Froggy walk attracts young and old
It was wonderful to see the community's interest in amphibians.
What better way to spend a Friday evening than walking through the Bendigo Nature Reserve in Southport looking for frogs.
Yes, you read right! The search was on to find those four-legged reptiles who have protruding eyes, no tail, and strong webbed hind feet that are adapted for leaping and swimming.
The same little creatures, who have apparently roamed the earth for more than 200 million years, at least as long as the dinosaurs.
The Bendigo Conservation Group hosted a night walk that started at Leka’s in Southport last Friday evening.
Herpetologist Dr Jeanne Tarrant from Durban and Sharlene van der Slikke from Port Shepstone shared their knowledge of frogs.
Fifty-five people of all ages joined and were delighted to find different frogs, spiders, mushrooms and even a pair of nesting birds in the dark forest.
The group, wearing headlamps or armed with torches, enjoyed discovering the ‘wonders of night creatures’ in this special 100-year-old coastal swamp forest.
Tarrant said the four-hectare reserve is a remnant of old-growth coastal forest and reminiscent of tropical rainforest.
“The canopy was alive with a chorus of Natal tree frogs, leptopelis natalensis, while the forest floor was the domain of beautiful raucous toads, sclerophrys capensis, on the hunt for tasty grubs,” she said.
Tarrant has worked in amphibian conservation and research for 18 years. She is also the recipient of the prestigious Whitley Award, or ‘Green Oscar’ for her work in conservation, a career highlight with Sir David Attenborough narrating this short video. Last year, she embarked on a new amphibian-focused venture in the form of Anura Africa.
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