More about Termites

I have now seen thousands of Termite Mounds in the northern parts of Australia, At great density in some parts, yet in other places not a single Termite Mound visible. Why this should be so I have no idea. I was prompted though to find out some more about these creatures and have downloaded some information from Wikipedia, although I have no way of checking the veracity of the data, here it is anyway:


Social organization

Reproductives

A female that has flown, mated, and is producing eggs is called a "queen". Similarly, a male that has flown, mated, and remains in proximity to a Queen, is termed a "King". Research using genetic techniques to determine relatedness of colony members is showing that the idea that colonies are only ever headed by a monogamous royal pair is wrong. Multiple pairs of reproductives within a colony are not uncommon. In the families Rhinotermitidae and Termitidae, and possibly others, sperm competition does not seem to occur (male genitalia are very simple and the sperm are anucleate), suggesting that only one male (king) generally mates within the colony.

At maturity, a primary queen has a great capacity to lay eggs. In physogastric species, the queen adds an extra set of ovaries with each molt, resulting in a greatly distended abdomen and increased fecundity, often reported to reach a production of more than two thousand eggs a day. The distended abdomen increases the queen's body length to several times more than before mating and reduces her ability to move freely, though attendant workers provide assistance. The queen is widely believed to be a primary source of pheromones useful in colony integration, and these are thought to be spread through shared feeding (trophallaxis).

The king grows only slightly larger after initial mating and continues to mate with the queen for life. (This is very different from ant colonies, in which a queen mates once with the male(s) and stores the gametes for life, and the male ants die shortly after mating.)

The winged (or 'alate') caste, also referred to as the reproductive caste, are generally the only termites with well-developed eyes (although workers of some harvesting species do have well-developed compound eyes, and, in other species, soldiers with eyes occasionally appear). Termites on the path to becoming alates (going through incomplete metamorphosis) form a sub-caste in certain species of termites, functioning as workers ('pseudergates') and also as potential supplementary reproductives. Supplementaries have the ability to replace a dead primary reproductive and, at least in some species, several are recruited once a primary queen is lost.

In areas with a distinct dry season, the alates leave the nest in large swarms after the first good soaking rain of the rainy season. In other regions, flights may occur throughout the year or more commonly in the spring and autumn. Termites are relatively poor fliers and are readily blown downwind in windspeeds of less than 2 km/h, shedding their wings soon after landing at an acceptable site, where they mate and attempt to form a nest in damp timber or earth.

Workers
Worker termite

Worker termites undertake the labors of foraging, food storage, brood and nest maintenance, and some defense duties in certain species. 3/8"-5/8", yellow/brownish with one wing.[1] Workers are the main caste in the colony for the digestion of cellulose in food and are the most likely to be found in infested wood.

A Worker Termite

This is achieved in one of two ways. In all termite families except the Termitidae, there are flagellate protists in the gut that assist in cellulose digestion. However, in the Termitidae, which account for approximately 60% of all termite species, the flagellates have been lost and this digestive role is taken up, in part, by a consortium of prokaryotic organisms. This simple story, which has been in entomology textbooks for decades, is complicated by the finding that all studied termites can produce their own cellulase enzymes, and therefore can digest wood in the absence of their symbiotic microbes. Our knowledge of the relationships between the microbial and termite parts of their digestion is still rudimentary. What is true in all termite species, however, is that the workers feed the other members of the colony with substances derived from the digestion of plant material, either from the mouth or anus. This process of feeding of one colony member by another is known as trophallaxis and is one of the keys to the success of the group. It frees the parents from feeding all but the first generation of offspring, allowing for the group to grow much larger and ensuring that the necessary gut symbionts are transferred from one generation to another. Some termite species do not have a true worker caste, instead relying on nymphs that perform the same work without moulting into a separate caste.

Termite workers usually have undeveloped eyes and are blind. Despite this limitation, they are able to create elaborate nests and tunnel systems (see below).

