July: Close Encounters Of The Animal Kind On Fraser Island

It’s always really interesting, when you live and work on Fraser Island, to see people’s reactions when they start exploring for the first time.  Fraser Island the only place in the world where rainforests grows in sand (at elevations of 200 metres) ; one of only two places in the world where Humpbacks whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) take time out of their migration schedule to socialise in calm waters; and sports the world’s largest and highest perched dune lakes.

It’s also a place of incredible beauty… where something as simple as four-wheel-driving through sandy tracks and out ontothe gazetted 75-Mile Beach Highway can make a visiting tourist’s entire Aussie holiday.

Here on Fraser, we’ve been seeing whales galore this month, including a Southern Right Whale mum and calf (Eubalaena australis) just metres off the resort’s jetty and our Humpbacks have been putting on plenty of impromptu shows on the eastern and western side of the island and for our Fraser Island ferry passengers.

We've even had a fur seal pop by for an extended holiday on the eastern beach. It's very difficult to tell the difference between the two species - New Zealand Fur Seals (Arctocephalus forsteri) are slightly smaller than their Aussie counterparts (Arctocephalus pusillus) and are best distinguished by their much darker colouration.

Everything you need to know about our Humpback holidaymakers... and more!
DID YOU KNOW: For their first time since 1946, Japan will not hunt whales in the Southern Ocean?  This follows a ruling by the International Court of Justice in March this year.

Humpback Whale displays close to shore on Fraser Island
With just hours until we start our daily Humpback Whale Watching tours from Fraser Island, there’s been an exciting development for the tourism industry.  Today, it was announced that a select group of whale watching operators will host immersive whale tours on a trial basis – allowing visitors to swim with the whales in the calm waters off Hervey Bay.  Under the Nature Conservation Act, strict guidelines will be in place to ensure the safety of both whales and swimmers.

To say that we’re excited is an understatement!  And, if you've ever wondered what it's like to hear a Humpback sing, here's your chance!

For those out and about on the western side of the island, you might also be lucky enough to see a group of scientists from the University of the Sunshine Coast (USQ) who are using ground-penetrating radar to located disturbed ground, human remains and artefacts for indigenous burial sites. We'll keep you updated with any developments.

Guests venturing to the eastern side of the island may see smoke in the skies above Waddy Point and at Orchid Beach this month.  Fire is a really important element for Fraser Island’s ecosystems. Many of the tree species that grow in our wallum (coastal heathland) and eucalypt forests require fire for their seeds to germinate.  To help these environments to flourish and to prevent an unexpected wildfire, Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service will be conducting controlled burns around Fraser Island right up until the end of the month.

As we mentioned last blog, our local Northern Brown Bandicoots (Isoodon macrourus) and Long-nosed Bandicoots (Perameles nasuta) dig for fungi underground - this action helps to cover leaf litter that would otherwise be a fire hazard and is just one of the many eco services provided by the bandicoots, which are commonly seen a night around Kingfisher Bay Resort.
A White-cheeked Honeyeater  in repose

In and around the resort, our beautiful White- cheeked Honeyeaters (Phylidonyris nigra - pictured left) have been nesting, and this is providing excellent photo opportunities for keen photographers. The nests are hidden well in the undergrowth and are not easy to find, so our team are only too happy to point them out on our daily Ranger-guided walks.

Off the Kingfisher Bay jetty, there have been small Spanish Mackerel (Scomberomorus commerson), Trevally (Gnathanodon speciosus) and Dusky Flathead (Platycephalus fuscus) caught through the days. Around the full moon, big Black Jewfish (Protonibea diacanthus) were caught in the evenings and, at night, our Rangers have been seeing our small insectivorous Micro-bats hunting with echolocation over the window lakes here at the resort.  Bats are classified in a single Order, Chiroptera - Order being a biological term meaning a taxonomic group containing one or more families.

All in all a great month to live, work and visit paradise, Tree Huggers. Catch you next month.