Latest news with #outback
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Plea to Aussie drivers as rainfall awakens 'living fossils' hiding underground
Aussies have been urged to be careful when driving through the country's outback amid concerns recent wet weather has awoken an unusual creature hiding deep underground. Earlier this month, heavy rainfall swept across the country's dusty red centre, bringing much-needed relief to drought-stricken South Australia, and drenching areas of western Queensland that are still recovering from heavy flooding in March. With more wild weather sweeping the nation this week, one man has reminded travellers passing through the outback to be aware of shield shrimp emerging from the ground. 'Keep an eye out for these in the puddles along the road,' Peter Cole said online alongside a photo of one of the small desert crustaceans in the palm of his hand. Speaking to Yahoo News, Peter said he had never seen a shield shrimp before he stumbled upon an 'abundance' of the creatures in puddles on a road just north of Tibooburra, a town in the far northwest of NSW, while travelling in 2021. 'We pulled into Tibooburra Pub and showed a few locals the photo, one old bushy who had lived there for 50 years said he had never seen one.' What are shield shrimp? Shield Shrimp belong to a group of crustaceans called 'branchiopods', which literally means 'gill feet', Dr Marissa McNamara, Collection Manager of Crustacea at Queensland Museum, told Yahoo. The creatures, which are widespread across inland Australia, have leaf-life, lobed feet, each bearing a gill plate that allows them to breathe, she explained, adding their shield protects the head and frontal portion of their multi-segmented bodies. 'Females carry their eggs under the body; these are highly resistant to drying out, and they can survive for many years in the desert clay before hatching,' Dr McNamara said. 'The eggs need water to hatch — the larvae then grow into adults and lay their own eggs very quickly, before the water dries up. The eggs can remain viable for at least several years, and perhaps more (definitive data on the maximum timespan is unavailable).' They are sometimes referred to as 'living fossils'. 'Specimens today look similar to shield shrimp that lived over 300 million years ago. They also live in the desert, which is an unusual habitat for crustaceans,' Dr McNamara told Yahoo. Only one species is currently recognised in Australia — Triops australiensis — however recent research has found evidence that there may be at least 17 more species in this genus. 🐦 The 'rule' Aussies must follow if they see one of world's rarest creatures ✈️ Aussie pilot captures extraordinary moment during record-breaking event 🚙 Travelling Aussie couple's incredibly special find next to outback track Thrilled Aussies share their own shield shrimp sightings Numerous thrilled Aussies have inundated Peter's post with stories of their own sightings, including one man who claimed he once found shield shrimp in puddles on top of Uluru. Others said the crustaceans 'fascinated' them as a child. Several people also shared photos and pictures of their own encounters in recent years. 'I saw one of these in a 'dry lake' that had filled with rain last winter in the Goldfields! I thought it was some kind of unusual tadpole and tried searching for it,' one woman wrote. 'I used to live in outback NSW and after every rain we would find them in the puddles,' someone else said. 'Yeah, I've seen them up near Cockburn after a massive rain, they freaked me out, weird looking things,' a third person added. With the Bureau of Meteorology's climate outlook predicting above-average rainfall west of the Great Dividing Range over the next few months, many more may still have a chance to catch a glimpse of a shield shrimp — but they should refrain from touching it. 'It's best to leave shield shrimp undisturbed, especially given evidence that there are many unique species with restricted distributions, rather than one widespread Australian species,' Dr McNamara said. Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? 🐊🦘😳 Get our new newsletter showcasing the week's best stories.
