This picture shows pipes being laid at West Beach as part of the $23 million sand management project under the Adelaide Living Beaches Strategy.

The existing program of beach replenishment places 160,000 cubic metres of sand each year at strategic locations on southern and central beaches. This maintains the sandy foreshore, builds up dune buffers, and protects coastal infrastructure.

The strategy provides for existing sand supplies to be recycled more effectively using sand slurry pumping and pipelines. This will minimise the need for trucks to cart sand along beaches and suburban roads.

The pipeline transfer systems involves a sand acquisition system at Torrens Outlet to remove sand from the beach, mix it with seawater to form a slurry mixture, and pump this slurry into the pipelines.

Sand will be discharged from the pipeline to where it is most needed through a series of outlets directly onto the beach.

The sand will be distributed more evenly than it would be otherwise because of the multiple discharge points. It will remove most truck traffic from coastal roads and halve the amount of sand carted by truck.

The ongoing maintenance cost is estimated at $5.75 million a year.

As a local resident I’m pleased the work is being done in cooler months when fewer people are enjoying the beach.

The cost initially surprised me, but it’s worth the investment given how popular the beaches are in summer.

A report says the “do nothing” alternative would quickly result in the loss of sand from beaches and progressive damage to foreshore infrastructure and buildings.

“The cost due to loss of beach value alone would be very high, with further costs incurred for the management of subsequent debris and pollution.”

The park is a 126-acre reserve featuring cliff-top walks, rocky beaches and interesting geological formations.

Although surrounded by housing, it’s easy to forget you’re in suburbia. The park is like stepping back in time to experience the original landscape.

It is considered one of Australia’s most outstanding geological sites, recording an ice age that occurred some 280 million years ago and its importance as a geological monument is now internationally recognised.

Archaeologists have also recovered many Aboriginal artefacts at the park, more than 1700 of which are now housed at the South Australian Museum.

Native flora and fauna abound in the protected boundaries of the reserve. Although dogs are not permitted, we saw plenty of people walking their pets, some not even on a leash.

According to this website, the precious geological significance was realized by Professor Ralph Tate in 1877 when he discovered glacial striations or scratching along the exposed siltstones of the coastal cliff tops.

It was later revealed that these markings were made by the extensive Permian ice sheet that covered much of Gondwana, the Southern Hemisphere supercontinent, 280 million years ago.

The features of Permian age glaciation and associated rocks of Hallett Cove are recorded as Geological Monuments of South Australia.

We followed a boardwalk along the coast from the southern entrance to the north.

There are a couple of places where you can descend to the rocky beach below, and apparently seals can be seen from June to October.

Many local native species have been planted by a Friends Group in an ongoing effort to restore the native vegetation.

Fifty of the park’s indigenous plant species have regional conservation significance and the aim is to enhance and extend the areas where natural revegetation can proceed.

DENR says the coastal zone is colonised by local salt-tolerant plants including ruby saltbush, common boobialla, flax-lilies, angular pigface, cushion fanflower and numerous native grass species.

A small creek runs through the park to the sea. We followed it to the park boundary, but didn’t see or hear any frogs, which are reported to live there.

There’s a cafe at the southern entrance, where we enjoyed coffee and lunch after a pleasant hour of walking. It took about half an hour to drive from West Beach down Tapleys Hill Road and Brighton Road.

That includes Linear Park, where we like to walk, between the Tapleys Hill Road bridge and the river mouth.

This picture shows the river, looking towards the sea from the bridge, at a time of greater flow last year.

According to Wikipedia, blue-green algae is the common term for cyanobacteria.

Originally a building block of life, promoting biodiversity, cyanobacteria has evolved and can be found in almost every terrestrial and aquatic habitat, from oceans to fresh water, from bare rock to soil.

“Cyanobacteria reproduce explosively under certain conditions. This results in algal blooms, which can become harmful to other species if the cyanobacteria involved produce toxins.”

The SA Health warning advises people to avoid contact with water in the River Torrens, downstream from the Torrens Lake Weir, due to the detection of blue green algae.

The warning follows detection of increased numbers of blue-green algae in samples collected from the lake this week.

SA Health’s Director of Public Health, Dr Kevin Buckett, said people should avoid direct contact with the water between the Torrens Lake Weir through to the river mouth at Henley.

“This includes avoiding swimming or putting your feet in the water to cool off. People should also stop their dogs or pets from swimming or drinking the water,” he said.

“Dogs are particularly at risk as the organisms can stick to their coat and owners should keep them away from affected water.”

The algae present produces a toxin that can affect the nervous system and can cause nausea and gastrointestinal upsets if ingested. It can also cause skin rashes and eye irritation.

I have never seen people in the river, except at the mouth, where fishing is popular. Maybe it’s tempting on a hot day for kids to play in the water further upstream.

Horses graze along the river bank. The warning doesn’t mention if they are vulnerable or not.

The furry marsupial is listed as nationally endangered.

We saw this little fellow today (pictured) at the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens. We were enjoying a picnic when Maggie suddenly shouted “mouse”!

He’s a lot bigger than a mouse. Southern Brown Bandicoots are about the same size as small rabbits with a long, pointed snout, small eyes, rounded ears, a compact body, large rump and sparsely furred short, thin tail approximately half of the body length.

Front and hind feet are strongly clawed. Fur is coarse, grey or yellowish brown above with a whitish belly.

The bandicoot is known to use certain plant species for shelter and protection from predators (fox and cat) including introduced plants such as blackberry.

