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How to create a wildlife-friendly garden
If you want to help native animals survive and thrive, convert to a wildlife-friendly garden with local plants. With these 10 easy changes, you can convince local wildlife to stay in your garden. ...
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How to grow wattle trees from seed Wattle propagation
It's easy to grow wattle trees from seed. Wattles are great garden plants and most put on a spectacular display when they flower.
As there are so many species of wattles in Australia, it is not hard to find a suitable one for your garden, no matter where you are in Australia. ...
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Rainforest Trees and Shrubs — Book review
A plant identification book for the botanically minded naturalist to identify rainforest trees and shrubs in Victoria, NSW and subtropical Queensland ...
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Native Trees and Shrubs of South-eastern Australia — Book review
Hobby botanists, naturalists and scientists will find this book very useful. It is a great publication that will help you identify the native trees and shrubs of south-eastern Australia. It also has a comprehensive section about south-eastern Australia's regional ecology and geology. ...
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Birds of Australia — App review
I love the 'Birds of Australia' app. It makes identifying Australian birds in the bush so much easier. It's also a great way to learn more about birds ...
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Huge mangrove dieback
Desperate need for proper monitoring
A James Cook University (JCU) scientist says an ‘unprecedented’ dieback event has now been confirmed to have occurred, with surveys showing thousands of hectares of mangroves on the Gulf of Carpentaria suffering a severe dieback. Professor Norm Duke, spokesman for the Australian Mangrove and Saltmarsh Network, said scientists first heard anecdotal evidence about the scale of the mangrove dieback in early 2016. This has now been confirmed by aerial and satellite surveys. Dr Duke said around 7000 hectares of mangroves, or more than nine percent of the mangroves in the area stretching 700 km west from Normanton, have been affected ...
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A James Cook University (JCU) scientist says an ‘unprecedented’ dieback event has now been confirmed to have occurred, with surveys showing thousands of hectares of mangroves on the Gulf of Carpentaria suffering a severe dieback. Professor Norm Duke, spokesman for the Australian Mangrove and Saltmarsh Network, said scientists first heard anecdotal evidence about the scale of the mangrove dieback in early 2016. This has now been confirmed by aerial and satellite surveys. Dr Duke said around 7000 hectares of mangroves, or more than nine percent of the mangroves in the area stretching 700 km west from Normanton, have been affected ...
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The identity of the Deep-sea Mushroom
A new kind of deep-sea animal
The mystery of Dendrogramma enigmatica or 'Deep-sea Mushroom' was born in 1986 when Australian researchers dredged up some strange mushroom-shaped creatures from the bottom of the deep-sea off the Tasmanian coast. These creatures were unlike anything ever seen before. It took a further 25 years before Danish researchers investigated the creatures and decided they were an entirely new kind of deep-sea animal they called Dendrogramma enigmatica. Completely new animals are a rare event — so the discovery of Dendrogramma excited and puzzled the scientific world ...
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The mystery of Dendrogramma enigmatica or 'Deep-sea Mushroom' was born in 1986 when Australian researchers dredged up some strange mushroom-shaped creatures from the bottom of the deep-sea off the Tasmanian coast. These creatures were unlike anything ever seen before. It took a further 25 years before Danish researchers investigated the creatures and decided they were an entirely new kind of deep-sea animal they called Dendrogramma enigmatica. Completely new animals are a rare event — so the discovery of Dendrogramma excited and puzzled the scientific world ...
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Rainforest Climbing Plants — Book review
This is an essential book for identifying rainforest climbing plants in Victoria, New South Wales and subtropical Queensland (subtropical eastern mainland Australia) ...
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Australian Plants for Canberra Region Gardens — Book review
A book that overflows with colour
This book is written for Canberra region gardeners by Canberra region gardeners. It brings together over 50 years of gardening experience by past and present members of the Australian Native Plants Society—formerly the Society for Growing Australian Plants—Canberra Region. This is the fifth edition, extensively revised and now with illustrations for 934 described plants, with many more forms and cultivars listed. The Australian plants selected for this book are likely to grow well in the Canberra region and in other similar cool climate areas. More than one third of the Australian plants included are native to the Canberra region, while others come from elsewhere in Australia ...
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This book is written for Canberra region gardeners by Canberra region gardeners. It brings together over 50 years of gardening experience by past and present members of the Australian Native Plants Society—formerly the Society for Growing Australian Plants—Canberra Region. This is the fifth edition, extensively revised and now with illustrations for 934 described plants, with many more forms and cultivars listed. The Australian plants selected for this book are likely to grow well in the Canberra region and in other similar cool climate areas. More than one third of the Australian plants included are native to the Canberra region, while others come from elsewhere in Australia ...
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Male pregnancy in seahorses
Males give similar care as female mammals
University of Sydney research discovers that male seahorses nourish and protect their embryos. Seahorse pregnancies are carried by the males but, when it comes to breeding, seahorses have more in common with humans than previously thought, new research from the University of Sydney reveals. Seahorses are famed for being part of the only family in the animal kingdom (Syngnathidae) in which the male is responsible for pregnancy. What hasn’t been known until now is the degree to which male seahorses nourish and protect their embryos in their brood pouch during the 24-day gestation period. ...
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University of Sydney research discovers that male seahorses nourish and protect their embryos. Seahorse pregnancies are carried by the males but, when it comes to breeding, seahorses have more in common with humans than previously thought, new research from the University of Sydney reveals. Seahorses are famed for being part of the only family in the animal kingdom (Syngnathidae) in which the male is responsible for pregnancy. What hasn’t been known until now is the degree to which male seahorses nourish and protect their embryos in their brood pouch during the 24-day gestation period. ...
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A 40 million year penguin parade
An amazingly diverse history of penguins in Australia
The penguin parade may have looked a whole lot different when giant penguins, the size of humans, waddled along the beach at Phillip Island. Today, the Little Penguin, the world’s smallest penguin species, is the only penguin living in Australia. A study led by Museum Victoria and Monash University PhD student, Travis Park has connected the dots to discover an amazingly diverse history of penguins in Australia, which stretches back over 38 million years. The research conducted by Travis Park (Museum Victoria and Monash University), Dr Erich Fitzgerald (Museum Victoria), Dr Stephen Gallagher (University of Melbourne) and Dr Tony Allan (CSIRO) has been published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE today ...
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The penguin parade may have looked a whole lot different when giant penguins, the size of humans, waddled along the beach at Phillip Island. Today, the Little Penguin, the world’s smallest penguin species, is the only penguin living in Australia. A study led by Museum Victoria and Monash University PhD student, Travis Park has connected the dots to discover an amazingly diverse history of penguins in Australia, which stretches back over 38 million years. The research conducted by Travis Park (Museum Victoria and Monash University), Dr Erich Fitzgerald (Museum Victoria), Dr Stephen Gallagher (University of Melbourne) and Dr Tony Allan (CSIRO) has been published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE today ...
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