Thank you for the great questions! We got a few minutes to relax and answer them, and wanted to share it with you! Enjoy!
 
What kind of animals did you see most in Australia?
We saw lots of birds: 

White tailed macaw
Roselles
Lorikeets of several varieties
Sulpher crested cockatoo

Kangaroos seemed to be everywhere also. We saw them in every location we were in.

Did you see any poisonous animals?
We came across poisonous Redback spiders on the farm quite often. They live under rocks mostly or near trees. Since much of our farm work involved collecting rocks and painting trees, we saw them a lot. 

Did you see a Black Mamba?
No, we didn’t see any Black Mambas, thank goodness! We did see some pythons and much friendlier snakes. 

Are you having a great time?
Yes! We are having an excellent time. 

Is the flooding increasing?
Flood waters have receded, but sadly it is now cyclone season here. Cyclones are what we call hurricanes. The flooded areas were starting to get cleaned up when Cyclone Yasi struck. Yasi was the size of Italy and increased the receded water significantly and wiped out even more houses. Now, the same region that was under water from the floods are recovering from the cyclone too. 

When will the floods go away?
Farmers are speculating that they will have bad floods for the next two or three years. The government is trying to develop a better system of using dams to keep rivers at a constant flow and at a safe level. However, they won’t be able to predict the rain, so the floods might happen again. 

Did you rescue any animals?
Andrew and I were unable to help in any of the animal rescues.  So many people were without homes and there was no way to get from one place to another as cars were swept away by the rushing waters. Andrew and I decided to stay safe and watch the floods on the news. So, we didn’t get a chance to be around the animals in need of help. 

How many different species of animals have died in the floods?
They are still assessing the damage from the floods. They speculate that the turtle populations will be reduced significantly since it is nesting season. Kangaroos and wallabies are expected to be found dead in the next two months in high numbers because of the large number of parasite infestations that occurred after the floods. Wombats, which burrow below the ground, will have drowned, so they think only a few remain…those lucky enough to run away in time. Birds will likely bounce back from the devastation, but the flying foxes (bats) will likely decrease as babies were abandoned by mothers to escape. They won’t be able to tell how badly the population of smaller creatures were affected until scientific research is conducted….and that could take months. 


We hope that you are doing well and that you are safe.
We are having a wonderful time exploring Bali. We will inform you of our adventures and journeys soon!
Thanks for all the wonderful questions!