Beetles etc.
Creepy-crawlies are usually the domain of Ronlit on this blog, but we recently received a couple of interesting photos of invertebrates sent in by Flowerdale residents that we thought were worth showing. The swirling pattern of Heather and Steve’s tablecloth provides an elegant background for this colourfully patterned Fiddler Beetle (Eupoecila australasiae) shown at left. Fiddler Beetles feed on nectar and are strong fliers. Their larvae feed on rotting wood and vegetation.
And Dave H’s (unfortunately poor quality) image at right shows a centipede clutching and dragging its egg mass. This centipede belongs to the Order Scolopendramorpha. Centipedes of this order are quite protective parents, guarding and cleaning their egg mass, but apparently this care is not repaid in some species, as the offspring end up eating their mother ! (Ref.: Wikipedia)
Below are a couple more beetles we have come across – both leaf-eaters. Ronlit has identified the one at left as a green scarab beetle (Diphucephela sp.) which can swarm over trees and strip large amounts of foliage. The one on the right appears to be a leaf (or tortoise) beetle of the Family Chrysomelidae, probably Paropsis sp., that lays those little clumps of eggs you often see encircling the young stems of eucalypt foliage and which hatch into gregarious and voracious little leaf-eating larvae.
A six pack of legs with wings
Here are two harmless critters that make themselves known during summer but unfortunately (for them) get mistaken for mosquitos. Crane flies are of the order Diptera (from the Greek, di = two, ptera = wings). Like all true flies they only have one pair of wings. Most insects have two pairs of wings, but in Diptera, the second pair has evolved into halteres. In the photo (left), the halteres look like small clubbed antennae that sit just behind the wings. Their purpose is to stabilise the insect in flight, making it more manoeuvrable. Crane flies (family Tipulidae) feed on nectar, if they feed at all. Most adult crane flies exist only to mate.
Scorpion flies (Harpobittacus sp.)
The other mosquito look-alike is the scorpion fly. Scorpion flies are of the order Mecoptera (from the Greek, meco = long, ptera = wings). Having two pairs of wings they therefore are not true flies. They are so-named because the abdomen on the male curves upward like that of a scorpion. Scorpion flies feed on plants and nectar. During mating the males tempt the females by offering them insect treats. While the female is distracted by eating, mating occurs. The photo (right) shows the male clinging to an Australian Buttercup (Ranunculus lappaceus) while the female (lower) eats during mating.
I’d like to chat longer but I’m taking my partner out to lunch.
The Chubster has left the building
Tight fit
Chubster is a Common Brushtail Possum (Trichosaurus vulpecula) who used to live in our nest box. The possum is so nicknamed not because it is particularly chubby, but because it just seemed to be huge compared to the hole it had to negotiate every night. The photo (left) is the last known image of Chubster trying to wiggle and squeeze itself into the building. A post at the end of last year (click here to view) surmised that due to its size and the upcoming warmer weather, Chubster had not long to reside in these very cosy premises.
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We’ll take it
Even before Chubster had left, prospective tenants, in this case two Common Ringtail Possums (Pseudocheirus peregrinus), were lining up to view the property. And sure enough, last week we noticed that the new tenants had moved in – both of them together. This behaviour is not unusual as these possums commonly live in a communal nest called a drey. Although much smaller than Chubster, in the recent hot weather we have observed these ringies hanging various bits of themselves out of the nest box entrance, or just catching a breath of fresh air.
Home sweet home
As it turns out, Chubster may be gone but it has not forgotten its old home. Every night the possum sits on the roof of its old abode and peeks in the hole at the new tenants. There must be a law against that.
Just passing
Phascogale features again
We have had a number of previous posts on the Brush-tailed Phascogale (Phascogale tapoatafa) [just enter ‘phascogale’ in the Search This Site box at right for a list of posts to view], but we never tire of seeing pictures of this fascinating animal, and hope you don’t either. So we have included more remote camera shots in video format of a phascogale at our bird-bath, including close-ups of it peering inquisitively at the camera.
Spikey’s trip to the office
When the temperature is over 40oC the last thing you want to do is dig holes looking for ants all day in the hot sun. It’s best to find a cool place to hang out.
This must have been what Spikey, a local Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus), was thinking when he wandered into Ric and Sal’s office in Flowerdale a couple of weeks ago. Ric and Sal had the door open trying to catch a breeze. Spikey initially tried to burrow in the corner, aiming for a spot in the North Atlantic just west of the Azores (no, the opposite side of the world from Flowerdale is not China!). Finding the concrete floor too much like hard yakka, Spikey did the next best thing – sat down and watched other people work.
I hope it wasn’t too much of an ant-i-climax.
