KANGAROO ISLAND

                                    Australia's Third Largest

     Kangaroo Island, discovered in 1802 by the English explorer, Matthew Flinders, is Australia’s third largest island. It is 90-miles long, 20-miles wide, and about the size of Long Island. The population of 4500 is located mostly in four cities, the largest of which is Kingscote with a population of 1800. The island is home to 20,000Kangaroos--about five kangaroos for every person.

    The island was hilly, covered with trees, and had no public transportation, but has 19 conservation/ national park areas. Norfolk Pine trees always grew along the coastline. Because they are tall and straight, if a ship, in days of old, lost a mast, the pine was ready and waiting to be cut to make a new mast.

Only pockets of land on the island are fertile enough for agriculture. Crops include canola/ olive oil, honey, and eucalyptus oil. Vineyards are in their infancy on the island. Fish farming is taking hold. Fishing includes crayfish, oysters, and mussels. There are two cheese factories. The narrow leaf eucalyptus grows only on the east side of the island. Trees can be re-harvested every three years. At the Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Oil Distillery we learned much about making eucalyptus oil from the wife of the owner.

Japan is the top producer of the oil as only 10% of the world’s eucalyptus oil comes from  Australia, and 3% of that from Emu Ridge. At one time there were 48 distilleries on Kangaroo Island, we visited the only one left. Sheep raising replaced the industry as it is easier work and the money is better.

A ton of leaves is put into a large caldron of boiling water. Depending on the season the ton of leaves produces 5-30 liters of oil. At this point the oil is light amber in color but after a second distillation the oil is colorless. We held a leaf up to the light to see the small oil seeds from which the oil is extracted. It was amazing, the seeds were so tiny.

Seal Bay Conservation Center is located at American Beach, the site of an 1803 ship wreck. A National Park naturalist, took us to the beach. The area is home to a colony of 600 Australian sea lions. The population has remained pretty constant for several years, and it is thought that the environment cannot sustain any larger numbers. These opportunistic feeders are loners and not at all family oriented.

Hunters used to hunt sea lions for the skin and blubber until they were almost extinct. A reef protects the bay, and the sanctuary extends one mile out and five miles along the coast.

The gestation period is 18 months.  An adult female with an un-weaned pup will consume 8-10 kilos of food a day. The female goes into heat again 17 days after birthing! They are not synchronized breeders. A female has four teats. Sea lions are mammals and have hair and ears. The large front flippers allow the animal to walk, where seals cannot. They are deep divers. These animals go to sea for three days at a time, then return to rest and sleep on the beach. A bull often stays a month at a time on the beach.

Living up to 25 years, males can weigh up to 600 kilos, and are brown to yellow in color, where the female is more cream colored. Forty bulls live in the bay. Pups stay on the beach 12-18 months to suckle from mom. Mortality rates are high, only about 30% of pups will make it to maturity.

It was very windy and cold on the beach. It was a long walk, but worth it as there must have been three dozen sea lions sleeping on the beach in the immediate area.

land

PANDA SANCTUARY

Lovable pandas

A giant panda sanctuary, located in their native habitat, lies about an hour outside the city of Chengdu, China, in Sichuan Province. We learned that the sanctuary has the largest number of pandas anywhere in the world, and is trying to restore panda populations.     The Research Base started operations in 1990 and opened to the public in 1995. Hunting, habitat encroachment, disappearing bamboo habitat, solitary lifestyles, very few fertile days, and natural disasters  all contributed to the panda becoming endangered in 1949. There are only 1000 pandas living in the wild. The panda’s only predator is man and insects that sting and inflict pain.

A docent told us, “Panda means bamboo eater. Presently 40 pandas reside here. A breeding area will eventually allow   the pandas to roam and hopefully procreate. The present area covers 36 hectares, and the projected breeding area will reach 230 hectares. The pandas feed in the morning between 8-10:00 AM, so that is the best time to visit. Otherwise their predominant pastime is sleeping. Pandas are by nature solitary animals and are reluctant to mate. Today pandas are rare in the wild where their life span averages 15 years compared to 30 years in captivity. In captivity artificial insemination is most often used in the effort to increase the panda population, and births in captivity are increasing. A female panda is fertile only 2-3 days a year!”

Work and research on test tube embryos has taken place in recent years. Noise outside the maternity wards of the nature reserves is kept to a minimum as noise apparently increases the frequency of miscarriage. Speaking is even kept to a whisper.

The docent continued, “Pandas mate at 4-5 years. Mama carries her baby 4-6 months. In the wild birthing takes place in caves, so in the research centers cave-like areas have been carved out of large tree stumps. A hairless, blind, baby panda, about the size of a rat, weighs only three ounces at birth. If the baby survives the first few days it has a good chance of maturing. Female pandas often reject their babies and in the wild is the biggest cause of infant mortality.  In captivity when mom rejects her offspring there are doctor/researchers to hand feed and care for the baby, resulting in a high survival rate. When the female does become a mom, usually after her second birth, she is a gentle attentive mother constantly cuddling and licking her infant.  Weaned at 7 months the babies are introduced to the bamboo forests, then slowly into the wild. In the sanctuary the pandas are fed bread, milk powder and apples in addition to bamboo. At one time pandas ate meat, but as the climate changed they adapted.

“At ten days old the extra digit on the front paws is evident. This extra digit allows the animal to grasp and manage its bamboo diet. By six weeks the baby can see and has accumulated fur the coloring of the panda. While nursing,, mothers can become aggressive. In spite of the panda's cuddly appearance, it has long sharp claws and strong teeth. Because an all bamboo diet is not the most nourishing, a panda in the wild spends 16 hours a day feeding, eating up to 40 pounds of bamboo a day, to obtain adequate nourishment. It is a very adaptable animal.”

Although quite near sighted the panda has an acute sense of smell and hearing. Pandas do not hibernate because the bamboo diet does not provide enough fuel for hibernation.

The sanctuary not  only is large but also beautiful. It is well laid out with paved walkways. We saw pandas at all ages. They were eating and the babies just hammed it up for our cameras. Moats kept them safe and helped remove the human urge to pet the darling creatures. It was fun to watch pandas climb a tree. They hug the tree and inch up caterpillar-style a bit at a time. They look like a big furry ball hugging a tree. They come down the same way.

We spent a lot of time here, and did a lot of walking within the sanctuary. It was a delightful memorable morning.

The museum exhibits had English captions, which was a welcome bonus. The gift shop sold good quality merchandise.