Australia Photo ~
Swamp Paperbark Trees, Australia
Paperbark trees are so quintessentially Australian, with their peeling trunks.
There’s a swampy area I walk past most days.
This week I actually stopped to photograph it 
Paperbark Trees
8
Expedition to an Island Beach
In the dunes that back the beach, it amazes me that anything can grow ~
No nutrients in the soil, and such good drainage no water will hold between the fine white grains of sand -
Yet, defying possibility, these coastal plants produce luscious yellow blooms.
Keeping close to the ground, hugging the sparkling shard minutia, they duck the salty sea winds.
Just their pollen rich blooms stand proud to catch the attention of passing pollinators 
Between the plants, signs of animal life leave their marks.
Not everyone is in hiding ~
Who goes there?
Who’s asking?
Not sure who is taken more by surprise ~ The wallabies or us!
Then, finally, through the bushy scrub between the trees the first glimpse of the sea.
There is possibly no more beautiful a sight than that first view through the she oaks
Once down onto the beach ~ I like a patch of shade from where I can look out to sea…
And wonder at the waves and the scale of the Pacific Ocean ~ Nothing lying between me and South America.
Where is your favourite beach?
Birds Nest Tree Ferns – Epiphytes
Australia Photo ~
Epiphytes ~ Birds Nest Tree Ferns in the rainforest
Epiphytes are plants that use another plant or object as a host upon which to grow ~ Their roots are not therefore in the soil so nutrients are derived from the air, the rain, and sometimes an accumulation of leaf debris.
These Birds Nest Ferns were seen at Natural Bridge
during a recent visit when showing an overseas visitor our local SE Queensland tourist sites
