The Natural World

What many scholars believe to be the oldest artworks in the world. These Aboriginal petroglyphs of the Adnyamathanha People are believed to be around 40,000 years old and are located in Chambers Gorge, Flinders Ranges, South Australia. 

More Aboriginal petroglyphs of the Adnyamathanha People which are believed to be around 40,000 years old to be found in Chambers Gorge, Flinders Ranges, South Australia. 

Western Grey Kangaroos Macropus fuliginosus in Kaiser Stuhl Conservation Park near the Barossa Valley in South Australia. Western  Grey kangaroos inhabit approximately 60% of western and southern Australia. Female Western Grey Kangaroos communicate to their joeys (young) with a series of clicks. They are herbivorous and use microorganisms in the caecum to break down the cellulose of these plants. They can survive on plants high in fiber but low in nitrogen, and require only small amounts of water (photo copyright P.Curnow).

Students from the University of South Australia visiting Aboriginal artworks in the form of petroglyphs in the Flinders Ranges, South Australia. 

The Laughing Kookaburra Dacelo novaeguineae the largest  member of the kingfisher family with its distinctive eye stripe and large pale coloured head, sitting on branch at the Kaiser Stuhl Conservation Park in South Australia. The Laughing Kookaburra is approximately 40-45cm in length and the chuckling sound that gives this species its English name is a familiar sound heard throughout the bird's habitat. The loud 'koo-koo-koo-koo-koo-kaa-kaa-kaa' is often sung in a chorus with other individuals (photo copyright P.Curnow).

View of Mount Chambers in background with part of Chambers Gorge in the foreground. The 'bun' part of Mount Chambers was said to be part of one of the two Vaalnapa Aboriginal Ancestral heroes who later ventured up into the sky to become the two Magellanic Clouds. 

Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby Petrogale xanthopus photographed while I was walking through a place called 'Echo Camp' near Arkaroola in the northern Flinders Ranges. This beautiful creature was nearly pushed to extinction by early European settlers who hunted it for sport. The wallaby was was exploited for
skins, bounties and faced competition from introduced livestock and predation from foxes. The Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby is of great cultural significance for the local Adnyamathanha people. Their preferred habitat is rocky cliff-sides, with crevices and shelter for protection from the incredibly high temperatures which can reach up to 50ºC in the shade during summer. Their population in the wild now is estimated to be around 5,000 (photo copyright P.Curnow). .  

Australian Pelican Pelecanus conspicillatus. This Pelican is standing on the banks of the Murray River in the town of Mannum, South Australia. The Australian Pelican mainly eats fish, however, they also eat a variety of aquatic animals including crustaceans, tadpoles and turtles (photo copyright P.Curnow). .

The Olgas (Kata Tjuta) in the Northern Territory, Australia. Kata Tjuta is the Aboriginal name for The Olgas and means "many heads." Kata Tjuta is a made up of 36 massive red rock outcrops separated by narrow valleys. It is located about 50 kilometres from Ayers Rock (Uluru). The highest is peak Mount Olga which rises 546 metres above the desert floor. The Olgas were originally sediments in a shallow inland sea which dried out and was eventually covered by the desert. They were thrust through the desert floor by a major upheaval approximately 300 million years ago and later molded primarily by wind erosion (photo courtesy Charlie Winstead). 

Sleepy Lizard Tiliqua rugosa. This lizard was photographed on an unsealed road near Swan Reach, South Australia. The Sleepy Lizard is part of the Blue-tongued group. Blue-tongued lizards are the largest members of the skink family (Scincidae). The tongue of this lizard is a dark blue colour and the lining of the mouth is bright pink. There are more than 300 species of skinks in Australia (photo copyright P.Curnow). 

Black Currawong Strepera fuliginosa. Another Currawong sitting about 15-20 metres away with part of Cradle Mountain visible in the background (photo copyright P.Curnow).  

Charlie Winstead and some of his family bushwalking in the Grand Canyon in Arizona, U.S.A. The Canyon is approximately 349 km long, between 6-29 km wide and approximately 1.6 km deep at its deepest point. The rocks that compose the walls of the Canyon range from 250 million years old at the top to around 2 billion years old at the bottom. Left to right: Eric Winstead, Charlie Winstead, Brad Buck & Sean Winstead

Tasmanian Pademelon Thylogale billardierii or Rufous Wallaby in the world heritage listed Cradle Mountain National Park in Tasmania, Australia. Tasmania has only 2 species of wallaby, the Tasmanian Pademelon (or Rufous wallaby) and Bennetts (or Rednecked) wallaby, and one species of kangaroo the Forester kangaroo. This species is extinct on mainland Australia because of predation by foxes and land clearance, although two other species occur along the east coast of the mainland. However, in the state of Tasmania, the Pademelon is both widespread and abundant (photo copyright P.Curnow).

The Periodical Cicada Magicicada spp. is interesting in that it has either a 13 or 17 year lifecycle. Most of that time is spent underground feeding on the roots of trees which they later climb as adults. The 13 and 17 year broods often overlap in the same area and that is what happened here. There are only 14 known broods of the 17 year cicada and 5 of the 13 year. It is a wonderful time for all creatures that eat them. The toads become so heavy from eating them that they "walk" instead of hop. The sound they make is unbelievably loud and you tend to stay indoors. They combined sound when first heard in the morning, sounds like a turbine or jet engine of some type - off in the distance (photo & information courtesy of Charlie Winstead).

Bushwalking in the Anstey Hill Recreation Park. Anstey Hill Recreation Park is situated in Adelaide’s north-eastern suburbs approximately 16km from the City centre. Anstey Hill was named after George Alexander Anstey (1814 -1895), a local viticulturist. As many as 35 species of reptile and amphibians live in the Park together with 145 species of native birds. Western Grey Kangaroos Macropus fuliginosus, Echidnas, Brush-tailed Possums, Bats, Snakes, the rarely seen Cunningham’s Skink and Koalas are also present.

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Last updated 19th of September 2005

The URL for this page is: http://sa.apana.org.au/~paulc/lorenaturalworld.html