Look Who Visited Me

[Baccus]

Yep, when the first Europeans sent back tales to the mother land telling of Black Swans the educated elite poo pooed them claiming that everyone knew that swans where white. Reminds me of how certian they all where that the world was flat. Hopefully in a couple of weeks I will be able to add some pictures of another Australian odditity the Platypus. When the first specimans where sent back to England the learned men said they where made up animals stiched together as a joke. And if I am really lucky I might even stumble across an Echidna, our other montreme.

 

[Better is Betta]

Great pics Baccus, very entertaining. I wish I could leave seed out for the birds but the only ones that would take advantage of it is the introduced pest the indian mina and house sparrows. You will get the occasional native visitor but they will be chased away by the minas. Oh and the sulphur crested cockatoos are always around our place. They certainly let you know they are around with loud squawks. In our area if you feed the cockatoos you will be fined......thats our council for you. But I can understand why. People may not know this but if you have a fruit tree growing in your yard as I did (manderine tree) When the fruit is only half grown the cockies will strip the tree bare. You won't hear a peek out of them, they are very very quiet. They only eat the seeds and discard the fruit. I haven't had a manderine in years because of them......not that it bothered me much. It was the mess they left behind that use to annoy me. Just a bit of trivia.....anyway keep the pics coming they are fantastic.

 

[Baccus]

Sulpher crested cocaktoos are actually becoming more of a pest in surberbia from all the free hand outs. They are far too intelligent and when they get an easy meal that didn't require them taxing their brains or energy then they turn their attention to playing with (destroying) what ever they can lay their beaks on. I only put out food for the birds once or twice a week, so it can't be considered a regular feeding station, because I often put the food out on different days. With the Myhnas and sparrows the seed blocks usually slow them down. I am lucky here, no Indian Myhnas only the native Noisy Miner but I do have the dreaded turtle neck doves, and in Rockhampton there are plenty of feral pigeons. Oh and you just can't get away from sparrows.

I will definantly keep adding new pictures, I really hope to get some good pictures of Platypus in a couple of weeks time. Techniqually I will be visiting them, but hey how often do you get to see a platypus in the wild? Oh hang on I have and even dragged hubby down early in the morning to see them .

 

[Better is Betta]

Well I had a nice little visitor at my place last night. My birds were going nuts around 10pm so I got to see what all the noise was about. Lo and behold a beautiful little swamp python. Most swamp pythons are black and white with the usual diamond pattern all over them but this little fellow was a beautiful browny colour. Maybe hes a different species of python I'm not sure but have a look at the pics and enjoy........oh I hope all of you like snakes.

 

[Baccus]

Hmmm its head doesn't look so python to me, he/ she actually looks more like a brown tree snake, so fess up just how close did you get to your visitor for the pictures?

 

[Better is Betta]

I touched it on the tail and it made a sudden jerk, then it turned around and looked at me flickering its tongue trying to smell me. I was quick to move out of the way and let it slither under the fence.

 

[Baccus]

A little tip for next time, always freeze around a snake that maybe aggressive , that way they have nothing to strike at and will calm down and slither off going about their business. I have stood still right beside Eastern Brown snakes and because I have stayed still it has been able to smell me but not detect any other threat, so has calmed down and slithered off to other pastures.
Snakes in my area at work are lucky if they run into me as I try not to run over them with the ride on mower, I try to herd them off into a safe area rather than kill them for the sake of it.

 

[Better is Betta]

Yes good advice for anyone encountering snakes. A lot of people are horrified of them and the first thing they want to do is kill it. Many of non poisonous snakes end up with their heads cut off because of peoples fears and the motto a lot hold is... the only good snake is a dead one. Most people are bitten by trying to decapitate a snake. I only hope the snake that I encountered will not be harmed by the neighbours. This snake is welcomed in my yard any time.......whats that, I feel the shivers running up your spine of some of you

 

[Baccus]

I agree totally that more snakes need to be accepted rather than killed just for being a snake, however I do generally draw the line at Eastern Browns and their venomous cousins. But I will only kill a snake if its a direct threat to myself or my pets, and can not be relocated to another haunt safely. Personally I welcome pythons around my yard (even if they do eat frogs and my birds. Only fairly small pythons can actually get into my avairy but almost any sized tree snake can get into my avairy and sadly tree snakes are real bird conisours.

This is the last python that came to visit my avairy and left with my only pair of canaries in it.

He's lucky he got relocated out to a local lagoon well away from my house and most other peoples houses.

 

[Better is Betta]

Oh sorry to hear about your loss I've lost a silky and a frizzle chicken to a python. The odd cat and small dog goes missing around the neighbourhood due to the much larger pythons. But you cant't tell them what they can or can't eat....if it moves its dinner. I live close to the swamp so no doubt I will always get the odd slithering visitor and heaven knows what else lurks around my yard in the darkness of night.

 

[Baccus]

I have seen a motion activated camera that can be put any where, which I would be very tempted to set up in my yard at night. I would probably get lots of photos of the dogs roaming round the yard as well as cane toads and the odd bat but I might also discover some other surprises as well.
ust be glad you dont get gonnas as well in your yard , once they find any easy meal they always come back.

I keep hoping to see the blue tongues around in my garden, hopefully they haven't wondered off into the neighborhood.