Posts from September 2016
Air Bee n Bee: Creating Hotels for Native Pollinators
Spring is here and gardens are a buzz! Insects play an important role in the environment as pollinators and nutrient recyclers. While it is easy to get carried away with the huge role that introduced European Honeybees (Apis mellifera) play in pollinating crops, there are many more species of native solitary bees (harmless and non-aggressive)
Rainbow Lorikeet Population Survey Volunteers Needed
By John Tyne, Wildlife Ranger, Parks and Wildlife Commission of the NT Over the last six months I’ve been monitoring the feral Rainbow Lorikeet population around Alice Springs. Most of these Lorikeets are likely to have escaped or been released from aviaries over the years, but recently they have been spotted nesting in hollows around
A Month for Considering the World Around Us
September has seen a host of days dedicated to recognising the world around us – National Wattle Day, National Threatened Species Day, National Bilby Day and National Landcare Week. September is also Biodiversity month! Residents of Alice Springs are fortunate to live in such a unique region with undeveloped landscapes on our doorstep, threatened species
Bee-Eaters are Back in the Burbs
Garden for Wildlife signs around Alice Springs stand out for their colour – containing a representation of the Rainbow bee-eater (Merops ornatus). This week marked the first sighting of the Rainbow bee-eater for this spring! Winter has been quiet without their scissor-grinder trill, but it seems a few individuals have returned. The seasonal movement patterns
Video: Red-capped Robin
The Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii) is a gorgeous little bird that can be found through much of semi-arid and temperate Australia within woodland habitats. A juvenile and two adults was snapped by the Land for Wildlife coordinator at Newhaven Wildlife Sanctuary, while on a trip with the Alice Springs Field Naturalists Club last month. The
Up Close and Personal with Insect Mouthparts
Have you ever looked at an insect mouth up close? There’s a huge amount of variation in morphology that is related to the type of food an insect consumes. Mouth-parts of insects are composed of external appendages that project outwards, known as ectognathous mouth-parts (Greek: ecktos for outside, gnathos for jaw). Many insects have chewing