News from Coquette point

Black Bean seeds

Hello from Coquette Point,

Another week of perfect weather, hot dry days, clear cool nights, what wonderful conditions for growing food.  In the vegetable garden lettuce and cabbage are forming hearts and tomatoes are swelling.  In the orchard the harvest of citrus has been particularly good with trees laden with sweet, juicy mandarins, lemonades, oranges and more, all providing a good dose of vitamin C to chase away winter colds. In the rainforest the seeds of the black bean trees are falling to the ground.

Aboriginal rainforest people made flour from the seeds but only after a long process of leaching the alkaloid from the poisonous seed. The flour was made into bread, hearty and warming on cold nights.  What good timing when nature delivered an abundance of these meaty seeds at the onset of the winter months.

The cold nights have been too much for the rainbow bee-eaters, white-breasted wood swallows and the last 10 metallic starlings, as it appears they have all left the area: no doubt for warmer weather in New Guinea.  I took these photos last week before they left.

Rainbow bea-eaters gone

Wood swallows cuddle in the cold

However while some move on other birds have arrived.

Turtle doves have moved to the coast from the cold Atherton Tablelands.

Rufous fantails have arrived from south and the female leaden flycatcher has at last arrived to join the males which have been here for several weeks.

The Cassowaries continue to ‘say hello’ to ‘Plastic Cas’ every day. Ruth came down for a cuppa and was highly amused when she saw Snout check out ‘Plastic Cas’.

For the first time Jessie walked through the nursery this week. When she saw “Plastic Cas’ she did her best to stretch as tall as she could. She walked around the statue for a few minutes and then walked off, I haven’t seen her back in the nursery since.

Ruth watches 'Snout'

'Jessie' stretches tall beside plastic cass

In the early part of the week ‘Jessie’ chased ‘Snout’ every time she saw him. The sounds of drumming and chasing have been heard for over a month.

'Snout' chased by 'Jessie'

Yesterday the chasing stopped. Around lunchtime I heard low drumming coming from the mangroves, when I investigated I found ‘Jessie’ sitting under a tree with her back turned to “Snout’ who was a little way of and stretching high and appearing to dance then stretching out his neck and drumming softly.

I filmed for fifteen minutes and returned to the nursery. I came back an hour later ‘Jessie’ had turned around and was lowering her head as ‘Snout’ continued his ritual as before. I watched for half an hour then returned to the nursery. When I came back the cassowaries where out of the mangroves and on the lawn looking at each other, ‘Jessie’s’ pectoral tufts were fanned out shining in the sunlight. Her cheek pouches appeared swollen and iridescent. ‘Jessie’ started to move away and ‘Snout’ stretched to his full height and appeared to dance on tip-toes. 

‘Snout’ dancing to ‘Jessie’.

‘Jessie’s’ pectoral tufts shine in the sun.

Eventually both cassowaries moved off in different directions. I did not see ‘Jessie’ today but ‘Snout’ was by himself this afternoon.

I found yet another species of jumping spider this week and my mate Jim who lives in a jungle hideaway deep in the rainforest at Mossman also had a rare visitor this week,  a green flat huntsmen spider. Neither Jim nor I have seen this fella before so we would appreciate any feedback.

What spider is this?

I welcomed a bus load of Queensland tourists at the nursery on Tuesday. It was a cool sunny day and they expressed their interest and delight in the natural attractions that the Cassowary Coast had to offer.

They wanted to know about the rainforest, the cassowaries and the Johnstone River.  Right on cue ‘Snout’ did a brief walk past and it made their day. It was particularly  wonderful to meet Cynthia Rufus who came to Nerada with her husband Ivan in 1974 to work with Dr Maruff in establishing Nerada Tea. Ivan is an engineer and he and Cynthia now live in Cairns.

Over and out from Coquette Point this week.

Cheers Yvonne C.