Animals

Humpback Whale Migration

On Wednesday, October 16, 2013, I was invited to go along on a whale watching trip with people from Potoroo Palace (an animal sanctuary and source for many of my animal photos) on a Go Whale Watching tour. To see the details of what was seen, click the link below...

This post is additional to the observational post and aims to give more information on humpback whales and their migration along the coast near my home.

Humpback Whales

(Information sources: Wikipedia... Humpback Whale and an Australian Government pdf fact sheet Eastern Humpback Whales )

This graphic was sourced through Wikimedia Commons and is listed as in the public domain in the US.

The link below is a recording of humpback whale song. It was sourced through Wikimedia Commons where it is listed as in the public domain.

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are members of the balaenopteridae family of cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises), i.e. they are not toothed whales. They have a baleen made of a similar material to your fingernails. Their baleen is used to filter out food when they take in large amounts of water when feeding. They feed on krill (like small shrimp/prawns) or small school fish.

One surprising behaviour I have seen in nature programs is the way humpbacks work together to encircle schools of small fish using bubbles they blow. Making the circle of bubbles slowly smaller, they eventually lung up through the school of fish with mouth open taking in thousands of fish in one gulp. The water drains through the baleen leaving the fish trapped.

Migration

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The green shaded areas are approximate breeding areas for humpback whales.

Humpback whale populations are found in the North Pacific, Atlantic, Indian and Southern Oceans. The Southern Ocean humpbacks are the whales we find migrating along Australia's coast so I will write about those passing my area annually.

During the summer months, humpbacks feed mostly on krill in Antarctic waters. Although the timing can vary, most head north from June to August and south again from September to November. In northern waters, they don't tend to feed but this is where they mate and females give birth to their calves. The September to November migration gives a good chance to see mothers and calves heading south for summer. The calves take milk and build up fat reserves along the way.

In the photo below taken on October 16, a mother and calf seemed to be at play. The mother's pectoral fin and fluke are to the left and the calf's pectoral fin is at the right.

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How Will I Know If It's a Humpback?

Humpback whales can be identified by the features you see when they surface. Below are some photos I have taken to help you...

blow

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flukes

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diving

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pectoral fin

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surfacing

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Below is a short video clip made from a series of still photos. It shows a whale blowing and diving.

Whaling in Australia

Whaling had once been a big industry in parts of Australia, including Eden near my home. Whaling along the east coast stopped in 1963. All Australian whaling was banned by 1979. Since then the numbers of humpback whales migrating along our coast has been growing.

Located in Eden, the Eden Killer Whale Museum has many displays dealing with local whaling history...

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...but perhaps my favourite display is the skeleton of Old Tom, an orca or killer whale (Orcinus orca). Unlike humpbacks, orca are toothed whales. They can feed on fish, sea lions, seals, walruses and even other whales such as the humpback.

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Why is Old Tom so special? Old Tom was said to have had a special relationship with whalers in the past. Old Tom was thought to be the leader of an orca pod. The pod would herd balleen whales into Twofold Bay and help the whalers kill the whales. The orcas would then be rewarded by the whalers with the tongue and lips of the balleen whales. It was said at times Old Tom would hold a rope from a whaling boat to tow it out to the balleen whales. On September 17, 1930, Old Tom was found dead in Twofold Bay. His age was unclear but he could have been up to 80 years old*.

Eden remembers its past with the annual Eden Whale Festival attracting locals and tourists to the parade and festival area where rides, displays and entertainment are available.

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This year (2013) the Eden Whale Festival parade is scheduled for November 2.

* Thanks goes to Jody White, Collection Manager for the Eden Killer Whale Museum, for the updated information on the age of Old Tom. Early 1970s age dating for Old Tom is thought to have been unreliable in placing Old Tom's age at 35.

The Outback and Other Information – for Battalion Bloggers • 2 Comments

In the comments of their poster entitled "Welcome to Grade THREE!", the Battalion Bloggers asked some questions. For their original post...

Welcome to Grade THREE!

Monitor Lizards

Perentie Lizards

This graphic has been sourced through Wikimedia Commons and is listed as in the public domain.

The Perentie tend to live in central Australia across to Western Australia but are not native to my area. Their patterning is very attractive but I have only seen them in zoos and not in the wild. They are one of the monitor lizards.

