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Three Black Australian Swans

Three Black Australian Swans for this Australia Day 2019. 

The Young Ones

Following on from a pre-Christmas post that detailed the niceness of running into two mother geese and their clutch of goslings, here I have two photos of the little ones getting bigger.  

The Archibald Fountain - A Sydney Art Deco Beauty

One of the loveliest fountains in Sydney city is the very art deco Archibald fountain. Designed by the French artist François-Léon Sicard, this pink granite and bronze Sydney icon features figures from Greek and Roman mythology including Apollo, Theseus and the minataur, Pan, Diana and various tortoises, dolphins, goats, deer, dogs and horses. It is named after the keen Francophile newspaper proprietor and editor J.F.Archibald who commissioned the fountain to celebrate the French/ Australian alliance during World War One. Fortunately, I often get to walk through the delightful Hyde Park and admire this Art Deco gem.  

All information from here.

Sydney Icons

Late November Sydney icons as follows: Flannel Flowers, a swamp wallaby (and suspected joey in pouch), an industrious echidna digging for insects,a Manly Beach pine, Yellow Tea Tree, and Grevillea.

Sydney Bush Flowers - geek's edition (part 5)

Despite the fact it is now late, late spring here in Sydney, there are still masses of bush flowers to admire. These photos were taken in the past couple of days. The top mauve/ lilac flowers I could not definitively locate and name, but they look like a version of the Black Antler Flax Lily, so possibly a lily of some description at the very least. The next flower in violet is without a shadow of a doubt a Wavy Lobella. Beneath that is a Common Fringe - Lily with its distinctive hairy petals. The last inverted cup/ bell like flowers are absolutely everywhere in some parts of the Sydney bush, but despite that, I was unable to find a name for them. However, is it possible they could be a boronia of some sort?  Click here for more instalments of the Sydney bush flowers series.

Out and About - October

Cockle Head Creek, Bobbin Head Rainforest. We have had a lot of rain over the past couple of weeks here in Sydney, so the local rivers and creeks are bursting at the seams.

Freshwater Beach as seen from Curl Curl.

Duke Kahanamoku (1890 - 1968) memorial - near Freshwater lookout. This multiple Olympic gold medalist and accomplished actor is famous for introducing the Hawaiian sport/ pastime of surfing to the world.

An old advertisement in George Street exposed by construction works.  

Sydney Bush Flowers - geeks' edition (Part 4)

The pink and violet boronias, and white, pink and mauve wax flowers/ crowea that dominated the Sydney bush at the start of spring have given way to a different set of fleurs. Here are three that I caught on camera a day or two ago: the snowy mint bush, fringed heath myrtle and the tufted blue lily.

Sydney Bush Flowers: geeks' edition (Part 3)

The Sydney spring bush flower caravan trundles onwards (you can catch up with part 1 and part 2 here)! So, I have found yet another five petalled flower and I have decided it is a mauve coloured small crowea. Meanwhile, the charming white mini floral display below that is absolutely everywhere in some parks at the moment. It is very pretty and seems to be concentrated mostly along paths. It looks a bit like a light scattering of snow and upon careful investigation, I have decided it is a heath myrtle. Finally, this blossoming bush is actually in the last hurrahs of flowering (it was much more active during winter/ autumn) and I am happy to say that it is without a shadow of a doubt a peach blossom tea tree.

September Flora and Fauna in Sydney

It is most definitely Spring here in Sydney! The entire city is awash in flora and fauna proclaiming that this is indeed the season. Here are some on the fly snaps I have taken over the past day or two. Above: Dee Why pools and beach. Below: More Dee Why pools featuring groovy honey combed sand stone, pink and white fleurs from north head, wattle also from north head, a yellow tailed black cockatoo in Manly Dam and a black swan saying "hello" also in Manly Dam.

Below: My fourth sighting of an echidna in the wild in Sydney - always a delight!

Sea Birds

Two water birds I've seen on my travels recently: a cormorant and a pelican. Both birds were part of a pair who were preening themselves by a lake. They were quite big, especially the pelican who was, together with his partner, taking up a considerable amount of space on the log they were standing on. Despite this largeness and enormous bill, the two pelicans seemed to be doing an excellent job of getting their feathers flight ready.