The wreck of the Costa Del Fuego

In March last year, during a family ride along the Barwon through Geelong, we came across a vessel with the impressive name of the Costa Del Fuego. Contrary to what you might imagine, this was not an impressive motor launch or even a relic of the Barwon's 19th century past. It was in fact, a traditional Aussie raft, constructed from wooden pallets lashed to 44-gallon drums.



The Costa Del Fuego, March, 2012

Of course, I blogged about the Costa Del Fuego at the time, but over the intervening months continued to keep an eye on it. I soon discovered that it was moored on the east bank of the river, just below the Queen's Park Bridge, where it remained - with it's canopy lowered - for some weeks.

Moored at Queen's Park, May, 2012

I noticed eventually however, that the raft was no longer at its mooring. Nor did I ever see it in use again. Following minor flooding events first in May and then in August, I was out walking with the kids in early October, when I once again spotted the Costa Del, wedged amongst the willows just below the breakwater.


Under the willows at Breakwater

It was a little the worse for wear and certainly did not appear to have seen recent use. I could not tell whether it had wound up here, swept down by the earlier flood waters or whether it had been moved to this location (although I suspect the water may not have been deep enough to carry it over the break). Regardless, there it was and for some time, there it stayed.
Once again, I did not notice exactly when it disappeared, but when we took to the water at Breakwater for our first excursion downriver in the kayaks, it was not long before we came across some familiar remains.

The skeleton of the Costa Del Fuego and a White-faced Heron

Sadly, it bore only a passing resemblance to the proud vessel it had once been, with the three remaining drums held together by a few bent spars and pieces of the pallets strewn on the bank. The whole was overseen by a White-faced Heron which was standing guard atop one of the drums.
As of late January and my most recent foray down from the break, the skeletal remains were still languishing on the bank.
Fortunately for the cause of youthful initiative, the Costa Del Fuego is not the only example of its kind which I have seen in recent times. On 19th January as we paddled up from Baum's Weir to Merrawarp Road and back, I came across another raft. It also was a timber structure kept afloat by 44-gallon drums. Unfortunately for me, distance and a reasonable breeze made focusing difficult so, the shot is not the best, however I was able to capture a couple of images of the unknown craft.

Raft downstream of Merrawarp Road

Finally, in the interests of furthering the cause of the humble 44-gallon drum as it relates to Australian culture and technology, I offer the following example, seen on farmland above the lower breakwater:

The versatility of the 44-gallon drum

Taking the heat

Well summer is certainly here! With an estimated top temperature for Geelong of 38°C and the mercury creeping up to 37° by 4:30pm it was certainly a warm day for a ride around the river. I started out at a balmy 28°C and kept to the shade as the temperature continued to climb.
In a - currently futile - attempt to add some photos to my newly created bird nests page, I was riding relatively slowly and scanning the overhead branches. I was also trying to ride in a relatively straight line, not collide with other cyclists or pedestrians and - oh yes - keep an eye out for snakes at the same time.
Well, I didn't run anyone down and I suspect it was too hot even for the snakes. I was making frequent stops and did discover several nests, but with no-one appearing to be home I couldn't tell who they belonged to.
I also spent quite some time chasing the perfect bird shot for this year's Barwon calendar. As I lurked amongst the tangled lignum a raven appeared and perched in a nearby eucalypt. (Don't ask me what sort, it's just too darn hard to tell them apart!) It perched for a while, beak open and then left me to continue my sneaking around in the undergrowth.

Raven aka Crow

Over an hour later and still not sure I got the right shot, I headed off again. I stopped briefly at a couple of nests I'd seen last week, snapped a few shots of some ducks on a branch and kept going.
Just before the boat ramp I spotted a Grey Butcherbird - also with its beak gaping. It struck me as odd that I hadn't ever noticed birds doing this before. A little further down the track and I saw a Starling. The same again, and then I came across a small group of Mudlarks. Their beaks were also open, however as they didn't stop shouting the whole time I was nearby so it was a little hard to tell what they were up to.

Grey Butcherbird

Finally, as I headed back past the boatsheds it soon became apparent that all the Silver Gulls (aka seagulls) which were usually scattered along the riverbank were all camped out under under one of the ash trees and yes, you guessed it! A good number of them had their beaks hanging open.

