Velvet covered

Our feral deer population is getting ready for the next round of breeding and the bucks have just about finished growing their new antlers. They have started their destructive rubbing on young trees and saplings but it is certain to get worse in the near future as most antlers are still covered with velvet.
A group have been around our property of late and today five were in the area near the house.

The deer problem seems to be in the too hard basket for any of the government departments to come up with any effective control and their area of spread just gets bigger.

Wingspread

A pair of Wedge-tailed Eagles has been around the area over the past week or so and yesterday I was able to get a photo against an overcast sky, as they cruised across the front paddock.

With a wingspan of around 2m it is Australia's largest bird of prey with a wide range, including Tasmania and southern New Guinea.