Wildlife Seen on Your Last Walk?

[neilmny]

Now that's something you don't see every day MickyB.

[MickyB]

Now that's something you don't see every day MickyB.

It was the first time I have seen a lyrebird nest in it's natural environment. About a month ago I was lucky enough to be shown around the new lyrebird exhibit at Healesville Sanctuary (due to open in approx a fortnight for anyone interested). They actually had a nest there that will go on display at the entrance to the aviary. If I hadn't have seen that one I doubt I would have known what it was, especially as it would have been too hard to ID the bird without getting too close.

[TerraMer]

spotted quoll, barred bandicoot, Rothchild's rock wallaby, euro, dingo and some other small curious nocturnal squeaky marsupials hopping about my head in the Pilbara during Bob Cooper's Advanced Outback Survival course
blue winged kookaburras, pelicans, curlews, geese, wrens, robins, honey eaters, whistlers, tree climbers, magpie larks, wagtails, ravens, corellas, gallahs, 6 different raptors...
when you start paying attention it is surprising how much is out there, makes you want to buy field guides to all classes of animals and plants, geology and ecology. the school of life

[David M]

I saw this at Flinders, VIC on the cliffs above the beach. Does anyone know what it is? Maybe a bush rat?

[norts]

Saw this on my last walk. Only reason I noticed him was that a branch fell across the track and I looked up and I realised a bear was throwing wood at me.

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[whynotwalk]

Nice find David M! It looks to me like a broad-toothed rat (or mouse) - Mastacomys fuscus. They weigh up to 120g and are 25cm+ long (tail to snout). They prefer dense vegetation in higher rainfall areas.

There's more info here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broad-toothed_mouse or here http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/index.aspx?base=4911#btm

... and norts, you're just showing off

cheers

Peter

[MickyB]

Nice find David M! It looks to me like a broad-toothed rat (or mouse) - Mastacomys fuscus. They weigh up to 120g and are 25cm+ long (tail to snout). They prefer dense vegetation in higher rainfall areas.

There's more info here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broad-toothed_mouse or here http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/index.aspx?base=4911#btm



cheers

Peter

I originally thought the same thing whynotwalk but I don't think they are found in that part of the state:

http://biocache.ala.org.au/occurrence/s ... ab_mapView

I also don't think Flinders would be considered a high rainfall area.

Great photo David M.

[MickyB]

Saw this on my last walk. Only reason I noticed him was that a branch fell across the track and I looked up and I realised a bear was throwing wood at me.

Awesome photos norts. They are magnificent creatures. Where were the photos taken??

[norts]

Shenandoah National Park, while on the Appalachian Trail.
Saw quite a few, in the Shenandoahs. Only saw one outside that Park.

[Bluegum Mic]

Now thats a drop bear =D

[David M]

Here is some more wildlife from my last trip. These were also at Flinders, Victoria on 7th September 2014. They are Blue Wrens. The coloured one is a male and the grey ones are female. They are very hard to photograph because they don't stop moving.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superb_fairywren

[Kainas]

That is an angry looking bird.

[corvus]

Here is some more wildlife from my last trip. These were also at Flinders, Victoria on 7th September 2014. They are Blue Wrens. The coloured one is a male and the grey ones are female. They are very hard to photograph because they don't stop moving.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superb_fairywren

P1030888-resize.jpg

P1030889-resize.jpg

Immature males are also grey.

[corvus]

Love those pics of Wildlife on your last walks however in my garden I have Blue wrens, Thornbills, Little Wattlebirds,Plovers, over flown with Black Cockatoos ,Rosellas Welcome Swallows and many others ,come night time I have Brush Tail ,Ring Tail possums plus Barred Bandicoots and Pademelons a Cornucopia of wildlife in my yard and trees albeit only 100 meters or so to a green belt and beach however I am looking forward to recovering from my knee problems and getting back into walking out there to experience those wee creatures and birds that do not visit my home .