Silver Gull aka Seagull

By now I was fairly sure I was onto something and a quick Google search when I got home proved what I had suspected (and plenty of people probably know already): birds pant or gape when they are hot!
I soon discovered that birds - like dogs - do not have sweat glands, so they rely on other means to dissipate heat. The basic mechanism is still evaporative cooling and in birds this occurs through the mouth by panting - although heat exchange through unfeathered skin (such as legs) also occurs. Some (but perhaps not all?) non-passerine birds (ie those which do not belong to the order Passeriformes) also use a technique called "gular flutter" which involves vibrating the floor of the mouth and the upper parts of the throat.
Another quick Google search told me that ravens, butcherbirds, starlings and mudlarks were all passerines. Great, but what about the seagulls? Well Google didn't want to tell me about the specifics of Australian seagulls and the seagulls didn't mention it either. They just stood in the shade with their beaks hanging open.
From what I did find, gular flutter varies depending on the mechanics of each species' throat but in all cases it is more energy efficient than panting alone. Pelicans can do it, herons can do it too and so do cormorants, ducks, pigeons and a variety of other types of gull, so I guess the seagulls can also.

White-faced Heron chick

I now notice that whilst the adult White-faced Heron I saw was not gaping, the chick in the nest did appear to be.
Of course, the other side of the thermoregulatory coin is keeping warm when the weather is cold. Feathers provide obvious protection, but legs are also very important. In some species, leg veins and arteries are located closely side-by-side so that cool venous blood returning to the body is warmed via heat exchange as it passes arterial blood leaving the core.
Another obvious means of heat retention is of course, covering the bare skin. So, when you see a seagull or a duck standing on one leg, it is most probably not a poor little cripple, it is just a bit cool. Additionally, sitting down to cover both legs, tucking your beak into your side, fluffing up your feathers and facing downwind to minimise the surface area exposed to a cold breeze are also good ways to reduce heat loss if you are a bird.


Pacific Black Duck

Clearly the above photo is not a recent one, with all the ducks I saw during my ride either standing firmly on two legs, or (perhaps the best option) in the water.



Creatures of the night

A short wander along the Barwon below the Mount Brandon Peninsula yesterday, yielded some unexpected photo opportunities. The first arose as we followed the rough track around from Buckley Falls towards Baum's Weir along the south bank of the river.
I am aware of plans to improve the recreational facilities along this part of the river as nearby residential development progresses, but I was surprised by how many people already seem to be aware of the walking and fishing opportunities provided by this rather informal stretch of parkland.

Is it a bird, is it a tree...?

At one point I paused to listen to the birds, trying to locate the owner of a call which I have heard many times, but had been unable to attach to a particular species. I was once again unsuccessful in my attempt at identification (I have since discovered it was a Fan-tailed Cuckoo), but as I shushed the boys in the hope of spotting my quarry, a passerby - also with two boys of his own in tow - informed me that there were three Tawny Frogmouths in a tree up ahead.
I hung back still hoping to solve the puzzle while the others went on ahead, however they were soon back and reporting that they had found the frogmouths, so we quickly headed up the track lest they decided to depart.
Fortunately, being the middle of the day, they were rather disinclined to go anywhere and were happy to sit on a rather low branch of a dead tree as we approached to within only a few metres. Even four small boys circling the vicinity did not seem to disturb them.
In fact, the response of the three birds to our presence was almost amusing. One, perched below the others, refused to acknowledge our presence in any way whatsoever, adamantly insisting that it was nothing more than a dead tree branch, its eye slitted just slightly so as to watch us, its beak pointed skywards to further enhance the illusion.
The other pair of birds were less concerned with disguise. They stood close together, eyes open, but not moving - with the exception of one who was bold enough to turn its full gaze on us. It stared very directly with its piercing yellow eyes, but didn't seem too worried that we had blown their cover and interrupted their day's rest.
I hope their disturbed sleep didn't leave them yawning on their perch when they should have been out pursuing their rather slimy, crunchy prey last night. I discover that are happy to consume pretty much anything which scuttles, slides, flies or hops and is smaller than themselves. Moths, birds, frogs, lizards, slugs, snails, insects and worms are all fair game and usually pounced upon from above as the frogmouth drops from its perch to the ground.

Nankeen Night Heron

Nor were the frogmouths the only night birds we spotted on this particular visit to the river. On our way back downstream we saw a Nankeen Night Heron (aka Rufous Night Heron). I was not particularly surprised as I have seen these birds here before and in daylight too. In fact on today's visit what was possibly the same bird, was once again, standing on the weir at Buckley Falls. Despite this species feeding at night, it, along with a Great Egret, a White-faced Heron and a Little Black Cormorant were all quite obviously fishing at various points along the weir, using this man-made structure to best advantage.They, like the Wathaurong, clearly understand the culinary opportunities offered by the Bunyip Pool.