Soldiers
Termites with some nasute soldiers

The soldier caste has anatomical and behavioural specialisations, providing strength and armour which are primarily useful against ant attack. The proportion of soldiers within a colony varies both within and among species. Many soldiers have jaws so enlarged that they cannot feed themselves, but instead, like juveniles, are fed by workers. The pan-tropical sub-family Nasutitermitinae (The South American species of which are under review and are likely to deserve a separate taxon) have soldiers with the ability to exude noxious liquids through either a horn-like nozzle (nasus) or simple hole in the head (fontanelle). Fontanelles which exude defensive secretions are also a feature of the family Rhinotermitidae. Many species are readily identified using the characteristics of the soldiers' heads, mandibles, or nasus. Among the drywood termites, a soldier's globular ("phragmotic") head can be used to block their narrow tunnels. Termite soldiers are usually blind, but in some families, soldiers developing from the reproductive line may have at least partly functional eyes.
A nasute

The specialization of the soldier caste is principally a defense against predation by ants. The wide range of jaw types and phragmotic heads provides methods which effectively block narrow termite tunnels against ant entry. A tunnel-blocking soldier can rebuff attacks from many ants. Usually more soldiers stand by behind the initial soldier so once the first one falls another soldier will take the place. In cases where the intrusion is coming from a breach that is larger than the soldier's head, defense requires special formations where soldiers form a phalanx-like formation around the breach and blindly bite at intruders or shoot toxic glue from the nasus. This formation involves self-sacrifice because once the workers have repaired the breach during fighting, no return is provided, thus leading to the death of all defenders. Another form of self-sacrifice is performed by South-East Asian tar-baby termites (Globitermes sulphureus). The soldiers of this species commit suicide by autothysis - rupturing a large gland just beneath the surface of their cuticle. The thick yellow fluid in the gland becomes very sticky on contact with the air, entangling ants or other insects who are trying to invade the nest.[2][3]

Termites undergo incomplete metamorphosis, with their freshly hatched young taking the form of tiny termites that grow without significant morphological changes (other than wings and soldier specializations). Some species of termite have dimorphic soldiers (up to three times the size of smaller soldiers). Though their value is unknown, speculation is that they may function as an elite class that defends only the inner tunnels of the mound. Evidence for this is that, even when provoked, these large soldiers do not defend themselves but retreat deeper into the mound. On the other hand, dimorphic soldiers are common in some Australian species of Schedorhinotermes that neither build mounds nor appear to maintain complex nest structures. Some termite taxa are without soldiers; perhaps the best known of these are the Apicotermitinae.

Diet

Termites are generally grouped according to their feeding behaviour. Thus, the commonly used general groupings are subterranean, soil-feeding, drywood, dampwood, and grass-eating. Of these, subterraneans and drywoods are primarily responsible for damage to human-made structures.

All termites eat cellulose in its various forms as plant fibre. Cellulose is a rich energy source (as demonstrated by the amount of energy released when wood is burned), but remains difficult to digest. Termites rely primarily upon symbiotic protozoa (metamonads) such as Trichonympha, and other microbes in their gut to digest the cellulose for them and absorb the end products for their own use. Gut protozoa, such as Trichonympha, in turn rely on symbiotic bacteria embedded on their surfaces to produce some of the necessary digestive enzymes. This relationship is one of the finest examples of mutualism among animals. Most so called "higher termites", especially in the Family Termitidae, can produce their own cellulase enzymes. However, they still retain a rich gut fauna and primarily rely upon the bacteria. Due to closely related bacterial species, it is strongly presumed that the termites' gut flora are descended from the gut flora of the ancestral wood-eating cockroaches, like those of the genus Cryptocercus.

Some species of termite practice fungiculture. They maintain a 'garden' of specialized fungi of genus Termitomyces, which are nourished by the excrement of the insects. When the fungi are eaten, their spores pass undamaged through the intestines of the termites to complete the cycle by germinating in the fresh faecal pellets.[4][5] They are also well known for eating smaller insects in a last resort environment.

Arthur French worked in Uganda (1955-1969) on the subject of fungi and termites. There was some scientific literature, in French, by Belgians, but it dealt inadequately with the relationship between mushrooms and termites, and the best edible varieties were “termite mushrooms”. He did some work on them, with the help of the elderly Baganda women who gathered them, and published the results. For a year or two he was a world expert on termite mushrooms.

Nests
An arboreal termite nest in Mexico

Termite workers build and maintain nests to house their colony. These are elaborate structures made using a combination of soil, mud, chewed wood/cellulose, saliva, and faeces. A nest has many functions such as to provide a protected living space and to collect water through condensation. There are reproductive chambers and some species even maintain fungal gardens which are fed on collected plant matter, providing a nutritious mycelium on which the colony then feeds (see "Diet", above). Nests are punctuated by a maze of tunnel-like galleries that effectively provide air conditioning and control the CO2/O2 balance, as well as allow the termites to move through the nest.

