Forest Gallery

The birds have survived the intense heat of the past weeks with assistance from garden staff activating sprinklers at particularly hot periods.

The Rough Tree Ferns Cyathea australis are shedding spores in response to the hot dry weather- the spores are shed from clusters of tiny capsules in the frond undersides and appear as an orange dust on surfaces below the canopy. Interestingly, when the spores sprout, we will not see recognisable ferns. Rather, a small flat green structure grows up, known as a prothallus. Fertilisation of the gametes produced by the prothallus give rise to a new recognisable tree fern. Like mosses and liverworts, ferns do not produce seeds.

The Alpine Copperhead Snake Austrelaps ramsayi now on display has shed its skin and is looking very sleek.

Another Alpine Copperhead has been acquired from Melbourne Zoo this week- this will hopefully enable us to breed the species- if we do it will be the first time in captivity.

Alpine Copperhead Snake Photo: Luke Simpkin Source: Museum Victoria

Honeybees

The Honeybee display hive has been demounted while the Science & Life Gallery is being redeveloped. While the bees are happily doing their thing at Collingwood Children’s Farm, the display hive itself is undergoing some minor renovations. In particular, the access tube that leads from the outside garden into the hive will be made larger. This greater access should improve especially when the hive population is growing.

Display hive showing entry tube Photo: Luke Simpkin Source: Museum Victoria

Milarri Garden

The hot dry weather is an opportunity to see how plants have evolved to survive. Plants in Milarri that are more moisture dependant, such as the native mints (Prostanthera spp) will droop or drop leaves and die in extended dry periods while other plants have strategies to reduce moisture loss. Tasman Flax Lily Dianella tasmanica has the capacity to curl its leaves in a way that reduces airflow across the leaf surface and therefore reduces moisture loss. This particularly hot & dry weather has caused even these hardy plants to become severely scorched.

Dianella leaves in drought stress and beyond Photo: Serene O'Halloran Source: Museum Victoria

Kangaroo Apple Mookitch (Gunditjmara language) Solanum aviculare is in full fruit at the moment. These fruits are poisonous when unripe, but indigenous people developed a technique to ripen the fruits and make them safe to eat. An alkaloid isolated from Solanum has been used as an ingredient in a contraceptive pill.

Mookitch (Gunditjmara language) Kangaroo Apple fruits Photo: Serene O'Halloran Source: Museum Victoria