Cane toads have tough, leathery skin with a distinctive warty appearance. Usually grey, brown, reddish-brown or yellow in colour with a pale underbelly. Pronounced bony ridge above nostril and venom-producing gland behind the ear (behind the eye).
Juveniles have smooth dark skin with darker blotches and bars. Cane toads sit upright and move in short rapid hops that can help distinguish them from other species. Average-sized adults are 10-15 cm long.
Cane Toad tadpoles are shiny black on top and have a plain dark belly with a short thin tail. They are smaller (less than 3.5 cm) and often gather in huge numbers in shallow waters.
Cane Toad eggs are laid in long strings of transparent jelly enclosing double trows of black eggs. The spawn tangles in dense masses around water plants.
Canning River Regional Park is nestled in suburban Perth. The trails here will take you over sedge meadows, through mature woodlands, over creeks and amongst the crowns of a paperbark forest.
Large, pale ash-grey goose with a square black tail. Its triangular bill is almost completely covered by a greenish-yellow cere (skin above the bill). Rows of large dark spots in lines across its shoulders and wing coverts. Legs are pink with black feet. In flight it shows dark wingtips.
Size
Between 75-100 cm. Males are larger than females weighing between 3.5-5.5 kg while females weigh on average 3.5 kg. Their wingspan measures between 150-190 cm.
As part of a unique ClimateWatch in Parks initiative, we have worked together with Parks Victoria to create this ClimateWatch trail in Cape Conran.
Suburban streets, parks, backyards and bushland – nature abounds on Capital Hill. To make it easy we have included species you can find near Parliament House.
Dull black cockatoo with pale feather margins; white patch on ear coverts and white panels in long tail, often exposed in flight. The male has a black bill, reddish eye-ring, dull white ear patch, and lesdistinct feather margins. The female has a whitish bill, grey eye-ring, clear-white ear patch, and broader pale margins to breast-feathers.
Nest
Decayed wood debris in large hollow in eucalypt, from near ground to over 20 m.
Carpet pythons are extremely variable in colour and pattern (often have pale, dark-edged blotches, stripes or cross bands).
Seven geographical subspecies are recognised as carpet pythons are extremely diverse in appearance. The Northern Territory form (Morelia spilota variegat) is different from the other subspecies because it is a beige or brown colour with blackish or grey blotches and bright gold, yellow and rust colour forms in regional areas. This subspecies is about 2.5m long on average.
They have row of deep pits run along the lower jaw, and small scales present on the top of the head. This species can grow greater than 3 m in length, and although non-venomous, they possess powerful jaws and constricting capability.
Size
2 - 4 m length; 15 kg weight.
The Channel-billed Cuckoo is grey all over, with dark scalloping on its back and wing-coverts, a whitish belly and abdomen, and fine dark barring on the lower underbody. Its long tail is pale-grey on top with two central feathers tipped with white, with a black band near the tip; the undertail has black-and-white barring. In flight, its tail and wings give it a cross-shaped silhouette. Its eyes are bright red and there is a bare patch of red skin around the eye and near the base of the bill. Its legs and feet are dark grey.
Young birds are mottled buff, brown and grey, have an olive to brown eye and lack the red-colouring around its eye.
Distinctive feature
Its large, downward-curved beak which is greyish with a paler tip.
Shrub or small pyramidal tree, yellowish green or bronzy. Commonly 8 - 10 m high.
Numerous branchlets are hairy and flaky at first then become smooth and straight.The swollen orange to red stalk preceding the small hard fruit is often mistaken as the fruit itself.
Leaves
Scale-like, triangular, 0.5 mm long and 2 – 3 mm long on new growth.
Flowers
Yellow-green flowers in short, dense, clusters that are usually 6 mm long. Flowers appear in early spring to autumn (September to May).
The Christmas Spider is known by several other names, most commonly Jewel Spider but also as Six Spined Spider or Spiny Spider.
Females have bright yellow and white patterns with a ring of black spines. Melanic females have the same shape but may be completely black. Males have smaller spines and have a yellow, brown, white and black pattern. Six spines protrude from the sides and bottom end of the abdomen.
Size
Females are larger at 7 mm, males are 4 mm.
Increasing global temperatures
It's well understood that climate change will lead to an increase in global average temperatures. But what does a 2° C average increase really mean? You might be surprised to hear that the difference between an ice age period and today's temperature is just 2° C on average. The keyword here is 'on average'. It's not simply the difference between a 20° C day and a 22° C day, but average temperatures across the world over an entire year.
Most places on the planet will get far warmer, some will get drier and others wllh be much wetter. And our polar ice caps will melt. More 'extremes' is something we will become accustomed to. Although there are many apparent contradictions some consensus on major impacts are emerging. There will always be uncertainty in understanding a system as complex as the world’s climate; however, there is now strong evidence that significant global heating is occurring.
