The Rhythm of Leven River Farm.

Platypus heaven

Life on Leven River Farm has settled into a comfortable rhythm, a rhythm set by the sun and the wind and the rain, a rhythm as old as time itself.

The corn is setting cobs, the pumpkins and the tomatoes are in flower, the autumn vegetables are bursting forth and the native animals come and go as they please.

The Leven River rises and falls with rainfall and along with supplying us with water provides a safe home to a family of platypus that can be spotted in the clear water some evenings.  They are smaller than I had imagined and not as timid as I had expected. They never seem to be in a hurry and just slowly swim away when disturbed.

 

In the late evening an Eastern Barred Bandicoot scurries busily around the garden digging for grubs and insects. It never ventures far from the hedge and beats a hurried retreat if disturbed. We can watch it come and go from the dining room window but it quickly disappears if the door opens.  

A solitary Devil sometimes visits late in the night, a well-mannered, occasionally noisy animal who ambles up the driveway and departs back down in his own good time. The sound of a devil in the night is unmistakable. We regularly see devils dead on the road on the way into town so I hope this chap can avoid becoming just another bit of road kill.

We saw a spotted-tailed quoll on the road coming back home late at night. This was a timely reminder on the need to lock up the chooks and geese at night. The spotted-tailed quoll is a capable hunter that, like the eastern quoll, kills its prey by biting on or behind the head. They love chooks and will reportedly keep returning night after night until they have wiped them out.  Adult geese are usually safe from quolls but any goslings can be quickly wiped out.