This coral fern was helpfully marked on the Mueller track in the wildflower gardens. It was growing on sandstone near the base of a small cliff. The species wasn’t indicated, but from the description in NPOS I think it’s Gleichenia rupestris. The fronds are flat on the underside and are larger and flatter than the pouched coral fern, the stalks are hairless.
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Black wattle is not an Acacia so it’s not a true wattle. It got the name because it’s flowers are similar to the flowers common to wattle trees. The first wattle and daub houses in the colony of NSW were made from the branches and timber of the black wattle.
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When it’s been raining we get leeches. Jess spotted this one stuck to the underside of her table. From the description on the Australian Museum Leech page this Leech is classified as a “jawed leech” being in the Gnatbobdellida group:
“The jawed leeches or Gnatbobdellida have jaws armed with teeth with which they bite the host. The blood is prevented from clotting by production of a non-enzymatic secretion called hirudin. The land leech commonly encountered by bushwalkers is included in this group.”
The most common species in this group is the Gnatbobdellida libbata, with my 15 minutes of leech identification expertise I reckon that’s what this fella is.
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Everyone except me ( neighbors, mum ) seemed to know all about the fishbone fern. Even though it’s a native to Australia where it naturally occurs in Queensland and Northern NSW, it’s considered a weed in Sydney. It does tend to take over parts of the garden, especially places I’ve cleared of other weeds.
The plant sketches in NPOS are usually very good, but for the Fishbone Fern I didn’t think it looked like the plant I saw. I checked a few other sources to make sure I had the right plant.
I’ll be cutting this back in the garden.
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