Northern Suburbs Branch 25th August 2021

The switch to 8.00 am start did not deter the regulars, not-so-regulars, and visitors, 22 all up, to our walk at Badgerup Reserve, Wanneroo. Within the first 100 metres, our leader, Wayne Merritt, showed us Short-eared Snail Orchid, Jug Orchid, Cowslip Orchid, Carousel Spider Orchid, Donkey Orchid, and Dancing Spider Orchid.

The “snow” which appeared to cover several bushes, on closer examination, turned out to be the tiny flowers of a Leucopogon polymorphus.

Dancing Spider Orchid (Caladenia discoidea) – Photo credit: Don Poynton

Further down the track, we found patches of Long-eared Snail Orchids. There were also snail orchids that fitted into the “medium-eared” scale – could they be hybrids? Wayne explained that gnats fertilise snail orchids, so cross-fertilisation is not out of the question.

The birdwatchers were also enjoying a good morning with early sightings of a White-winged Triller and a Scarlet Robin.

Photo credit: Phil Auty

As the sun got higher, it brought out the striking red and green colours of the Kangaroo Paws, pinks in the Swan River Myrtle and the prolific yellows of the Yellow Buttercups (Hibbertia hypericoides), Prickly Moses (Acacia pulchella), Cotton Heads (Conostylis aculeata), and Synaphea spinulosa. As we approached our next scheduled stop on the edge of Lake Badgerup, we spotted three Ravens chasing a Whistling Kite. A Brown Goshawk circled very high in the sky. Because of the bush rushes and other sedges, there were very few areas of open water. The Pobblebonks (Western Banjo Frog) were rarely “bonking”, but we did hear the Motorbike Frog and the Clicking Froglet.

However, it was a very large hairy caterpillar about 7-8 cm in length that caught everyone’s attention. It was marooned on a branch that had fallen into the water and had no escape from its prison.

Photo credit: Phil Auty

While some were still using their long lenses to photograph the caterpillar, the cry of ducklings went up. Those quick enough were rewarded with seeing a Pacific Black Duck swim off with her ten ducklings. Our track away from the lake took us past the Blue Boronia (Cyanothamnus coerulescens).

The next track brought us to large patches of Donkey Orchids still in bud. According to Wayne, the ones on the left of the path will be completely yellow, while those on the right will be the common pansy colours. Well worth returning in late September. It was on this track that we saw two Elegant Parrots. A small flock of Carnaby’s Black Cockatoos flew over at 9:59 am, 3 minutes earlier than predicted!

We missed the white-flowered variety of the Native Violet the first time, so some re-walked the first path. It was a rewarding walk as we also spotted several plants of the rarer Hibbertia striata, saw another Elegant Parrot, a Grey Fantail (bringing our total bird count to 35 species), and startled two Western Grey Kangaroos.

Photo credit: Don Poynton