Two portentous outings
It seems that every time one turns around at present there is a portent of Spring staring one in the face. I went out and about twice today and both occasions made it clear that the better weather is coming.
My first trip was a mountain bike ride around the Hoskinstown Plain. The first half was good. Then I turned into the wind (in itself a portent of Spring) and it became less good.
However when I reached the huge elms on Briars-Sharrow Road there were many Dusky Woodswallows flying around and disputing matters quite vigorously. By vigorously I mean fighting in the air sufficiently violently that one bird might end up briefly flat on the bitumen (this sort of behaviour is described in HANZAB as indicating definition of territorial boundaries). They did not oblige by posing for a photograph. That deficiency was remedied by a charming group of Double-barred Finches.
It is usual for the collective noun 'charm' to apply to European Goldfinches: however the single Goldfinch seen today had it away on its wingtips before I could get the camera out.
Just before I started the ascent of Mt Widgiewa I came across a very clear portent in the shape of a Common Long-necked Tortoise. Again I couldn't get the camera out in time to capture the extended neck, but as shown in the second image below it didn't immediately get fully retracted.
I was careful how I picked it up to transport it the rest of the way across the road, and judging by the aroma that accompanied this voyage the reptile shares some attributes with a skunk!
Later in the day I had some time to spare in Queanbeyan so took myself and the small dog for a walk up the rough fire-trail off the end of Ellerton Street. The first portent we found was a flowering eucalypt (possibly E. radiata - the narrow-leaved peppermint).
Of course there were many wattles in flower all over the place. These ranged from low A. dawsonii to relatively tall A rubida.
It is a great pity that this area seems slated for development to satisfy the need for more money of the development lobby and its supporters in the form of Giovanni (John) Barilaro and other members of Queanbeyan Council. Given the steepness of the slopes involved I cannot imagine how development of this area can be anything other than an environmental disaster.
My first trip was a mountain bike ride around the Hoskinstown Plain. The first half was good. Then I turned into the wind (in itself a portent of Spring) and it became less good.
However when I reached the huge elms on Briars-Sharrow Road there were many Dusky Woodswallows flying around and disputing matters quite vigorously. By vigorously I mean fighting in the air sufficiently violently that one bird might end up briefly flat on the bitumen (this sort of behaviour is described in HANZAB as indicating definition of territorial boundaries). They did not oblige by posing for a photograph. That deficiency was remedied by a charming group of Double-barred Finches.
Just before I started the ascent of Mt Widgiewa I came across a very clear portent in the shape of a Common Long-necked Tortoise. Again I couldn't get the camera out in time to capture the extended neck, but as shown in the second image below it didn't immediately get fully retracted.
Later in the day I had some time to spare in Queanbeyan so took myself and the small dog for a walk up the rough fire-trail off the end of Ellerton Street. The first portent we found was a flowering eucalypt (possibly E. radiata - the narrow-leaved peppermint).
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