PLANNING AND ORGANIZING COMMITTEE 2016

President: Position vacant

Vice President: Alisha Steward. 07 3275 1186

Treasurer: Rob MacSloy 07 3824 4348

Secretary: Rob MacSloy (acting) 07 3824 4348

Magazine: Daphne Bowden (daphne.bowden!1 @bigpond.com) 07 3396 6334

Publicity and Library: Lois Hughes 07 3206 6229

Field Trip Co-ordinator: Paul Klicin 0411 031 406

Committee Members: John Moss 07 3245 2997

Richard Zietek 07 3390 1950

PLANNING AND ORGANIZATION MEETINGS

A quarterly meeting is scheduled 1n order to plan club activities and the magazine.

See BOIC Programme.

CONTACT ADDRESS AND MEMBERSHIP DETAILS

PO Box 2113, Runcorn, Queensland 4113

Membership fees are $30 for individuals, schools and organizations.

AIMS OF THE ORGANIZATION

e To establish a network of people growing butterfly host plants;

e To hold information meetings about invertebrates;

e To organize excursions around the theme of invertebrates e.g. butterflies,

native bees, ants, dragonflies, beetles, freshwater habitats, and others;

e To promote the conservation of the invertebrate habitat;

e To promote the keeping of invertebrates as alternative pets;

e To promote research into invertebrates;

e To encourage the construction of invertebrate friendly habitats in urban areas.

MAGAZINE DEADLINES

If you wish to submit an item for publication the following deadlines apply:

March issue — February 1° June issue — May 1*

September issue — August 1* December issue — November 1*

All articles should be submitted directly to the Editor daphne.bowden1l(@bigpond.com

ALL MATERIAL IN THIS MAGAZINE IS COPYRIGHT TO BOIC AND THE

AUTHORS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS INVOLVED.

COVER PAINTING

The plains of Expedition Range: near dusk — Painting by Andrew Atkins

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 2

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

WORDS FROM THE VICE PRESIDENT

I hope everyone has been enjoying the invertebrate delights that this hot weather brings!

No doubt many of you in south-east Queensland would have witnessed the amazing

abundance of Caper Whites recently undergoing their migration (see /n the Garden on

page 43 for some photographs of these lovely butterflies).

We have some important announcements and requests of our members. Firstly, the

position of club President is now vacant as Frank Jordan has resigned due to a change in

personal circumstances. We thank Frank for his role as President and call for nominations

for this position. The position of Secretary is also available and 1s an important role in the

club. Please register your interest if you feel you could make a worthwhile contribution.

Secondly, I urge members who would like to become more involved 1n the club to

consider submitting articles for the magazine, and/or attending our quarterly 'committee

and planning meetings’. This is a great way to find out more about the club, meet other

members, and contribute ideas. Our club has evolved significantly over the years and we

couldn't have continued and produced such a wonderful magazine without the dedication

and hard work of our members. However, members come and go and sometimes we get

stuck... fresh ideas are always welcome and keep the club and magazine relevant and

stimulating!

We welcome magazine articles of various shapes and sizes - from detailed technical or

scientific reports, to simply a photo of an interesting bug from your garden asking "What

is this?" A lot of knowledge of host plants and invertebrate distribution data can come

about this way. PhDs or scientific training are not prerequisites ©.

Please remember that our club 1s run by members for members, and we can't do this

without you!

Finally, as members of my insect-loving family like to say during the festive season,

"Merry Chrysalis!" Alisha

Cover Story:- A SpeGiall Rid GG... cccerrvvverevesyertevebynn eve tetebees tenses teers teleebenebeeateleebeer beta eety teres +

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Life history notes on the Large Purple Line-blue, Nacaduba berenice berenice ............044. 19

Aim update-on The CID, WebSites... crcurcresseerseebscetseeteusticetdnrhenatinebdechsnebsnerducbeetsonndanetneeals 22

Gardening for Butterflies - Heathland and Wetland Gardens ..............ccccccceeecccceseeeeceeeeeeeees 24

Recent Butterfly Observations in Bundanoon, Southern Highlands NSW .................... eee 26

Book Reviews - Insects of South-Eastern Australia ............cccccceesccccssseccceseecceeeesccceeeeceeaeees 27

The Butterfly Fauna of Sri Lanka... ecccccssecccesseccceeeceeeeeceeeeeeeeeeees 30

Miniature Lives, Identifying Insects in Your Home and Garden .............. 33

Reports - Springbrook National Park Field TTip uu... ccc ceeeccccessecceceeeecceeeeeceseeeeceeeeees 34

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 3

COVER STORY

A Special Ridge — Andrew Atkins

‘Unthinking, you drift into a memory landscape of deeply living activity: all about the

song and colour of nature; boundless micro-stories of survival, instinct and passion’.

Anon.

Everyone experiences those rushes of blood, racing heartbeats and the unhidden joy

when exploring new landscapes; just a touch of apprehension bound with

inquisitiveness, perhaps brashness; an explorer’s motivation - a naturalist’s

excitement. Memories abound, but for me, those most indelible are the collecting days

at Blackdown Tableland, Central Queensland: the sun’s spreading intensity, harsh

bush calls, weary walks amid a sometimes hostile understory, but beautifully

challenging. Add the wildlife, the early summer storms, remoteness - and azure

butterflies spinning in the sky.

Warm early morning thermals lofted the Cessna easily to 3,000 metres. This was early

1970, and, as part of Australian Broadcasting, Rockhampton Queensland (ABRQ-9)

film production unit, we were heading to Emerald to do a ‘doco’ on quarter horses.

Just under the forty-minute flight a majestic sloping arrowhead of highlands appeared

to the south. The pilot leaned across “Expedition Range - sandstone country,

discovered by Ludwig Leichhardt in 1847” he said. Now soaring above the highest

northern tip, a pale creamy-orange steep ridge of cliffs, cut by narrow, violet gorges

breached above a surrounding ocean of blue-grey brigalow woodland. An instant

moment of recall: those past, productive ‘sand stone’ field trips to the Grampians and

the Blue Mountains to the distant south. This range looks butterfly-friendly!

Filming done (there was no video-tape 1n those days), we returned in the late haze.

The pilot generously banked the aircraft to reveal below a rusty railway line, and

parallel to this, a glistening (with broken wind-screen crystals) Capricorn Highway

fringed with dust columns. Just south of Dingo and Bluff, a small sandy track traced

its way through dry-sclerophyll forests and forked toward a lonely grazing settlement

with rustic farmhouse. The right hand fork probed west, shyly disappearing between

the zigzags of foothills.

Back home at Rockhampton the maps confirmed that this frail track, indeed, was the

way to the summit of the sandstone ridge. Further research revealed that the range

itself consisted of three converging mountain ridges, the Dawson (eastern side),

Expedition and Shotover (on the western flank). They rise roughly south to north

toward the Tropic of Capricorn reaching a northern 900-metre plus high plateau

(“Blackdown Tableland’), its precipitous western slopes draining into the Comet

River, and part of the vast Fitzroy River catchments. Beyond Duaringa and not far

south along the Dawson Range, towards the aboriginal settlement of Woorabinda, the

maps revealed Coomooboolaroo, a property that had been acquired in the late 1800’s

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 5

by George Barnard and family from Tasmania. His educational directive was that his

two sons and a daughter should study the wildlife of the district. In 1891 the English

collector, A.S. Meek, visited the Barnard family on an extended (‘apprenticeship’ )

working stay, prior to his notable trip to New Guinea. My friend *Zooie* (J.C.) Le

Souéf knew this country well; in his younger jackaroo days he had mustered cattle in

and beyond the property. Today some of the winter holding-yard posts still stand near

the camping ground at Blackdown.

A quick packed lunch, a bottle of ‘sars’ and I was away on the 22nd November, 1970,

then braving an exploratory path (by a less than powerful two-wheel drive Toyota),

along the Capricorn Highway, and towards those mysterious western peaks. In those

years bitumen was scant, and the graded road (sometimes single-lane) was no easy a

trip to Emerald. The turn-off (at 100 miles in the old scale) was reached. Turning left,

and then along 5 kilometres of rippled ‘Clearview’ track, bumping and jolting down

to the right fork, and then into two dry creek dips lined with Cyperus sedge.

