Full Record

David Ride : [field notebook] : Scott River April 1962
Record no:
Call no:
FN186
Author:
Year:
22 - 24 April 1962
Description:
8 p. : ill. ; 16 cm.
Subject:
Type:
Archives
Abstract:
22nd April 1962
Left Nedlands for Bayswater to pick up Harry Butler and Trevor (aged 10), filled up all tanks at Armadale, Mt. William E. of Waroona. Turned off main road & camped for night. Started to rain and children had first experience of bush living by sleeping in a wet tent. kept remarkably dry in their bedding. Kangaroo shooters spotlighting up the road during the night.


Roberts gave wans (?) pale lot from near old Flinders Bay Jetty in salt water or fresh water soak at sea edge, gravy under seaweed (rotten banks). Blue lot tol edge of Black River Darradup.

> 23 April 1962
Nannup. Turned south along Brockman Hwy to Darradup - (Roberts farm), rear tank going empty, finally switched to main tank, Roberts farm. Saw and photographed egg, a fantastic thing, perfect, slightly eroded, closest thing to Aepyornis egg I have seen. Belongs to Vic Roberts a brother of Jim Roberts who is photographed with the egg. Jim Roberts says that he also found a skull with it. Jim Roberts agreed to take us to the beach where Vic Roberts is camped.

Back to Brockman Highway, turnoff to left, jarrah water tree on side of road, probably an old aboriginal watertree, stockyard, native well just before it (called Canegrass stockyard), collected small crustacea (jilgie sized - Butler calls "blue manna"), also Rhodana. Crossed Stewart Highway, complicated set of tracks and arrive at Beach property, approx 2 miles inland from beach. Went spotlighting, collected 2 small Pseudophryne, Grey kangaroo, skin and skull, male, WR87. Shot Butler in flat country, dense scrub about waist high, banks of Scott River. True Grey not Blackfaced.

> 24th April 1962.
Drove to the Egg locality on the beach east of fenceline, Sussex loc. 449 (Dunnet's), Sussex loc. 735 (Lindsay). Where it comes down to the beach the Egg was found 320* east of the fence at the foot of an eroded "cliff face"in a stabilized dune system. The blowout has now extended back widening the beach in which the Egg was exposed and losing out to a lower point which seems to be on an old soil or somp earth surface.

Contact Mrs Longbottom (sister) at daughter Mrs Green , 91 Dorset St., Busselton. The egg was found in 1930 or 31 by Victor C. Roberts in the company of Chris Warris and David Shanks. The egg was nearly fully exposed and completely filled with sand. Vic slightly enlarged a hole in eroded face & poured out the sand. Vic seems to remember  that the sand also contained fragments of "egg membrane" a tissue-like material which Roberts now thinks to have sealed off the inside of the shell. At the same time the shell was found about 200* E again of the egg. This was said to be like a dolphin skull which Jim Roberts saw is said by Roberts to have had tooth holes.

[V. C. Roberts, Scott R. via Augusta, W.A.]
Examined the locality carefully and found a human skeleton on the beach at about the same level on which the egg lay. [Sketch of site].

> Left Roberts' place, stopped at Scott R., netted in pools at bridge: Atherines, Bostockia, Pygmy Perch, Galaxias (banded, white striped) Gobies. Stopped at small series of runnels in jarrah ironstone country just north of Scott R. plains (called "the ironstone" - water gives trots, cannot be drunk).

Yards Canebreak
Stewart Highway
Brockman Hwy
Roberts farm turnoff
Nannup Post Office
Arrived back Perth 0300 hrs.
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