Lace Monitors

The photo below shows a local lace monitor (goanna) I photographed while hiking. It was about 1.5m long and was seen eating an animal killed on the road. I have seen them a number of times.

Lace monitors are our second largest monitor lizards after the perentie. The perentie and lace monitor are thought to be slightly venomous but they are generally shy and run away if surprised. I have read fossils have been found in Australia showing komodo dragons, the largest of the monitors once also roamed Australia but are now only found in Indonesia.

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Kangaroo, Koalas and Echidnas

I have seen kangaroos (and wallabies), koalas and echidnas in zoos and in the wild a number of times. There has been an echidna in my garden and kangaroos on the sports oval across the road. While wild koalas aren't common in my area, my local animal sanctuary has had them. Potoroo Palace has a female named Sapphire who was born in their sanctuary. I have known her since birth.

All of the video clips shown below were filmed by me at Potoroo Palace.

Kangaroo

The most common kangaroo in my area is the eastern grey kangaroo. The males can be up to around 2m tall and are common in my area. The pictured male was as tall as me. He watched me as I took his photo them he hopped away. They are only dangerous if they feel trapped.

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Here is one of my short video clips showing eastern grey kangaroos.

Koala

The photo shows Sapphire when she was younger but had left her mother's pouch.

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The first of my video clips shows one of the first times Sapphire looked out from her mother's pouch after about 26 weeks inside the pouch.

The second clip shows Sapphire with her mother, Suzie. Too big, Sapphire stayed out of the pouch but with her mother.

With the loss of Blinky (father) and Suzie (mother), Sapphire is now the only koala at Potoroo Palace. I am certain the staff will be hoping for a suitable mate for her to continue their koala breeding.

Echidna

I have seen echidna when hiking, in a park in my town and even in my own backyard. Their eyesight isn't good and they can't bite. If threatened, they dig their strong claws into the ground, hold on, and show only their spines.

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This is what they look like when they dig in.

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Below is a video clip of Potoroo Palace's Spike.

The Outback.

There was an old saying, "Out back of Bourke". Others have talked about the outback starting at the dingo fence or beyond the "black stump", or a number of other areas but, mostly, outback refers to isolated inland areas of Australia. Unlike Canada, much of Australia is arid or semi-arid (deserts or near deserts) where rainfall is low and the soil is often reddish from iron oxides (rust). I'll share some photos, a number just scanned into the computer from old 35mm film slides, so you'll be the first to see them since many were taken back in 1985.

In 1981 and 1982 I was the Teacher in Charge of a one teacher school. It was very isolated and ranked number 6 in our state. Town was 100km away. The school was there for children from sheep and cattle stations. I lived 20km distant in a shearer's quarters on a 100,000 acre sheep station. We did have a computer on loan for about six weeks each year but the internet was still many years away for schools.

Below is a picture from 1982. Does it look isolated?

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1985 - A Trip to Uluru (Ayers Rock)

By 1985, I was a teacher in an 850 student school in western Sydney. In 1983, I had organised a trip for some families to New Zealand but, for 1985, organised a trip through the centre of Australia. I was the 20 seater bus driver for most of the trip of over 7000km. Our first night was spent in the schoolroom of my old school pictured above. From there, we took dirt roads and a main highway until we reached Bourke. From there, we could have said we were in the outback.

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Here are some photos from back then...

This is the Darling River in the town of Bourke. The Darling River is part of an inland water system stretching from Queensland through New South Wales (N.S.W.), Victoria and out to sea in South Australia(S.A.). In times of severe drought it can run dry or overflow in flood during big rain.

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Heading north from Bourke along the Mitchell Highway, we stopped at the state border between N.S.W. and Queensland. The countryside was very flat but green as we had some rain the week before our trip.

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We came to the mining town of Mt. Isa in Queensland. Mt. Isa is in the tropical but dry north of Australia. The red colouring of the soil is caused by iron oxide (rust) in the soil. Lead, silver, copper and zinc is mined there.

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From Mt. Isa, we headed west and crossed into the Northern Territory, heading about half way across N.T.. before heading south to the Red Centre (the middle of Australia). One of our stops was at Karlu Karlu (Devil's Marbles) where there are many large rocks seemingly balanced on their ends. They are important in traditional Aboriginal beliefs.

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Along the way, we crossed from the tropics back into the sub-tropics. A sign marked the line of the Tropic of Capricorn but I liked what someone had painted on the road. (The man in the photo was one of the dads and you can see we had some rain.)