On average, the female bandicoot will have around three young in each litter and between two and five litters per year. Unfortunately less than half of these young babies will make it to adult life.

The bandicoot eats both meat and plants. Some of the plant matter includes seeds, berries, grasses, clover roots, mosses and fungi. Bandicoots also eat spiders, flies, centipedes, millipedes, worms, beetles, fleas, moths, butterflies, and even wasps and ants.

There are plenty of millipedes around at the moment, so they must be feasting.

Preservation efforts by a small band of volunteers have resulted in the creation of a 5km-long plant corridor in the Aldgate Creek area of the Mt Lofty Ranges.

The corridor will help to sustain the endangered Southern Brown Bandicoot and other threatened native plants and animals.

millipede

At Robe on the weekend they were everywhere.

I haven’t given much thought to millipedes before, probably because I haven’t previously encountered them in such prolific numbers as here.

The CSIRO has declared the imported black Portuguese millipede “a nuisance pest” in southern Australia.

A native of Portugal, it was accidentally introduced to Australia, first appearing in South Australia at Port Lincoln in 1953.

It has now spread throughout southern Australia.

I guess being close to where the little buggers first landed means we may encounter more than our fair share.

The CSIRO says it is not harmful to humans, but can occur in plague numbers, invading houses, contaminating food and infesting carpet and bedding.

To discourage predators, the millipede releases a pungent yellowish secretion when disturbed. This may stain skin or clothes and is extremely irritating if rubbed into the eyes.

Charming.

The Age reports Victorian homes are being invaded by black Portuguese millipedes revelling in ideal conditions created by recent rains.

“The critters are being seen in their largest numbers in eight years, says Melbourne Zoo’s invertebrates specialist, Patrick Honan.”

Rainy weather in spring, and particularly autumn, stimulates activity.

Mr Honan’s advice:

“The best thing to do is to not squish them. If you can, sweep them up and put them outside. They actually don’t like being inside and certainly don’t breed inside but they come inside because often there’s just so many of them.”

I don’t like them being inside either, and it’s difficult not to squish them.

Interesting trivia, courtesy the CSIRO:

Although millipede means “thousand feet”, they don’t really have that many. Most species have more than 30 pairs of legs and some are known to have about 350 pairs.

Curiously, the CSIRO is not researching millipedes, despite the nuisance value and potential threat to crops.

Unlike Piccaninie Ponds, famous for its underwater caves, the main attraction here is incredible visibility up to 80 metres.

It is popular for snorkelling and scuba diving.

With the water temperature a chilly 10-15 degrees, a thick wetsuit is recommended.

Visit this site for some great pictures underwater.

The writer, David Harasti, says: “The highlight of diving in the ponds is the visibility! The first time I put my head underwater at Ewens Ponds I was shocked; the water was so clear it felt like I was diving in air. It is not uncommon to be able to see from one side of the pond to the other, a distance of over 80 metres. The other highlight is the growth as you drift through the two channels – it is a fantastic experience.”

We didn’t go diving, but there’s a lovely walk from the first pond to the third, which the kids enjoyed.

An open channel runs from the wetland to the ocean.

I took Kathleen, Jim and Maggie there this afternoon. We didn’t go diving, but enjoyed the “ponds outlet” walk of 2.4km.

This trail runs through coastal vegetation and wetlands adjacent to the pond’s outlet into the sea.

The clear water can be seen flowing through the dunes along the beach. The walk then joins a boardwalk to a wetland lookout.

According to the Department for Environment and Heritage: “Piccaninnie Ponds is one of Australia’s most beautiful and spectacular freshwater cave diving and snorkelling spots, with visibility exceeding 40 metres in the crystal water.”

Camping is allowed in the conservation park. Unfortunately the beach appears to be popular with motorsport enthusiasts. The noise is quite out of place, not to mention the potential environmental impact.

I had to reorganise things in the office, but I sent a cadet journalist on a 35km trip with a camera to see what he could find.

We agreed he should call in at the Carpenter Rocks store before proceeding to get confirmation and directions.

The story was true, but it turns out there was no road anywhere close to where the turtle had washed up.

To his credit, the cadet walked 5km each way (10km) to the site. Dressed in formal work wear, he left his shoes and tie in the car and walked the beach in bare feet.

He discovered the giant Leatherback Turtle and came back with some emotional photos. The magnificent six-foot long turtle had died of strangulation in a fishing net.

Truly moved by the pictures, I’m so impressed with the cadet and I’m pleased for him as well.

Two weeks ago I sent him on a similar mission to Nelson where a whale had beached. After walking 3km into a gale force wind (the seagulls were being blown backwards) he found a rotting carcase, and given a grey sky the photos were not much good.

We ended up using a contributed picture instead.

This time the dead turtle had not begun to decompose, and given it’s a remote site we were among the first people on the scene.

It turns out Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett placed the turtle on a threatened species list two weeks ago.

Combined with current debate about marine parks, it was a great photo to get at this time.

Update: Australia has uplisted the Leatherback Turtle to the endangered category. Most leatherback turtles living in Australian waters migrate to breed in neighbouring countries, particularly in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.

It’s a short walk from the base of the crater to the outer rim. It’s fairly steep, but steps make it easy to climb.

The walk around the crater is easy enough. People are warned to take care in strong winds, but unless you suffer vertigo it should be no problem.

We were there on a cloudy day, which made for some interesting photos from different angles with variations of light and shade.

The views are tremendous in all directions, including to the bottom of the crater, which can be reached on foot.

The trail was overgrown when we visited.