ABC News
9 hours ago
- ABC News
Backpacker search, freak tornado and surf reef feature in our best news pictures for July
As the sun set on the giant expanse of WA's Wheatbelt on July 11, there was a collective sigh of relief following the news of a young woman's incredible rescue. Carolina Wilga's survival tale, another outback search from the 1990s, freak weather, and at-risk wildlife feature in our top photography pics for July, captured by the ABC's journalists and camera operators. After spending 11 nights in the rugged outback, backpacker Carolina Wilga's ordeal in the elements came to an end when farmer Tania Henley found her on the side of the road. Speaking to ABC, Ms Henley recounted the moment she found the missing traveller, describing her as a resilient and lovely person. In a statement, Ms Wilger thanked Tania for being "my rescuer and angel". It was only moments before this photo was taken that Carolina Wilga was seen for the first time since she went missing. Reporters and camera operators, including the ABC's Mya Kordic, waited anxiously at Beacon Airstrip after news broke she had been found by a member of the public. Not long after that, Ms Wilga was driven to the airstrip and boarded this police plane bound for Perth. A mid-winter freak tornado in the Perth suburb of City Beach split trees and damaged houses. Authorities received 105 requests for help, and said there was little time for warning after the waterspout formed off the coast, and wreaked havoc in the affluent suburb. One resident said it sounded like a "jet engine". The seascape at Albany's Middleton Beach was recently transformed when an artificial surf reef was installed, bringing joy to surfers old and young. Locals hope the the multi-million dollar reef, constructed from 70,00 tones of granite rock, will be around for generations of surfers to embrace. Owls like these are dying after eating rodents poisoned with readily available rat baits. Some 60 owls have been found dead or seriously injured in WA's South West, prompting welfare groups and councils to look at reducing common rat and mouse baits. The emus might have won a war in the 1930s, but this wildlife centre in the state's north has been fighting a losing battle to rehabilitate native animals. Derby Native Wildlife, which releases 100 animals a year, is grappling with the reality of closing down, faced with financial woes and without government funding. With the nearest centres hundreds of kilometres away, there are concerns for wildlife welfare in the future. Reporter Erin Parke captured the return of wilderness survivor Robert Bogucki to the Great Sandy Desert recently, for the ABC podcast series Expanse: Nowhere Man. Mr Bogucki's disappearance in the desert in 1999 triggered one of Australia's biggest land searches, and was a media sensation. The traveller from Alaska was discovered alive after six weeks with barely any food and water. Photographer Franque Batty contended with heat, wind, and camera-shy subjects to document the moment Mr Bogucki met Aboriginal tracker Merridoo Walbidi, who searched for him 26 years ago. This is what the road looked like after a driver at a car meet up allegedly sped into a 17-year-old girl, who was left seriously injured in hospital. The case prompted yet another call from authorities to be safe on the road during a month where the year-to-date road toll reached a 18-year high at 112 deaths by July 9. Evoking the visual language of the iconic James Bond intro, Premier Roger Cook and Manufacturing Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson toured a factory in Perth's east while spruiking local manufacturing for renewables. They were inspecting a wind turbine coil, made by the Perth-based company which is Australia's only manufacture of large coil components. The City of Nedlands has been in the spotlight this month, after a spate of council resignations led to the state government removing the remaining councillors and appointing three commissioners instead. It was a saga that included accusations of "dysfunction" at the Nedlands council and a denial from sacked Mayor Fiona Argyle that she was being removed. The new commissioners, announced in late July, admitted they had a "huge task ahead of us". Sisters Meredith Edwards and Angela Ryder spoke to the ABC this month about their plight with WA's forced child removal policies. "There was physical, emotional and sexual abuse," Ms Ryder said. They are part of Australia's stolen generations, but can't get access to WA's redress scheme since they were removed after the 1972 cut-off date. Mr Ryder's question: "How does that address our trauma?" French barista Celia Guzman has swapped the outskirts of Paris for the red dirt of the Pilbara, choosing to take a gig at the remote Auski roadhouse. Outback roadhouses like Auski rely on the labour of foreigners on working holiday visas to stay open. Staff at Auski say it's a mostly quiet and repetitive job, which can be both a blessing and a curse.
