Another difference is that lizards have a flat tongue, rather than a forked one - but neither of these significant differences are obvious to a startled observer suddenly coming across an unexpected slender reptile.

Recent sightings of the olive legless lizard have been reported from Newbridge and Campbells Forest, both in the Bendigo district. The photo was taken at Newbridge, which is on the Loddon River, west of Bendigo.

There were three legless lizards found during fencing operations. All were under the surface in clay ground.

The olive legless lizard is seldom reported in the Ballarat district. I am aware of historic - but not recent - reports from the Maryborough area. It seems to be a reptile of northern Victoria rather than the Ballarat district.

A significant and endangered reptile of the basalt plains in western Victoria is the striped legless lizard, a shorter reptile with similarly-yellow face, but with stripes along its body.

The striped legless lizard can grow up to about 30cm, but the olive legless lizard is often longer than that. Both are slender, long-tailed lizards and will drop their tails if seriously disturbed.

Legless lizards feed on insects such as grasshoppers, moths and beetles, and they have a preference for land with rocks, tussocks and logs.

A sighting of a pink robin was one of the highlights of an outing to Avoca by local bird observers last weekend.

The robin was a female or immature bird, mostly brown in colour, but a pink robin of any colour is an uncommon bird inland and was a new sighting for several people.

This species is mostly found in dense forests - such as the Otway Ranges - but it moves around to more open places during the winter months. Visits to the Ballarat district are rare, and most local visits are by brown-plumaged birds.

Local reports of the stunning black-backed, pink-chested male are very few.

Other interesting birds seen at Avoca were little corella and purple-crowned lorikeet. A fan-tailed cuckoo was heard - an unexpected occurrence in winter, although the day was sunny and almost spring-like.

Another report last weekend was that of 700 swans at Lake Learmonth. These birds were wading in shallow water and probably feeding on leaves of the now-submerged goosefoot plants.

The water is not deep enough for the swans to swim.

Here are some photos of an odd-coloured raven at Lake Wendouree. It has blotches of white over its body and appears mottled, which I haven't seen before. It was near the Yacht Club.

L.R., Ballarat.

This is an unusual-looking little raven. White-marked ravens are rare - more so than unusual colour magpies.

Your photo clearly shows an adult's white eye, so the bird is more than seven months old. Perhaps it is known to regular lake walkers and Yacht Club patrons.

I am unable to say how the bird came to have that plumage. It may be a form of leucism - where a bird has more white than usual in its feathers. In summer it will moult, probably regaining a similar number of white speckles, but quite likely in slightly different places on its body. It is sure to attract attention.