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Finally, we arrived in Alice Springs, the town close to the middle of Australia if not really then in our minds. Again, as you can see in the photo, we were travelling in a wet period. The Todd River passes through Alice Springs but flowing water is rarely seen so, when they hold the Henley-on-Todd Regatta, it's more a running race holding something looking like a sailing boat. If the river is flowing with water, they have to cancel their boat races. 🙂

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The MacDonnell Ranges are the mountains around Alice Springs. There are many gorges and beautiful rock formations to visit. Below is a photo of Standley Chasm. The people in the photo will give you an idea of the size of the chasm.

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Heading south out of Alice Springs, we stopped at the Henbury Meteorite Craters. The twelve craters were formed when a meteorite broke into pieces before hitting the ground it's estimated about 4,700 years back.

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Finally, we came to our main aim for our tour, Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas). Like Karlu Karlu, the sites have special significance to the local Aboriginal people who are the caretakers of the land. The first photo shows Uluru at sunset. It is the visible part of a huge monolith (single stone). The second photo shows the position where it's possible for visitors to climb the rock. The Aboriginal people wouldn't climb to the top of Uluru because of its cultural importance but they allow visitors if they choose to do so.

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As you walk or drive around the base of Uluru, there are many places with simple barriers and signs asking people to respect special places for Aboriginal people. There are sacred places for Aborginal men and women they ask visitors not to enter. The photo below shows some Aboriginal artwork on Uluru in a place where visitors can visit.

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Approximately west of Uluru is Kata Tjuta (The Olgas). You can see them in the distance in the first photo taken from Uluru and part of them up close in the second and third.

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Heading south from Uluru, we crossed into South Australia (S.A.).

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...and eventually reached the opal mining town of Coober Pedy where many people have built their homes underground to protect them from summer heat. The area is dotted with opal mines.

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We started to see salt lakes. Water flowing all the way from Queensland during high rainfall, has nowhere to go when reaching the lakes. As the water evaporates, salt is left behind. The next photo, taken from our bus, shows a salt lake in the distance.

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Upon reaching the town of Port Augusta, we headed north-east through the Flinders Ranges.

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We crossed the border into N.S.W. and travelled 1200km to reach home.

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Visiting Panboola Wetlands – Sharing vacation experiences wtih K/1/2/3 • 1 Comment

To see the posts leading to this one...

Skype with Our Friend Mr. Mannell

Follow up posts for K/1/2/3

Skyping with K/1/2/3 from Canada Part 1

Skyping with K/1/2/3 from Canada Part 2

Skyping with K/1/2/3 from Canada Part 3

After a wonderful Skype experience with K/1/2/3 where we are shared and learned together, they responded to our session and the additional information I shared in follow-up posts for them. My reply to their response looked at my lifelong learning journey where any day can be a learning adventure with something new or changed. I decided to share another experience while they began their summer vacation. On July 4, I spent the afternoon at our local Panboola Wetland Sanctuary. I thought they might like to be the first to share some of the photos taken.

Panboola is only around 8 kilometres from my home. It's popular with birdwatchers, bicycle riders, hikers, photographers and people wanting to spend some time out in the open. Escaping from my keyboard and with camera in hand I spent a winter's afternoon walking 6 or 7 kilometres of trails. From the map below you can see the areas I visited.

This is a map on display in the reserve and is not my work.

Panboola was set up to preserve our wetland area for future generations. The below sign recognises the part played by the traditional owners of the land. The second photo helped me learn more about the people whose contact with the land goes back to the Dreaming. Another post on this blog was made to share some Dreaming stories. The Dreaming stories are not from the people of my area but can help you understand some of the rich cultures of the original Australians. Click on DREAMING STORIES to see and hear if you are interested.

This display panel is the work of a friend and is not my work.

Tips Billabong greets you as you enter the reserve from the northern end. Form a lookout on a rise you can see black swans and other birds. A billabong is formed when a river changes course. Part of the old river course is cut off and remains as a pond.

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Much of the marsh area is covered by reeds. At this time of the year they are brown but spring makes them a sea of green. I love the patterns you can capture with a camera. The second photo shows the old reed heads and contrast beautifully with the blue sky behind.

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The cool winter afternoon with only a gentle breeze gave me chances to capture reflections in the ponds.