Through the brigalow woodlands a dazzling flash of Red-winged Parrots, then beyond

in the open scrub, two dingoes emerged pacing the car, but more intent on running

down a lazy Bustard. Here were groups of Terminalia shrubs, stripped of foliage by

the restless caterpillars of that ancient skipper-butterfly, the Migratory Awl (Badamia

exclamationis), and Orange Migrants (Catopsilia scylla) were already on the move

(Pl. 1). Now, another 10 more kilometres of ochre dust, then finally the sloping scree

and massive sentinel blocks of sandstone; Expedition Range. Wow!

Sculptured with potholes, the track ascended, gently circled, and then abruptly

narrowed, just squeezing through the pink rock-chasms and cabbage palms. Here

were sloping corridors of Scleria sedges, daisies, Acacia and Boronia bushes. Further

along the trail worn carriage-wheel rut-marks (a remnant of the Cobb & Co Emerald-

bound mail coaches) carved across rough flagstones. The surrounds were tumbled and

scarred with breakaways. Now beneath a strengthening morning sun, stood blanched

clusters of Lemon-scented gums and Zig-zag wattles, the knurled feet of Angophora

were scattered with many flowering heath plants. In eroded swales between large

boulders of sandstone abounded large grass tussocks of Triodia; I had reached

Blackdown plateau.

Mild warming sunshine attracted many insects to Ti-tree and Grass Tree flowers.

Skippers were common; some (particularly females) feeding on nectar, their mates

had already begun to hilltop, resting near the highest edge of a looming western

escarpment. They included four related brown sedge-skippers (Hesperilla), one of

which was new to me (a fifth species was found later 1n the foothill soaks). Each

species favored different resting sites, which they protected from intruders. Some

were fighting each other and attacking other insect or bird intruders. At noon a lull in

insect activity, and by mid-afternoon large indigo-bellied cumulonimbus crowded 1n

from the west through steamy skies: no more loitering - | fled!

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 7

Back home in Rockhampton one of the ridge-topping skippers was found to be

Hesperilla furva (Grey Sedge-skipper) a species that had only recently been

discovered in the Eidsvold district by Don Sands, a second was H. crypsigramma

(Wide-brand Sedge-skipper) (at that time placed, 1n the genus Toxidia). These

skippers, including H. sarnia, sp.n (Swift Sedge-skipper) were later reviewed in a

biological and taxonomic paper (my humble first) with the invaluable guidance of Ian

Common (Atkins, 1978). A white-spotted skipper proved to be ‘Pasma’ polysema

(Spinifex Sand-skipper). This rare species was only known from a few specimens (a

female at Petford, north Queensland and males near Darwin, NT) collected in 1911-12

by the celebrated Frederick Dodd.

A week later I was back, and further captures and observations revealed species of

butterfly more common to the south, others clearly of a northern origin. Some even

appeared to differ from their coastal neighbours. This was exciting stuff; the

Blackdown Tableland seemed to hold isolated communities, but linking the butterfly

fauna of the Great Dividing Range both to the south (including Carnarvon Gorge) and

to the north. Perhaps the most note-worthy examples (collected nine months later)

were the appearance of the Heath Ochre (7rapezites phigalia) and the Fringed Heath-

blue (Neolucia agricola), both nearly 500 kilometres north of their recognized range

(for further information on the distribution of T. phigalia see Atkins, 1999). In the

cullies were sword-grasses, which produced juveniles of the Two-spotted Sedge-

skipper (Hesperilla malindeva) and Spotted Sedge-skipper (Hesperilla ornata), the

latter with a remarkable protruding pupal cap (in this species the caps vary from small

‘beaks’ and open prongs in Victoria and NSW to closed or variable down-turned

‘trowels’ in central and northern Queensland, or even small ‘spatulas’ in Cape York

(fig.1); maybe a DNA study is needed here? There were other interesting butterflies;

along sandy tracts of grass, sedges and iris flew dark-brown skippers painted with

white spots. Unknown “Blues’ (lycaenids) patrolled the higher shrubs and trees of the

escarpment (these were later found to be species of Ogyris, Hypochrysops and

Acrodipsas). Fast-flying migrants (pierids) surged over the ridge.

