Wildlife

Sometimes being in Australia is just like being at home. Sometimes it's not. Here's some wildlife examples:

- Those monster bats. They really freak me out. They fly so high up and they are really really big. Like really big. Here's a pic to illustrate my point. I've never seen anything like it.









The other day as Janelle was walking home from work, in the dark since the clocks went back, she disturbed one of these monsters. She said she could hear the whoosh, whoosh of its wings as it went. Some googling has revealed that they are fruit bats or flying foxes. No shit. They are about the size of foxes. Wikipedia tells me that they are frugivorous or nectivorous so they aren't about to come and attach themselves to my neck, but I'm not so sure.

- Yesterday, during my paddle, I looked out to sea and saw a group of seagulls bobbing around in the water. Beside them were two swans. Then I looked again. My swans were in fact pelicans. Something we would only see in a zoo back home. I quite like pelicans and have seen them before in South America but it was still funny seeing them going about their business in Melbourne.

- When I went running round the Yarra Bend Park the other day I saw lots of budgerigars. In the wild. Not in cages like little Oscar (our childhood, and much-loved, budgie). They were the colours of the rainbow and got quite close. There's also lots of parakeets and those white cockatoos flying about the place. The parakeets remind me of home as there's thousands of them in west London. They make a right racket.

- On the way to Colac we passed lots of kangaroo and koala warning signs on the road but the only thing we saw was a roo roadkill. Imagine one of those buggers hitting your car. Especially the 20-odd year old Colt. I think it would have done us more damage that we would have done it.

Right, that's enough David Attenborough for one day. Go see Micmacs if you get the chance. It's a great little film - typically and Frenchly quirky - and another of those non-Hollywood feel-good movies. Not necessary to see it on the big screen; add it to your lovefilm list if you like French films.