Nests are commonly built underground, in large pieces of timber, inside fallen trees or atop living trees. Some species build nests above-ground, and they can develop into mounds.

Mounds


Mounds (also known as "termitaria") occur when an above-ground nest grows beyond its initially concealing surface. They are commonly called "anthills" in Africa and Australia, despite the technical incorrectness of that name.

A typical Termite Mound in the Northern Territory, Australia

In tropical savannas the mounds may be very large, with an extreme of 9 metres (30 ft) high in the case of large conical mounds constructed by some Macrotermes species in well-wooded areas in Africa. Two to three metres, however, would be typical for the largest mounds in most savannas. The shape ranges from somewhat amorphous domes or cones usually covered in grass and/or woody shrubs, to sculptured hard earth mounds, or a mixture of the two. Despite the irregular mound shapes, the different species in an area can usually be identified by simply looking at the mounds.

The sculptured mounds sometimes have elaborate and distinctive forms, such as those of the compass termite (Amitermes meridionalis & A. laurensis) which build tall wedge-shaped mounds with the long axis oriented approximately north-south. This orientation has been experimentally shown to help in thermoregulation.

Magnetic Termite Mounds

The column of hot air rising in the above ground mounds helps drive air circulation currents inside the subterranean network. The structure of these mounds can be quite complex. The temperature control is essential for those species that cultivate fungal gardens and even for those that don't, much effort and energy is spent maintaining the brood within a narrow temperature range, often only plus or minus one degree C over a day.

In some parts of the African savanna, a high density of above-ground mounds dominates the landscape. For instance, in some parts of the Busanga Plain area of Zambia, small mounds of about 1 m diameter with a density of about 100 per hectare can be seen on grassland between larger tree- and bush-covered mounds about 25 m in diameter with a density around 1 per hectare, and both show up well on high-resolution satellite images taken in the wet season.


Magnetic Mounds (nearly North-South Axis)

Shelter tunnels
Tunnels on a tree trunk provide a passage from the nest to the forest floor.


Nest Tunnels on a tree trunk

Termites are very weak and fragile insects. They can be easily overpowered by ants and other predators when exposed. To avoid these perils termites cover their tracks with tubing made of faeces, plant matter, and soil. Thus the termites can remain hidden and wall out unfavourable environmental conditions. Sometimes these shelter tubes will extend for many metres, such as up the outside of a tree reaching from the soil to dead branches.

To a subterranean termite any breach of their tunnels or nest is a cause for alarm. When the Formosan subterranean termite (Coptotermes formosanus) and the Eastern subterranean termite (Reticulitermes flavipes) detect a potential breach, the soldiers will usually bang their heads apparently to attract other soldiers for defense and recruit additional workers to repair any breach.

Karratha, Dampier, Miaree Pool

Most of the towns along the coast do cater to the mining workers or anyone working with Natural Gas, the shipping and port workers. As a result most campground charge fees, the likes of which I have only come across in Sydney. The Big 4 Park at Karratha charges $44 per night, obviously getting that too as there were no sites available when I arrived. I drove on to Dampier where I had stayed already last year, looking out onto the Bay, at $22 its only half of what I was quoted at Karratha.

There is a large shopping mall at Karratha, the majority of people I see are dressed in overalls with reflective markers on the sleeves and many of the vehicles in the parking lot outside are rental vehicles from Thrifty, obviously provided by the mines for their workers. There are also brand new housing estates along the road to Dampier, as well as a really large new development without any buildings under construction at this point but its obviously aimed at the steadily growing number of families working in the area

I also check out the airport for parking my 'Home' while I head down to Sydney next week. Here too, hundreds of parked cars in the overflow area with the Thrifty Logo on most of them. They obviously have been left by workers that commute to other main cities, so they leave their vehicles until they return in a few days. On the news I hear that Karratha Airport has in excess of one million passengers a year (by my estimation that equates to close to 3000! passengers per day, 365 days a year). Quite a sizeable number for such a small town!

After a few days at Dampier cooling my heels, I drive out and head west for about 40km to a campground I remember from last year, Miaree Pool.

