THL#07 - Kings Plain National Park, A haiku moment, and Nature Journalling

Sorry for disappearing for 5 months! I completely underestimated how involved and stressful it is to move from one side of the world to the other! Add in a few months of travel, getting settled in again back in Australia, and just how unbelievably fast time flies by these days and, well … I’m here again now 🙂

Field Notes

Earlier this week, I decided to spend the day Kings Plains National Park, located about 48km from my home town. Despite my dad working his whole life on the sapphire mines that used to dot the landscape in that area (all now closed), I can’t ever recall visiting the National Park.

I spent about 5 hours enjoying the peace (I was the only person out there), birdwatching, and hiking along the short walking track that follows the creek from a second campsite, through the main campsite, to a waterfall.

Along the way, I was particularly intrigued by many leaves I found that looked like this:

You can see here my (still terrible) attempt at sketching what I was seeing, and pondering what I was looking at in my Nature Journal (see below).

Doing some research once I returned home, it turns out I was completely wrong about the fire/heat theory!

Those red spheres are actually insect galls.

A female insect injects an egg into the leaf tissue triggering a chemical reaction that basically hijacks the plant’s growth. The leaf starts swelling around the egg (the “volcano”), and the tree ends up constructing a little hollow nursery (the “apple”) to protect and feed the developing larva.

When the insect is fully grown, it chews its way out, leaving behind the tiny central exit hole you can see on each sphere (where the stem of the apple would be).

Apparently, this is a completely normal part of the ecosystem, and eucalypts in Australia have co-evolved with these insects.

Another peculiar thing I noticed on my hike was this tag nailed to a tree near the campground.

It has the number 44 inscribed on it, and I originally took the picture to contribute it to the Savor of the Month (this month it’s numbers) over at the The Art of Noticing.

A bit of research revealed that pre-numbered, stamped aluminium tags like this are used by the National Parks Service to identify specific trees they are monitoring.

I emailed the office and asked about this particular tree tag. They told me that due to its proximity to the main campsite and the start of the walking track, they’re monitoring the structural integrity of the tree. Currently, it is deemed safe 🙂

Still plenty to explore out at Kings Plains. I look forward to seeing what catches my attention next time!

A Haiku Moment

Earlier this year I was involved in the “Stay Cool” collaborative exhibition at the Griffith Artspace in Australia.

I ran a workshop on writing haiku, and one of my own haiku, together with the photograph that inspired it, was selected for an ekphrastic challenge through Naviar Records.

The poem and image were sent out to composers in the Naviar community, who responded by creating their own pieces of music. The same three lines. The same photograph. More than 20 very different interpretations!

I found the whole process fascinating, so I’ve just written about it on my blog, including how the project came together and what happened when I handed my haiku and photograph over to other artists.

And if this has made you curious about haiku, I’ve put together a 10-page Haiku Quickstart Guide based on the workshop I delivered to help you get started. Subscribe to this newsletter to download your copy.

Attention Practices

If you’re looking for a simple way to spend more time paying attention while out and about in the natural world, I recommend you give nature journalling a try.

My friend Barb, a nature educator and fellow artist, first told me about it a few years ago and pointed me towards “The Laws Guide to Nature Drawing and Journalling” and “How to Teach Nature Journalling”, both by my pick for the king of nature journalling, John Muir Laws.

Nature journalling is really just about looking closely and recording what you notice.

Two examples following my lead from Kings Plains:

You might sketch a leaf, write down a detailed description of what you see, and ask yourself questions (see my effort earlier in the post).
You might keep a list of the birds you see and how many of each: My Kings Plains list included: Azure Kingfisher (1), Pacific Black Duck (3), White-faced Heron (1), Brown Treecreeper (1), Superb Fairywren (lots), Yellow-tufted Honeyeater (4), Dusky Woodswallow (2), Pied Currawong (1), Welcome Swallow (lots), Red-browed Firetail (3).I usually identify birds with the Merlin App and log them through eBird (see THL#4) so I can contribute to citizen science efforts. But you can just as easily record them for your own enjoyment.

Nature journalling can include drawing, photography, writing, numbers, maps … anything really. And you don’t need to be good at drawing (evidence would suggest I’m certainly not 😛 ).

You also don’t need spectacular wilderness. Your backyard (there are plenty of backyard nature journallers), a local park, or a small patch of bush is enough.

John Muir Laws has a wealth of free information, books, and tutorials linked from his website – I highly encourage you to check it out!

Or, to get a good overview, start by watching this 20 minute video from one of his many, many webinars:

Why try nature journalling?

Deepens observation: Sketching something or writing details about it makes you look at it properly.
Builds curiosity: You don’t need to know what you’re seeing. Questions are part of the practice.
Builds Local Literacy: You learn the names and rhythms of the specific lives sharing your postcode.
Creates a record: Your journal becomes a record of what you noticed, season by season.

Something to Try

Next time you’re near a patch of nature, try this simple approach based on the nature journalling practices John Muir Laws teaches.

Pull out a piece of paper and pen.
Write the date and weather conditions at the top of the page. There, you’ve already started nature journalling. It’s that easy 🙂
Find something that catches your attention and spend 5 minutes really studying it.
Then use this simple thinking routine that sits at the heart of John Muir Laws’ approach: