My Tasmanian Affair

July 12, 2016July 12, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 13 Comments

Tasmanian Grasslands - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Tasmanian Grasslands – Photograph by Laura Lecce

I will always be a Sydney girl with a love of visiting the tropics as often as possible. However, I cannot deny that there is something alluring about Tasmania that I don’t completely understand. I feel like it’s the perfect destination of an aspiring farmer, or a lover of camping, a retiring couple, or at the very least, a cold weather tolerant person….all of which, I most certainly am not. Despite this, I am drawn to this part of Australia in admiration of the rugged beauty that this tiny state possesses.

In the photo above, I especially love the sense of loneliness that this landscape depicts. The blue sky being invaded by clouds that change in mood across the photo. The golden tufts of grass, creeping up to the gnarly dead tree that commands your focus. It has a sense of space, of freedom, even if you will spend it alone…it is beautiful.

(Click here for more posts on Tasmania)

Flower Friday – Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’

July 8, 2016July 8, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 11 Comments

Crocosmia Lucifer - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Crocosmia Lucifer – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Every day on my way to and from work I pass through a beautifully maintained courtyard garden which is always alive with color. Commonly in Manhattan, garden beds get replanted every few months with plants that reflect the current season (unlike Sydney which is temperate enough to keep most plants all year round, or a summer/winter change of annuals). New York summer brings high heat and humidity, and a fitting reflection of that is this fiery red flower belonging to Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’. The flowers catch my eye every day due to the contrast of the intense red against a background of large, deep green leaves. This plant, along with many others, is now bookmarked in my head as a “must have” in my currently imaginary, beautifully tranquil, future garden of my own. Happy weekend everyone!!!

A Cheeky Pair

July 5, 2016February 6, 2017 ~ laura lecce ~ 5 Comments

Rainbow Lorikeets - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Rainbow Lorikeets – Photograph by Laura Lecce

I had forgotten what it was like in Australia waking up to such distinctive bird calls. Those which I had listened to my entire childhood, but only recently paid attention to. The earliest birds are the kookaburras (click here for post) with their loud and projecting laughs, mocking the sun as it rises. They wake the cockatoos, who show their distain with long and piercing screeches. Next are the large flocks of rainbow lorikeets (in the photo) which can be heard having territorial squabbles across the trees with their sharp and angry chirps. They are one of Australia’s most colorful birds, and like other parrots, they know how to be noisy! They mostly travel in pairs, and once paired will be monogamous for life. When feeding in a flock, the male will threateningly hop around his partner while she feeds to make sure no other birds interrupt her meal. They eat fruit, pollen and nectar, mostly from native Australian trees and shrubs such as the eucalyptus, and the bottle brush (Callistemon) seen in this photo. It’s hard to be angry about being woken up early when the birds are as pretty as these ones!

Flower Friday – Eucalyptus

July 1, 2016November 22, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 19 Comments

Aussie Natives - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Aussie Natives – Photograph by Laura Lecce

For those of you wondering why my blog has been quiet lately, I have been on vacation to my home country of Australia. So on my return, I thought it fitting to share with you some photos I took along the way. Todays flower is from the eucalyptus tree. There are many varieties of these beautiful trees and shrubs and most are native to Australia. They play a vital role in Australia’s natural environment and are found abundantly throughout the country, the only major environment they do not inhabit is Australia’s rainforests. Interestingly they release biochemicals which can influence the growth, reproduction and survival of other organisms, and thus inhibit other plant species growing nearby (this is called allelopathy). Planting these trees and shrubs in your yard are a great way to encourage Australian wildlife to visit your garden, as they attract and support a multitude of Australian wildlife. The most well known eucalyptus eater is the koala, but they also attract cockatoos, rainbow lorikeets and other parrots, gliders and possums. The flowers alone are beautiful to photograph, and even once they fall off, the remaining gum nuts still make for interesting subjects (seen in the photo below). Happy weekend everyone, its a long one in the USA… enjoy!

Eucalyptus - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Eucalyptus Gum Nuts – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Flower Friday – Frangipani

June 3, 2016June 3, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 12 Comments

Frangipani - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Frangipani – Photograph by Laura Lecce

The frangipani (Plumeria) is a beautiful plant with gorgeous flowers that come in varieties of whites, yellow, oranges and pinks. Although native to Central and South America, they are a popular plant that can now be found in most tropical places around the world. This plant however, is not without its quirks, being related to Oleander, both produce an irritating sap similar to Euphorbia plants (click here to see my post on Euphorbia). Frangipanis are also fragrant, most heavily at night, to attract the sphinx moth under the false pretense that the flowers contain a sweet smelling nectar. As the moth goes from flower to flower in search of the non-existent nectar, it is in fact being duped into pollinating the flowers. Cheeky frangipanis…. Have a great weekend everyone!