The campers call this "Telephone Hill" as you need to get to the top to make a call.

A free site above the river, surrounded by hills that provide some shelter from the winds that seem to kick up every morning, they are covered in grass and spinifex that seem to hold onto the dust, as that seems to only be kicked up from the parking area when the wind gusts start up every morning. From my window I look down straight onto the river, mirror-like in the early morning before the wind sets in, some silver gums and many large paper barks along the river banks.

The view from my 'Home' after sunrise

A multitude of birds flock to this place, the most prominent being eagles, galahs, cockatoos, in the early mornings and before sundown hundreds of little finches with their red beaks and faces, foraging on the tall grass. At the slightest perceived threat, they take off in a cloud of wings to the nearest bush, where they rest until they feel the coast is clear again, then swarm back to the grass. Despite the bright colours of their heads they are hard to spot, melting into the background of nature.


Just before sunset, shot through my dusty window.

Peaceful it is, no outside power to plug into, so I am relying totally on my Solar cells to provide power for my fridge and my lighting at night. The skies are blue so there should not be any problem with the re-charging. I have noticed though, that there is not a lot of extra power left in my house-batteries each day, so I think I may have to replace those in the not too distant future, but will need to have them checked first somewhere in town soon.

Spectacular Karijini Gorges

The trip south from Port Hedland provides a grand scenery, changing as I go south. Wide open country, savannah with lots of Spinifex wherever I look. Soft subtle colours with sharp, contrasting colours in the general backdrop. Above all that a pale blue sky, illuminating the scene in a translucent sort of way.

Looks like a 'Mini' Devil's Marbles

The further south I get, the more the mountain ranges are standing out, no time to get bored looking at this ever-changing landscape around me. I re-fuel at Auski Roadhouse and drive further south till I get to the turn-off into Karijini National Park, the place with the most spectacular Gorges in Australia, probably anywhere, really.




Coming closer to Karijini

I pick up a brochure at the Visitor Centre from the Tour operator and call him to book myself in for the Gorges tour next morning. Dales Campground is full, so I spend the night in the 'overflow' not far from the Visitor Centre. It turns out identical as the official campground with the added incentive that its free.

The next morning I drive across to Dales Gorge, about 10km east and walk down the Gorge just after 7am. Its as spectacular as I remember from last year's visit. The light a bit on the weak side as we are having an overcast morning, therefore not a lot of shadows, a more even light for taking pictures. I walk the gorge from one end to the other, a lot of the time over boulders and at times, along narrow rock ledges.



Some views inside Dales Gorge


A lone Dingo at the bottom of Dales Gorge

I finish my own 'tour' just in time to get back to the Visitor Centre, where I am to meet up with the Tour Operator, Jeff with his bus and a group of about 10 other participants, mostly overseas tourists, some from Germany and a couple from Switzerland. Jeff has put on morning tea which includes a cup of tea and muffins, also a good opportunity to meet everyone.




View down Joffre Gorge

We drive about 40km on dirt, visit Joffre Gorge, Red Gorge and Hancock Gorge and also Weano Gorge, where some of the group have chosen to walk down to Handrail Pool in Weano Gorge. The water is very cold, so I decide not to do that part.


We have lunch around 3pm, lots of cold cuts and salads and fresh fruit. On the way back Jeff relates the story how Aboriginal people hunt Goanna:

Goanna (Reptile up to 2 metres long) has been very much on the menu for most tribes, as a rich source of protein for thousands of years. To catch it, is another story. Goannas live underground with an entry/exit hole at the top. The hunter who is to catch the reptile needs to be near that entry hole while another hunter will chase the Goanna toward its home. When the Goanna dives into its hole, the catcher gets hold of its tail and pulls it back out. No, not all the way, just enough so the hind legs come out of the hole. (They do have sharp claws and could make a mess of you in no time) The hunter then grabs both legs, breaks them and then pulls out the goanna completely and kills it with a large rock. A long stick with a bit of branch at the end, making a kind of hook, is now used to pull out the entrails through the mouth of the animal. Large rocks are heated in a fire. The reptile is placed on the stones and is cooked whole. Tastes like chicken they tell me. Me? I'm not game to try. I much prefer the real thing: It's called "Chicken"!!!

