Day Trip To Margaret River
As a suprise, Roo Packed us all into the*R*E*D* car and off we went to Margaret River.
After a three hour drive the fun began.
 |
| And off we go! |
EAGLES HERITAGE
Raptor Wildlife Center
 |
 |
| ("View Image" for larger picture) These glorious birds are the Australian Wedgetailed Eagle, one of the largest eagles on earth. Unfortunately, the Australian government, through the tender mercies of C.A.L.M. (Conservation and Land Management, if you can believe that) allows No Holds Barred hunting of these magnificent birds by farmers and ranchers, for their supposed predation of livestock. If a sheep farmer thinks he has lost one lamb, he gets a licence to hunt the 'offending' bird. If there happen to be six birds, he will kill them all with the excuse of not knowing which eagle killed the lamb. Chances are the eagle, who is an opportunistic feeder, was dining on a stillborn lamb. These birds used to number in the millions, but now there are only 10,000 left. They are slowly being wiped out in favor of non native livestock. Does any of us honestly think that sheep or cows are going to ever be on the endangered list? Or extinct? |
 |
 |
| This darling, named Rusty, was an orphan. Some kids stole her from her nest even before her eyes were open. When she was discovered by wild- life authority, she was stuffed into a budgie cage, with most of her feathers missing, and several signs of abuse (ie cigarette burns, cuts etc) She has unfortunately imprinted on humans, and can never be released. |
She had this facination with my sunglasses. I don't think she gets to see herself very often. She is so strong, I felt the grip of her talons even through the heavy leather glove. This is not a bird for petting. |
 |
 |
| These two birds, aptly named B1 and B2, are Forktailed black kites. These two are free flying birds, that were born in captivity, but have free reign at the center. They are used to educate people. As with most raptors, the female is bigger than the male. These guys will snag food from the air, and have it eaten in seconds. | We got to see an arial show with these two, that was interrupted by a Peregrin Falcon that knew the show schedules and popped in for a quick bite to eat. It was too fast for me to get a picture of it in flight. The lecturer tossed up a bit of food for it, with the comment "I had better get rid of the peregrin, before it hurts these two." |
A few more residents of the center
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
The Candy Cow
This has got to be one of the best homemade confectionery shops I have ever seen. And friendly!
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
This shop had about anything you can imagine. It was like walking into a real "Wonka" factory. There were such delights as
"Divine Nooky" (port wine), "Bellydancer" spiced with dates)and "Smugglers Gold" (Baileys and Rum) fudge.
Mammoth Cave
The Last place on this tour will be Mammoth Cave(aka Dungeon Crawl) Now, before you click on this link, be warned,
this is a slide show, utilising Quicktime. It will take a while to download, but it's well worth it. Enjoy!