On the 28" of November 1971, John Landy and myself visited Blackdown; only to

discover much of the plateau woodlands and heath had been incinerated to the ground

(98%) by a wildfire that had escaped from a grazing property. Remarkably, the

country recovered the following years, with most butterflies once again present in

good numbers (PI. 2). On the 4"" March 1972, in a plateau gully of regrowth, I

witnessed a remarkable sight, a speckled cloud of pale ‘tinsel’ floating over Boronia

bushes - a colony of the rare lycaenid Nesolycaena albosericea (Satin Opal). This was

the possible holotype (original) locality for the species, first collected by George

Barnard and described by Miskin (1891).

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 8

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 9

Perhaps the most baffling observation was that of a larger, trapezitine skipper that

appeared (occasionally), rapidly hill-topping on the escarpment, or visiting Banksia,

Xanthorrhoea and Leptospermum flowers. With much sweat and effort, both males

and females were eventually netted (the first on 16" of Sept., 1972). It took several

more years of investigation and rearing (from eggs to final instar larvae) before I was

confident enough to describe it as new to science (Atkins, 1997), and named it

Trapezites taori (Sandstone Ochre), along with 7. genevieveae (Ornate Ochre) (the

latter from the rainforests of northern NSW and SE Qld.).

Subsequent trips to Blackdown were generally made (mostly alone) during weekends

or during short camping holidays. These gradually revealed a prolific and diverse

butterfly community especially along the sandstone ridges and at the escarpment near

Horseshoe Lookout. Damper areas 1n the ravines and along the shallow streams or

sedge and fern-clustered rock pools were also productive, especially near Mimosa

Creek and at Rainbow Falls. Most of the species were found to be breeding in these

areas, including Heteronympha merope (Common Brown) and Geitoneura acantha

(Ringed Xenica).

One memorable (eerie) camping trip, when exploring the heathland before dawn, a

whispered, fluttered zephyr of shadows moved above the heath: not bats but hundreds

of Migratory Awls. Looking back, as I crawled between the boulders and tussocks,

eight pale glowing (torch-lit) eyes moved slowly foreword - a pack of curious (and

seemingly not hungry!) dingoes. They vanished when I shouted in delight, finding the

first larva of Proeidosa polysema encased up side down, 1n a hard resinous, teepee-

like shelter (fig 2.) within the tough spinifex (7riodia mitchelli) (what strong jaws the

young larva must have!). This confirmed my suspicion that this hesperid

taxonomically belonged with the southern Sand-skipper group.

More visits were to come (over fifty trips were made to Expedition Range between

late November 1970 and 2000), these included field studies in the surrounding

lowland dry forest areas, gorges (PI.3), along the western escarpment, on the southern

foothills and northeastern hill and brigalow woodlands. These areas produced the

larvae of four species of Jalmenus (eubulus, pseudictinus, daemeli and ictinus) and

the larvae of Hypochrysops ignita and H. delicia duaringae. The latter species feed on

Alphitonia excelsa and the adults are small and very bright pale metallic blue and

generally fly near dusk (see cover illustration). It is possible that this taxon may be a

distinct species, with its southern limits the Sunshine Coast where its larvae

commonly are found within the galls on Acacia.

Some of these Blackdown visits were aborted due to cyclones or monsoon storms,

washaways, floods or new road works graded for large timber trucks. One late

afternoon I was forced to return home via back roads due to a flash-flooding of the

Dawson River. This added over 2 hours and 100 kilometres to the trip; and with a

near empty fuel tank, I arrived back in Rockhampton covered in mud (beware of the

local storms that appear from ‘nowhere’ 1n these extensive outback catchments which

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 10

feed the Fitzroy River system!). After the strong monsoons of the mid-70’s, the

wandering Small Green-banded Blue (Psychonotis caelius) expanded its range further

west to Blackdown (see cover illustration).

In these early years much of the work continued at home, especially focusing on the

biology of the butterflies of Blackdown and surrounding country, the most notable

perhaps being that of Nesolycaena albosericea, Fiery Copper (Paralucia pyrodiscus),

Hypochrysops delicia (see above), Proeidosa polysema, Hesperilla sarnia, H. furva,

H.. crypsigramma and H. sexguttata.

