1948. At night shot another Oligopus scapulatus and a grey possum, Trichosurus, with fore legs & with the tail far less haired than that of the Benja Mountains. Tues. Night much warmer - 75° and increasing humidity + Feb.3. cloudiness. In morning cloudy & threatening. Rain began while I was out at trap line. I decided with the change of weather to pick up all traps. Found a large male Hydromys in one of the water sets along Water Park Creek. Nothing else but a couple of skinks. Spent all morning at Skimming. Simmons due in afternoon. Simmons arrived at 3.30 p.m., we were back in Rockhampton by 6 p.m. After supper went up to the gardens for the evening. The railroad strikes (all Queensland) is on. Don't know what may become of my projected travels yet. Wed. W. Vaughan, Kodak, Rockhampton Feb.4 " Harris " Townsville . Set the trays of specimens out to dry at the Botanic Gardens. Did other chores. The railroad strikes threatens to cripple my style quite badly. Am to meet local naturalist R.E. Vallis this afternoon for tea as he suggests. Met Vallis in afternoon & arranged with him to go out to a valley in th Beresken Range, east of Rockhampton, on Wednesday, Thursday. Wrote to Sipp. Thur. We set out for the Beresken almost at noon. Feb.5 It was not far. Simmons came along in his car too. We set up camp in the valley bottom by Brewers Broken Creek. The creek was rocky & filled by stones and hills. One day except for a teacup-sized hole in its basalt (or slate, ?) at which every warp, ber, & fly in the region was falling himself. The creeks before day up had proved as feeding places for countless mosquitoes. Black, high-powered insects that came at us even in hot daylight. Then we went up to set traps in the p.m. Between us we set about 50 traps, which next day resulted only in a couple of birds.