Excursion Report – Mt Elimbah (Glasshouse Mountains) excursion held 4 August 2024

A small group of three members enjoyed a long morning investigating this area.

Compared with observations of RMT in previous seasons, some of the plants were late in flowering – e.g. Bush Iris (Patersonia sericia) and Xanthorrhoea latifolia. This may be a result of some cold spells in June and July. Nineteen plant species and one fungus were recorded on QNC iNaturalist projects. Flowering plants noted included the Small Waxlip Orchid (Glossidia minor), Chorizema parvifolium, Calytrix tetragona, Dodonaea rupicola and Aggreflorum luehmannii (Glass House Mountains tea-tree formerly Leptospermum luehmannii.) See inaturalist.org/projects/qnc-2024-august-mt-elimbah

There was a lot of bird song, especially up in the canopy and Penny identified 23 species plus a nonspecified fairy wren. See https://ebird.org/tripreport/267419

This is a small park adjacent to farmland and residential areas which continue to expand and as such, is an important refuge for nature The observations made by this small group reflect only a small proportion of its biodiversity.