Albatrosses Grey-headed Albatross Thalassarche chrysostoma Length: 70 - 85 cm Wingspan: 1.8 - 2.05 m Grey head, neck and mantle Black bill with yellow stripes on top and bottom White body Photo: JJ Harrison Sooty Albatross Phoebetria palpebrata Length: 78 - 90 cm Wingspan: 1.8 - 2.2 m Sooty brown plumage with grey mantle, back and rump White crescent around each eye Photo: Natalie Tapson Southern Royal Albatross Diomedea epomophora Length: 112 - 123 cm Wingspan: 2.9 - 3.3 m Pure white head and body Pink bill with black line on cutting edge Dark brown or black wings with white upper wing Photo: JJ Harrison
Albatrosses Shy Albatross Thalassarche cauta Length: 90 - 99 cm Wingspan: 2.1 - 2.6 m White head and neck, pale grey cheeks Grey bill with yellow tip Grey-black mantle, tail and upper wing Sooty Albatross Phoebetria fusca Length: 85 cm Sooty brown plumage with head darker than body Fine white crescent above eye Black bill with pale yellow/orange stripe Slender, pointed wings, wedge shaped tail Photo: JJ Harrison Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans Largest of the albatross family Wingspan: 2.5 - 3.5 m White head and back with fine grey wavy lines on feathers Pale pink bill White tail, tipped with black Photo: JJ Harrison Photo: JJ Harrison
Cormorants and Coot Pied Cormorant Phalacrocorax varius Length: 65 - 85 cm Black, glossed-green back with white underparts Black stripes on thighs Long, grey, hooked bill Orange eye patch Flies in V formation Little Pied Cormorant Microcarbo melanoleucos Length: 56 - 58 cm Black above and white below Short, yellow bill Small crest Solitary benthic feeder Eurasian Coot Fulica atra Length: 32 - 42 cm Black plumage with white frontal shield and bill Photo: Jorg Hempel Photo: SeanMack Photo: Theleastweasel
Waterfowl Photo: Dale Gillard Blue-billed Duck Oxyura australis Length: 40 cm Adult breeding male has black head, chestnut to brown body and wings, blue bill Adult female and non-breeding male has medium grey plumage with light barring to head and body, dark bill Chestnut Teal Anas castanea Male has glossy green head and white flank patch Female and juvenile male similar to Grey Teal but darker Common in brackish coastal lagoons, saltwater estuaries and lower reaches of creeks Photo: PsJeremy Grey Teal Anas gracilis brown with white and green flashes on wings Males and females share same colouration Lighter coloured neck and paler face than female chestnut teal Photo: JJ Harrison
Whales Photo: Jerry Kirkhart Photo: DELWP Blue Whale Balaenoptera musculus • Length: 31 - 33.5 m Silver-grey to grey-black Slender, streamlined body Tall, straight, powerful blow Occur along Continental shelf from Nov - May, especially west of Cape Otway Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae Black or bluish-grey upper body, white underside Throat pleats Long pectoral fins (1/3 body length) Prominent double blow holes Usually seen autumn - spring Killer Whale (Orca) Orcinus orca Length: 8.5 - 10 m Mainly black with white throat to abdomen and rear flanks Grey-white patch behind dorsal fin Round body with huge head and blunt nose Tall dorsal fin in males Photo: Kat Kellner
Pipefish Photo: Saspotato Spotted Pipefish Stigmatopora argus Length: to 25 cm Very long body and snout No tail fin Usually greenish-brown with dark or pale spots Widebody Pipefish Stigmatopora nigra Similar to spotted pipefish Variable colour, from greenish to brownish depending on habitat, females often with orange line along side During breeding season, females have swollen trunk, males have small pouch on underside of tail Photo: Saspotato Photo: Saspotato Port Phillip Pipefish Vanacampus phillip long snout Brownish with blue bars on sides and indistinct bars and spots Common in bays and estuaries
Pipefish and Sea Horses Ringback Pipefish Stipecampus cristatus Length: up to 25 cm Brown to yellowish brown 9–11 narrow, irregular pale bars or blotches along the back Elevated snout ridge Found on reefs to 15 m Seasonally migrates into Port Phillip Bay, often in large numbers Big-bellied Sea Horse Hippocampus abdominalis Length: up to 35 cm Compressed body Large abdomen, completely encased in bony rings, Prehensile tail Found in depths to 100 m Photo: Saspotato Potbelly Sea Horse Hippocampus bleekeri Length: up to 30 cm Very similar to the Big Belly Seahorse, dispute about whether a separate species Longer snout and commonly has head filaments Photo: Mark6Mauro Photo: Saspotato
Image Page No. Photographer Source Licence Highland Copperhead Snake 26 Nathan Johnson Own work, Flickr BY-NC-SA 2.0 Lowland Copperhead Snake 26 Peter Shanks Own work, Flickr BY 2.0 Tiger Snake 26 DELWP Image library All rights Swamp Skink 27 Vasco Pyjama Own work, Flickr BY-NC 2.0 Growling Grass Frog 27 Tnarg 12345 Own work, commons.wikimedia.org BY-SA 3.0 (Great) White Shark 29 Ken Boundy Own work, Flickr BY-NC-SA 2.0 Grey Nurse Shark 29 Klaus Stiefel Own work, Flickr BY-NC 2.0 Shortfin Mako Shark 29 Patrick Doll Own work, commons.wikimedia.org BY-SA 3.0 Australian Mudfish 30 Tarmo A Raadik Own work All rights Cox’s Gudgeon 30 Gunther Schmida/ Lochman LT Own work All rights Empire Gudgeon 30 Gunther Schmida/ Lochman LT Own work All rights Freshwater Herring 31 Gunther Schmida/ Lochman LT Own work All rights Murray Cod 31 Jarod Lyon Own work All rights Australian Grayling 31 Tarmo A Raadik Own work All rights Silver Perch 32 MDBA Gunther Schmida Own work BY-NC Trout Cod 32 Jarod Lyon Own work All rights Yarra Pygmy Perch 32 MDBA Gunther Schmida Own work BY-NC Spotted Pipefish 33 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0 Widebody Pipefish 33 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0 Port Phillip Pipefish 33 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0 Ringback Pipefish 34 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0 Big-bellied Seahorse 34 Mark6Mauro Own work, Flickr BY NC 2.0 Potbelly Seahorse 34 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0 Shorthead Sea Horse 35 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0 Weedy Sea dragon 35 Saspotato Own work, Flickr BY NC SA 2.0