Who Said Toads Were Ugly?

May 31, 2016May 31, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 12 Comments

Golden Eyed Toad - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Golden Eyed Toad – Photograph by Laura Lecce

If you can find it in your heart to look beyond the belly fat and brown pimply skin you will see the golden glistening eyes of this glorious toad. Living in a luxurious resort in St Lucia, this toad was clearly the queen of this pond, each night posing proudly atop the lilies. St Lucia is one of the homes of the cane toad (Rhinella marina) also known as the giant neotropical toad. On average they grow to about 10-15cm (4-6 inches), but have been recorded as large as 38cm (15 inches) and weighing 2.65kg (5.8lb). This toad was introduced into northern Australia as a predator to combat the beetles which were eating sugar cane crops. This turned out to be a futile endeavor since the beetles kept to the top of the sugar canes and the toads have poor climbing skills, so instead the toads outcompete many Australian reptiles and frogs for food which is easier to access. So as beautiful as they may be under that brown pimply skin, they should have stayed at home.

Flower Friday – Pink Speckled Phalaenopsis

May 27, 2016May 27, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 12 Comments

Pink Speckled Phal - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Pink Speckled Phal – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Actually the proper name for this orchid is Doritaenopsis Ackers Sweetie ‘Dragon Tree Maple.’ It is one of my favorite hybrids to grow at home, mostly because the flowers were so big (the size of my palm) and so interesting to look at. Every time I look into the pink speckles of this flower it looks like a huge colony of bats flying away from the cave in the center and getting further and further into the distance as they fly away. Maybe I just have a vivid imagination, but either way the pattern on this flower really does come alive! Have a fantastic weekend everyone!

If you’d like to see more Flower Friday posts, please click here.

Orangutan Sanctuary

May 25, 2016May 25, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 6 Comments

Orangutan - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Orangutan – Photograph by Laura Lecce

One of my most memorable wildlife experiences was visiting an orangutan sanctuary at the Rasa Ria Nature Reserve in Kota Kinabalu, East Malaysia. This reserve provides protected space where orphaned orangutans are rehabilitated and hopefully reintroduced into their natural habitat. Here the orangutans are taught the skills they need to eventually live an independent life. Orangutans are native to Indonesia and Malaysia and are currently found only in the rainforests of Borneo (island shared by Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei) and Sumatra (Indonesian island). Watching juvenile orangutans is such a heartwarming pleasure. They are intelligent, playful, inquisitive and tactile animals, that it brings sadness to remember that they are at the sanctuary because of poaching and deforestation. Though it is because of these sanctuaries that people are made aware, educated and hopefully interested in actively saving these precious animals.

To see my other posts with primates click here.

Pod of Pelicans

May 23, 2016May 23, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 14 Comments

Pelicans can be found in many countries around the world, but none of them quite compare with the strikingly beautiful, black and white feathered, pink billed features of the Australian Pelican. For a medium bodied pelican, it actually possesses the largest bill size of any bird in existence. Quite common in Australia, these birds are a icon of the Australian coast. This photo was taken in Western Australia, and this pod of pelicans are patiently waiting for a feed from a local fisherman who is cleaning his recently caught fish to the right of this photo. These graceful birds which are usually quite polite and not overly aggressive for their size, feed on fish, insects, yabbies and shrimp, but should not be underestimated, for even small dogs have been swallowed by these large billed birds.

Click here for other posts from Western Australia.

Flower Friday – Dragon Fruit

May 20, 2016May 20, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 11 Comments

Dragon Fruit - Photograph by Salvatore Venuto — Dragon Fruit – Photograph by Salvatore Venuto

Todays post includes some photos taken by my dad of one of the plants he is currently growing in his garden at home. Pitahaya (more commonly known as dragon fruit) are the edible fruits which grow on several species of cactus. The particular fruit in this photo are from the species Hylocereus undatus which are red fruits with edible white flesh on the inside. The flowers of this cactus (which are in the photo below) are a brilliant white, very large and fragrant. They open mostly in the evening due to their main pollinators such as bats and moths being nocturnal, although my dad said these opened during the day and only lasted a day or so, possibly a difference in climate from their country of origin. If you’d like to see more photos from my dads garden or the gardens he looks after (as he is an amazing and truly talented gardener) you can visit his Instagram page @salvenut.

Happy weekend everyone!