Wreath Flower, Leschenaultia macrantha. Near Mullewa, mid west, Western Australia.

Also called Wreath Leschenaultia, these spectacular flowers emerge each spring, loved by locals and visitors alike. We’d spent years looking forward to seeing one of these plants in the wild. As we walked towards this one, we knew that something special was here - a small group of people stood around it, cameras clicking busily. We stopped and joined them. And there it was, sitting in the dry sand by the red dirt track, quietly enjoying the sun. - WENDY

Pink-eared Ducks. Lake Claremont, Western Australia.

Rob had read about these ducks. He’d puzzled that a duck could have pink ears. Was this simply someone’s imagination? Rob’s visit to this lake with his first telephoto lens showed him that these “pink ears” were indeed pink. And he captured this image to remember this magic moment. - WENDY


Australian Sea Eagle. Parry Beach, south coast, Western Australia.

Knowing that these birds live along this coast, we parked our 4X4 on the sand and waited. Then there she was, hanging above us on the wind. After checking us out, her wings moved her on while her eyes sought fish in the water below. We knew that her nest would be nearby, probably on a rocky outcrop. Her massive wings of 2 metres or more across carry her over a large, often remote, coastal home range. We were lucky to see her. - WENDY

Yokenup Bay with Thomas River on the left. South east coast, Western Australia.

Many years ago we camped by this remote beach with our family. This time Rob had his drone, and flew it up to about 100 metres to take this photo. If you look carefully you can see 2 surfers in the waves - their smallness enhances the vastness of this place. The pink sand in the foreground is from red inland dirt washed through Thomas River to the sea on the rare occasions that it floods. It was a joy to return to this immense wildness. - WENDY

Tagon Beach. On Southern Ocean, south east coast, Western Australia.

This beach was our last coastal exploring before rain arrived the next day. The wind was strong, blowing Southern Ocean spray and beach sand over us. To capture the remote wildness of this place, Rob used his polarising lens to make the racing clouds - pre-frontal mares’ tails - even more spectacular. Whales - the great ocean wanderers - migrate along this coast every year as part of their vast home range. - WENDY

White cheeked Honey Eater in Red Prickly Toothbrushes. Crawley, Western Australia.

These flowers - formally named Grevillea hookeriana - emerge every spring, attracting lots of birds like this one. Honey Eaters travel in groups, exploring the bushes and chirping to each other as they hang at many angles from the flowers to suck out the nectar. Being prey for larger birds, they keep to the dense foliage to avoid being seen from above. If you look at the cheek of this bird, you will see why we affectionately describe it “moustached”. - WENDY

The Gap. Torndirrup Peninsula, south coast, Western Australia.

This is a quiet day at the Gap. When a big swell is running the spray is often flung higher than the top of the cliff, covering the cars in the carpark above with spray. For millennia these huge Southern Ocean waves have pounded this gneiss** cliff, finding lines of weakness like you can see on the left side of this photo to create larger and larger gullies. Change is slow here, but constant all the same.
** Gneiss is old granite rock. When it was deep beneath the earth’s surface, heat and pressure metamorphosed it into gneiss. Then tectonic plate movement brought it to the surface as the cliff you see here. This rock is about 700,000,000 years old. - WENDY

Gould’s Monitor lizard. Warren River National Park, near Pemberton, south west Western Australia.

I was driving us on one of the myriad gravel roads in this area while Rob worked our navigation system. He wondered why I carefully stopped the car to not skid on the gravel. I pointed to the long form lying in the warm sun by the road. Rob climbed out of the car with his camera and captured this image, appreciating the gorgeous patterns across its body and tail. At about half the 1.6metre adult length, this lizard was a juvenile. - WENDY

Adult female Red-tailed Black Cockatoo. Shenton Park, Perth, Western Australia.

When flocks of these magnificent birds visit to feed in our trees, their calls fill our garden. The bird here was feeding in the crown of our Eucalyptus grandis tree - about 15 metres high. She was using her huge beak and strong tongue to prize seeds out of the gumnuts, which develop from the gum flowers. These trees don’t flower every year, so she was enjoying her sumptuous banquet while it lasted. - WENDY

Egret catching mud minnow fish (glaxiella). Swan River, Perth, Western Australia.

This swampland has been rehabilitated to its natural state. Rob took his camera to capture photos of one of the ospreys who live in the crowns of a group of pine trees nearby. We’d seen it here that morning, but it had moved on by the time he returned. Instead he captured this egret hauling the fish out of the water. He was intrigued that the egret’s legs below the knees were black, perhaps for stealthy wading in the murky water. - WENDY

Osprey with fish, watching us. Swan River bank, Perth, Western Australia.

There’s an osprey nest in the crown of one of the pine trees by the Swan River. Mates for life, this osprey and his partner have returned here every year since Rob and I were much younger. They repair their nest from the winter storms’ ravages before settling down to make babies. When catching fish, they plunge feet-first into the river to catch fish, their closable nostrils perfectly adapted. Then they sit on a rock or a gum tree branch to eat fish gripped in their claws like this osprey has, its reversible outer toes also perfectly adapted. Ospreys are part of the falcon family, not the eagle family to which sea eagles (see front cover) belong. They are more numerous than sea eagles - being smaller they have smaller home ranges, and they inhabit many more habitats around the world. - WENDY

Town Weir. Margaret River, south west Western Australia.

We discovered this delightful place at the end of a day spent bike riding in the bush. As sunset approached, we stopped to savour the soft golden light. It tinged the leaves on the trees and the water flowing over the weir. Rob used a 30-second exposure to capture the flowing effect of the water, something he’d been wanting to try. He was thrilled with how the technique enhanced this already-lovely scene. - WENDY

Canal Rocks. Near Yallingup, south west coast, Western Australia.

We’ve visited this place often over the years, but never been able to clearly see the form of the canal before. With his drone Rob could see that it really is a canal. The old rock of the shore - gneiss** - has been pounded for millennia by the Indian Ocean waves. Their relentless force opened up weak joints, forming the canals.
** Gneiss is old granite rock. When it was deep beneath the earth’s surface, heat and pressure metamorphosed it into gneiss. Then tectonic plate movement brought it to the surface as the cliff you see here. This rock is about 700,000,000 years old. - WENDY