SPRING: We Farewell Our Holidaying Humpbacks And Welcome Our Pups

Springtime is beautiful on Fraser Island as our wildflowers, including the rarely seen and aptly named Fraser Island Creeper (Tecomanthe hilli) – with its clusters of pink tubular flowers – bloom on island.  Lesser Swamp Orchids (Phaius australis) have also been in full bloom near the pool at Kingfisher Bay Resort much to the delight of guests including Cheryl Byrne, who sent us in this great picture (below).

Cheryl  Byrne has perfectly captured this delicate orchid

This particular endangered species exhibits fantastic clusters of colourful purple, white and russet flowers that typically stand around waist height. The natural range of the Lesser Swamp Orchid is the eastern coast of QLD and coastal areas of NSW as far south as Port Macquarie in NSW, but the species is under threat from industrial development where swamp areas are cleared or drained, and also by the illegal collection of the species for horticulture and cut flowers.

At Kingfisher Bay, our Head Gardener, Pete, has been lovingly propagating the species in our nursery and several of the plants have been placed around the resort providing our guests with a rare viewing opportunity.

Spring is a time when we farewell our migrating humpback whales and welcome this year’s dingo pups (Canis dingo) from their dens on island! The annual dingo breeding season is from April to June with pups being born around nine weeks after conception – it’s a very short gestation period)

It's a dingo's life on Fraser Island. Pic by Troy Geltch

The pups are typically born in early spring and begin to emerge several weeks after this. Litters usually range from four to six pups but can be as large at ten pups. The alpha pair in each pack are the only successful breeders and subordinate animals help to rear the young.

Subordinate females actually suckle the alpha pair’s pups which enables the maximum chance of survival for the newest generation of the pack.

Please remember to follow our simple Dingo Safety rules when out and about in the Great Sandy National Park.

DID YOU KNOW that Queensland Parks and Wildlife have installed wildlife cameras on Fraser Island? If you’re headed our way, be sure to check out the brand-new dingo interp (featuring fabulous footage of our new dingo pups) at Central Station.  Parks have also installed rhyming dingo signage on Fraser and it’s quite the talking point.

Fifty shades of green. Pic by Peppergrass.org

Back at the resort, we’ve spotted Green Paddle Worms (Phyllodoce novaehollandiae - see right) on our Ranger-guided Beach and Mangrove walks on the western side of Fraser at low tide.  These curious little creatures that inhabit the intertidal zones of eastern Australia and, as the name suggests, are fluorescent green and have thousands of tiny paddle-like appendages along each side of the body. These paddles beat rhythmically and help propel the worm through shallow layers of water above the sand at low tide.

Our resident Green Paddle Worms are a great hit with the kids on our Junior Eco Ranger program as they shine iridescent colours in the sun and, if allowed to travel over the skin, provide a tickling sensation. Little is known about the species and they are certainly one of the wonders of the intertidal zone.

Geoff Cameron had a prime viewing spot to capture the action

This month, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the ‘blood moon’ eclipse in the clear night sky on October 8th. Total lunar eclipses such as this occur when the sun, earth and moon from a straight line and the earth blocks all direct sunlight to the moon.

While the earth’s shadow is cast over the moon it is still visible as sunlight refracted by the earth’s atmosphere falls upon it. The moon appears red because shorter wavelengths of light (such as blues and violets) are scattered by dust particles in the atmosphere to a greater degree than the longer wavelengths of red light.

Total lunar eclipses can typically be seen from any given location every few years, but of course cloud coverage can devastate viewing opportunities.

Thankfully the night was clear and (with the lack of bright city lights in our World Heritage-listed backyard) the Kingfisher Bay Jetty was the perfect vantage point with many guests snapping spectacular photos.  One of our regular resort guests (and one of our island's bridal alumni) Geoff Cameron, managed to shoot some spectacular shots of the moon turning blood red from Kingfisher Bay Resort.

The weather on Fraser is gorgeous at the moment and set to get even better as we head into summer.  Fishermen are still catching Tailor on the eastern beach and, with the rainfall we’ve had, the tracks are not as dry as we’d normally expect at this time of year.  All in all, it’s boding well for a fantastic November and we’ll be here to keep you updated with all things wild and wonderful in our island paradise.  Cheers, Ranger Bec.