|
Vansittart Island
Vansittart Island, also known as Gun Carriage Island, is a granite island with an area of . The island is part of Tasmania's Vansittart Island Group, lying in eastern Bass Strait between Flinders and Cape Barren Islands in the Furneaux Group. It is partly private property and partly leasehold land and is currently used for grazing Wiltshire Horn sheep. The island is part of the Franklin Sound Islands Important Bird Area, identified as such by BirdLife International because it holds over 1% of the world populations of six bird species. History of colonial times #Former Bass Strait sealers were living on the island by the 1820s. In 1831 George Robinson came to evict the sealers and their families as he wanted to establish an Aboriginal settlement (see Section 5 below) on the island. When the Aboriginal establishment proved unsuccessful the sealers and their families returned to the island. Their community had grown to 28 people by the time Bishop Nixon came to visit in 1854. #In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vansittart Island Tasmania
Vansittart is a surname of Dutch origin, derived from the city of Sittard in Limburg. Notable people with the surname include: *Augustus Arthur Vansittart (1824–1882), English scholar *Cyril Vansittart (1852–1887), English-Italian chess player *Edward Vansittart Neale (1810–1892), English barrister *George Henry Vansittart (1768–1824), British army general *George Vansittart (1745–1825), British politician *Henrietta Vansittart (1833–1883), English engineer and inventor *Henry Vansittart (1732–1770), English diplomat and Governor of Bengal *Nicholas Vansittart, 1st Baron Bexley (1766–1851), English politician *Peter Vansittart (1920–2008), English writer *Robert Vansittart (judge) (1728–1789), English jurist *Robert Vansittart, 1st Baron Vansittart (1881–1957), English diplomat *Rupert Vansittart (born 1958), English actor *Sir Vansittart Bowater, 1st Baronet (1862–1938), English politician *Tom Vansittart (born 1950), English retired footballer *William Vansi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wader
245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflats in order to foraging, forage for food crawling or burrowing in the mud and sand, usually small arthropods such as aquatic insects or crustaceans. The term "wader" is used in Europe, while "shorebird" is used in North America, where "wader" may be used instead to refer to long-legged wading birds such as storks and herons. There are about 210 species of wader, most of which live in wetland or coastal environments. Many species of Arctic and temperate regions are strongly migratory, but tropical birds are often resident, or move only in response to rainfall patterns. Some of the Arctic species, such as the little stint, are amongst the longest distance migrants, spending the non- breeding season in the southern hemisphere. Many of the s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tasmanian Pademelon
The Tasmanian pademelon (''Thylogale billardierii''), also known as the rufous-bellied pademelon or red-bellied pademelon, is the sole species of pademelon found in Tasmania, and was formerly found throughout southeastern Australia. This pademelon has developed heavier and bushier fur than its northern relatives, which inhabit northern Australia and Papua New Guinea. The scientific name honours J.J.H. Labillardier, who collected the first specimen on an expedition to what was then Van Diemen's Land in 1792. There are no recognised subspecies. Description The Tasmanian pademelon has a compact body with short, rounded, ears, thick fur over the limbs, head, and body and a tail covered with short hairs. It has greyish fur over most of the body with yellowish to rufous underparts, and, unlike most other pademelons, has no distinct facial or hip markings. Males reach around in weight, in length including the tail, and are considerably larger than the females, which average . Distr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Echidna
Echidnas (), sometimes known as spiny anteaters, are quill-covered monotremes (egg-laying mammals) belonging to the family Tachyglossidae . The four extant species of echidnas and the platypus are the only living mammals that lay eggs and the only surviving members of the order Monotremata. The diet of some species consists of ants and termites, but they are not closely related to the true anteaters of the Americas, which (along with sloths and armadillos) are xenarthrans. Echidnas live in Australia and New Guinea. Echidnas evolved between 20 and 50 million years ago, descending from a platypus-like monotreme. This ancestor was aquatic, but echidnas adapted to life on land. Etymology Echidnas are named after Echidna, a creature from Greek mythology who was half-woman, half-snake, as the animal was perceived to have qualities of both mammals and reptiles. An alternative explanation is a confusion with . Physical characteristics Echidnas are medium-sized, solitary mamm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bougainville's Skink
Bougainville's skink (''Lerista bougainvillii'') is a species of skink, a lizard in the family Scincidae. This species is also commonly called the south-eastern slider and Bougainville's lerista. Etymology The specific name, ''bougainvillii'', and the common names, Bougainville's skink and Bougainville's lerista, are in honour of French naval officer Hyacinthe de Bougainville. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Lerista bougainvillii'', p. 33). Geographic range ''L. bougainvillii'' is found in south-eastern Australia, including north-eastern Tasmania and many Bass Strait islands. Description Bougainville's skink has very reduced limbs and moves in a snake-like manner. Habitat The preferred natural habitats of ''L. bougainvillii'' are forest and shrubland. However, it is seldom seen, as much of its life is spent beneath leaf-litter, loose sand, and thin stone slabs. Cog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metallic Skink
