Review and photos by Suspsy, edited by bmathison1972
While the dingo (Canis lupus dingo) rarely exceeds 35 lbs in weight, making it smaller than a coyote and much smaller than a grey wolf, it is nevertheless Australia’s largest land predator, and one of the most dangerous. Fast, agile, and hardy, dingos often live and hunt in packs consisting of a mated pair and their offspring.
Review and photographs by Loon; edited by bmathison1972
Dromaius novaehollandiae, more commonly known as the emu, is the second-largest bird on earth, with the tallest being over 6½ feet or 2 meters tall. Being such an important part of Australian culture, it made sense that Southlands Replicas, a company that mostly specializes in replicas of Australian fauna, would release their emu in 2018.
Review and photos by Suspsy ; edited by bmathison1972
The perentie, Varanus giganteus, is Australia’s largest lizard and the world’s fourth largest lizard after the Komodo dragon, Asian water monitor, and crocodile monitor. Growing up to over two metres in length, they inhabit hot desert regions and feed on virtually anything they can catch and kill with their sharp teeth and claws.
Review and photos by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
In 1798, a specimen of a most unusual Australian animal perplexed a great many scientific minds in Great Britain. Some even went so far as to suspect that it was a hoax. And really, who could fault them for being suspicious of a small, furry mammal with a duck-like bill, a beaver-like tail, otter-like feet, venomous spines, and the ability to lay eggs like a reptile?
Review and photographs by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The iconic red kangaroo (Osphanter rufus) bears the crowns of largest kangaroo, largest marsupial, and Australia’s largest native mammal. Exceptionally large males, also called bucks, boomers, or jacks, can weigh up to 200 lbs, stand about 6 feet tall, and cover a maximum distance of around 29 feet in a single leap.
Review by Lanthanotus; edited by bmathison1972
If there are oddballs amongst mammals (and there certainly are), the monotremes are heavy competitors for first place. The order Monotremata includes only five extant species, all of which are threatened to different degress. Most popular is the improbable platypus which was first thought to be a faux by those Europeans who only knew it from imported, stuffed specimens.
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Alas, less than five years after its promising debut, the animal toy company known as Southlands Replicas is no more. But while it did exist, it produced many superb renditions of Australian fauna, including the tragically extinct thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus)..
Review and images by Lanthanotus; edited by bmathison1972
Glaring sun scorches the land as a venomous death silently slides towards its den beneath the sparse shade of the burned grass. Suddenly night falls and accompanied by a hot but soft wind, eight fiercely piercing blades start to cut all life from its automatically wildly curling body.
