Issues around the natural environment
The Australian floral emblem is the golden wattle (Acacia pycnantha), but we don’t have any national animal emblems. It’s generally accepted that they are the kangaroo and emu, although they’ve never been officially proclaimed as such. What many...
The Burke’s Backyard aviaries, built last year were landscaped and irrigated to maintain an environment for breeding finches. Rare and endangered finches were released including two pairs of Red-eared Firetail finches. The finches have bred and there are seven...
Grey Headed Flying Fox The bat is a fascinating creature that has appeared in the belief systems, art, literature, film and even recipes of people for centuries. You might not realise it, but bats will probably have visited your backyard at some stage this year. There...
Fairhill native nursery at Yandina in Queensland is undoubtedly one of the best native plant nurseries in Australia. At nurseries like Fairhill customers have access to the expertise of specialist staff, and they’re able to choose from a wide range of native...
Ring around the moon, rain before noon. A mirky milky way means a dull damp day. Rain before seven, fine before eleven. We’ve all heard them before, you know, those little stories and rhymes which have just sort of grown up with us, and many people swear by...
Cane toads (Bufo marinus) are natives of South and Central America. They were introduced into Australia in 1935 to help control the beetles which were decimating our sugarcane crops. Cane toads were useless in controlling the cane beetles but they have become a...
Endangered Red Panda Modern zoos not only exhibit animals, they also act as safe houses for many endangered species, and they play a crucial role in preserving our precious genetic diversity. A good example of the conservation work zoos undertake is an international...
Environmental Special Many people are concerned about the welfare of the planet, but are unsure about what they can, or should do to help. In the past, scientists, government bureaucrats and the media told us a lot of things that simply did not make sense, and this...
Frilled Lizard The sun-loving frilled lizard (Chlamydosaurus kingii) is the reptile emblem of Australia, and also the inspiration for the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games mascot “Lizzie”. Frilled lizards are common in the monsoonal woodlands of northern...
The Eastern Gambusia (Gambusia holbrooki) is native to the rivers draining the Gulf of Mexico, but it has been distributed worldwide to control mosquitoes. It was introduced into Australia in the 1920s, but has not been any more effective at controlling mosquitoes...