Alltrikes

Beware the Drop Bear.

                This little article came to me from the Mudgee Mauler (Bill Beamish). It's a series of Emails downloaded from the Corby Starlet Website. Of course Bill added his own flair to liven up the emails, as only he could!!!

                It starts like this:

                "Hi everyone, Well let’s see, the elevator is 90% complete, The Fin and Rudder are 75% complete (waiting for the fuselage to make any final adjustments prior to skinning. I am currently working on the Rudder and elevator horns and setting up to start the horizontal stabilizer. I'm deweling over the instruments layout via CAD, the tail wheel set up and doing my taxes. I'm shooting for June to start the fuselage layout, hope to have it sitting on the gear by November, Start the wing in Feb 2003 and first flight in June 2004. We'll see so far I'm two months behind schedule. The weather is getting better, of course that means the grass starts to grow along with other things. The Honey dew's never stop coming. oh well progress is progress.

Hope to make the 2006 party, good building all. T.W."

                "Hi All,

Tom Webber. "Honey Dews?" birdies I guess - nothing like our drop bears.... Any way, I've started my fuselage, laminated the fuselage top ¾ longerons with their ¾ doubler, a few more sticks here 'n there, some ply, then turn this "top deck" as I call it, over (to inverted) add my firewall, seatback, frames 2 & 3, and I'll be flying by the weekend!

Norm"

"Hi Australian Builders,

Barrie Bishton in NSW has a new laminated spar (unfinished state) for sale right now. I think he'd like to sell it as he is moving to a new house and workshop soon. It's made of Bollywood, a substitute for spruce used during the war years. My own spar is one of his, and they're really well made.

Sorry USA builders! I can't see how we could possibly get it to you safely. But you're welcome to come get it! just take it on board a 747 as carryon baggage.... all 18 feet of it, and tell them you got sold the mother of all souvenir boomerangs from "Down Under"!

(You should see the size of our native "Drop Bears". Whew!)

Norm"

"Norm,

I note that none of our American friends have been game to ask about the notorious, savage, carnivorous Aussie "Drop Bears". Don't blame them either, they sure scare the heck out of me!"

"Colin

Now I have a need to know.... What's a "Drop Bear"??

Your American friend, Joann."

"Hi Jo,

The Dropbear (Marsupualis Phantomus) is a particularly rare, tree dwelling, carnivorous marsupial that is native to the Australian mainland. The adult Dropbear grows to the size of a Labrador Dog and looks something like a barrel chested Koala with rather large teeth, pointy ears and a short tail. The incisors are quite prominent in the older males, similar to the Sabretooth Tiger. The Dropbear is very rare and is also nocturnal. Over the past seventy years sightings of the Dropbears have only been exceeded by Tasmanian Tigers and Yowies, both exceedingly hard to find.

The Dropbear gets its name from its method of hunting. The Bear (not really a member of the bear family) spends its days hiding in the foliage of Aussie bluegum trees (its blue speckled fur renders it practically invisible).

At night it stealthily moves to a lower branch and awaits its prey, usually other marsupials or emus. At the appropriate moment the Dropbear launches itself from the tree and onto the back of its prey, grasping the unfortunate creature by the neck with its foreclaws and sinking its fangs into its neck. Death is usually swift, as the Dropbear's fangs excrete a toxic venom that can quickly paralyse smaller animals. Once resistance has been overcome the prey is taken back into the tree or, in some cases into a nearby underground den where it is eaten.

According to colonial records Dropbears generally left humans alone with the exception of drunks. Men walking back to bush camps from the local pub often reported being set upon by a wild, bear like animal that had fallen from a tree, only to quickly disappear in the bush after a vicious slashing attack ( hence the name Dropbear). Perhaps the mysterious Dropbear is drawn to the smell of beer or perhaps it just homes in on the helpless and confused.

Although Dropbear attacks are still occasionally reported (yes, usually by staggering drunks walking under trees) concrete evidence has yet to be obtained that it was actually a Dropbear that attacked.

Colonial records also indicate that many Aboriginal tribes used semi domesticated Dropbears instead of hunting dogs. Popular tribal names for particularly favoured Dropbears included Neville, Bruce and Skallywag.

When traditional land users were hearded together and forced to live in settlements they had to release their treasured Dropbears back into the wild as they were just too vicious for full domesticated life.

Many housewives were attacked whilst bringing in the washing by Bears that had taken up residence in Grandad's bib'n brace overalls.

Land degradation, the introduction of aggressive, non-native species and increasing urbanisation has seen the Dropbear almost vanish from the Australian scene. Their demise has been good for the local Goanna farmers as the Uluru Racing Goanna was much favoured in the diet of the Large Dropbears. This particulate Goanna is now raised commercially by many farmers who formally grazed sheep on their Outback Queensland properties. The sheep became unviable due to incessant raiding by large mobs of feral Bunyips.

Bunyips will eat sheep but are quite terrified of Racehorse Goannas as the latter, when scared will run up the nearest tree, tearing off the bark with their razor sharp claws. Bunyips have long legs and leafy looking hair which makes them particularly prone to Goanna strike.

However, that's another story.

Regards, Bill B (OZ)"

Well after reading that email I was almost believing in the Dropbear myself.

Thanks Bill for another great story and I am sure it was all TRUE!