J

@paleoluko (IG) flew out from Denver for an Eastern Oregon paleontology trip! Exploring Clarno and John Day units and searching for the small Cretaceous lenses. Lucas easily identified some bone at one of the spots we went to. Every geo nerd needs a good paleo friend!!

May 15-18, 2025

@paleoluko (IG) flew out from Denver for an Eastern Oregon paleontology trip! Exploring Clarno and John Day units and searching for the small Cretaceous lenses. Lucas easily identified some bone at one of the spots we went to. Every geo nerd needs a good paleo friend!!

Royal botanical Garden in Sydney Australia

January 25, 2025

Eric, The Precious opalized pilosaur at the Australia museum.

Trip to Manly Beach in Australia, January 25, 2025

While I was in Sydney, the Royal botanical garden was having an extremely rare corpse flower bloom. The stench only lasts four hours which happened to peak overnight so I didn’t smell anything. These flowers may stay dormant for many years and then are only in full bloom for several days. 1/24/25

Sydney Australia Bridge climb January 21, 2025

The lyrebird has one of the most complex vocals in the animal kingdom. It has the ability to mimic sounds of other birds and man made noises. It is one of the world’s largest song birds. You can hear it mimicking a kookaburra here. It was so lovely to listen to this incredible bird. 1/22-24/2025

Superb lyrebird, red bellied snake. Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba, Australia

Jan 22-24, 2025

Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba, Australia

Jan 22-24, 2025

Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba, Australia

Jan 22-24, 2025

Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba, Australia

Jan 22-24, 2025

Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba, Australia

Jan 22-24, 2025

Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba, Australia

Jan 22-24, 2025

Three days in Australia’s Blue Mountains

Jan 22-24, 2025

One of the craziest lightning storms I’ve ever seen

1/18/25

250 million year old petrified forest in New South Wales Australia near Swansea headlands. Beach, sun, petrified wood, cold beer, and an awesome lightning storm show!!

Jan 16-18, 2025

In typical Aussie fashion, I landed and went on a Worimi cultural quad tour - Worimi Aboriginal people have been here for over 65,000 years and is one of the oldest continuous cultures. They would gather and eat shellfish leaving behind large shell deposits called middens.

When I booked this flight, I knew I’d be flying over Aotearoa at sunrise and opted to pay extra for the window seat, hoping for views like this. Felt complete as I looked down on the mountains and valleys that I had spent two weeks exploring.

Thank you @samatinstagram @darian_olivia for hosting me

When I booked this flight, I knew I’d be flying over Aotearoa at sunrise and opted to pay extra for the window seat, hoping for views like this. Felt complete as I looked down on the mountains and valleys that I had spent two weeks exploring.

Thank you @samatinstagram @darian_olivia for hosting me

They have a territory of .5-2km of a river. There was a captive breeding program in the UK for the ducks, but it failed in 2012 when the two male ducks formed a same sex relationship instead of with the female that was with them.

1/9/2025-1/11/2025

Blue ducks aren’t really blue and they are endemic to New Zealand. Their only natural predator was from above, so they adapted to blend in perfectly with the river rocks. But invasive species have limited their habitat and numbers and now are endangered. They aren’t great flyers but strong swimmers

Cedar Flat Hut - the native cedars are so beautiful.

Duck, duck, rock! In this river there were also two blue ducks. Also named whio, which translates to whistle in Māori, for their high pitch calls.

Stayed two nights among this magical forest of tree ferns, native cedars, hot springs, and jade boulders.

1/9/2025 - 1/11/2025

Stayed two nights among this magical forest of tree ferns, native cedars, hot springs, and jade boulders.
Thank you (insta @kadensaywell) for the beautiful photos of me, they capture the serenity and mystique of this valley. I will cherish these memories and photos forever 💚

1/9/25 - 1/11/25

Whekī, the tree fern endemic to Aoteroa makes you feel like you are walking back in the Jurassic.

Stayed two nights among this magical forest of tree ferns, hot springs, and jade boulders.

1/9/2025 - 1/11/2025

Stayed one night in the cutest town on the west coast - Hokitika. Got some real fruit New Zealand ice cream and enjoyed a beautiful sunset on the beach with views of Aoraki. Once it got dark I went and checked out the glow worms.

1/8/25

Hokitika gorge 1/7/25

Hokitika gorge 1/7/25