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Pacific Baza – Piercing Yellow Eyes Scanning for Prey
Bird Photography with marysejansenart
Crested Hawk performs clever hunting techniques

Silently a large bird glides through the canopy of the Eucalyptus trees. If I hadn’t been looking up to the tree tops, I would never have known it was there! It sits on a branch for a few moments and then it takes off again. Not in the way you would expect a bird to take off by flapping it’s wings and lifting off of the branch. But by plunging straight down head first with its wings folded! The bird unfolds its wings as it begins to fall and easily glides to the next chosen branch with a few gentle flaps. The piercing yellow eyes and a distinct crest on this hawk-like bird tell me it’s a Pacific Baza!

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Are Nature Prescriptions Coming to Australia?
Nature Photography with marysejansenart
Doctor’s Orders: Connecting with Nature for Increased Physical and Mental Well-being

... While we all know that physical exercise is good for our health, it’s not just about that. Doing it in nature has many extra benefits, especially when we pay attention to our surroundings:

Take your time and stop often. Take a closer look and marvel at the interesting things you can find along your path. Stop to enjoy a beautiful view. Take a photo to bring the memory home. Keep a nature journal and write and draw about the things you see. Sit down at a suitable spot and have a healthy snack and/or a drink of water. Lean up against a tree, close your eyes for a while and listen to the sounds around you. Notice the smells. Feel the breeze on your skin. Engage all your senses!!...

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3 Perfectly Purple Wildflowers
Wildflower Photography with marysejansenart
Purple Wildflowers Provide Royal Beauty to the Forest

The forest is dark and damp, even though the sun is shining brightly in a blue sky above the canopy. The harsh sunlight penetrates the forest occasionally with a few thin rays, which increases the contrast with the darkness below. I smell the earthy scent of the dirt under my feet, mixed with that of a variety of plants and flowers. I hear a number of different bird sounds and every now and then I get a glimpse of one of them through the thick vegetation. One of the sun rays reaches ground level and illuminates a beautiful purple wildflower!

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Pretty Red-browed Finches Reproduce Swiftly
Bird Photography with marysejansenart
Nesting several times per season, these birds are on fire!

I stop in my tracks. A couple of small birds are rummaging around in the tall grass beside the track I’m walking on. They are Red-browed Finches! They are easily frightened and will fly off at the least disturbance, but it looks like I stopped just in time. They are not paying me any notice! Slowly I bring my camera up to my eye and zoom in on the bird closest to me, which has taken position on a small horizontal branch...

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Scaly-breasted Lorikeet – a Well Camouflaged Parrot
Bird Photography with marysejansenart
Scaly-breasted Lorikeet often hangs out with Rainbow Lorikeets

Soft chatter and a rustling through the leaves above my head attract my attention. A green bird is moving around in the foliage, feeding on the nectar from the flowers. It has a bright red beak and red-orange eyes, but otherwise it is quite well camouflaged amongst its green surroundings. I stand completely still, quietly observing it and slowly more and more of the little parrot comes into view. It is a Scaly-breasted Lorikeet!

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Meet the Magnificent Tiger Spider formerly known as Golden Orb Weaver
Wildlife Photography by marysejansenart
Does the gigantic female really eat the little male after mating?

... I spot a web, occupying a large open space over a gully. Long, strong threads attach it to surrounding trees. In the centre of the web I spot the female, busy weaving and repairing her web as shown in the featured image. As I’m peering through my zoom lens I am truly fascinated to be witnessing how she pulls a thread of silk out of her abdomen with one of her back legs, pushing it outward and using her other back leg to connect it to another strand. With her other legs she keeps walking along, while she repeats the process over and over....

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Orange Mangrove – a Fascinating Life Cycle
Wildflower Photography with marysejansenart
Cup-shaped flowers, cigar-shaped fruits and knee-shaped roots

Mangrove Forests are an amazing place! They belong to the most valuable ecosystems on earth and it is as if you can feel that when you walk there. There is a quietness and a buzz at the same time – which is hard to describe. The mangroves live in an incredible harsh environment and despite that they flourish and the place is full of life energy.

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Boobook Owls – Cute Little Owls Cause Some Commotion
Wildlife Photography with marysejansenart
Australian Boobook Owl formerly known as Southern Boobook Owl

It’s a hot summer day and apart from the cicadas, which make a lot of noise, the forest is quiet. Most of the birds are at rest, but suddenly I hear a lot of activity coming from an area of dense vegetation. These birds sound agitated, I wonder what is causing the commotion. Peering through the branches I quickly find the answer: two small owls are perched there!

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Pademelons – Cute and Shy Marsupials
Wildlife Photography with marysejansenart
A life in the darkness of the rainforest

I crawl out of my tent. It’s very early in the morning and everybody else appears to be still asleep, but I need to go to the toilet. When I open the zipper I am confronted with a thick fog. A dozen meters away I notice a small figure on the grass, it appears to be grazing. Very quietly I sneak up a little bit closer, until I can see the animal properly. It’s a Pademelon!

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Cotton Harlequin Bugs – Shiny Jewels that Stink
Wildlife Photography with marysejansenart
Aggregations in the Cotton Tree

I stop and admire the yellow flowers on the Coastal Hibiscus, also known as Cotton Tree or Cottonwood. A bright orange creature attracts my attention. There’s two of them, sitting right there on the flower base! Upon closer examination I notice that they have small metallic blue patches on their orange shield. These are Cotton Harlequin Bugs!

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