The species list was now approaching 100 (including some collected by colleagues)

(see Atkins 1974, a & b). This included at least 31 new distribution (range) records.

At this time several lepidopterists had visited Blackdown, including Zoo and Mary

Souéf, Hiro Sibatani and Ray and Nola Manskie: Mary, in fact, was the first to collect

a female Swift Sedge-skipper (feeding from Ti-tree flowers) on the Range. Other

butterflies I observed there, but not collected, included the Azures Ogyris nr. ianthis,

O. zosine and O. oroetes (the host ant of the first mentioned, Frogatella kirbyi, was

found in the upper Lemon-scented gum woodlands). Larval eats were also observed

of the Yellow Jewel (Hypochrysops byzos) on Pomaderris shrubs near the Rainbow

Falls.

Over the years Expedition Range proved the most productive and interesting inland

locality for Queensland butterflies, with several rare or local species reared from the

near pristine scrub, heath and woodland. Diversity was most noticeable 1n the genera

Trapezites (6 species); Hesperilla (6); Acrodipsas (5); Ogyris (5), Jalmenus (4),

Candalides (5) and Eurema (5). It is likely that the Carnarvon Range (to the south-

west and including the Salvatora-Rosa N.P.) will include a similar number and

diversity of species.

Footnotes: Later, when living in Newcastle (NSW) and then in Eudlo (Qld.), I made a

few more trips to the Blackdown Tableland (1984 — 2008). Many of the specimens

collected during those years in central Queensland can be found in the ANIC,

Canberra and others are housed 1n the Centre for Butterfly Research, University of

Florida, USA.

Parts of the Blackdown Tableland were proclaimed a National Park in the mid-

1980’s, and hopefully the wider, general area 1s adequately protected as a reserve for

its unique flora and fauna. However, further research is required in the forests,

particularly in areas of wet sclerophyll, remnant rainforest and isolated swamplands

along these southern upland butterfly habitats. Some genera of lycaenids, hesperiids

and pierids in particular, are under-represented including Candalides, Toxidia,

Telicota, Ocybadistes and Taractrocera.

During and after the 70’s large areas of Brigalow and scrubland were ’ball-chained’ to

near-extinction. More recent government agricultural directives (2014-2015) have

cleared 296,000 hectares of Queensland’s natural woodlands and wetlands,

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particularly in central Queensland. The Migratory Awl is now reduced to very small

numbers and the Pale Imperial and Macqueen’s Hairstreaks are all but gone. Those

beautiful brigalow woodlands have barely survived mankind’s greed - the ‘salt table’

still rises, and the mud-cracks grow to provide excellent habitats for the plague locust.

Acknowledgements

I warmly thank the many family, friends, rangers, botanists and lepidopterists 1n

general for patience, help, company and advice during my “Blackdown days’ of

exploration and research. The present and past indigenous people are acknowledged;

their valued heritage, maintenance and custodianship of these rangelands and its wild

life are symbolized by the stenciled handprints and symbolic art 1n the caves and rock

over-hangs at Expedition Range. I also thank Kelvyn Dunn for reading and correcting

with comments on a draft of this manuscript.

Bibliography

Atkins, A.F., 1973. A new genus Proeidosa for an Australian skipper Pasma

polysema(Lower) (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Trapezitinae). J. Aust. ent. Soc. 12:

253- 260.

Atkins, A.F., 1974a. Butterflies of Expedition Range, central Queensland. Victorian Ent. 4(1):

9-14.

Atkins, A.F., 1974b. Further notes on the butterflies of Expedition Range, central Queensland.

Victorian Ent. 4(6): 78.

Atkins, A.F., 1978. The Hesperilla malindeva group from northern Australia, including a new

species (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae). J. Aust. ent. Soc 17: 205-215.

Atkins, A.F., 1984. A new genus Antipodia Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Trapezitinae) with

comments on its biology and relationships. Aust. ent. Mag. 11: 45-57.

