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CHRISTMAS 2020

Not all Christmas trees are decorated in the traditional way in Corrimal. This is fine with me. At present there is lots of seafood to enjoy. The other day I was part of a prawn feast. Right now I have ham fresh from the butchers to take pleasure in. We eat it cold here because of the weather. One of my presents this year, given to me by my nephew, was a bottle of Southern Comfort. Since I haven’t had Southern Comfort in decades it should prove to be a real treat.

I was delighted to receive this book as a present from a relative who understands my interest in birds and wildlife in general. It should be good reading. Over the last five years I have photographed various species in intimate moments.

Other presents include these Doctor Who DVDs. The original film footage for these old episodes has been lost. The sound-tracks, however, remain. It was decided to go with animation to bring what can be brought back to keen Doctor Who fans. I hope those responsible continue. I would love to have DVDs of Marco Polo and of The Crusade. As for modern Doctor Who, if someone doesn’t get in better writers and actors I can’t see the show lasting much longer which is a real shame.

A present to myself this year to get away from TV commercials was these Superman movie serials. Years ago I thought there had only been one produced. To my delight there are two and the quality of these DVDs is excellent. It is 1949 for the first one and 1950 for the second. This comes close to the end of the movie serial era which concluded around 1956, killed off by television.

At a Christmas Party I was at recently we were visited by a skink. Lizards of all sorts have been seen this time of year on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia. I have yet to see a blue-tongue though they have been reported in the Wollongong area. By the way, skinks are harmless and so are blue-tongues so if you come across them please do what I do and go camera happy.

There are plenty of young birds about indicating that nesting this year has gone well for some species. This is always good to see. These young ones were found with their Coot parents in a Dapto pond on the south coast of NSW, Australia.

Black Prince Cicadas have been found recently in a number of locales on the south coast of NSW, Australia including Mount Keira. I would say the green ones are still quite common but I haven’t seen one this year though chances are I have heard them. Often you do hear them and come upon their empty shells but don’t get to see live specimens.

You will find Welcome Swallows throughout the south coast of New South Wales. They are charming little birds that appear to nest throughout the year.

This female Koel found south of Wollongong was a surprise. I hadn’t seen one before and it is a case of just when you think you have seen it all there is always something new that pops up.

Apart from seeing a male Water Dragon with red mating belly I recently came across a lizard I have yet to positively identify. Could it be a Jacky Lizard? I think it might be. It’s a nice find anyway.

Chugging away on Dragon Queen. It will definitely be out in 2021.