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The salt marsh areas provide a good contrast of red against the blue sky. White fronted chats (birds) can be seen flitting across the marshes in search of insects but they can be hard to photograph.

On the far side of the reserve there is access to Pambula River. On the day, it was gently flowing. I was the only one there and found no footprints in the sand.

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I did find places where the smoothly flowing water made for perfect reflections off the surface.

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With the day growing late and shadows growing longer, I started heading back along the cycle and walk way to the exit.

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The sun was now very low in the sky.

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Eastern grey kangaroos were out feeding on the grass in the late afternoon.

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Swamp hens searched for their food in the late light.

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...and the family I last chatted with had disappeared down to the reserve exit with me following slowly behind with a camera still in hand.

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Some Australian Mini-beasts • 2 Comments

To see Culvers House post on their visit to Sutton Ecology Centre...

University Of Pisa trip to Sutton Ecology Centre

Culvers House went on a mini beast hunt at Sutton Ecology Centre. I wanted to share some photos of the mini beasts I have photographed in my region of Australia.

Spiders

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Sea Creatures

soldier crab

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Sea urchin

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Blue bottle jellyfish

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Butterflies

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Dragonflies

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Lizards

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Bees

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Beetles

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Ants

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Grasshoppers

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Aboriginal Dreaming Collection – A collection of stories on You Tube

Recognising the Original People of This Land

Official school events in my region normally start with an Acknowledgement of Country. It recognises the original owners of the land. Click the link below to hear one of my recordings.

Acknowledgement of Country

This audio recording should not be used without my written permission.

The Australian Aboriginal Flag

The Australian Aboriginal Flag was designed by artist Harold Thomas and first flown at Victoria Square in Adelaide, South Australia, on National Aborigines Day, 12 July 1971.

Torres Strait Islander Flag

The Torres Strait Islander flag was designed by the late Bernard Namok as a symbol of unity and identity for Torres Strait Islanders.

In 1995, both of these flags became official flags of Australia.

Source of information: INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIAN FLAGS

In order to share some of the stories from the many peoples of Australia, below are a series of embedded You Tube videos sharing Dreaming stories. Where I can, I have added personal photos or drawings relating to the stories if students want to use them. At the end of this post you will find a video looking at indigenous tourism in Australia (52:26min).

Dreaming Stories

1. About Dreaming Stories (7:32 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

This is a draft video for the Australian Museum for their Dreaming Stories. The performers are Gumaroy Newman, Eric Arthur Tamwoy and Norm Barsah. Video by Fintonn Mahony, Lisa Duff, Bronwyn Turnbull and Gina Thomson.

2. Aboriginal Dreaming story of Waatji Pulyeri (the Blue Wren or superb fairywren) (5:33 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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These small wrens often visit my garden searching for insects. The drawing is of a male. Females and juveniles are plain brown.

3. The Rainbow Serpent (11:23 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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Rainbow lorikeets are native to my area and regularly visit my garden.

4. Mirram The Kangaroo and Warreen The Wombat (4:32 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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A species of kangaroo common to my area is the eastern grey kangaroo.

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Although mainly nocturnal, I found this wombat out during the day.

4. Girawu The Goanna (4:00 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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One of our local goannas.

5. Biladurang The Platypus (2:58 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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The platypus, a monotreme (egg laying) mammal, can be elusive. I have caught glimpses of them in mountain streams but don't have a photograph.

6. Tiddalick The Frog (2:43 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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7. Wayambeh The Turtle (2:43 min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

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Snapper turtle at a local animal sanctuary.

The Aboriginal People of Australia

Many people think there was one Aboriginal (native Australian) culture and one language but, before the coming of European colonists, there were many, many of those cultures now lost. One of the best sites I have seen comes from the Yolngu people of Ramingining in the northern part of Central Arnhem Land in Australia’s Northern Territory.

For one of their creation stories, click the link Twelve Canoes and wait for the site to load. The picture below will appear. Once loaded, click on the picture indicated by the arrow to see a creation story.

This graphic should not be copied.

I think you will find many interesting things on this site as well as one of their creation stories.

Indigenous Tourism in Australia Today (52:26min)

This embedded You Tube clip is not my video.

Skyping with K/1/2/3 from Canada Part 3 – Linden to the end

For part 1 of this post...

https://rossmannellcomments.edublogs.org/2013/06/22/skyping-with-k123-from-canada-part-1-Koa-to-Jorja

For part 2 of this post...

https://rossmannellcomments.edublogs.org/2013/06/23/skyping-with-k123-from-canada-part-2-lily-to-may/

What kind of trees and plants are in Australia?