Atkins, A.F., 1997. Two new species of 7rapezites Hubner (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae:

Trapezitinae) from eastern Australia. Aust. Ent. 24 (1): 7-26.

Atkins, A.F., 1999. Chapter 5. The Skippers, Trapezites (Hesperiidae). Pp 75-104, figs 1.1-4.6,

4 pls. Jn Kitching, R.L., Scheermeyer, E, Jones, R.E. and Pierce, N.E. Biology of

Australian Butterflies: Monographs on Australian Lepidoptera; Volume 6. CSIRO

Publishing, Collingwood, Victoria.

Sands, D.P and Kerr, J. F. R. A new species of Hesperilla (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) with a

rediscription of H. sexguttata (Herrich-Schaffer). J. Aust. ent. Soc. 12: 277-283.

Illustrations (all created with water-colour and gouache media)

Front Cover

The plains of Expedition Range: near dusk

The ‘Starlight Jewel’ (Hypochrysops delicia duaringae) flying in twilight north of

Dingo, central Queensland: foreground, male left, female (underside) right;

background female centre; above left male Small Green-banded Blue (Psychonotis

caelius), right female, settled on food plant (Al/phitonia excelsa).

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 12

Plate 1

The foothills of Expedition Range: early morning

Migrants, the Migratory Awl (Badamia exclamationis), female foreground and males;

Orange Migrant (Catopsilia scylla), female centre, males below and left background.

Plate 2

Blackdown Tableland: one year after the bushfire

Skippers; foreground right Sandstone Ochre (7rapezites taori) female feeding from

Grass Tree, male just above; left foreground Spinifex Skipper (Proeidosa polysema)

male front, female behind laying egg; centre female Heath Ochre (Trapezites

Dhigalia); just above, male Iris Skipper (Mesodina halyzia); just above in background

male Spotted Sedge-skipper (Hesperilla ornata): Blues: upper left female Southern

Purple Azure (Ogyris genoveva); upper right female and male Sydney Azure (Ogyris

ianthis); upper centre male Silky Azure (Ogyris oroetes); upper left male Northern

Purple Azure (Ogyris zosine).

Plate 3

Blackdown Tableland: monsoon summer

Skippers: Foreground below, left male Broad-brand Sedge-skipper (Hesperilla

crysigramma), centre male Swift Sedge-skipper (Hesperilla sarnia); right male Grey

Sedge-skipper; centre female Double-spot Sedge-skipper (Hesperilla malindeva);

above right female Hesperilla sarnia. Blues: Middle left a male and two females (with

broader black wing-tips) Bright Opal (Nesolycaena albosericea): top left Fiery

Copper (Paralucia pyrodiscus).

Note: The butterflies depicted are in habitat perspective and not necessarily in relative

SIZE.

Figures (graphite)

1. Pupal caps (dorsal view) of Hesperilla ornata (Spotted Sedge-skipper):

left, H. o. monotherma, Iron Range, NQ; middle, H. ornata, Blackdown Tableland,

CQ; right, H. ornata Mt Archer (Rockhampton) CQ.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 13

2. Larval shelter of Proeidosa

polysema (Spinifex Sand-

skipper) on Triodia mitchelli

(Spinifex).

All artwork by Andrew Atkins

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ITEMS OF INTEREST

A Thorny Issue — Lois Hughes

I have always been a “sucker” for cute. Some time ago I had been admiring a row of

cute insects that had congregated on some of the stems of one of our favourite

butterfly nectar plants, the vanilla scented, White Duranta, until I realised, with some

dismay, what they were!

Resembling thorns, these were the

“dreaded” lantana sap-sucking bug,

Aconophora compressa! This

incident occurred 1n 2003.

Newspaper and magazine articles at

the time variously described them as

‘an invader as bad as the cane toad”’,

“backyard monster” and “bug bear” so

I was none too pleased to find them

here! Much of the furore was, of

Adults of Aconophora compressa with nymphs course, directed at the Government of

otitis eprops 20% the day, for these insects had been

released as a biocontrol agent for that

other thorny pest, Lantana camara. Lantana 1s listed both as a “Weed of National

Significance” and one of Australia’s “Most Wanted Weeds”. Perhaps that should be

“Most Unwanted Weeds” of our bush and farmland!

