A Photographic Display
The top end of the Northern Territory of Australia is a wonderful tropical area filled with an abundant variety of plants and wildlife
With these pages I've attempted to put together a pictorial review of some of this unique flora and fauna
At this stage of the sites development, I've mainly concentrated on the many and varied native flowering trees and shrubs to be seen throughout the bushland surrounding Darwin
As the site develops I will include more photos of the bushland and more of some of the birdlife that abounds up here. I will also add more to the "Seeds" category as I believe there is some interest there as well
I hope you find the following pages entertaining and informative, enjoy the site!
The Top End Bush
The top end experiences mainly two seasons in the year, they are commonly referred to as "the wet" and "the dry". The wet runs from November through to April, and the dry runs from May to October
Rainfall during the dry months is sporadic to non-existent. But rainfall during the wet months is often very heavy. Sustained rainfall for days on end is usually experienced when the monsoon weather pattern (a trough of low pressure stretching across the top end) is present, this monsoon occurs mainly during the months December to March and can cause cyclones to develop and threaten cities and communities along the Northern Territory and the Northern Western Australian and Queensland coastlines
Bushland during these wet months is typically lush and green, with much growth on the plants. During the dry months, the plants go into hibernation with minimal growth, but often flowering spectacularly, especially the many varieties of Acacia (Wattle) and Grevillea. It's also flowering time for the many varieties of Eucalypts
When the Eucalypts are in full flower, usually the latter half of the Dry Season, the bush is alive with nectar eating birds such as the Red-collared Lorikeet, a close cousin of the Rainbow Lorikeet, and the Red Wing Parrots. The noise is deafening as they shriek and squabble all day. The Red Tailed Black Cockatoos are a wonderful sight as well, high in the trees as they go after the gumnuts. Their method is to grip the small clusters of gumnuts in their claws, rip it off the tree and crack the nuts with their very powerful beaks
