Numbering just under 300 and standing for hundreds of years defiant against one of the harshest environments in Australia, the Miena cider gum (Eucalyptus gunnii subsp. divaricata) has been a consistent companion for the traditional custodians of the land, the Tyerrernotepanner who have lived beside and relied on nourishment from for millennia.
Its high altitude, usually dry air, and proximity to very little humanity make it an excellent observing companion for astronomy — a passtime sadly being ruined by the relentless acceleration of ‘space junk’ – criss-crossing our skies at hellish pace, and leaving inescapable light trails in their wake.
Humans have left indelible marks across virtually every environment on terra firma, like the relentless march of climate change that has driven the Ciders to the brink of extinction; particularly bad wildfire seasons in the recent decades have wiped the vast majority of the population out, leaving ghostly gnarled remains on the alpine landscape.