ABC News
11 hours ago
- Business
- ABC News
Bedourie's Simpson Desert Oasis scales back groceries due to power, freight costs
The only grocery shop for hundreds of kilometres in far western Queensland is scaling back due to the "astronomical" cost of supplying produce. The Simpson Desert Oasis lives up to its name. It is a motel, caravan park, roadhouse, restaurant and grocery shop wrapped into one business in the outback town of Bedourie. In the town of 150 people, Robbie Dare has worn many hats. He has run the Oasis for 37 years, was the race club president and the mayor of the local Diamantina Shire for 12 years. While other sections of the business remain open, Mr Dare has had to stop supplying most fresh produce and frozen goods because the cost of electricity, freight and fuel had made it unsustainable. "The old bushie in me thinks we can live without it, but a lot of people need it … fruit, fresh milk, ice cream, things like lettuce," he said. "Raspberries, grapes, strawberries, cherries, anything with a short date will have to go." Mr Dare said they would keep supplying canned and dry goods, frozen meat and long-lasting produce like potatoes and onions, as well as anything they needed to keep the roadhouse kitchen open. The weekly shop has become much harder for Bedourie residents. Resident Kevin Barr said the grocery shop's partial closure had hit the town hard. He remembered in the 70s when the only food outlet in Bedourie was a "tin shed behind the hotel with no fresh veggies or bread". "To be able to drive down here and walk into a shop and get what you can get out of a normal supermarket in the cities is unbelievable," Mr Barr said. Without the Oasis, Mr Barr said he would have to make the 236-kilometre drive to Boulia for groceries. The other option is to order online from Townsville supermarkets, 1,200km away, then wait for the fortnightly truck to arrive in Bedourie. Mr Dare said online delivery had also impacted on his business, with cheaper groceries swaying residents away from his brick-and-mortar shop. "It's just common sense — if you can buy a product somewhere else for less, you will." Electricity, freight and fuel are the three "real killers" when it comes to running a shop in the bush. Mr Dare said they had been losing money for a while due to the growing overheads. Bedourie can be cut off by road for months at a time during the wet season, so the Oasis runs about 19 freezers to last residents during the period of isolation. By cutting frozen goods and fresh produce, he said he can could turn off half of the freezers to save on electricity. Last summer, the power bill for the Oasis reached $9,800 a month. Mr Dare said because the business used more than 100 megawatts-hours of electricity a year, it was classified as a "large customer" by the energy provider and had to pay higher tariffs and service fees. Then there is the cost of freight. For a punnet of strawberries to land in the Oasis, it first needs to be trucked 1,500km from Brisbane. The cost varies depending on the product, but Mr Dare said the freight bill came to about $700 per tonne. He said businesses in the bush were crying out for increased freight subsidies. Queensland's vast and complex trucking network means many outback towns receive road or rail freight subsidies from the state government to keep costs down. However, Bedourie receives neither. A spokesperson for the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) said the department acknowledged "the challenges faced by communities such as Diamantina and recognises the importance of affordable and reliable freight services". "TMR is exploring options to enhance freight-subsidy initiatives and assess how subsidised freight services can continue to best support Queensland communities most in need," the spokesperson said. While Member for Gregory Sean Dillon stopped short of pledging to bring a freight subsidy to Bedourie, he said the Crisafulli government was looking at equitable solutions that "don't rob Peter to pay Paul". "At the moment I think the best fit for Bedourie is better road access and better actual support for the trucking industry," Mr Dillon said. "For people in that region to maintain their liveability, they'll need certainty from the government and that's what we intend to provide."
