There are a lot of weird birds in the world. A couple that spring to mind are...
Author: Rowan Mott (Rowan Mott)
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The Fab Five: Finches of Victoria
Finches have captured our attention for aeons, and around the world a number of similar-looking bird families have come to be commonly referred to as finches. They have a habit of living in small sociable groups, and are often cloaked in a striking plumage of resplendent reds, subtle olives, or delicate polkadot spots (sometimes all...
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Penny Olsen on the enigmatic Night Parrot and the people who chase it
When images of a live Night Parrot were taken back in 2013, the ensuing excitement was like nothing seen before in the annals of Australian natural history. It spread like wildfire among nature enthusiasts as the public waited with fervour for more details about the sighting. This was a monumental discovery, one that ended continued...
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The peak of cold resistance
Australia is hot and dry. Ask any tourist on sun-drenched Bondi Beach and they will affirm this well-known paradigm. Yet although much of our flora has adapted to thrive in our baking interior and dry open woodlands, many unique plants have evolved in a very different setting: the frigid landscape of the Australian High Country....
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There was still life in the old, dead tree
The view from the back veranda of my parents’ house is typical of rural areas of north-east Victoria: open paddocks spreading for miles across the valley floor before reaching the forest-clad rolling hills. As a child, I spent many hours on the veranda looking out across the countryside. Beyond our small farm dam, just over...
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A Regent without an empire: habitat loss and the decline of the Regent Honeyeater
‘A man’s home is his castle’ is one of the many, oft-repeated lines from the ‘90s classic Australian film The Castle. But just as this quote is true for humans, so too is it true for wildlife. An animal’s habitat contains everything it needs to survive and reproduce. If the habitat doesn’t contain enough of...
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I propose a mistle-toast
You may have heard about mistletoe because of its place in Christmas festivities. The tradition goes that you are able to kiss anyone who happens to stand under a sprig of mistletoe adorning doorways, ceilings, or rafters. But there are better reasons to heap praise on mistletoe than simply its ability to allow you a...
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A different way to leave
I work in a university biological sciences department that has a large number of international staff and students. Shortly after the arrival of new international members to the department, once they have ventured out into the Australian bush a few times, I often hear the following summation about our landscape from them: ‘The Australian bush...
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Are Abbott’s Boobies heading for an anty climax?
I was excited to start my PhD studying seabirds on islands off the north-west coast of Australia because I would be doing research where few birdwatchers ever go. Every field trip had the potential to turn up species rarely sighted in Australian waters. At that stage I knew little about seabirds, but I was keen...
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Birds on the brink
Australia has long been regarded as the ‘Land of Parrots’, so readers of Remember The Wild will no doubt have an affinity with this group of birds. Whether parrots are a valued part of your life for their colour and often playful behaviour, or they represent pesky nibblers of your backyard fruit trees, few could...