Chapter 2 - Sharing the Land

On pen and paper, buying a farm and living off the land seems like a dream job. And so far it is. But as a severe arachnophobe, I did not realise just how big spiders can get in the bush. Or the scorpions. Or especially those monster centipedes. It reminds me of the time I went through the Daintree rainforest at night and realised just how many creepy crawlies were out and about.

The first few days of being here introduced me to these monster specimens. I’m learning quickly that you don’t buy a farm. You move into someone else’s house.

The Horrific Bush Opera Singer

Apart from the arachnids, the other animals do not bother me much. As a matter of fact I really like to sit and observe them. The strange noises I hear in the pitch black of night are starting to become more familiar and less scary.

After a couple of nights of horrific howling, I had to look it up. Thankfully YouTube matched the ear-piercing noise to a native Australian bird: the Bush Stone-curlew. Fair dinkum, it sent shivers down my spine. Those blood-curdling screams coming from this horrific bush opera singer made the first few nights memorable for all the wrong reasons.

If you have not heard a Curlew singing, have a listen here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqZsdBF-eKg

I feel this one is a bit light in comparison to the failed Australian Idol singer we have on our properties. No other Curlew sings back to it, which makes me believe this is an exceptionally foul performer.

The Australian Slippery Serpents

As I was coming up and down from the Gold Coast I always kept an eye out for snakes. They are around, the neighbour had a red belly black in his lounge room just last week! I have not come across the nasty ones yet, but I am also doing everything I can to keep the rodent population down. No immediate food should keep the snakes away.

One morning I got up early, started some cleaning and sat outside for a bit. I was about to start poisoning the house for invasive insects like cockroaches and other nasties. I used bombs inside the house and poison along the outside perimeter of the house.

While spraying the windows, doors and anywhere else insects could crawl into the house, I noticed a big black addition sitting on top of my front door. The exact door I was walking in and out of all morning and where I sat outside to have a break.

It was a beautiful carpet python just chilling out on top of the door. It sent a shiver down my spine as I realised I didn’t even notice it all morning. It clearly had no fear of me as well!

A strange predicament occurred, I can’t poison this beautiful creature. So now I am going to have to move it on. There was an old fishing rod left behind from the prior owners, so I used that to leverage it off the door and back into the bush.

Not once did it try to attack or even seem bothered by my presence. I tried to grab it by the tail with the rod at the other end acting as a hook, but they are slippery little serpents so I could only direct him back to the bush. He has obviously lived here a while, and something tells me he will be back (or possibly back now living in my roof).

These kinds of snakes I am fine with, it’s the browns that I don’t want to deal with. But I know it is inevitable and I will see them here. I’m not new to being around them, I used to see them daily in a nursery I worked at when I was younger. But out here, it will take a while to get help for any bites, so I would rather they just stay away from the house and from our dogs.

I did buy a great snake bite kit however just in case. Australia may have the deadliest snakes in the world but from what I’ve learned, staying calm and doing first aid fast is the difference-maker. I would rather deal with any Australian snake than the ones in Asia or the Americas personally.

Godzilla Lives

Possibly an exorbitant title for this segment, I have come across a few monster lizards. Goannas, yellow spotted monitors and more roam these lands. I wish they were not so skittish as they are beautiful creatures and play such an important role in our ecosystem.

Watching the Goanna just scale a tree like we walk on flat ground is such an experience to see. Those long claws digging into the bark make it look effortless as it tries to camouflage itself and hide. We had a decent size yellow spotted monitor living outside the house as well, but our silly Bichon Dobby decided to chase it and that was the last I saw of her.

I named it Anna. As in “have a go Anna”. A bit of a callback to Austen Tayshus and his terrific Australiana track.

The Native Nightly Bush Doof

Come night time, the bush completely takes a new form. If I walk outside my house at night and flash a spotlight, I will see 10+ wallabies and their babies about 20 metres away from me. They are great lawn mowers and keep that section of the grass very low. A very welcoming addition to the Moringa Farm.

I know there are dingoes and emus out here but I am yet to see them. I did hear what I suspect was a pig the other night but my flashlight could not locate it.

The cane toads are a big issue, I happily remove them from existence but there are just too many of them. My water tank seeps a little and each night you will see 100+ of them around the tank playing in the water that leaks. Such a horrific species of animal and a real curse to Australia and the outback.

Sharing the Land

I will live in peace with the wildlife here, once the jump scares wear off. As long as I can protect the Moringa crop it will be peaceful here for all animals. After all, they are here for a reason and Australia truly does have the best wildlife in the world.

I am not interested in killing animals for fun, I would prefer to try and deter them from my crops but time will tell how successful I am with that. Pest animals are fair game however and shortly I will have chickens on my property and they bring predators into the area.

It is a lot to learn in addition to farm life, but it is part of the fun. To see the Australian bush come to life and watch these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat is truly a sight to behold. Of course this comes with the exception of the spiders, scorpions and centipedes. I can’t see myself ever getting used to them.