News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
German backpacker Carolina Wilga's van retrieved by Western Australian farmers
Weeks after a lost German backpacker was rescued from the remote Western Australian outback, her abandoned van has been recovered by local farmers. Carolina Wilga had seemingly vanished after she left the tiny township of Beacon, about 300km northeast of Perth, in her black and silver Mitsubishi camper van on June 29. Her van was located almost 150km from Beacon, bogged in a thick patch of isolated scrub on the Karroun Hill reserve, and Ms Wilga herself was rescued a short time later. Several weeks later, a group of determined locals have recovered Ms Wilga's abandoned vehicle. A video posted to the community-run Wheatbelt Way Facebook page documents the Sprigg family's efforts to remove the vehicle from the bush. 'Thank you to the Sprigg family for retrieving missing backpacker Carolina Wilga's van,' the post said. 'The community spirit in the Wheatbelt Way is unmatched.' Fred Sprigg, a member of the family who recovered the camper van, posted a comment on the video describing the recovery effort as an 'expensive exercise'. 'Was a community effort. Don't like leaving rubbish in the bush,' he said. It is understood the recovery operation took three days to complete, and Ms Wilga's friends in WA are expected to collect the vehicle so it can be returned to its owners. Ms Wilga was missing for 12 days, with her disappearance sparking an enormous search effort and capturing national attention. After almost two weeks of searching, the 26-year-old was found walking along the road about 24km away from her van by local Tania Henley, who described it as a 'miracle'. In a statement after her rescue, Ms Wilga explained she had got lost after losing control of her van and getting a knock to her head that left her confused. She said: 'First and foremost, I want to express a huge thank you from the bottom of my heart - a thank you that truly comes from the depths of my soul!'
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Travelling Aussie couple's incredibly special find next to outback track: 'Amazing'
A pair of adventurers in their 4WD were stunned to spot a large nest spanning almost two metres wide by the roadside in the outback, completely taken aback that a native bird was responsible. Caro and Craig were travelling along Goog's Track, a popular red dirt route for four-wheel driving in South Australia, when they spotted the large hole by the side of the road this month. They stopped and snapped a photo, saying online it was "amazing" that it was the workings of a malleefowl. Jenny Denton Price — whose family is responsible for forging the road in the 1970s and where the road got its namesake from, taking after her late husband John 'Goog' Denton — told Yahoo News it's "rare" to find the large nests in Australia, but quite a few can be spotted along the track. "My children saw malleefowl birds working on their nest [in the past]. They used to lie in the scrub and watch the hen and cock bird building the nest, and they got an egg out of it that year," Jenny reminisced to Yahoo News. "That nesting site [in the picture] has been there for a couple of years, they [the birds] go back there again and again." Malleefowl nests can grow up to four metres in diameter Malleefowl birds are one of three native mound-building birds in the country, and the species is the only one that lives in arid areas. The nests can grow up to four metres in diameter, and over one metre in height. The birds themselves are shy and seldom seen, according to Bush Heritage Australia, meaning the sighting of a nest is incredibly special — especially as the birds are among very few species that mate for life. Male birds are primarily responsible for building the nest, using their strong legs to scrape sand and leaf litter into a pile where the female will then lay the egg at the top of the mound. The egg is covered by the debris and as it decomposes, it generates heat, aiding incubation of the eggs. The male birds maintain the temperature by adding or removing debris from the mound, using his beak as a natural thermostat. Chicks hatch unaided around 60 days, with parents able to lay one egg every four to eight days, meaning 24 eggs can be hatched in one breeding season. 😲 Travelling dad's 'amazing' find on road stops traffic for 20 minutes 👀 Driver in hysterics after spotting strange sight in ute 🚮 State rolls out new bins to help tackle deadly issue Legacy of Denton family now enjoyed by hundreds of 4WD drivers Jenny explained to Yahoo News her late husband Goog lived in the area since he was a "young lad" and was always intrigued by the scrub near his home. Curiosity got the better of him, and he began to make a clearing in order to discover what the land held, as well as connect his hometown of Cenduna to the east-west railway line at Tarcoola. Between 1973 and 1976, family members constructed the track during weekends and the colder months using basic equipment like an old tractor with a blade, and later a bulldozer. Jenny still lives in Cenduna and told Yahoo News her door is always open for travellers wanting questions answered about the track. "We never, ever thought it was going to be what it is today... It's got so busy. There's lots and lots of people that travel along it now," she said. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
