By Ian Cox
Attracting native birds to our gardens is part of a subject close to my heart; and that is providing homes in our gardens for a whole range of native animals like lizards, insects, frogs, and of course birds. I am lucky that my own garden is close to the bush, which gives me the opportunity to see many more animal visitors than people in more built-up areas.
Bandicoots are regulars in the garden, and at night give the ground a good digging over in search of insects. Grey-headed Flying Foxes occasionally come to feed on the eucalyptus blossoms. Echidnas make brief visits. And then there's the Swamp Wallaby, the cutest visitor imaginable.
Apart from the birds and insects, I suppose the most prolific garden inhabitants are reptiles. Around dusk on a humid day comes a froggy chorus from the vicinity of the pond. On a sunny day active and playful skinks scuttle around the rocks that border the garden. Leaf-tailed Geckos can be seen at night in the vicinity of back-lit windows, stalking their prey of flying insects attracted to the light. Now and again if you're lucky you will see a colourful Thick-tailed Gecko.
Harmless snakes like Diamond Pythons, Yellow-faced Whip Snakes and Green Tree Snakes are magnificent creatures that attract a lot of attention and interest. With the addition of the likes of Bearded Dragons, Lace Monitors and Blue-tongued lizards, there are a host of reptilian friends to entertain and enthrall you.
You also see the harsh side of nature. Many of the animals in an ecosystem, unfortunately for them, provide food for others. When you get a build-up in the number of small reptiles – what happens? In come the Kookaburras for a feast. They are not welcome here! The Diamond Pythons and Lace Monitors are definitely not popular either when they raid the nests of Double-barred Finches established near the fern garden. And when the Sacred Kingfishers set up home in a termite arboreal nest and it was raided by a Lace Monitor, it was very sad.
The common black ant is an insect there are lots of, and I am sure they could support more Echidnas. Watch these ants closely, for when they start building up their nests in a burst of frenzied activity it tells us that heavy rain is not far away. Termites abound too. These insects never cease to amaze me; the way they so quickly recycle logs or dead trees left lying around. They are one of nature's most efficient scavengers, and replenish the soil's nutrients so effectively with by-products of their meals.
Then of course there are the birds. The garden reminds me of a stage, with the birds the star performers, putting on dazzling displays in a never-ending parade. Actors, trapeze artists, choreographers, opera singers. Courtship, frivolity, curiosity, joie de vivre. Words cannot do justice. And this high-class entertainment is free!