Byron Bay

After Brisbane was Byron Bay for a couple of days. There weren’t any wildlife places around it but there was plenty of nature to walk through on the way up to the lighthouse. It was a 6km walk just to get there from our hostel! The one day a group of us walked up to it, and the next day my friend and I ran to it (talk about a workout)!

My friend and I after we ran the trail

On our way up there we saw plenty of Australian Brush Turkey. This bird is one of three Australian mound building birds. The incubation mound, which the male makes from soil and leaf litter, can reach ten meters in diameter and two meters in height. Newly hatched young dig out of the mound and are immediately on the hunt for insects, mainly fruits and seeds. These turkey are wandering around almost everywhere you go! Mainly in the forests and wooded areas.

Australian Brush Turkey

I also happened to see some Bush Thick-knee in some of the wildlife habitats and in the woods around dusk. They emerge at dusk, walking or flying out to forage either on land or in water. These ground-dwelling birds are omnivores, feeding primarily on insects, mollusks, lizards and seeds. During the day, Bush Thick-knee roost on the ground, relying on their cryptic plumage to protect them from predators. When disturbed, they freeze motionless, often in odd-looking postures (which is what happened when I saw one). Bush Thick-knees are listed internationally as Near Threatened due to widespread population decline in the southern parts of Australia. Habitat destruction as well as fox and cat predation are major threats to this species. 

Bush Thick-knee

I also learned how to surf and skydive in Byron Bay! Surfing was a lot easier than I thought, probably since I have been snowboarding for awhile. The coach said I was a natural!

Skydiving was probably the coolest thing I have ever done before! Nothing can explain that feeling you get when you are hanging out the plane right before you jump off. I would do it again in a heart beat.