The Old Gum Tree

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree, I sang as a child in school, and sang to my sons when they were young. At some point, I learned that ‘the old gum tree’ was a eucalypt, but then I had no idea ...

Preparing for Tasmania

Today, for the first time since our arrival in Australia, I attempted to maintain and generally succeeded in maintaining a comfortable temperature in our house without the use of air conditioning. I o...

Australian Mammal Extinctions

There is a simple answer to the question of what caused so many Australian mammals to go extinct. People. More specifically, it was hunting by people and by three non-native carnivores that humans int...

Cotters Market and Geckos

This morning, the Townsville Golf Club course glistened silver with dew, as though an endless bolt of shimmering fabric had been draped over the gentle hills and valleys during the night and left to a...