Black and white, with the pattern varying across its range. The back of its neck, upper tail and shoulders (on its wings) are white in males and grey in females, and (across most of Australia) the rest of its body is black. In south-eastern, central and south-western Australia, including Tasmania, its back and rump are entirely white. Its eye is red-brown. Young birds are usually grey rather than black and have dark eyes.

Distinctive feature

One toe faces backwards and three face forwards. It has a square-tipped tail.

Olive brown to black and has irregular pale bands on the body and tail. The head is often lighter in colour and can have orange flecks on the top and sides.

There are four subspecies with some variations:

  • Eastern Bobtail (Tiliqua rugosa aspera) Similar to western bobtail but with a darker belly, larger body scales and a shorter fatter tail
  • Western Bobtail (Tiliqua rugosa rugosa) Similar to eastern and northern but paler belly and longer tail, larger ear and pale irregular bands on the back
  • Rottnest Island Bobtail (Tiliqua rugosa konowi) Yellow belly.
  • Northern Bobtail (Tiliqua rugosa palarra) Similar to western bobtail with a smaller ear and usually no pale irregular bands on the back

Size

Total length 45cm.

Tuberous, perennial herb which grows from underground stems. 5 - 30 cm high.

Leaves

It has a broad, hairy basal leaf up to 25 cm long.

Flowers

The 30 - 40 mm diameter flowers are often solitary but up to four flowers may be borne on a slender stem about 30 cm high. It is a very distinctive species because of its bright yellow flowers which often have crimson spots.

Field Guide

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A black and white bird, the pattern varies slightly between sexes. The male has a white eyebrow above a black horizontal eye-stripe, a black face and throat, while the female has a white face and throat, with a broad vertical stripe through the eye, and no white eyebrow. Both sexes have a thin white bill and black legs and feet. Juvenile Magpie-larks have a black forehead, white eyebrow and a white throat.

Erect spreading dark green shrub. 0.2 – 1 m high.

Leaves

Long, narrow, oblong, blunt, dark green above with very recurved margins.

Flowers

Stalked, yellow flowers with 5 distinct petals. The stamens are all found on one side of the centre of the flower and look like a tiny hand of bananas.

The genus name Hardenbergia is named after Franziska Countess von Hardenberg and the species name comptoniana after Mary, 1st Marchioness of Northampton whose husband was Charles Compton.

Twining shrub or climber. Its size varies depending on supporting plants or structures it is growing on.

Leaves

Usually crowded, 3 and sometimes rarely 5 foliate. Leaflets are 4 – 6 cm long., and do not spread very widely. Size approximately 2–4 mm long and 1 mm wide, thick, concavo-convex (concave on both sides) and pointed at ends.

Flowers

Blue to purple and in some cases white. Typical pea shape consisting of 5 petals: the "standard", the "keel" (2 fused petals) and two "wings". Flowers are in an often drooping, elongate cluster.

Metallic blue-black on top and light to dark grey on its breast and belly. Its forehead, throat and upper breast are rust in colour. It has grey legs and feet, and its eyes and bill are black. A young Welcome Swallow has shorter tail feathers than an adult and its forehead and throat are a creamy beige (instead of rust).

Distinctive feature

A deeply forked tail with a white band or row of spots on the long tail feathers.

The motorbike frog is a ground-dwelling tree frog found in Southwest Australia. It gets its name from the male frog's mating call, which sounds like a motorbike riding past and changing gears. Other common names are Moore's frog, the western bell frog, western green and golden bell frog, and western green tree frog.

Back varies from pale brown to dark chocolate with areas of deep green or olive, red colouration in the groin and hind limbs.

Tadpoles

Large, black with deep tail fins.

A medium-sized black and white honeyeater. It has large bright yellow tail and wing panels, with a large conspicuous white cheek patch on a mainly black head. Young birds are duller with brownish plumage.

Size

16-18 cm

It has dark brown to black fur with a bright white-stripe at the junction of the body and wings. Some individuals also have an area of white-fur on the chest.

One of the largest insectivorous (microbats) in Australia, it is in the ‘free tail’ family (Molossidae) which have a strong, stiff tail projecting beyond the tail membrane.

The species was formerly classified as Tadarida australis.

Size

85 - 100 mm head and body length; free tail extends 40 to 55 mm from the body. Adult average weight 37 g.

One of Australia's most widespread birds on mainland.Mostly black with a white belly and eyebrow.  A young bird has paler, slightly rusty edges to its wing feathers.

Size

18 - 22 cm long (from head to tail)