(Two questions in one)

Below is a photo of one of my favourite walking trails. It's a fire trail in Bournda Nature Reserve. While we have many types of trees, most of the tall trees you see are eucalypt trees. If you take a fresh leaf and crush it, you can smell the eucalyptus oil inside. Have any of you ever smelled eucalyptus oil?

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Another favourite trail is in town. It leads around our lakeside to the town's old wharf. Most trees along this trail aren't eucalypt.

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Here are some photos of plants, flowers and fungi I have seen in my area. Not all flowers are Australian natives but are seen in gardens...

Wattle

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This is a photo of one type of eucalypt tree flowers.

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Bottlebrush

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Grevillia (a favourite nectar flower for rainbow lorikeets)

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Waratah

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Grevillia

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Banksia

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FUNGI

Apart from flowers, I also enjoy taking photos of interesting fungi (singluar fungus). All of these photos were taken in Bournda Nature Reserve

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What kind of berries grow in Australia?

There are many types of berries in Australia if you look for farms growing them. In the wild there are also berries but they aren't all edible. Blackberries grow wild in my area but they can be a problem on local dairy farms.

In my garden, we have an orange tree, two apple trees, lillipilli, guava and have had strawberries.

Oranges

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Lillipilli (they are edible but aren't sweet)

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Guava

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Do people swim in the ocean here?

As it is now winter, swimming isn't as big at this time of year. Surfers wear wetsuits and go surfing and, if the day is a little warmer, some do try swimming. In summer, spending time swimming, surfing, scuba diving and boating are very popular.

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Kayaking

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Kiteboarding

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Windsurfing

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Surfing

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Jumping from our old Merimbula Wharf

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How is tomorrow?

I liked this question. Where I am in Australia it is 17 hours ahead of K/1/2/3. While we started our Skype session at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday for K/1/2/3, it was 6:30 a.m. Wednesday for me. Being close to our shortest day of the year, the sun hadn't yet risen but the sky was growing light. For K/1/2/3, the longest day of the year was near. Even though I was starting winter and they summer, the temperature of the day ended up the same at about 13C. In my summer, temperatures can exceed 40C and bushfires can be a problem. The photo of a fire at the edge of town started on a day when temperatures reached about 44C.

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Have I seen a flamingo? Are there zoos?

Flamingos aren't native to Australia but I have seen them in zoos. There are many zoos and animal parks around Australia. In Sydney, there is Taronga Zoo and the linked Taronga Western Plains Zoo in the middle of the state. Melbourne has the Melbourne Zoo. Our Australian capital city of Canberra is about three hours drive from here. It has the National Zoo & Aquarium. Mogo Zoo is about two to three hours drive from here.

Closest to me at about a ten minutes drive is Potoroo Palace. It's a native animal sanctuary run by volunteers. Many of my animal photos and video clips were taken there.

More About Australia

One class had been looking at Australia. In April this year I prepared a post for them. It included photos and links to some of my animal videos and some audio clips. Click on the link below to visit the post.

Australia

Skyping with K/1/2/3 from Canada Part 2 – Lily to May • 2 Comments

For part 1 of this post...

https://rossmannellcomments.edublogs.org/2013/06/22/skyping-with-k123-from-canada-part-1-Koa-to-Jorja

For Part 3 of this post...

https://rossmannellcomments.edublogs.org/2013/06/23/skyping-with-k123-from-canada-part-3-linden-to-the-end/

Part 2

Do I know about an Australian tree which has black hair on it?

This one need a little research because I didn't know what type of tree it might be. Here is a link I found that has some "hairy" trees. They might help you know what tree you mean. 🙂

Australian Tree Images

What types of animals are found in Australia?

Australia has a large range of animals but some of our most famous are our marsupial (pouched) and monotreme (egg laying) mammals and our birds. In Part 1 of this post, I have shown some of our reptiles I have photographed so I will only show some mammals and birds.

Here are some of the birds I have seen visiting my home.

Kookaburra

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Magpie

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Australian Wood Duck

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Corella

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Crimson Rosella

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King Parrot (male)

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Rainbow Lorikeet

This is the crazy type of bird I mentioned enjoyed a diet of sugary flower nectar. One of these birds flew between another person and me when we were talking.

