“You’re Gonna Go Far” (And I Did)
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Hello from down under!
I have almost officially completed the first month of being in Australia with the SIT: Rainforest, Reef and Cultural Ecology program! It has been a whirlwind of changes and a lot of “pinch me” moments. A little over a month ago, I was so nervous to not only start a new semester in a completely new country, but also to travel internationally for the first time ever.
But Noah Kahan said, “You’re gonna go far”. So I hopped on that plane, and 25 hours later, I was certainly far!
Pro tip to anyone with a 14 hour flight: don’t sleep for the five hour flight you have beforehand and then SLEEP!!!! 14 hours of flying is a lot less daunting when you’re asleep for 8-12 of those hours.
The last month has consisted of a lot of learning, hiking, wildlife, culture and great friends. We switch between traditional classroom learning and going out into the field for research, observations, and learning from different Aboriginal people about their culture and connection to the land! Here come some of those pinch me moments I mentioned earlier.
Week 1
The first week consisted of a lot of hiking, a crocodile tour, and a visit to a wildlife habitat where we got to meet (and pet) kangaroos!
And, of course, the highlight of the week was swimming the Great Barrier Reef! We saw two whitetip reef sharks, tons of fish, and of course, the most beautiful coral you can imagine. It was crazy looking out and only seeing dark splatters of coral, and then going underwater and just seeing color and life everywhere. It definitely made remembering to breathe through my mouth a bit hard since I was just so awestruck looking around.
Pro tip: when your professor tells you to double up the motion sickness medication beforehand, do it.
Week 2
Week 2 was the start of our 11 day Rainforest Excursion. We drove ~2 hours south to the Atherton Tablelands where there is more diverse rainforest habitats available for us to explore.
On the way down, we stopped at a forest that had a natural rock slide, so of course we had to try it out. This rock slide has been smoothed out so much, it actually was easier to slide down than you would think! The water here is FREEZING but you look up and all you see is trees, vines, and these massive mountains so you suddenly don’t care. Along with hearing tons of birds calling in the distance or right above you, what even is cold anymore?
Once we got to the tablelands, we went to another park where we got to see the GIANT bird you see attached above. This is a Southern Cassowary (Cass-Oh-Wary). Australia’s heaviest native bird, and an important keystone species for the rainforest. They can grow up to 2 meters (6ft 6in!) and can be extremely dangerous if threatened. With that information, imagine this bird coming within inches of you on a path while you were just strolling through the forest. Well, we didn’t have to imagine! The image doesn’t capture enough how large this bird was. I can’t even. They’re so cool, but I’m ok never getting that close again.
Week 3
Week 3 was all about our Rainforest Project where we compared three different rainforest sites and surveyed the animal diversity there over three days. Over 90 minutes of observations per site! Being a self-proclaimed new bird nerd, this was the best time for me. Learning the new calls, how to ID new birds, and then being able to find them in the field?! Perfection.
In between that project, we also got to go to the largest bat hospital in Australia. These bats were at the hospital for various reasons, but the main one was entanglement with barbed wire, as the Atherton Tablelands has a lot of farmland with cattle. These bats were. So. Cute. Some of them were smaller than my hand, and some were so large, their wings spanned three feet long! Most of the bats at the hospital, however, can no longer fly due to injuries from the barbed wire. But they are thriving at the hospital, and it was so encouraging to see them given a second chance.
Before leaving our excursion, we also got a tour from an Aboriginal teacher on his land, but out of respect for his culture and Aboriginal laws, I will not be sharing pictures or information on what was shared.
All of this was done in only three weeks, which makes me so much more excited for what the next three will look like. It really does make me laugh at how nervous I was before going abroad, and how different this program has been from how I thought it would be. In the best ways possible, of course. To anyone out there thinking of going abroad, don’t let the distance stop you! It might just surprise you.
Cheers,
Maddie
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