Preparing for Rain

Today, Gardening Australia featured “Aunty Fran” an aboriginal elder in NSW who is not only a keeper and educator of Aboriginal knowledge she is also a scientist.  Aunty Fran holds degrees in Environmental Science, Geomorphology and Climatology.  The knowledge through her degrees and that which has been passed down through her Aboriginal mother has provided Aunty Fran with a holistic approach to the environment.  In the episode she describes how the behaviour of ants can give forecasts of coming weather.   She described how meat ants build up the walls round their nests to protect them from coming rain.  When I went out at lunch time I found a cluster of ants’ nests which were a hive of activity with ants bringing out insect carcasses and laying small stones around the entrance.  The forecast is for 5-10mm in about 24 hours, so we will have to wait and see.