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Monotremes (egg laying) Mammals

The most ancient type of mammals are the monotremes. The females lay leathery eggs. On hatching, the young take milk from their mother like all mammals.

The only monotremes known to exist in our world today are the echidna and platypus. The platypus is only found in Australia. Echidnas are found in Australia and New Guinea.

The platypus is hard to photograph in the wild. While I have seen them, they are more like a ripple as they surface in creeks after searching for food. Not having a photo, here is my drawing of a platypus.

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The echidna (or spiny anteater) is a harmless animal whose only defence when attacked is to dig it's strong claws into the ground and show its spines. I have found one wandering in my garden. The photo is of a short beaked echidna. The long beaked echidna is found in New Guinea.

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Marsupial (pouched) Mammals

Marsupial or pouched animals are born very tiny. They make their way up their mothers fur and into the pouch where they can attach to a nipple. When they grow too large, they start to come out of the mother's pouch and eventually stay out. Here are some photos and drawings.

Brushtail Possum

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Wombat - This joey (young marsupial) lost his mother on the road.

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Tiger Quoll

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Koala - Sapphire is the baby of Blinky and Suzie

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Red Kangaroo - the largest of the kangaroos

This is a public domain image sourced through Wikimedia Commons.

Tasmanian Devil

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Eastern Grey Kangaroo mob - groups of kangaroos are called mobs.

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Diprotodon (extinct) - When the first native Australians arrived, these huge marsupials still roamed the land.

Wikimedia Commons graphic created by Dmitry Bogdanov

Thylacine - Tasmanian Tiger - hunted to extinction. The last known thylacine died in captivity in the 1930s. Some believe they still exist in isolated areas of Tasmania.

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Our animals even feature on the Australian Coat of Arms. Take a kangaroo and an emu...

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Add a little wattle

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Show the seven pointed Federation Star and the emblems of each state and you have the Australian Coat of Arms.

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What did I teach when I was a teacher?

When I was at university, I earned a Bachelor of Science degree. This meant if I taught high school (Grades 7 to 12) I would have taught science and possibly maths. Instead, I chose to gain a Diploma of Education in primary (Kindergarten to Grade 6) education. By teaching primary students I could teach English, Science, Maths, Social Studies, Music, Art, and Craft.

When computers came along, I was able to teach computer skills to classes and teachers. I first used computers back in 1975 and in class in 1981. Because I have many interests, I thought primary school would allow me to share much more than high school. Now, I share many of my interests online with classes around the world.

Skyping with K/1/2/3 from Canada Part 1 – Koa to Jorja

For part 2 of this post...

https://rossmannellcomments.edublogs.org/2013/06/23/skyping-with-k123-from-canada-part-2-lily-to-may/

For Part 3 of this post...

https://rossmannellcomments.edublogs.org/2013/06/23/skyping-with-k123-from-canada-part-3-linden-to-the-end/

At 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 19 I was waiting for a call on Skype. Mrs. Watson and her K/1/2/3 had planned a Skype session. For them, it was 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday. When the Skype call came, we started our question and answer session. Each student had the chance to ask questions about Australia.

I have broken this post into three parts because of the amount of its content.

Below is some of what was asked and answered...

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To hear Australia's national anthem sung by a school choir I have filmed, click the "Advanced Australia Fair" link below

Advanced Australia Fair

How long have I been in Australia?

I was born in Australia.

My first known relative on my father's side of the family arrived in Australia (the called New South Wales) as a convict in 1789. The first with my family name arrived around 1850 as a free settler from England. The first known relative on my mother's side of the family arrived from Scotland in 1847.

Do I have any pets?

I have had many pets over the years although I don't have one at this time. I have had one cat, many dogs, budgerigars (small parrots), a galah (large parrot) and once was looking after a young kangaroo for a week until I could take it to a zoo. It's mother had been killed by a car.

Below is an old photo taken around 1960 of the first dog I remember having as a pet. Her name was Topsy.

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What is my favourite place in town?

I am a movie fan. I like going to the cinema (movie theatre) and I enjoy filming and making DVDs for schools and community groups so, in the town itself, my favourite place is the cinema. The next nearest cinema is a twoto three hour drive north but we are a tourist town and are lucky to have one.

