Paruna Sanctuary

      One of the things offered at the conference were half day excursions around Western Australia. There were five different choices, but they all started at Paruna Sanctuary where we could go on a short hike through the place. It is a 2,000 ha sanctuary that is under the jurisdiction of the Australian Wildlife Conservancy. They have identified 12 threatened wildlife species there including two wallabies and also boast over 400 species of plants.

      Paruna is in the Darling Range, and was quite beautiful. Perhaps most amusing was you could tell what people's interests were. The birders always had their binos or telescopic lens out, the herp folks were always turning rocks and logs over, and the soil/invertebrate people were often found digging in the dirt (literally!).

      My previous excursion to Mt St. Helens with biologists revealed that hiking will be very slow, and indeed, the last scientists quick stepped it up to the bus 20 minutes late, but who can blame them! The sanctuary offered beautiful views and some wonderful wildlife. Of course, the marsupials we wanted to see wouldn't be anywhere near us since we made too much noise (and they were probably sleeping anyways), but there were some wonderful birds.

      It being spring down here meant that the wildflowers were starting to bloom. I'm not a plant person, but there were some beautiful flowers showing off.

      Perhaps most exciting to capture on camera was two parrots: an adult and juvenile. We were treated to the demanding (and loud) juvenile insisting on food, which the adult provided. Of course, I can't remember what the species is - the birders did identify them after much debate on the pattern on the underside of the tail and the colour of the eye.

Next stop - Yanchep National Park!