[neilmny]

Not the actual wildlife but does anyone recognise this footprint. I should have had something there to guage it but it was about 120mm long
and I've seen nothing like it before. Giant Koala maybe?
The photos were taken with my phone so not pericularly good.

What is it?

The above footprint is second from the left.

The group

[neilmny]

Wildlife actually seen on my last ..... err second last walk.
Auriferious Spur Lake Eildon National Park.

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[MickyB]

Not the actual wildlife but does anyone recognise this footprint. I should have had something there to guage it but it was about 120mm long
and I've seen nothing like it before. Giant Koala maybe?
The photos were taken with my phone so not pericularly good.

10102014 footprint.jpg

The above footprint is second from the left.

10102014(006).jpg

I think they might be a wombat's foot prints.

[neilmny]

Could be MickyB and a fairly big one at that.

[MickyB]

wombat.jpg (18.14 KiB) Viewed 493400 times

I am probably totally wrong. Your top photo looks like a wombats rear foot. Not sure if their feet would be 120mm long but this photo shows the foot of a Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat compared to a pencil

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Photo taken from http://www.wombatfoundation.com.au/contact.htm

[neilmny]

Yep you've got it MickyB. Both the black and white print and the print in the sand look just like
the prints I saw. The 120mm was a guess. The pencil is probably about 150mm so around the 110 to 120
looks about right for the sand print. Thanks for the info. Just glad they are not from a relo of the legendary
big cat.

[ofuros]

A python that's just about to shed some skin, lying in the middle of the track......Spicers Peak, Qld.

[Avid Hiker38]

your game getting that close ofuros, great to see everyone's pics. Hiking in WA usually will run into a couple of kangaroos and the occasional snake

[Chris-a]

Any thoughts on these?


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[MickyB]

I originally thought kangaroo/wallaby but now think it's some type of bird. Where were these photos taken Chris-a?

[phan_TOM]

Too many things to list with the spring time frenzy in full swing but a few of the more memorable recent sightings include:

- my first few snakes of the year. A beautiful tree snake, a carpet python and a several red bellied blacks, a couple of which were right under foot until the last second which always gets the heart going and the attention back on track

- a couple of these big fat land mullets

- and a couple of rufous fantails up in the rainforest which I watched play a game of chasey for about 10 minutes. A nice flash of red amongst all that green

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[Rob Gosford]

was on a firetrail south of Kariong Central Coast last weekend, and stumbled into a Black Cockatoo community. They hang around in groups of threes (Cockathrees ? lol) nesting in bushes and shoulder high scrub. As soon as i past them, a group of three would all lift up slowly together from the bushes like helicopters, then fly just over your head SCREECHING ! Scared the crap out of me ! This happened several times. They were HUGE, with big yellow (?) eyes. Could almost touch them. Here's one i photographed flying away.....

as i mentioned above, its amazing how slowly they lift off vertically like a chopper, then bank and fly off at low level with their SCREECHING !

[michael_p]

Walking around local bushland I have spotted 5 Koalas within 5km of home in 3 months. This is the most I have spotted in such a short space of time and the most I have ever seen so close to my home. The population is very much on the increase around here.

Last one spotted looked like a big male, although I couldn't confirm this as I couldn't see his chest clearly even with binoculars:

[Chris-a]

I originally thought kangaroo/wallaby but now think it's some type of bird. Where were these photos taken Chris-a?

On the beach in front of the campground in the Eurimbula National Park.


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[neilmny]

Saw this fella on a track at Mt Dandenong today.
S/He was about 20cm long and out for a stroll on a dryish partly sunny track.

[MickyB]

I originally thought kangaroo/wallaby but now think it's some type of bird. Where were these photos taken Chris-a?

On the beach in front of the campground in the Eurimbula National Park.


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It's very hard because there's nothing for size comparison but perhaps it could be something like a sea eagle. It looks like it has talons. Just a total guess.

Obviously it's not a kangaroo/wallaby as I immediately thought as the footprints are not side by side (and I think they have 2 toes?).