Over the years my garage has provided a refuge and habitat for a diversity of critters, some welcome and some not-so-welcome. Regular visitors have included leaf-tail geckos, eastern water skinks, rodents of all shapes, sizes and dispositions, as well as an occasional red-bellied black snake.
Just lately I have noticed that earthworms are visiting, mostly at night. Not only I have seen worms of many sizes, but evidence of their nightly forays are left in silvery tracks and trails across the garage floor.
The mother of all worms visited last night! The photograph below shows this specimen is a giant. The ruler in the photo is a standard 30 cm or 12 inch ruler. So, she measures at least 27 cm in length. I tried to measure her girth, but she was way too wriggly to hold and measure at the same time. I estimate she was about 1.5 cm round the body.
Late evening I decided to relocate this worm to a leafy, secluded spot in the garden, hoping that she would find a safe place to settle in before the family flock of chortling Chowchillas arrived as usual to forage the next morning!
In a world where Corona, crisis and catastrophe have become the most common words we hear every day, here is a lighter look at life and the great loo paper shortage of March 2020 – from a uniquely Paluma perspective!
Contributed by Paluma’s self-titled ‘Pathetic Poet’.
There is nothing ‘common’ about the beautiful ground orchid Calanthe triplicata currently flowering along some of the rainforest walking tracks around Paluma. Flowering specimens have recently been observed near the track to McClelland’s Lookout (off the Loop Road) and along the H-Track.
This evergreen terrestrial orchid generally grows in clumps from fleshy pseudobulbs. The plant has dark-green lance-shaped leaves with prominent parallel leaf veins. It can grown to 1 metre tall, but all of the specimens observed at Paluma are smaller, between 30 to 40 cm in height. The white flowers are borne on erect racemes at the top of the flowering stem. Flowering occurs from October to February.
The Christmas Orchid occurs in Cape York Peninsula and North East Queensland, usually in mountain rainforest at high altitude from about 700 metres to 1250 metres.
It is certainly the season for the Northern Leaf-Tailed Gecko (Saltuarius cornutus) at Paluma.
My previous posts during December 2019 have reported the movements of a rather superb specimen at the eastern end of the village between the residences of 13 and 17 Mount Spec Road.
Linda Venn has now contributed a photograph of her resident Gecko, also at the eastern end of the village. Linda reports that this specimen has been sighted regularly at her home over a period of some years. She describes this individual as about 7 to 8 inches in length (or about 20 cm).
Don Battersby says that he has numerous specimens living at this property on Hussey Road. They favour the shed walls and appear nightly to forage for food.
This weird flower is blooming in my garden, in a semi-shaded spot near the letter box. The bat flower is a member of the yam family. Species of Tacca are found in tropical regions of South America, Africa, Australia and South East Asia. Difficult to see in my photo is the cluster of tiny, dark flowers at the centre. The ‘whiskers’ are between 40 cm and 60 cm long.
On Saturday afternoon (28 December 2019) we decided to take a stroll along Paluma’s H-Track. The main impetus for the walk was a tip-off from Jan Cooke that the giant climbing orchid, the ‘Pseudo Vanilla Orchid’ (Pseudovanilla foliata) was in flower along the track. Having never seen this orchid in bloom I was keen to observe and photograph it.
The Pseudo Vanilla Orchid in full bloom.
More information and photographs of this spectacular and unique orchid will appear in a future post by Jamie Oliver.
We started our walk at the eastern end of the H-Track off Lennox Crescent. After some showers of rain in recent days the rainforest appears refreshed and revitalised after the long dry spell. Fungi of several colours, shapes and sizes has sprung from decaying wood along the track.
Brilliant orange fungi growing from decaying wood on the forest floor. Fascinating fungi growing on a tree trunk.
It wasn’t long before we encountered a sizeable red-bellied black snake, actively foraging for food amongst the leaf litter. Upon detecting our presence it appeared quite agitated and retreated into a hole at the base of the buttress roots of a large tree. It immediately reappeared, head first, raised and in defensive mode. We quickly moved on, leaving it to its foraging.
My very blurry and unfocused photo of the red-bellied black snake. I have to admit to being more ‘focused’ on the movements of this snake, than on focusing the camera!
The walking track and surrounding forest floor is littered with numerous fruits and flowers at the present time. We observed the fruit of quandongs (Elaeocarpus sp.) and the brilliant purple fruits of the Paperbark Satinash (Syzygium papyraceum). Many of these fruits showed the distinctive nibble marks of rainforest marsupials and birds.
The bright purple fruits of the Paperbark Satinash.
There are some spectacular trees to see along the H-Track including many large specimens with distinctive buttress roots. There are also some splendid climbing vines weaving their way high into the rainforest canopy.
A stroll along the H-Track is always a pleasure with so much to see and absorb. Take the time for a wander along this short rainforest track and you are sure to be rewarded with many interesting sights, sounds and the wonders of the tropical rainforest. The bird calls alone are worth taking the walk! During our stroll we had the pleasure of listening in on numerous conversations high in the canopy, courtesy of the shrike thrushes, cat birds and whip birds.
Text by Michele Bird, Photos by Michele Bird & Colwyn Campbell.
This young Lily is almost 1 metre tall and boasting a 24 cm heavenly scented bloom. When she matures, she will produce 4-6 flowers on a single stem. Loved by the bees and butterflies, this beauty has won the prestigious ‘Award of Garden Merit ‘of the Royal Horticulture Society in 1993 for best White Oriental Lily ever. Reliable and easy to grow in any moist soil with good drainage. I’m hoping my thumbs stay green enough to bring her to full maturity and be rewarded with multiple blooms every Christmas.
Have you seen the beautiful Calliandra sp. currently flowering in Linda and Bill Venn’s garden along the eastern end of Mount Spec Road? It’s hard to miss as the shrub is fully laden with pink and white blossoms. The flowers seemed to appear overnight and they opened all at once, making a superb display. The shrub is literally a hive of activity with many bees, both native and exotic species, as well as butterflies busily feeding on the nectar from the blooms. Bill and Linda tell me that the shrub is a miniature variety of Calliandra.
Calliandra, also known by the common name of ‘Powder Puff’ is a genus of tropical plants native to South America. They grow and flower best if they are in full sun. Their oblong shaped leaves fold up ‘to sleep’ at night. They thrive in moist, well-drained soil.
The Venn’s Calliandra has flowered just in time for Christmas, with its brilliant candy-coloured flowers . Who needs an ordinary Christmas tree when you can have a Christmas Calliandra!
We are deeply saddened to report the recent passing of Stafford Browne, long-time resident of Hussey Road, Paluma. Stafford, best known to his Paluma friends and family as ‘Staff’ passed away on 11 December 2019. He will be fondly remembered this week at a private ‘Celebration of Life’ in Townsville. Our loving thoughts and sincere condolences are extended to Merle and the family in their great loss.