A few thousand years ago plants and animals would have been able to adapt to climate change by moving, either immediately or gradually over generations. Now, as wildlife is increasingly isolated in protected areas, they are no longer able to move as the regions outside the protected areas are filled with agriculture or human habitation. As a result, scientists predict that over a million species will be threatened with extinction.
Make a difference
ClimateWatch was developed to understand the effects climate change is having on Earth's natural processes. Essentially, ClimateWatch is based on phenology, the study of periodic events in biological life cycles and how these are influenced by seasonal and interannual variations in climate. Many studies have already provided insight into the relationship between climate variables, such as temperature and rainfall, to the timing of these phenophases (an observable stage or phase in the annual life cycle of a plant or animal that can be defined by a start and end point).
By contributing to ClimateWatch you are taking direct action to make a positive difference to the Climate crisis.
Humans are increasingly migrating towards the world’s major cities. The world’s urban population is thought to have increased six fold since 1950. By 2050, more than 68% of people are predicted to live in cities.1
Australia faces a much steeper challenge, with over 86% of our population living in urban areas already.
Along with urbanisation comes technological advancement and the establishment of the information era. With augmented and mixed realities giving life to a budding metaverse, what was once perceived as science fiction is now realised on a daily basis during an online work meeting.
What was once perceived as science fiction is now realised on a daily basis during an online work meeting.
There are many benefits to a technologically advanced and predominately urban based society, however we cannot ignoreunderlyingrisks. Urban sprawl for example typically leads to reduced water quality, deforested or disrupted natural habitats and displaced wildlife. More pervasive is the underlying risk of a city-bound and plugged-in society becoming disconnected from the natural world.
More pervasive is the underlying risk of a city-bound and plugged-in society becoming disconnected from the natural world.
Research that measured society’s connectedness to nature found a stark decline in the presence of nature inspired or related content since the 1950s.Thiswas the same decade the impact of urbanisation began to take effect.
If our society continues to become physically distant to the natural world via urbanisation whilst simultaneously becoming cognitively and emotionally distant then.
Where will the environmentalists of tomorrow come from?
What will our collective view of the natural world be by 2050?
The trends of urbanisation and technological advancement cannot be reversed, and arguably nor should they be. For all of the challenges we face in the present day, never before has there been a time when community led action could manifest with a simple click of a button. Instead, we must use the tools at our disposal to reshape our own urban environmental narratives and re-establish our connection with nature.
What if urban areas could become a source for environmental connection?
What if our built environment was designed to facilitate environmental monitoring?
What if technology was instead used to heighten our understanding and appreciation of biodiversity in our cities?
Ultimately it will not be the experts, researchers or policy makers that realise this environmentally connected future. It will be the public. You will decide.
Citizen science is expected to play a major role in the transition that is required to reshape our urban environmental narrative. Only by engaging the general public to observe and engage with the biodiversity that exists in the creeks and corners of our cityscapes, may we begin to mend our collective disconnection.
Ultimately it will not be the experts, researchers or policy makers that realise this environmentally connected future. It will be the public. You will decide.
Unfortunately, urban Australia is sorely lacking in citizen science projects.
But Earthwatch is taking up the challenge.
ClimateWatch app, innovative new programs and expanding urban networks we’re exploring pathways to meet the public not just in parks and public spaces, but at their front door and in their neighbourhoods. Our goal is to create a new generation of urban environmental stewards and work towards a more environmentally connected urban Australia.
You can start today by stopping for a moment and looking around.
Tell me, what do you see?
Parks Victoria and Earthwatch Australia are partnering to help gather important knowledge about the effects of climate change. The partnership will bring park visitors, nature enthusiasts, students, contractors, park staff, and the general public together with climate change scientists through ClimateWatch; and connect schools and community groups to their parks and neighbourhoods.
ClimateWatch in Parks offers a great opportunity for students to conduct their own individual studies in controlled yet wild environments, while also contributing to national and international research into climate change and phenology.
This ClimateWatch indicator species is supported by the ClimateWatch in Parks program and Barwon Coast.
Bushy shrub/tree that is between 5 - 10 m in height. Bark is smooth initially becoming fissured turning grey to brown.
Leaves
Reddish angular branches with flat, linear, ash-green, smooth phyllodes (flattened stems that resemble leaves) shooting off. These 'leaves' are 6 – 12 cm long and 3 – 15 mm in width with hooked tips.
Flowers
Small, pale yellow with spherical heads.
Tree to 25 m high; bark grey-brown, thick, roughly tessellated (mosaic-like). Its smaller branches are striated (striped with parallel longitudinal ridges or lines).
Leaves
- Often whorled (arranged as a ring of leaves), lance-shaped and sometimes broadest in the upper third
- 4 – 10 cm long and 1 – 3.5 cm wide
- Coloured differently on the two surfaces: upper surface dark green, dull to shiny; lower surface white and covered with dense intertwined hairs
- Pointed or having a broad shallow notch at the tip
- Adult leaves have entire margins while juveniles will have a few short teeth, flat or slightly curved backwards
Flowers
Flowers mainly January - June. Pale yellow cylindrical spikes forming a bottle-brush shape. Each flower head is 6 – 12 cm long, 5 – 8 cm wide and attracts insects and nectar-eating birds.
