A fossiliferous quarry

Today, armed with our knives and screwdrivers and geology hammers, we visited Batesford Quarry on the outskirts of Geelong.

The quarry is the type locality of Batesford Limestone, a biocalcarenite consisting of broken skeletal remains of bryozoans, echinoides and bivalves. It accumulated in a clear water marine environment with a sandy sea floor in the Miocene period. We went there to look for the fossils.

It's a very large and deep quarry, no longer operating (although there are several smaller mining industries on site). The Moorabool River runs down one side of it but no longer is on on its original course. The quarry managers diverted it in order to access the limestone. The industrial archeolgy is very interesing too, but we weren't concentrating on that. We wanted to find sharks teeth.

It's astonishing to think that you can chip off a limestone chunk and expose almost intact fossils of marine creatures that were alive 15 million years ago, creatures that look like those we find on sea shores today like sea urchins, cowie shells, bivalves, sponges and coral. And yes, we found a few shark teeth. It was a most interesting excursion.

A geologist called David Williams has written an interesting blog about finding a new species of barnacle in the wall of a building in Melbourne that is faced with Batesford Limestone.
http://stories-in-stone.blogspot.com/2009_10_01_archive.html

Summer bird count

Grace and I were directed to count waders today at Begola Wetlands in suburban Ocean Grove and Freshwater Lake near Point Lonsdale. So we went, but without success because the water levels are too high following the recent rains. Not a wader in sight.

Both places are well worth a visit though. We saw some lovely birds at Begola Wetland, including Little Wattlebirds (not often seen this far east) and Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters, and Clamourous Reed-warblers serenaded us all the way around.

At Freshwater Lake we waded through the shallows towards the one roosting area but the most reward was in the journey because there were no waders roosting. There were hundreds and hundreds of damselflies and dragonflies on the vegetation, flying up in clouds before us as we walked. There were many dead ones in the floating detritus and a lot of discarded exoskeletons still clinging to the reeds. I managed to grab a few photos (I was meant to be bird-counting remember?) but I should go back and spend more time there to get a better record of it all.

Many of the reeds and other vegetation had snails on them as well. This one had a bonus spider. If it can't swim it's there until the water levels drop.

Alpine flora

At Falls Creek we were able to search for alpine plants in various communities - bogs, pasture, under snow gums and lower down the mountain in a mixed forest. In the alps spring arrives in summer so most of the plants were flowering. It was all looking beautiful.

Alpine Orites Orites lancifolia

Mueller's Snow-Gentian Chionogentias muelleriana ssp. muelleriana

Sky Lily Herpolirion novae-zelandiae

Alpine Leek Orchid Prasophyllum tadgellianum

Silver Ewartia Ewartia nubigena

Stiff Dislaspis Dislaspis hydrocotyle

Carpet Heath Pentachondra pumila

 Flax Linum marginale

 Common Billy Buttons Craspedia sp.

Insects of the high country

These are a few of the insects and spiders we found in the alpine pastures around Falls Creek last weekend. Identification pending at the moment, except for the brilliant Spotted Mountain Grasshopper Monistria concinna.