Penguin Flipper Boats

We had great fun paddling around Clarrie Hall Dam with Ric's sister & brother in law in their penguin flipper boats.

Oily Faced Seal

We got a call about a fur seal that hauled out on local beach at work today. I reckon it was a New Zealand Fur Seal but could have been an Australian Fur Seal. They are hard to tell apart. The seas are huge around Port Macquarie so not surprising it came ashore (normal behavior). The thing that wasn't normal is the oil it had on the left side of it's face...
Should be able to preen it off eventually.... it was rubbing it's face on it's back on and on the rocks.

Stella Fungi

A beautiful fungi popped up in the garden today. It's a tropical member of the ornate stinkhorn family (Clathraceae) called the starfish fungus (Aseroe rubra). The "tentacles" grow longer than in this picture - these ones hadn't finished unfurling. It first appears from a subterranean "egg" stage like a puff-ball, then the skin splits and out pops the red arms. At maturity it has five to ten radiating arms, each divided into two slender "tentacles." The size can be up to about 8 cm across.
It is very smelly! It relies on attracting flies to spread the spores which are in that smelly brown slimy stuff (spore slime) .

So pretty though!