Mt Etna, CQ, 2008.

[Australis]

Mt Etna, CQ, 2007/8.

Mt Etna, CQ, 2007/8.

This National Park has restricted access during the bat season.
Some of these photos are from a visit to the area outside of bat season during the day time.

The trail up Mt Etna, through dry rainforest habitat that covers most of the elevated areas.

View from near the top of Mt Etna, you can see where much of the mountain had been mined for its lime.

Little bent-winged bats (Miniopterus australis) exit the bat cleft.

The Cleft during the day

Little bent-winged bats (Miniopterus australis) dodge predators like the Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis)

Spotted pythons (A.maculosa) are the most prolific species feeding on the bats

Spotted python (A.maculosa)

Green Tree Frog (Litoria caerulea) another common species around the cleft which also feeds on the bats, there were several Carpet Pythons also but out of range of my camera.

Critters had been hard at work building webs over the trail in the short time we had been at the cleft.

The cleft during my first visit in 2007 during the day time.

Cheers,
Matt

 

[hornet]

we visited there a few years ago, very nice area. Thanks for the pics

 

[Miss B]

Awesome pics Aust.

 

[hazzard]

Nice mate that spotted looks in it's element!

 

[moloch05]

Great pics, Matt. That looks like a very nice Spotted Python.

Regards,
David

 

[ryanharvey1993]

awsome pics matt, love the spotted. is that the same place as on the rob bredl dvd when he goes to the cave with all the bats?

 

[Mrs I]

That second picture looks like the place is a bit creepy, lol...

Great pictures.

Mrs I aka southerner...

xxx

 

[dintony]

Great pics Aust.

And I didn't know GTF's ate bats

 

[Tsidasa]

errr, i wanna go =(

 

[Australis]

Great pics Aust.

And I didn't know GTF's ate bats

Yeah they eat the bats, sometimes even try
eating the pythons!

Matt