In the heart of the tree

Barn Owl (Tyto alba), North-East of France near the village of Aoury

Ayers Rock, Northern territory, 1957. Photo by K. W. Jacoby.

“One of the caves at ground level, worn smooth by the ceaseless pounding of dust and sand particles borne by the wind. Such caves have formed the homes of countless birds down the centuries.

“The Rock”, situated some 250 miles south-west of Alice Springs, is one of the geological wonders of the world.

It forms one huge red monolith, six miles in circumference and 1,100 feet high. Translated into city-dwellers’ terms, that means twice the area of a considerable city and ten times as high as its buildings. Like a great turtle on a rippled beach, Ayers Rock rises without scree or foothills from the desert-truly a great rock in an empty land.“