A member of the mint family. Rosemary refers to the shape of the plant and not the scent.
Large shrub, up to 2 m high and 5 m wide.
Leaves
Dark green leaves with short hairs on the underside. Up to 2 cm long, narrow and pointed and close to the stem. Dense foliage.
Flowers
2 cm across, forming a fan-shape around the stem. White or pale pruple with reddish and yellow spots near the throat.
Field Guide
Improve your identification skills. Download your Coastal Rosemary field guide here!
Its genus name Leptospermum is from Greek leptos (thin) and sperma (seed), referring to its small seeds; and its species name laevigatum is from Latin laevigatus (smooth), probably referring to the appearance of the plant.
Also known as Australian Myrtle and Victorian Tea Tree.
A tall, bushy shrub or small tree, with bark that sheds in strips. Grows up to 6 m tall.
Leaves
Grey-green and obovate (egg-shaped and flat, with the narrow end attached to the stalk). They are 1.5 – 3 cm long and 5 – 8 mm wide.
Flowers
White and usually in groups of two. The flower heads are usually 1.5 – 2 cm in diameter, and made up of five petals that are 5 – 8 mm long, with many stamens protruding from the centre that are 2 mm long.
The adult male is black with a deep-orange to yellow beak, a narrow orange to yellow ring around its eye, and dark legs. The female is grey-brown, with some streaks or mottling, and its back is darker than its belly. The female also has a paler chin than the male, a dull yellow-brown beak, dark legs, and the ring around her eye is less bright. Young birds are also brown but with lighter underparts and a dark grey or black beak.
Size
25 to 28 cm (from head to tail)
The caterpillar (larva) is initially a pale yellow-grey, before turning green with long black hairs along its body. Its head is brown-black with short hairs. The female butterfly (adult) is orange with creamy yellow and dark brown patches towards the tip of its forewings (front wings). The male is less colourful, being brown and orange with no pale patches. It also has an obvious raised vein in the middle of its forewing. Both males and females have a small eye-spot on each wing. The undersides of the wings in both the male and female are paler with faint markings, and their hindwings have very few markings. The female’s hindwing is darker then its forewing. It is difficult to identify these butterflies when they are resting with their wings closed. The males emerge quite a while earlier in the year before the females.
Size
Caterpillar about 3.5 cm long; Butterfly wingspan 5.5 – 7.5 cm (females are larger than males).
Ground-dwelling froglet with a slender body, slender limbs and slightly pointed head that is wider than long. The pupil is horizontal and the tympanum (eardrum) indistinct. Usually this frog is discernible by its distinctive ‘crick-crick’ call.
The Common Froglet has extremely variable markings, with great variety usually found within confined populations. The colour varies from dark brown, fawn, light and dark grey. The colour of the ventral surface is similar to the dorsal surface, but speckled with white spots. The dorsal surface may be smooth, warty or have longitudinal skin folds.
Community groups have been an invaluable resource for collecting data over our many trails around Australia. Repeated data collection over the same location gives scientists higher confidence in the validity of the data, meaning it is more likely to be used for climate change research.
If you are a member of a community group, check out our trails page to see if there is a local trail you can get involved in monitoring, or reach out to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to discuss your involvement further.
Other Ways You Can Contribute
Participate in hackathon style events, solve data challenges that benefit nature
Host your own virtual "Data Validation Blitz" using the collateral below
Earthwatch Australia’s ClimateWatch app has a new feature allowing users to become community validators. This exciting new feature allows ClimateWatchers to be more deeply involved in the scientific process as they can now not only submit observations, but also assess the accuracy and support the observations of others.
ClimateWatch allows everyday Australians to contribute to climate change research by submitting observations about local flora and fauna straight from their phone. Submitted images and observations help scientists understand how species are responding to changes in temperature and rainfall and will help shape Australia’s scientific response to our changing climate.
The new community validation feature addresses a key step in the ClimateWatch process by allowing app users to be part of the quality control and validation process. This streamlines the data collation process whilst ensuring submitted observations are as accurate as possible. The feature was rolled out last month with a “Virtual Validation Blitz”, thanks to the help of over 100 volunteers from Telstra’s Data4Good team. Over four days the team was able to validate over 2000 ClimateWatch spots, doubling the existing validations on the platform. This validated data can now be shared with biodiversity datasets such as the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) to be used in science research and management.
Telstra’s Data4Good team completing their "Virtual Validation Blitz":
This new ClimateWatch app feature is enabling our community of users another opportunity to take climate action into their own hands, and will drive further positive outcomes for nature.
We'd love to hear from you iff you're eager to find out more about the Climate Action work we do or would like to collaborate with us.
Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or give us a bell on (03) 9016 7590.
