Eyes

I was back and forth past this little guy for about an hour today. Little bugger stood out like a sore thumb, being dark brown against the green shade cloth. He was about 5cm in length and wings are very small, so Im willing to guess he has a few more molts to go before its fully grown. The thing I find most fascinating about Praying Mantis at present is their eyes. Their two compound eyes on top of their head allow them have binocular vision. This is the kind of vision that humans have, both eyes focus on a single object giving a slightly different angle of the object. The brain puts the two images together which allows for excellent depth perception. So this makes Praying Mantis excellent hunters.

Inner Child

Joys of working next to a playground. You occasionally find a rogue balloon. I'm glad to see my inner child is alive and well, as this usually brightens my day immensely.

Spider Webs and Fur

I do apologise for the photos but I was rushed to take them. In the picture is a little Willy Wag Tail nest. The top one has the bird on the nest, even though you have to look really closely at the fork at the end of the branch in the center of the tree. The bottom photo is just of the nest. You can see the little grey cup shape next to the fork in the branch. I tried to be as quick as I could, I dont like disturbing birds while they are nesting, and I didnt even realise the nest was there until the Willy Wag Tail started chattering at me.

Willy wag tails make their nests out of grasses and coat the outside with spiderwebs. They have a habit of using fur to line their nest, and have been known to take it directly from the animal itself in pasture situations. If fur is not available, then soft grasses will do the job. The male willy wag tail is just as devoted as the female to parenting. Both parents take turns incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks when they hatch.

Bwaaaar Bwaaaar Groh Groh

We had to move this little Motorbike Frog today, from the skate park. He was nestled away in a corner of the paving and unfortunately we had to blow the area down. So I shifted him over to the large hedge where there is lots of room for him to hide. I was actually surprised by how little he protested when I had to move him. He virtually crawled into my hand and sat there in his ."You cant see me" pose of being as small and flat as possible.  Normally they jump about and get really slimy. I guess the cold weather must be getting to him too.

Motorbike Frogs are the most common frog in the South West of Western Australia. They are usually the first to colonize and breed in backyard ponds. Their colours vary from bright green with gold splodges after basking in the sun, to the darker fawns and browns with green splodges when it gets cool. They are one of my favourite frogs, and this little guy brightened my day so very much.

Stunning

The colours of the Ranunculus at work are far too beautiful not to share. Arent they stunning? I also found out, the common name for Ranunculus is a Buttercup. You learn something new every day 

Melting

We use wheelie bins alot at work. Not only for putting in the bin cages around the park, but for various gardening jobs when it is impractical to stick a small load onto the ute, or when we simply cant get the ute close enough to the rubbish. On all wheelie bins, there is usually some pretty clear instructions along the lines of "No Hot Ashes Or Liquids". Seems pretty simple. Bins are made of plastic and plastic usually doesnt like high temperatures. The poor wheelie bin in the picture is the result of a pile of hot ashes being dumped inside it. It didnt melt through right away, however when the rubbish truck emptied the bid, the entire base of the bin fell through. So, this bin gets to retire early from the work force, Wicked Witch of the West style .... Im Melting, Melting .....

Naming An Arrow

A wonderful friend of mine sent me a few books on different types of fungi that grow in the South West of Western Australia. So, for the first time, I am able to tell you what you are looking at other then broadly saying that it is a fungi and that I find it fascinating. 

So, without further ado, this fungi is a Black Morel (Morchella elata). There are apparently several species of them in WA, but Black Morel is the only one found in the South West. I found this guy growing in amongst the Lemon and Lime beds. I spotted it while doing the rubbish run and thought it was some rotten food someone had thrown in the bed. Turns out its quite unusual to find them growing in the city, as they prefer the country side more. If your wondering where the spores grow, they form along the ridges of the cap, which is what can give the fungi its black appearance. This one is most likely hasnt produced its spores yet, given that it is still fawn in colour.