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Hi again everyone,

Following on from my previous post in the Utricularia section, this is the second and final post from my trip to the Grampians National Park. On the previous post I covered the Utricularia dichotoma forms that I saw. On this thread I'll deal with the rest of what I saw. I thought I'd place this post in the Drosera section as the majority of the shots here are of Droseras

Firstly, a photo of a group of Drosera glanduligera plants growing on the same moss as the Utricularia aff. dichotoma plants. Every other time I have seen this species growing it has been in sandy soil so this was an exception to the rule. Something for those who plan on cultivating the plant to take notice of-

Drosera%20glanduligera%20Wonderland%20Grampians%20241003.JPG


Next another Drosera glanduligera, this time growing on a road verge in sandy heathland. It was a dull cloudy day but for some reason the flowers still opened- very unusual-

Drosera%20glanduligera%20Glenelg%20River%20Rd%20Grampians%20241003.JPG


Also growing in the sandy heathland along the roadsides particularly in damp depressions were literally millions of Drosera pygmaea plants. Most had flower buds but weren't quite ready to open yet-

Drosera%20pygmaea3%20Glenelg%20River%20Rd%20Grampians%20241003.JPG


And a closeup of a single Drosera pygmaea. These plants were by far the most prolific plants I saw over the whole weekend, closely followed by Utricularia tenella-

Drosera%20pygmaea1.JPG


The Utricularia tenella grew anywhere that there was a bit of moisture. They carpeted the ground in the tens of millions, give or take a couple-

Utricularia%20tenella.JPG


Back on top of the mountains there were plenty of other Drosera species which also grew in the moss on the granite. I found Drosera whittakerii ssp. aberrans, D. auriculata, D. auriculata ssp. gracilis and D. peltata ssp. peltata. Here is a shot of one of the D. peltata ssp. peltata plants-

Drosera%20peltata%20Wonderland%20Grampians%20241003.JPG


The final CP shot is a comparison shot of 3 different Utricularia dichotoma forms that I saw-

Utricularia%20dichotoma%20comparison.JPG


And finally a couple of non-CP shots. One thing you always have to be careful of while looking for CP's in swampy habitat in Australia is snakes. Here is a shot of a Red-bellied Black Snake that I nearly trod on. I think it is ranked about 9 in the list of most deadly snakes on earth.

Red%20bellied%20black%20snake2%20Lodge%20Rd%20Grampians%20241003.JPG


And another reptile which I nearly stood on but was a lot less dangerous was this Shingleback or Stumpytailed lizard-

Stumpy2%20Lodge%20Rd%20Grampians%20241003.JPG


That's all I have for now. I hope you enjoyed the shots. Be back soon.

Regards,

Sean.
 
As always, beautiful photos and interesting narration. I really appreciate you sharing all these trips and photos as I'll never get to see these things.

Thank you Sean.
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Suzanne
 
How strange to see D. glanduligera in such wet conditions! Obviously it is more ammenable to differing conditions than I thought. Based on this, I think I will stick with typical Drosera culture if and when I next get seeds to try.

Thanks again for the photos. I nominate you for the "Ultimate CP PHotography Award" even if there isn't one. Even if I am unable to stop drooling, please keep them coming!

And PLEASE, watch out for the s-s-s-s-snakes!
 
Imagine... Having tens of millions of pygmy dews growing alongside the roads!

SF
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Awesome pics Sean as always. Thank you very much for sharing. Man what a blessing to live in a place where so many wonderful plants grow in the wild. You are a very lucky man.

Steve
 
Awesome! I'm not one for wild-collecting, but I have to say that maybe you should have taken a small portion of the white-flowered utricularia dictonoma?
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I've never seen one in cultivation, and it would be awesome to indtroduce it to cultivation
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Watch out for those red-bellied black snakes! Like you said, they are very venomous, rank is either 3rd or 5th most venomous snake in the world!
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No way would I have taken that shot of the s-s-s-snake, I'd have been 40 feet away before the camera hit the turf! Unlike many Cper's I do not have a love of creepy crawlers that slither, slide or sting. I think it is some atavistic genetic memory imprinted on my cerebral cortex: I see a snake and I am outta there like the roadrunner on diarrhea. Scorpions are my worst nightmare, and whenever I eat crab or lobster I have a subliminal chant "not a spider, not a spider......"
 
Tamlin,

Snakes aren't too much to worry about as long as you don't get too close. Back in my younger and stupider days I used to catch snakes and lizards every weekend. I then got sensible and got hooked on CP's. I once had a friend I was walking with get airlifted by helicopter from a gorge because he had been bitten 9 times by one of the same snakes pictured. I stopped trying to catch them after that.

I still don't mind them and will always get a few photos if I can. The snake in the shot was probably about 8 feet long and the photo was taken from about 1 metre away. These types of snakes are more scared of you than you are of them (me anyway). It will turn and flee rather than have a go at you. If it had been a tiger or common brown snake it would have been a different matter. These 2 are much more venomous and aggressive- they are commonly encountered on my fieldtrips in summer too. I wouldn't get within 5 metres of one of them.

When you come down here I'll have to get you acquainted with a few of them. And the scorpions down here are only small so you won't have to worry about them.
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Regards,

Sean.
 
You evil, evil man!  Now, not only do I have an ACUTE fear of flying (I am 52 and NEVER been up in a plane!!!) but now you have hit on my other phobia's as well.  Forget it!  Won't work!  You have me hooked, now you gotta reel me in.  I don't CARE if you don't want me, I'm yours.  I'm coming no matter what.  I'd DIE to see these plants!!!!

Mmmmmm, bushtuker!  Roo burgers, anyone?


Or, possibly, Roast Snake?
 
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