Yup, that pretty much sums up Australia. Welcome. Come on in and enjoy yourself . . . oh and something might eat you before you leave, but no worries mate.
The Australian Museum is a nice little piece of Sydney history, that maintains that message very consistently. Just like the Zoo, it’s a very friendly place to get to know the local animals. Of course, all the ones at the museum are stuffed, with the exception of a few sea creatures (I’ve actually never seen a cuttlefish in person before) some ugly spiders, one bored looking blue tongue lizard, and one itty bitty freshwater crocodile (they’re cute when they’re small).
The idea of being surrounded by stiffly posed, glass eyed creatures, that probably ate their last bits of eucalyptus thirty years ago, sounds morbid, but it’s actually quite fun. Now I know that the grey headed flying foxes that I see leaving the botanic gardens in droves each night, have the softest of fluff on their heads, and that echidnas are quite spiny indeed. And even though a great deal of the animals are safely stowed in display cases, including a few that seem to have seen better days since their visit to the taxidermist, there are no shortage of Australia’s more iconic animals primed for petting on each floor. The surplus have been turned into a creative series of displays where the rats chase each other through the backyard BBQ, and the magpies dive bomb unsuspecting bikers. According to the wall text, it’s common to use ice cream containers with eyes drawn on them as fake targets, to prevent being blinded in a magpie attack. I’m not sure I’ll go as far as wearing an ice cream container, but I will walk cautiously during their nesting season.
Although smaller than some of it’s American counterparts (lacking the space for both the massive T-rex skeleton and the life sized humpback whale, this natural history museum opts for a whale skeleton as a compromise) it is a great place to learn about the many creatures that are, and have always been, unique to Australia. Did you know about the Diprotodon Optatum, the largest marsupial that ever lived? And somehow all my previous explorations into natural history, in both museums and books, never taught me about zooids or that sandworms could have legs.
But perhaps the most important thing you learn during a trip to the Australian Museum, is that everything, from the most unassuming shell washed up on the beach, to a tick practically invisible when first born, can kill you. That may be obvious when you’re looking at a saltwater crocodile, a reptile so large that it might consider a full grown human no more than a hearty meal. But no one would suspect that the tiny blue ringed octopus, that could fit in the palm of your hand, could also paralyze every function of your body, to the point where you would need constant CPR until its poison worked its way out of your system (a mere twenty four hours later). I think Bill Bryson said it best when he wrote, “It’s a tough country.”
So once again, I find myself grateful for my humble abode, but today that’s because of it’s lack of a spider filled back yard and distance from crocodile friendly shoreline. I have until early summer to prepare myself to get into the water. In the meantime, I’ll buy the large container of ice cream, just in case. It’s a good thing I like ice cream.
Check this flickr set for more fun photos.
I think you could with your talents, make a ice cream container look just like a New Yorker. If that doesn’t scare away the biggest meanest magpie—nothing will. By the way, isn’t that one of your nick names?!
I think you could with your talents, make a ice cream container look just like a New Yorker. If that doesn’t scare away the biggest meanest magpie—nothing will. By the way, isn’t that one of your nick names?!P.S.: Each week we can hardly wait for your newest blog!
More Magpie protection advice from the New South Wales Department of Environment and Climate Change here: http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/animals/TheAustralianMagpie.htm
Excerpt:
For most of the year magpies are not aggressive, but for four to six weeks during nesting they will often defend their territory vigorously. People walking past may be seen as ‘invaders’ of the territory, prompting the magpies to fly low and fast over the person clacking their bills as they pass overhead.
The experience of a magpie attack can be quite alarming, but it is usually only a warning. Only occasionally will a bird actually strike the intruder on the head with its beak or claws. If this unusual behaviour persists, there are ways of reducing the risk of physical injury to humans.
If a magpie swoops at you:
Walk quickly and carefully away from the area, and avoid walking there when magpies are swooping.
Make a temporary sign to warn other people.
Magpies are less likely to swoop if you look at them. Try to keep an eye on the magpie, at the same time walking carefully away. Alternatively, you can draw or sew a pair of eyes onto the back of a hat, and wear it when walking through the area. You can also try wearing your sunglasses on the back of your head.
Wear a bicycle or skateboard helmet. Any sort of hat, even a hat made from an ice cream container or cardboard box, will help protect you.
Carry an open umbrella, or a stick or small branch, above your head but do not swing it at the magpie, as this will only provoke it to attack.
If you are riding a bicycle when the magpie swoops, get off the bicycle and wheel it quickly through the area. Your bicycle helmet will protect your head, and you can attach a tall red safety flag to your bicycle or hold a stick or branch as a deterrent.
I heard that if the ice cream carton had chocolate ice cream in it before–than an attack was more likely.