Near town, my favourite places are Bournda National Park, Bournda Nature Rerserve, Ben Boyd National Park, South East Forests National Park and Potoroo Palace Native Animal Educational Sanctuary. When not blogging, visiting schools, making DVDs, walking around town and going to the cinema, I like hiking in our national parks near my town.

I have loaded a short video clip showing my town and Merimbula Lake taken from a bridge in 2010. The quality of the video isn't high but it does show much of the town.

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I live in the state of New South Wales. Is there an old South Wales?

The eastern half of Australia was named New South Wales by Captain James Cook in 1770. In his ship's log he recorded the name but didn't explain his choice. It's thought the coast might have reminded him of the southern coast of Wales in Great Britain. It was an interesting choice because I think part of Hudson Bay in Canada had been named New South Wales by the Welshman Thomas James on 20 August 1631 (according to Wikipedia).

In 2012, a replica of Captain James Cook's ship, Endeavour, visited Twofold Bay, Eden about 20km from my town. Below is a video clip I made of its departure.

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If you want to see more of the Endeavour replica, there is a post on another of my blogs...

HMB Endeavour at Eden – May, 2012 – Cook and his Endeavour

Do we have tumbleweeds in Australia?

Tumbleweeds are really only the tops of plants dried, broken off and blown in the wind. While we can have this happen to our plants, we don't tend to call them tumbleweeds.

Being in a small school.

K/1/2/3's school only has 41 students and two teachers. They normally talk to students from much larger schools. I shared a little about my first teaching position. In the two years I was there, I had from 12 to 20 students from surrounding sheep and cattle properties. The closest town was 100km distant. I was the only teacher with children from Kindergarten to Grade 6 in the room. My next school had over 800 students and was in Sydney. It was very different.

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Do we have any geckos or lizards?

Being a much warmer climate than Canada, we have a large range of reptiles from skinks and geckos right through to crocodiles in the warmer north of the country. I'll share a few of my photos with you...

Bearded Dragon

They are harmless although they can bite. They may be called dragon but they can't breathe fire.

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Red Bellied Black Snake (poisonous)

Unlike the local brown and tiger poisonous snakes of our area, the black snake is a little shy and tries to keep away from humans.

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Goanna (Lace Monitor)

Goannas are the largest of our lizards.

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Blue-tongued lizard (skink)

I have found these in my garden. They like snails and slugs.

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Olive python and handler

Being a python, these snakes aren't poisonous. Potoroo Palace volunteer is hold "Olive" the female olive python.

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Snapping Turtle

There are a number of turtles and tortoises around Australia.

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Black Headed Python (non-poisonous)

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Lizards 1

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Lizards 2

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Eastern Water Skink (?)

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Have I travelled to other places including Canada?

I have travelled to many places in Australia and have been to New Zealand several times. I've visited friends in Singapore and travelled on to Paris and United Kingdom. I've also been to Hawaii. Here are some photos from my travels overseas.

London

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Paris

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Singapore

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Kilauea volcano, Hawaii

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York, England - York Minster Cathedral

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Edinburgh Castle

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Wellington, New Zealand - 1996

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While I haven't yet been to Canada, I took a photo of a community play. The men were wearing a uniform but I'm not certain what type is was supposed to be. Do you know?

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Polocrosse for Bronte and the Ponytastic Group • 11 Comments

Hello Bronte, Ava, Jordi and Paris,

I had explained to Bronte I had forgotten to include in the other horse post photos I took at Sydney's Royal Easter Show. One great event for action photos was Polocrosse. I found an arena where two teams, red and blue, were competing. I have six photos to share. As the photos are of child competitors, their faces have been blurred.

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As a bonus, here are two photos of tent pegging in the main arena.

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Horse Photos for Ava who loves them • 21 Comments

These photos are being shared with Ava from 4KM and 4KJ. Ava has permission to share these photos with friends. Schools and students have permission to use these photos for non-commercial, educational purposes.

The first was photographed at the Candelo Show and features two members of a Australian Light Horse group in the uniforms from WWI. The remainder were taken at the Pambula Show.

Schools and students have permission to use this graphic for non-commercial, educational purposes.

Schools and students have permission to use this graphic for non-commercial, educational purposes.

After seeing a comment from Jordi, I thought I'd add a special photo for both of you to share. It was taken around 1948 and shows the three horses on the old family dairy farm. They would pull the carts and plough and were friends of my mother when she was a teenager. They are from left to right, Bud, Darby and Duke.

