News from Coquette Point

27/5/2012

Hello from cold and very wet Coquette Point,

The weather systems combined to bring heavy rain to the Wet Tropics on Thursday night. Around 350 mm fell in the Innisfail, Mossman and Cairns’ hinterlands overnight and on Friday all the rivers ran red to the Coral Sea Lagoon. A low over Victoria has pushed cold air up along the Queensland coast and it was winter woollies all day to-day with the temperature not getting over 18 - freezing for FNQ.

I have seen cassowary matriarch ‘Jessie’ every day this week. She enters through the mangroves at the bottom of the road, walks through the nursery, out along the beach and up into the rainforest on the hill. She leaves her footprints in the sand on the beach.

On Wednesday ‘Jessie’ met ‘Snout’ and hung about with him for half an hour. I started to get quite excited that they might pair. All the while ‘Snout’ made a low gentle drumming sound and ‘Jessie’ stood watching him.

Eventually she got annoyed and suddenly ran at him and set chase. I heard the crashing in the rainforest as she ran after him: poor ‘Snout’. On Thursday, Friday and also today this ritual was repeated.

'Jessie' and 'Snout'

'Snout' checks out a van full of cassowaries

This morning ‘Snout’ saw his reflection in the window of the van. He walked around the van banging at the windows with his beak. No damage done thank goodness.

Sub adult cassowary ‘Don’ is starting to get some colour. He gets chased by all the other cassowaries however, he has remained here apparently determined to make this area his territory.

'Don' getting colour

Female Rainbow bee-eater

The numbers of Rainbow bee-eaters have increased over the last few weeks. Their busy chirps’ marking their passage as they skirt across the sky harvesting insects from the air. They stop for only a short while, all the time alter and searching for the next meal. The male bee-eater has the longer tail feathers.

Male Rainbow bee-eater

Crocodile Midget returned on Tuesday, I had not seen any of the crocodiles for over three weeks.

However, this week she has been sunbathing every day and when disturbed drops back into the water only to pull up onto the beach again when all is quite. Her coming and goings leave unusual patterns on the sand.

Little Egret has been fishing in the shallows and Midget watches and watches but so far has not been tempted by a feed of bony, white chicken. Little Egret is showing the start of red breeding colouring on her face.

I found another two new species of jumping spiders this week. The largest jumping spider Mopsus Mormon has also been very active catching insects around the nursery this week.

Mopsus Mormon

The little Sunbird has completed her nest and is already sitting on three eggs. She tucked herself into the nest with her little tail flicked up behind her warm and dry. Meanwhile another two pairs of sunbirds have started courtship in the nursery and they fly from flower to flower collecting nectar.