:''"Metallic skink" may also refer to the garden skink (Lampropholis delicata)''. ''Carinascincus metallicus'', the metallic cool-skink or metallic skink is a species of skink in the family Scincidae. It is endemic to Australia, found in southern Victoria, as well as in Tasmania where it is the most widespread and common lizard, occurring on many offshore islands in Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterwa ... as well as the mainland. It gives birth to live young. It is highly variable in colour and pattern, and may be a complex of closely related species.Cogger, H.G. (1979). ''Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia''. Reed: Sydney. References Carinascincus Skinks of Australia Endemic fauna of Australia Reptiles described in 1874 Taxa named by Arthu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudemoia Entrecasteauxii
The southern grass skink (''Pseudemoia entrecasteauxii)'' is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to Australia, where it is found in the south-east of the continent, as well as in Tasmania and the islands of Bass Strait. Although it occurs in a variety of habitats, it is most commonly found in open grassy woodlands. Cogger HG. (1979). ''Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia''. Sydney: Reed. The Southern grass skink has a lifespan of about 5 or 6 years. It grows up to in length (not including the tail). Male skinks change colouration during the breeding season. Etymology The specific name, ''entrecasteauxii'', is in honor of French naval officer and explorer Antoine Bruni d'Entrecasteaux. Reproductive biology The southern grass skink has become a model species for reproductive biology in reptiles because it gives birth to live young and exhibits non-invasive epitheliochorial placentation. Unlike the majority of live bearing reptiles, ''Pseude ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reptile
Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians (tuatara). As of March 2022, the Reptile Database includes about 11,700 species. In the traditional Linnaean classification system, birds are considered a separate class to reptiles. However, crocodilians are more closely related to birds than they are to other living reptiles, and so modern cladistic classification systems include birds within Reptilia, redefining the term as a clade. Other cladistic definitions abandon the term reptile altogether in favor of the clade Sauropsida, which refers to all amniotes more closely related to modern reptiles than to mammals. The study of the traditional reptile orders, historically combined with that of modern amphibians, is called herpetology. The earliest known proto-reptiles originated around ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Barren Goose
The Cape Barren goose (''Cereopsis novaehollandiae'') is a large goose resident in southern Australia. Etymology The species' common name is derived from Cape Barren Island, where specimens were first sighted by European explorers. It is known in the local Jardwadjali language as ''toolka''. Taxonomy The Cape Barren goose was first described by English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 under the current binomial name. It is a most peculiar goose of uncertain affiliations (Sraml ''et al.'' 1996). It may either belong in the "true geese" and swan subfamily Anserinae or in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae as distinct tribe Cereopsini, or be separated, possibly including the prehistorically extinct flightless New Zealand geese of the genus ''Cnemiornis'', in a distinct subfamily Cereopsinae. The first bones of the New Zealand birds to be discovered were similar enough to those of the Cape Barren goose to erroneously refer to them as "New Zealand Cape Barren goose" (''"Cereopsis" n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black Swan
The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic conditions. It is a large bird with mostly black plumage and a red bill. It is a monogamous breeder, with both partners sharing incubation and cygnet-rearing duties. The black swan was introduced to various countries as an ornamental bird in the 1800s, but has managed to escape and form stable populations. Described scientifically by English naturalist John Latham in 1790, the black swan was formerly placed into a monotypic genus, ''Chenopis''. Black swans can be found singly, or in loose companies numbering into the hundreds or even thousands. It is a popular bird in zoological gardens and bird collections, and escapees are sometimes seen outside their natural range. This bird is a regional symbol of both Western Australia, whe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pied Oystercatcher
The pied oystercatcher (''Haematopus longirostris'') is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading bird native to Australia and commonly found on its coastline. The similar South Island pied oystercatcher (''H. finschi'') occurs in New Zealand. Description The name "oystercatcher" is something of a misnomer for this species, because they seldom eat oysters, which are found mainly on rocky coastlines. Pied oystercatchers frequent sandy coastlines, where they feed mainly on bivalve molluscs, which are prised apart with their specially adapted bill. These adaptations allow the Pied oystercatchers to slip their bills between the ventral edges of these shelled organisms, further allowing them to sever the shells and reach the edible flesh inside. This Australian species is easily recognized by the characteristic 5–8 cm long orange-red beak, slender pink legs and black and white plumage. With the wings extended, a white wing-stripe is also visible. The male and female sho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
