Bradt Wildlife Guide: Australian Wildlife

Australia is many things; an island, a single country (the sixth-largest in the world) and a continent. It is also a very special island as it has been isolated for so long that it has evolved a fauna and flora with a high rate of endemism. It is also thinly populated with vast stretches of wilderness from desert to lush rainforests and in the ocean, the Great Barrier Reef. Australian Wildlife by Bradt is a wonderful introduction to this incredible country’s wildlife. It is lavishly illustrated with stunning photography and insightful text. Its compact size and page length mean it is not too heavy to take with you on a trip. You could probably read a fair amount of it on a flight from London to Australia. I wish this book had been available when many years ago I spent a month in Australia.

I particularly liked the two introductory chapters titled ‘The Backdrop’ and ‘Habitats which span pages 3 to 36. Whether you are a visitor or resident it is helpful to have context. The first chapter has subsections which explain its geological history and the arrival of placental mammals from mainland Asia as the Australian plate bumped into the Asian plate. Conservation and climate issues are addressed. We learn why it is preferable to farm native animals rather than introduced hooved animals like cattle for meat as hooved animals are so destructive to Australian soils. The section on habitats describes the astonishing range of habitats from tropical, subtropical and temperate rainforests to sclerophyll forests. On my first trip to Sydney I recollect being astonished to learn that within a short drive from the city centre, temperate forests could be seen in the valleys of the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park.

A series of chapters cover the main groups that visitors are interested in. Sections on the vertebrate and invertebrate animals start with the mammals. Australia has all three subclasses of mammals. The familiar placental mammals (e.g. dogs and cats), the monotremes which include the amazingly different and egg-laying platypuses and echidnas, and the third subclass, the marsupials. The marsupials are found in South America as well but they are the brand icon for Australia with a number of families which include familiar species such as the kangaroos, wallabies and the cuddly Koala. Mammals, birds and reptiles have the biggest page count; not surprising as this is what most visitors would be interested in. The Australasian region has eight non-passerines and 30 passerine families endemic to it. The book covers a few of these special families along with some of the other families that a visitor is likely to see.

The section on reptiles is no less fascinating. It is reassuring on the low rate of fatalities from snakes and crocodiles. I suspect people associate pythons with Asian forests but we learn in the book that Australia is a centre of diversity with 13 species of pythons. There are over 70 species of Agamid or dragon lizards including the spectacular Frilled Lizard. Amphibians, freshwater fishes, invertebrates and the marine environment have slimmer but nevertheless interesting sections. The end sections in its ‘Further Reading’ list a number of publications for people who wish to learn more.

The penultimate chapter is useful at the trip planning stage. For each of the states: New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia there is a map marking the flagship wildlife sites with brief details in the text. The end sections include a reference to ‘The Complete Guide to Finding the Birds of Australia’ by Richard Thomas and others, useful for those who need more detailed information or are interested in the vast number of nature reserves found in Australia. The book also lists useful websites.

It is not an easy feat to pack a continent as vast as Australia into the covers of a slim and portable book. But Stella Martin has done a brilliant job in creating a book that is an essential read for anyone planning a wildlife trip to Australia.