Excursion to Summerleas, June 2007 
Report by Janette Smith 
Saturday 9 th June was one of those clear winter days when frost and ice linger on the high reaches and gullies 
of the mountain while the lower land is bathed in bright, almost warm, sunshine. Thirteen naturalists and two 
children, James and Emily met at the Fem Tree Tavern to regroup before traveling to Attila Vrana’s property 
that lies between Summerleas Road and Brown's River. Attila met the group at his house on the ridge and 
after handing out maps that showed the series of paths that he had cut throughout the land he, and his canine 
companion Eccles, led the way. We initially passed through dry sclerophyll forest that gradually became wet 
forest as we descended approximately 250m down into the shaded gullies. 
Half way down the hill Attila showed us the remnants of a cottage that now lies beneath a swathe of 
Periwinkle. Pointing out the mound that had once been the chimney he told us some of the history about the 
family who had lived there. Mrs Street, he said, had survived hard times when her husband was fighting in 
WW11 by taking in ironing to provide for her five children. The freshly ironed garments were pushed back 
up the hill in a pram. 
Attila took us on a detour along an overgrown path to where two gullies met. Once the slopes had been 
planted out with raspberry canes but the surrounding forest had long since reclaimed the land. At the point 
where we stopped to admire two large symmetrical Dicksonia antarctica, Robyn noticed numerous wolf 
spider burrows in a mossy bank, and though vibrations were created with a tiny stick none could be enticed 
to venture out. Back onto the main track, Mark showed the group the tiny reflexed hooks on Uncinici riparia 
that aids the sedge to spread its seed by attaching to the fur or socks of passing traffic, (see photo below) 
The chann of the river flats were enhanced by the sight of three riders astride dark horses. The horse's breath 
mingled with the mist and filtered sunlight in the gully. As the riders headed uphill we examined fungi that 
Robyn affectionately calls chocolate tops and ginger nuts, and recent diggings thought to be made by 
potoroos. We crossed the river to look at the old swimming hole further downstream and here Janet searched 
in the river and found a rock to show us a very mobile Stonefly nymph, Mayfly nymphs and tiny 
Trichopteran larvae that had attached themselves into a crevice on the rock. 
With the promise of a sunny spot to stop for lunch, Attila led us along a track cut into the bank above 
Browns River where more discoveries of fungi kept Geoff busy with his camera. At the lunch stop young 
James discovered a skull, thought to be the remains of a common brushtail possum. 
Throughout the day we crisscrossed the land, forded streams, pushed our way through undergrowth and 
followed tracks both open and intimately narrow. We climbed over and under fallen logs, we went downhill 
and uphill and all the while Attila shared stories about his land and local history. The bird life stayed mostly 
out of sight but we did hear some activity including a Dusky Robin, a Golden Whistler and Yellow Throated 
Honeyeaters. Robyn found a tiny nest made of twigs and moss that had been dislodged in the wind. The ever 
changing vegetation brought questions to mind such as, how do the vines reach high into the canopy without 
growing up the trunk? Why is this bank almost completely covered in Kangaroo fem when we have seen 
very little of it elsewhere? And what makes the Native current grow so thickly in the gullies where once men 
covered the slopes with their cultivated plots of small fruit? 
At the end of a five hour walk we ascended to the higher ridges to once again see the mountain, almost 
obscured by a pale blue haze created by the late afternoon sunshine. Sore feet and leeches aside, the day was 
a wonderful experience of both private and shared discoveries and for those who could linger a little longer, 
was finished off with more of Attila’s generous hospitality of coffee and nibbles by the fire and the comfort 
of a weary but happy Eccles with his nose snuggled into a lap. 
Geoff s excursion photo of Uncinia riparia. It is from the Cyperaceae family (same family as 
Gahnia and Gymnoschoenus and Lepidospermct 
belong to). Uncinate is a botanical Latin term 
meaning hooked (specifically a recurved hook) and 
riparia means "of the river". The species often forms 
massive swards along flood flats of rivers but is also 
common in wet sclerophyll forest on slopes. 
[Mark Wapstra] 
Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club BULLETIN 327 July 2007 p3 
