the ocean and once fertilised, they quickly hatch and produce a shell.
Bibliography:
Giant Clam, 2013, A-Z Animals, http://a-z-animals.com/animals/giant-clam/
Giant Clam, 2014, National Geographic, http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.au/animals/invertebrates/giant-clam/
Giant Clam, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_clam

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Scorpion

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Scorpion

You’ll regret being stung by a scorpion.

  • Scorpions are anthropods belonging to the order Scorpiones, which is also their scientific name, that consists of 13 families and approximately 1750 species, plus around 110 that are extinct.
  • Scorpions have two claw-shaped pedipalps; a long segmented body, and a long segmented erect tail, tipped with a stinger and venom.
  • Scorpions are related to spiders, and of the thousands of species, only around 25 to 40 can actually cause a human fatality, and they are preyed on by birds, lizards, rodents and possums.
  • Scorpions are native worldwide, with the exception of Antarctica, although they were introduced to some Pacific Islands, including New Zealand, as well as Europe’s Great Britain.
  • Scorpions can be found in a wide variety of habitats, and typically live in holes in the ground or other similar shelters during the day, and are active during the night.
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Scorpion
Image courtesy of Matt Reinbold/Flickr
  • Scorpions are capable of living up to a year without food, and their diet mainly consists of insects, spiders and some small reptiles and mammals, that are trapped via their pincers and/or dangerous venom; and they liquidize their prey before consumption.
  • Scorpions produce from 1 to 105 young over a period of a few weeks, while the young are dependent on their mother and live on her back until their first moult.
  • Scorpions are fried and traditionally consumed in Asia’s China, where a wine made from the creature is also used as medicine.
  • Scorpions range from less than 1 centimetre (0.4 inches) in length, to 21 centimetres (08.3 inches) and weigh 10 to 100 grams (0.4 to 3.5 ounces).
  • Scorpions are typically coloured black, white, red, brown or yellow, and when placed underneath an ultraviolet light, they may emit a fluorescent colour.
Bibliography:
Scorpion, 2013, A-Z Animals, http://a-z-animals.com/animals/scorpion/
Scorpion, 2014, National Geographic, http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.au/animals/bugs/scorpion/
Scorpion, 2014, San Diego Zoo, http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/scorpion
Scorpion, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scorpion

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Yosemite Valley

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Yosemite Valley

Yosemite Valley is a very scenic place.

  • Yosemite Valley is a valley located in the United State’s California, in the mountainous region of Yosemite National Park.
  • Yosemite Valley covers a length of approximately 13 kilometres (7.5 miles) and is about 1.6 kilometres (1 mile) wide and is surrounded by up to 1.46 km (0.9 mile) high granite cliffs.
  • Yosemite Valley features numerous walking tracks and rock climbs, and is a popular tourist destination, attracting approximately 2.8 million visitors per year in 2012.
  • Yosemite Valley is populated by pine trees, and is the home to numerous creeks, waterfalls and meadows.
  • Yosemite Valley is said to have been originally filled by numerous glaciers, which in turn flattened the valley floor, causing it to be a U-shaped glacial valley.
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Part of Yosemite Valley
Image courtesy of CJ Travel Tips/Flickr
  • Yosemite Valley is home to much wildlife – fauna including squirrels, deer, bears, coyotes, salamanders, skinks, bobcats and rattlesnakes; and flora including wildflowers and shrubs.
  • Besides rock climbing and hiking, Yosemite Valley offers many other activities, including ice skating in winter, fishing, cycling, birdwatching, and swimming.
  • In 1864, Yosemite Valley was declared a protected landmark, via a bill by Abraham Lincoln (president of the United States at the time), that made it the first protected natural place by a federal government, and it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984 as part of the Yosemite National Park listing.
  • Yosemite Valley has numerous rock falls each year, some of which have fallen from significant heights, caused fatalities, registered on seismographs, flattened thousands of trees, damaged buildings and caused huge dust clouds.
  • There is a fee to enter the national park that Yosemite Valley is located in, and the valley has lodges, cabins, camping areas, shops, a museum, post office, art centre and many other facilities.
Bibliography:
Cary R, Yosemite Valley, 2006, Yosemite National Park, http://www.yosemitehikes.com/yosemite-valley/yosemite-valley-hikes.htm
Yosemite Valley, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yosemite_Valley

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