AUSTRALIA ~The Dogs that Saved Macquarie Island -UNESCO~

...As being a dog lover and owner this fantastic postcard is such a wonderful new addition to my collection...a stamp honour for dogs who saved the island...eleven dogs, mostly springer spaniels and Labrador retrievers, worked tirelessly to hunt and eradicate rabbits and rodents...the island owed its pest-free status to the dogs... an important part of their training was to teach the dogs not to disturb native animals...the postcard also shows the bad conditions that the dogs had to work in...Thanks so much Xue!!❣◕ ‿ ◕❣

Gary Bowcock and his hunting dogs -Photo by Chris Crerar- © Tasmania Parks&Wildlife Service. Macquarie Island is a subantarctic island located in the Southern Ocean, approximately half way between Australia and Antarctica.

Macquarie Island or “Macca” as it is often called is a Nature Reserve managed by the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service. The island and surrounding waters out to 12 nautical miles were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997 as a site of major geoconservation significance, as an island of unique natural diversity and one of the truly remarkable places on earth. The land under the sea, all flora and fauna including fish and marine plants are completely protected.

Macquarie Island was listed as a UNESCO WHS site in 1997.

A maxicard is a prepaid postcard with a stamp affixed and postmarked on the view side. The subject matter of a maxicard is common to the card, stamp and postmark.

 On 9th of September Australia Post issued a set of four maxicard on Macquarie Island and its dogs.

AUSTRALIA ~MACQUARIE ISLAND -King Penguins-UNESCO~

...Another little gem to add to my collection...a heaven for wildlife, penguins everywhere..the landscape is shaped by water and wind...great stamps and awesome cancellation...Thanks a million Rod  for this fantastic and unique surprise!!

Photo Barend Becker From the backside:
King Penguins are the second largest penguin in the world and the largest on Macquarie Island. The breeding cycle takes approximately 14 months to complete, a successful pair will breed twice every 3 years.

World heritage listed Macquarie Island Nature Reserve, located approx. 1500km south-east of Tasmania is proudly managed by the Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service, with support from the Australian Antarctic Program.

Stamps:
Bicentenary of Macquarie Island
Macquarie Island Cabbage Flower -Southern Elephant Seal
(Issued 26-10-2010)

1911-1914 Australian Antarctic Expedition
Arrival and exploration 1912
(Issued 04-09-2012)

AUSTRALIA ~Minke Whale~

Received an awesome whale card with a lovely First day Issue stamp on the front! It is a great new addition for my whale collection... Thanks a lot Xue!!:D

Australia considers the AAT (Australian Antarctic Territory) to be a distinct Australian territory, and release of AAT stamps helps to emphasise this claim since 1957.

The Antarctic minke whale is one of the smallest baleen whales. It has a slender, streamlined body with an elongated head. Minke whales grow to be about 7.8-9m long, weighing about 5,400-6,800kg.

AUSTRALIA ~First Day Issue-Antarctic Expedition~

Due to serious back problems I was not be able to sit for long... But now I'm feeling a bit better so here are my cards received this week!
...Thanks Alex for the great information about my Taiwan postcard and Nenad if you still are interested in a swap just email me.

Wonderful maxicard and I love the theme...

Australia is celebrating the 100 years of Antarctic expeditions.This is the first of four stamp series which will be issued every year until 2014.
Birdlife on Macquarie Island. The main photograph was taken by expeditioner Harold Hamilton.