I heard a strange noise outside the front door the other day and opened it to find a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo perched on a corner post looking a bit sad. I’m afraid I tried to shoo him away, because cockies are known for chewing on wooden railings.
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Whenever I stand at Blackheath’s Govett’s Leap lookout I sense the spirit of Charles Darwin, one of my great heroes. Darwin said of the Leap; ‘It is a tremendous rent or depression in the earth, which is said to be the deepest chasm with perpendicular cliffs in
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Vere Gordon Childe spent his childhood at a home called Chalet Fontenelle, at Wentworth Falls in the Blue Mountains of NSW. He was educated at Sydney University and subsequently at Oxford. Childe returned home in 1917, but as a pacifist, atheist and committed socialist he was ostracized
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Ceratopetalum gummiferum, is a small tree commonly known as the New South Wales Christmas Bush. Its sepals turn bright red/pink in December. In Victorian times, native foliage such as Christmas bush was very popular as a festive decoration in Sydney. It was growing in the heart of
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For birds, sight is the most critical of the senses for survival. Hence, their eyes are much larger in relation to the size of their heads (and brains) in comparison to other vertebrate, including we humans. A large pupil allows more light to enter. That’s why an
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In the late 19th and early 20th century, Blue Mountains towns such as Leura and Katoomba were just as popular with tourists as they are today. Several coaching companies were kept busy ferrying visitors to guesthouses from the railway station and around the area’s beauty spots. One
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So our resident Wongas are raising yet another set of twins. They were sitting on eggs all through the March ‘big wet’ here in the Blue Mountains. The chicks need constant care and it’s time for Mr Wonga to take over the afternoon shift. His partner has
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Who would have thought than an eggshell could provide such joy and excitement during one of the worst weather events in living memory? As readers of my bird blogs know, I have been photographing and writing about our resident Wonga pigeons for a number of years. Over
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Landscaping is on the agenda here in Blackheath. Our new house in the Blue Mountains has been built within an established garden, on a similar footprint to the old, now demolished cottage. Nevertheless, new entrance steps and an added vehicle awning have meant that some mature plants
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