Woodswallows around
Adult and juvenile Dusky Woodswallows
Dusky Woodswallows have recently arrived back at our place near Strath Creek after a lengthy absence. The flock includes a number of streaked juvenile birds still being fed. They are a joy to watch with their aerobatics and their habit of snuggling up in groups when perching, often preening each other. Like most woodswallows, they are communal and gather together in clusters to roost at night along a branch or in large tree hollows.
The most nomadic of the woodswallows are the White-browed and Masked Woodswallows which may turn up in large numbers, often in mixed flocks – we had 30 or more White-browed Woodswallows lined up along our clothes-line one October day in 2002 – an impressive sight !
The white marking along the outer edge of the wing distinguishes the Dusky Woodswallow from all other woodswallows. Its calls can be heard by clicking on the arrow on the sound bar below.
Young Dusky Woodswallow
Feeding time
Part of the gang
Insect real estate listings
Unique design
Original muddie
You’ll go potty for this original mud-brick dwelling under a sturdy overhang. The owner-builder, a single-parent Potter Wasp (family Vespidae, sub-family Eumeninae), has built this dwelling using local materials, i.e. mud and regurgitated water. The dwelling has only been used as a storage space for paralysed insects and subsequently as an only-child nursery. If you are looking for a distinctive property in a protected location, this one is for you. Go on, you’ve urned it.
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Timber craftmanship
Log cabin in original condition
Attractively situated on a driveway gate-post the residence has commanding 360-degree views over the surrounding area (but no windows). This cosy one-roomed dwelling is the perfect place for a romantic getaway with your larva. Currently tenanted by a member of the Lepidoptera family, this home is expected to become vacant in early spring.
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Wide entrance hall!
Fit for a queen
Fancy a below-ground pool? This residence has below-ground everything and room to house the entire extended family. Features include saliva and chewed plant fibre wall linings, extra large larder for storing caterpillars and an extended nursery big enough to hold 1000s. Current tenants, the European Wasp (Vespula germanica), are leaving in the winter. And there are no noisy neighbours to worry about either. They have all been eaten.
A sad sight
A car skidding to a halt, rapidly reversing and roaring off on the dirt road right outside our place alerted us to the likelihood of a snake being run over. Sure enough, on inspection we found a mangled Common (or Eastern) Brown Snake (Pseudonaja textilis), complete with 8 undamaged eggs. The Common Brown Snake is oviporous and can lay up to 35 eggs with an average clutch of about 15. It got us pondering some questions: are all the eggs formed at once with a single fertilisation, or over a longer period with multiple fertilisations, or can the female snake retain sperm for fertilisation at an appropriate time? – any answers or comments would be appreciated.
If this snake kill was deliberate, it is not only senseless, but also illegal, as snakes are protected under the Wildlife Act – we wonder if the driver is aware of this (or even cares!). But perhaps we should be generous and assume the snake was accidentally run over and the driver reversed to put the injured animal out of its misery.
Here’s looking (& looking, & looking) at you, kid
The shriek from downstairs could mean only one of two things. Either I had accidentally mixed the coloureds with the whites (again!) or there was a spider nearby. The subsequent calls for help suggested the latter. And there it was. A 173-centimetre person standing on a chair bailed up by an equally frightened one-centimetre spider.
The spider was a Wolf Spider (Family Lycosidae). Wolf Spiders live in most places on the globe, especially in our downstairs studio. They are agile hunters with excellent eyesight. In fact they have eight eyes in three rows –four small eyes, above which sit two larger eyes with two medium-sized eyes above that (see image). At night Wolf Spiders are easy to locate with a torch. The ‘eye-shine’ (light reflected back from the eyes) on some nights makes our driveway look as if it is scattered with diamonds.
Because I have been threatened with physical violence if I publish a spider photo on this blog by several members of the community I have discreetly embedded the image in a video. If you wish to view a face only a mother (or an optometrist) could love, click on the video below.
At the time of going to press, another of our eight legged, hairy brethren turned up at the Three Sisters. It looked like a Victorian Funnel-web Spider (Hadronyche modesta), a far less poisonous relative of the Sydney Funnel-web Spider. It is lucky that it did not turn up in our studio. There would not have been an intact pane of glass in the valley. Its image has been added to the video clip (which may take a few moments to load).
Summer daze
Dig those funky pyjamas
The cicadas are singing, the stomach is full of wattle seeds and there’s a balmy breeze blowing. What is a bird supposed to do in the summer heat? Take a siesta of course. Seen recently was a pair of Gang-gang Cockatoos (Callocephalon fimbriatum) having a snooze in the arvo.
And to think I thought the female (seated right) was a boring grey colour!
Focus On Fauna 