Barn Hill, Cape Keraudren, Port Hedland

I leave Broome Monday morning, heading south to Barn Hill Station, about 120km on the highway, then 10km west on a quite corrugated dirt road. The highway south starts out with scrub either side of the road but turns into grassland with wide views across the land. A fair amount of traffic, mostly caravans and other, similar vehicles. I had quite enjoyed my stay at Barn Hill last year, also because of their once-a-year event, Christmas in July. The lady at the reception tells me that its probably not going to happen this year. Instead they offer a Sunday Dinner every Sunday instead. Looks like I just missed that one and have no plans to hang around for a week. In the late afternoon lots of heavy clouds are rolling in from the ocean, the wind picks up and there is a bit of rain during the night.




A Storm moving in from the sea at Barn Hill Station

Barn Hill is a private property that runs cattle but also caters to the caravaning market. Not a bad spot, right on the beach with crystal clear water. I leave early this morning, around 7.30, planning to stay at Cape Keraudren, just to the south of 80-mile-beach. I stop at Sandfire Roadhouse to re-fuel, the continue my drive south. Its brush and Spinifex all the way, except about 20km before Pardoo Roadhouse, flat landscape, saltbush as far as the eye can see. The vegetation turns green as the ground rises before I drive through and turn right onto a 13km dirt road to Cape Keraudren, which is administered by the National Parks.

Location Map

No pets allowed. I pay the Ranger at the gate and pick a parking spot above the beach, looking north onto the southern end of 80-mile beach. Just beautiful to see the turqoise waters against the white sand on the beach.

View of my camp site, looking to Eighty Mile Beach

I am surrounded by sand dunes, covered mostly with Spinifex, lots of rocks are visible, most of them looking like Swiss cheese as they are covered with round holes of various sizes. I suspect, they have also been in the ocean a long time ago.


Looks like ice but its just salt crystal

The tide has retreated a long way, the shallow sands now showing green vegetation growing where it is covered by sea water at high tide. The ocean is coloured in a hues of blues and turquoise as far as I can see - just splendid! Again I feel that I am so lucky to experience all this splendor nature has to offer.

There is not a cloud in the sky and it turns out to be a rather cool night, so in the early hours of the morning, thge extra blanket goes on to keep me warm. I get up just before sunrise and watch the fire ball rise out of the ocean, starting to warm the place. I leave after a short breakfast to drive back on the often badly corrugated dirt road that takes me back to the highway, mostly in second gear, so I cover the distance in about half an hour.


Just a taste of some of the corrugations on the road

From the turn-off, its 152km to Port Hedland. Spinifex and low shrubs on either side, offering a wide view of a flat landscape. About 100km from my destination, hills are beginnin to appear in the distance, gradually becoming more dominant as I get nearer.

Flat landscape on road to Port Hedland

Still flat landscape, the hills rising perhaps 50 metres, usually ochre coloured with a rocky flat top. Once I am past the outcrops, there are high voltage powerlines, their steel masts marching along the horizon, a sure sign I am approaching a major industrial town. A blue canopy sky completes the scene. It has been quite windy this morning, gusts blowing from my left and trying to push me to the other side of the road. Hardly a lot of traffic, so not really dangerous, just requiring attention. The last 10km into Port Hedland are covered with railroad tracks, many of them holding carriages filled with ore to be shipped from the port. A large salt plant closer to the town has mountains of white salt piled high next to the road. If it was colder they could be mistaken as huge piles of snow.

Time to catch up from Derby

Just landed in Derby, this means I am back on the coast for the first time since leaving Darwin on 5 July. After retracing my steps from Darwin to Katherine, it felt real nice to have left the humidity of Darwin behind me. A float around the hot springs brought back memories of the hot springs at Mataranka on my way to Darwin. The place, to my amazement was very crowded compared with last year's visit, but I enjoyed it as much. Coming out of the warm river waters the ambient temperature outside always seems rather cool, so to wrap up with my towel felt real nice.

The night, also much cooler than those at Darwin, was a real relief, a good night's sleep much appreciated. Leaving the following morning, I drive on to a camp spot, about 10km west of Timber Creek, "Big Horse Creek" or #158 in my "Camps 4" book, camping amid a large stand of Boabs.