This photo can only be used with written permission by me. Ava and Jordi mentioned on this blog are given permission to use this photo and share with friends.

Paris has now joined the Ponytastic Crew from 4KM and 4KJ. Paris may also use the contents of this post and share with friends.

Below is another addition to the post. I uploaded a short 20 second show jumping clip to my You Tube channel for the Ponytastic Crew to see. It can't be found by searching online. You need the link because it is unlisted. It shows an adult riding his horse at my local show held in January this year.

Heather asked if I have ever seen something unusual

For Heather's original post...

Superior Strawberries

Hello Heather,

I think most of us see unusual things in our lives. Unusual means out of the ordinary so it could be something we wouldn't normally see or something we see in an unexpected place or way. I thought I would share a few photos.

The Photos

Some of the photos were taken 20 to 30 years ago. The photo quality isn't high because they were scanned from old colour slides and negatives.

1. If we look at a map of the world, we see the equator drawn around the middle. To the north and south are lines marked as tropics. In the north there is the Tropic of Cancer whereas the tropic to the south of the equator is the Tropic of Capricorn. Any island or nation in between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn are said to have a tropical climate. The Tropic of Capricorn passes through Australia's north. When driving a group of parents and children on a 6000km journey to Uluru in Australia's centre and back, we stopped when seeing this line paitned on the road at the Tropic of Capricorn. Some smart person thought it would be funny to write one side was hot and the other cold.

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2. In the 1980s I was in New Zealand. I visited a church in Rotorua and saw this wonderfully engraved glass window showing the Moari Jesus walking on the outside lake.

This photo was taken many years back. The last time I visited the church, a sign asked visitors not to take photos inside the church

3. This photo was taken around 30 years again. There had been a storm in the late afternoon. The cloud patterns and colours were amazing.

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4. I am not quite old enough to have seen real dinosaurs but this photo from about 25 years ago was of a robotic dinosaur looking very realistic as it moved. Can you imagine seeing a real one?

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5. I was once out photographing fungi such as mushrooms and toadstools when I saw a pattern of fungi on a tree. I added some eyes to make this face.

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6. While in Tasmania, Australia's only island state and the most southern state, I was on a river that looked more like a mirror surface.

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7. I was in England in a railway museum when I came across this platform sign. It had been used in the Harry Potter movies.

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8. Dragonflies can be very hard to photograph. They are quick fliers and are easily disturbed but one day while I was taking a break from hiking, this one landed beside me.

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It's our unusual experiences in life that can make our lives interesting, exciting or perhaps even frightening. Being unusual, we don't know when they will happen. I wonder what will be my next?

Happy First Birthday “Extended Comments for Students”! • 25 Comments

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On May 22, 2013 this "Extended Comments for Students" blog turned one. I would like to thank everyone who has stopped by to see what has been happening and those who have also taken the time to add a comment to one of the posts. When this blog was started on May 22, 2012, I had no idea so many would think it worthwhile enough to visit, even if by accident.

By the end of May 22, 2013, there had been 38,737 visits from over 150 nations in its first year.

Birthdays are often a time for gift giving to the birthday person but I decided this blog would give a gift to celebrate its birthday. I chose to send a gift to the class whose extended comment was posted on or nearest to the blog's birthday. While no posts were made on May 22, two classes received a post on May 23. As such, each has been sent the cute little echidna (spiny anteater) toy seen in the photo below as well as a metal token from Potoroo Palace, my favourite native animal sanctuary. Potoroo Palace is my source for these cute little guys as well as many photos and video clips.

The two winning class blogs are...

4KM and 4KJ in Geelong, Australia

and

Battalion Hawk Bloggers (aka Global Grade 3) in Canada

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Below is a photo and video clip of a real echidna from Potoroo Palace. His name is Spike. Potoroo Palace also has a rare white echidna. Below the photo is some information about the echidna taken from a previous post on this blog.

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Location: Potoroo Palace, N.S.W., Australia

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Short-beaked Echidna or Spiny Anteater (Tachyglossus aculeatus)

Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-beaked_Echidna

Class: Mammalia

Order: monotremata (egg- laying mammals)

The echidna has a spiny defence. When frightened, they dig their strong claws into the ground and show only their spines. The different species of echidna and the platypus are the world’s only surviving species of monotremes, i.e. egg laying mammals. The short-beaked echidna in the photo is common in most areas of Australia and I have even found one in my garden.