Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 25 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of Hyacinth Orchid.

Day 25 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Hyacinth Orchid, which gets its carbs from eucalypt trees, via the Russula mycorrhizal fungus #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 24 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of a Laughing Kookaburra sitting on a smiling blue buddha statue.

Day 24 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Laughing Kookaburra sitting on a blue buddha, in a neighbour's front yard. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 23 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of a White-throated Treecreeper perched on the side of a tree trunk, with misty trees in the background.

Day 23 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is the White-throated Treecreeper, calling in misty eucalypt forest #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 22 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a Pale-yellow Robin, with a man in the background saying 'peep peep'.

Day 22 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is Ray talking to a Pale-yellow Robin. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 20 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a Red-necked Pademelon (small wallaby that lives on rainforest edges).

Day 20 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Red-necked Pademelon (Thylogale thetis), a small wallaby that lives on rainforest edges. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 21 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a Lewin's Honeyeater getting dog fluff for its nest from (where we put it) in a White Beech tree.

Day 21 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Lewin's Honeyeater collecting dog fluff from where we stash it in the White Beech tree. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 19 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of a male Australian Wood Duck and 3 ducklings.

Day 19 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is dad Australian Wood duck raising his 3 ducklings solo. We think mum was hit by a car. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 18 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of different ways we encounter leeches: standing still on a wall like a picture hook; standing upright on a wet boot; attached to a pad of a dog's paw; in a bloody sock.

Day 18 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. Leeches remind me that I'm part of the ecosystem. They're hard to avoid on rainy days. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 17 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a Wonga Pigeon carrying a stick, and another Wonga Pigeon in the background, calling 'woop woop woop woop woop.'

Day 17 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. Here are 2 Wonga Pigeons in nesting mode. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar #naturejournal #birds

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 16 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a Blue-banded Bee visiting the blue flower of a Commelina plant.

Day 16 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Blue-banded Bee visiting the flower of Scurvy Weed, Commelina diffusa #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 15 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of flowering stems of the Kangaroo Grass, Themeda triandra.

Day 15 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is Kangaroo Grass, Themeda triandra, one of the many native grasses flowering abundantly right now #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 14 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of 2 Spangled Drongoes chasing away a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo.

Day 14 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. Here are a pair of Spangled Drongoes chasing away a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar #birds #parrot

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 13 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a Lace Monitor (large lizard) with two hens in tha background looking alarmed.

Day 13 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is the Lace Monitor I've chased out of the chook shed 3 times in the last 2 days. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar #reptile

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 11 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a green treefrog with a yellow belly and orange-red eyes, climbing up a wall.

Day 12 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This Orange-eyed Treefrog (Litoria chloris) has been calling on rainy nights. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar
#frogs

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 11 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of an orange mushroom and a reddish anemone-type stinkhorn fungus.

Day 11 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. These are 2 fungi that appeared recently: the orange mushroom is probably mycorrhizal with Eucalyptus #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 10 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a male and female satin bowerbird, eating leaves of a green bean vine.

Day 10 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. Here are male & female satin bowerbirds, eating the leaves of green beans in the vegie garden #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 9 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of 4 figs (from a Watkin's Fig - a rainforest tree) at various stages of ripeness.

Day 9 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. These are fruits of Watkin's Fig (Ficus watkinsiana) - a rainforest tree - at various stages of ripeness #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 8 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing is of a rose-crowned fruit-dove, with a cartoon bubble emerging from its beak. The cartoon bubble describes its call: "wook-ook! Wook-ook! Wook-ook!"

Day 8 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Rose-crowned Fruit-dove, calling from a hidden place. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar #naturejournal

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 7 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of a person in a magenta raincoat walking 2 dogs (in black raincoats) beside a forest of tall Eucalyptus trees.

Day 7 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is me walking my dogs in the summer rain, on a warm, misty afternoon #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 6 on the front. It is open at the top to slot in a drawing. The drawing (at the side of the envelope) is of a greenish glowing mushroom on black paper.

Day 6 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. I found this bioluminescent mushroom after days of rain -maybe ?Mycena chlorophos #fungifriends #fungi #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 5 on the front. It is open at the top to reveal a drawing of two Little Wattlebirds feeding on a Swamp Banksia flower.

Day 5 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. These are a parent and baby Little Wattlebird, feeding on a Swamp Banksia flower #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar #naturejournal

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 4 on the front. It is open at the top to reveal a drawing of a Topknot Pigeon.

Day 4 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is a Topknot Pigeon, an important disperser of rainforest seeds, sitting in a Hoop Pine #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Raspberries, sliced persimmons, poached pear, sliced banana and kiwi fruit on a white plate that's sitting on the autumn-leafy ground

Day 3 of my #NatureAdventCalendar - eating a rainbow (almost) breakfast outdoors. Still not too late to start a #nature advent calendar groweatgift.com/2021/11/22/f...

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 3 on the front. It is open at the top to reveal a drawing of a cicada shell (dry skin of immature cicada left behind when adult emerges).

Day 3 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is the dry skin of a cicada nymph, left behind when the adult emerges. #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

Photo of a square envelope, made with decorative purple and black paper, with a large hand-drawn number 2 on the front. It is open at the top to reveal a drawing of a herb with two royal-blue flowers.

Day 2 of my nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. This is the Forest Lobelia, Lobelia trigonocaulis. Its delicate blue flowers brighten up the forest floor #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar

This year I'm making a nature advent calendar. Each day is celebrated with a drawing of local nature happenings around this place (Beechmont) at this time of year. E.g. this is a flower from the White Beech tree Gmelina leichhardtii, in full bloom now #natureadventcalendar #artadventcalendar