Billabong at a camp spot by the highway

I had contemplated another ride on the Victoria River but found the increase in price extraordinary since last year ($25 to now $85!) easy to see why his boat was only filled to about 20% max. Left the following morning to travel on across the border to Western Australia, stopping at Kununurra for 3 nights and taking myself onto a flight across Lake Argyle, The Bungle Bungles with adjacent gorges, yet another feast for my eyes, with lots of pictures to prove my point. I also took myself to the outskirts of the town to stock up on freshly grown fruit and vegetables straight from the growers.

When I leave Kununurra I decide to not stay at Halls Creek but put down instead at Spring Creek, some 120km east of Halls Creek instead. A good decision as it turned out to be a lovely spot right by the river, with only about another 10 campers on site. It als turned out to be a rather cold night, quite a change from the many hot nights I experienced at Darwin, just a few days ago.

Next morning I drive on to Fitzroy Crossing, staying at an almost opulent campground at the edge of town. Its good and I stay for 2 nights, as I want to explore Geikie Gorge, about 20km out of town. Its hot and dry on my walk along the gorge, the rock formations this time, lime stone. I also take a tour on the boat through the gorge. Very colourful images, also see some freshwater crocodiles who breed in this area.




Views in the Geikie Gorge near Fitzroy Crossing. The white markings on the rock wall show the water level during the wet season.

This morning I leave Fitzroy to cover the 260km to Derby. Its still Savannah country, mostly straight highway, excellent road and driving conditions. Heat haze in the distance over the road, oncoming vehicles seemingly materialising out of nowhere in the distance. This being the Kimberleys, lots of Boab trees scattered all over the landscape, Termite mounds everywhere, some spikey looking, narrow structures, some gigantic mounds, generous in height as well as girth. They also give an idea what the ground they are built on is made of, as colours change in some areas quite drastically, some grey, some brown, some dark read. The odd bunch of cattle roaming along the highway, forcing me to slow down as I can't predict just where they might wander at any given moment.

At Derby I take a tour to see the "Horizontal Waterfall", about one hour's flight from Derby Airport. Quite a spectacular flight with stunning views. The Falls are a phenomena that is caused by the huge tidal highs and lows, where sea water flows in and out of land-locked lakes through narrow gaps in the rocks. The water levels between high and low tides vary by as much as 8 metres. One can only imagine the enormous quantities of sea water that have to flow in either direction through those gaps when the tides change.




Views around the Falls...

On the way to the Horizontal Waterfalls our flightpath takes us across large tidal flats as well as a privately owned cattle station that encompasses an area of about 1.5 million hectares. The only way to access this place during the wet season is by aircraft as all roads in are under water. The location of the station buildings looks good, from the air, located on the side of a hill in a valley with a large river, supplying fresh water year round.

After the aircraft has put down on the water we taxi to a floating platform that has various boats and motor yachts tied alongside. My fellow passengers and I are taken on board one of the motor yachts where we are served coffee/tea before being taken on a joyride through the Horizontal Falls in a large inflateable rubber boat with 8 seats amidship and 8 chrome handlebars before each seat to hang onto while we are hurled at high speed, driven by hundreds of horsepower outboards through the narrows. The process is repeated several times with rest periods in between for taking photographs. It does require some skill for the driver to negotiate the rushing waters through the gaps, so its quite a rush for everyone on board.

After all this adrenalin rush we are taken back onto the Yacht where a lovely lunch of Barramundi is served. Delicious! We spend much of the afternoon relaxing in the sun before being flown back to Derby Airport. What a day!!

Darwin - again

Darwin certainly is a bustling city, modern buildings, well laid out roads and highways with a well functioning public transport system that is also affordable. Popular with tourists and visitors, I have noticed many offices of tour operators as well as travel agents in the centre of town, all catering to the needs of the many visitors.

One of the many buildings in the centre of Darwin


Crocodile leather I saw displayed in one of the tourist shops


The caravan park I am staying in also has many visitors traveling across Australia by various means, some travel in Station wagons, some in simple camper vans, others even in 4WD vehicles. Those who have planned for longer trips, usually purchase a second-hand vehicle in the city when they arrive, but needing to sell those cars again before leaving Australia. Those with time-limited travel usually get around in (more expensive) Rental Vans.

Yesterday I met 4 young German girls who are traveling, 2 in a Station Wagon, the other two in a small camper van, which they have painted and decorated all over. They all love their travel adventure across Australia, they are also relaxed with their newly found way-of-life, if only for a limited time.

Four young German Girls traveling together at Darwin