Summer 2011- Clinton School International Public Service Project in Australia with MDBA and DERM Spring 2009- Studied abroad in Thailand with the International Sustainable Development Studies Institute
Thursday, August 11, 2011
E-postcards from a chilly paradise
Mama's visiting!
We went on a night hike chasing pademelons and ring-tailed possums with night vision goggles!
And now we're on Heron Island swimming with sting rays and sharks along the Great Barrier Reef!
Pademelons, like most Australian mammals, are nocturnal (though we did spot a few during daylight hours). They look a lot like small kangaroos. Some tour operators offer nighttime "spotlighting" walks, but using normal visible light flashlights-- or "torches" as they're called here-- can damage the eyes of nocturnal animals, so night vision goggles or infrared flashlights are preferable. Unfortunately, the night we went there was a very bright moon, so the forest creatures were being more cautious than usual and we didn't see any out in the open. We did find a colony of glow worms hanging out in some roadside brush, which was pretty cool!
Is pademelon anything like watermelon? And why must it be hunted only at night?
ReplyDeleteCurious in Little Rock
Dear Curious,
ReplyDeletePademelons, like most Australian mammals, are nocturnal (though we did spot a few during daylight hours). They look a lot like small kangaroos. Some tour operators offer nighttime "spotlighting" walks, but using normal visible light flashlights-- or "torches" as they're called here-- can damage the eyes of nocturnal animals, so night vision goggles or infrared flashlights are preferable. Unfortunately, the night we went there was a very bright moon, so the forest creatures were being more cautious than usual and we didn't see any out in the open. We did find a colony of glow worms hanging out in some roadside brush, which was pretty cool!