PK and Litoria look for Rufous Bettong, and on the way, meet up with Goanna

Phantom Koala, Chin Ting and Litoria talk with the Goanna about Rufous Bettong's disappearance and big boots

PK (Phantom Koala), Litoria (the Frog) and Chin Ting (the Dragonfly) have been having adventures together. They came back from their holiday at Egg Rock (across the NSW / QLD border), and decided to visit Rufous Bettong, in the Burringbar Ranges, south east of Mt Warning.

When they got to Rufous Bettongs Burringbar home, they found him GONE!!

Where had he gone? Why did he leave? Where WAS HE???

They arrived at the gully nesting spot, where they usually found him, this time of year, and to their suprise, the gully had changed!!  It was all bare, the grass had died, and fallen over, and the many of the smaller marsupials that lived there had gone.

As they bravely moved out from the forest shade, and into the sunlight of the bare gully, they met Goanna, who showed them a big boot, lying in the gully.

"There's your culprit!" said Goanna.   "That's why Rufous Bettong is no longer living here.  It was the bigboots! The ones that wear those BOOTS!"

Phantom Koala was not suprised. He had seen the big boots everywhere, in their excavators, trucks, cars, on their mowers, in their nests, in their gardens. He had even run hard from one trying to catch him while he was visiting the Tweed Coast.

"So what happened then?" Litoria asked.  "What has happened to Rufous Bettong?"

"Why",  huffed the Goanna who was lazily sunning himself next to the big old boot "why, Rufous was just napping here, on day, minding his own business, when the whole place began to smell of death. He heard the big boots coming close, and he sneaked out of the gully, and hid near that log there, till night time, then he moved up further into the hills. Oh, one more thing..... Rufous didn't leave that day, he stayed here for a few weeks longer, and finally the poison smell went away, and he stayed back in the gully, under the dead grass, in his old nest. That is, until a bigboots came along and stood on his tail - after that he packed up and left- he says he is not coming back here for a while, because it is too smelly, full of death and he is scared of big boots."

"What about the grass? What happened to the grass?" asked Litoria, still very puzzled.

Goanna looked at Litoria, sized her up as a meal, then decided she was too small, not worth it. "Well, Litoria dear, the grass is dead from the big boots and their poisons. - you are lucky you weren't here when it happened, 'cos we all know how you little Frogs feel about poisons!"

PK and Litoria were sad about Rufous Bettong moving, and after talking with Goanna for a bit, they decided to follow Rufous Bettong's tracks into the higher ranges.  It was going to be another  long journey.

 Luckily Chin Ting had flown up high, and spotted Rufous Bettong far up in the Forest. Chin Ting could show them the way!!