Native Animal Biodiversity at Eaglerise Farm

We have a variety of native fauna sharing Eaglerise Farm with us. We have large macropods down to small geckoes and a whole assortment of invertebrates. The larger animals seem to be diminishing in numbers.

One of our goals is to re-establish a Squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensiscolony on the farm. There is evidence of previous glider presence, but, their habitat has been removed and we need to wait for our revegetation to grow and develop nesting hollows. “Small and slow solutions” as the permaculturists quote. 

The orange shaded paddocks identify where we have constructed swales. Immediately below these swales we are planting red gums. These will porvide a wind break and paddock shade, but, more importantly, they will provide the valuable links across the farm for the gliders and a multitude of bird life.

There has been a number of native animal sightings spread across the farm.

 

Echnida

Here’s one of our Eaglerise Farm echnidas (Zaglossus bartoni) cooling itself off in the driveway dam. We don’t see echnidas all the time, but enough to consider their habitat sufficient, and enough to stop and wonder each time we do see one. An interesting thing about echnidas is the way they try to burrow into the soil when they feel threatened. They look like they are clutching the soil below them. We try not to get them to that state, rather, we stand back and admire them. There is nothing to gain by touching them.

Yellow-Footed Antechinus

This a Yellow-Footed Antechinus, Antechinus flavipes. These little critters need fallen timber as habitat and that is what we provide at Eaglerise Farm. We leave trees when they fall and this is what you get! You can see the fence that excludes out livestock from browsing the gully. I got to chat with this guy every time I came to pick up another tray of seedlings when I was revegetating Gully 1.

An interesting fact about these guys is, all the males die every year after the breeding season!

Sometimes we find these eggs after they have been cleaned out of their nest. We are assuming a reptile but have yet to determine what. The current thought is that they come from a lizard, possibly a Thick-Tailed Gecko, Underwoodisaurus milli. Some females of gecko species lay two eggs in communal nests. Some in termite hills too. These eggs have been cleaned out of an bull-ant nest.

One of our few wombats. We don’t mind having these creatures around, even though many farmers remove them because of the damage they can do. They are like small bull-dozers!

Here’s Rodney the Ring-tail Possum (Pseudocheirus peregrinus). He conscientiously guards one of our sheds and glares down at us when we venture into his domain.

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