hollowed mandarin
mandarin leavings
For a couple of weeks now, something (besides Frank and me) has been enjoying our mandarins. We wondered if maybe it was a bird because cockatoos have been seen in the tree – I even saw one carrying away a mandarin – but since most of the damage appears in the morning, I’m pretty sure it’s a nocturnal creature; either a possum or a flying fox (fruit bat). Many of the mandarins remain on the tree with only a small hole in the skin and no flesh inside which leads me to think an animal with more manual dexterity than a parrot is at work here.
It’s not a problem, after 2 1/2 months we’re still eating a half-dozen or more mandarins every day and it looks like we’ve got a good 2 weeks of fruit left on the tree. But it is a curiosity. Anyway, I’m happy that my little tree can satisfy the appetites of the local fauna with plenty left over for me!
nearly naked mandarin tree
Laura Rittenhouse's Gardening Journal 
wow, that is strange – I have noticed some passionfruit in my garden with the same symptoms….
Passionfruit has a pretty hard skin – whatever is after yours must be really determined. My plant was totally killed off just before I moved back to Sydney so I’m hoping this year I’ll get some passionfruit. And now I guess I’ll hope I get to eat it myself.
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