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 14

So after many years since the release

of this bug, just what is the

consensus of opinion regarding its

usefulness as a control agent of ws

lantana and the actual, rather than eS a

the perceived, threat to a range of Soe Fy Sees,

a ete | jeans “2%

both ornamental garden shrubs and 4: 7 vs

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trees plus some of our native SSK

species?

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Firstly some background to the life >

history of Aconophora compressor ———

and its lantana host. Lantana camara Aut on my Unger

is a shrub of the Verbenaceae family originating from tropical America and

introduced into Australia as a garden ornamental. It is well known that lantanas

escape from garden confines into the wider environment causing massive degradation

of our bush and farmland and has cost farmers and government agencies many

billions of dollars in eradication programmes.

—

—*

Adults with striped nymphs at various stages

On the other hand, bio-control reduces

| herbicide use and is often much more

White adult, possibly just after its final instar Cost effective as it releases a natural

moult, with nymphs enemy to combat a pest. So from 1990 to

1994, sixty-two plant species were tested

using the lantana sap-sucking bug from Mexico. It was finally approved for release

on the basis that the insect would not complete its life-cycle on any plants tested other

than lantana and to a lesser extent, duranta. I obtained this information from NRM

facts, 2003, The State of Queensland (Department of Natural Resources and Mines).

The following lifecycle information was obtained from F. Heystek and J.R. Baars in a

research article, 2005, Biology and host range of Aconophora compressor, a

candidate considered as a biocontrol agent of Lantana camara in Africa.

BEDS PE DS De DE PS Pe Re be Pe he be Oe Pe Pe be bd Pe

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 15

“The female partially inserts the eggs into the woody portion of

actively growing stems and guards them against potential

predators. Nymphs develop through five instars to the adult

stage in about 45 days. The adults and nymphs feed on the sap of

stems causing leaves to wilt, the flowers to abort and the gradual

dieback of stems.”

From my experience the bug returns each year and always appears on the duranta as

well as on the lantana. It exudes copious amounts of very sticky honeydew, a sugary

solution in which sooty mould grows, usually in bands encircling the stems. Adults

and nymphs feed together, 1n groups, on the chosen stems, causing the leaves to wilt

and yellow. The whole plant usually isn’t affected, maybe only 4 or 5 branches per

bush.

However, during 2015, on our property at Mt. Cotton, SE Queensland, the lantana,

already stressed because of dry conditions, was seriously attacked by the bug, leaving

large areas of the shrubs leafless and seemingly dead, a condition I closely observed,

hoping they really were dead.

After the extremely hot days during late December and early January, the bugs departed, a

normal occurrence according to research and my experience. The lantana has now

regrown so the setback is only temporary and 1s flowering profusely after welcome rain.

The usefulness of the bug here would be the exposing of the base of the plant, making 1t

easier to dig or pull it out by the roots, without first hacking through lots of thorny

branches tearing at our skin.

The exotic ornamental Fiddlewood trees were severely defoliated during initial releases of

the bug which prompted many of the angry responses. According to the Government

bulletin Eremophila species, Jacaranda, Clerodendrum ugandense, Myoporum species,

Pandorea species, Some mangrove species as well as the exotic, weedy groundsel bush,

may also be impacted.

However the bug only lives for 6 months and from all reports, 1t would appear that none of

the affected plants actually died, but recovered after the bug’s departure.

Some garden sprays are recommended and can be used against the bugs, but I prefer to cut

off the “bugged” branches and place them amongst lantana bushes where they are really

needed.

So it could be concluded that my initial fears for our favourite shrub’s demise were

unfounded and that lantana bushes are still having “the last laugh” and flourishing

regardless. I still think the “thorny” bugs are cute, though!

Photos Erica Siegel

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 16

An Aphid Story — Bernie Franzmann

I knew aphids were members of the true bugs (Hemiptera) but I didn’t know much

more about them. I had the idea that they were sort of mysterious creatures that were

quite a bit different, 1n many ways, to most other insects.

Way back in 1971, I was working at a research Station at South Johnstone in North

Queensland. All the other scientists at the station were researching pastures and beef

cattle. I was the only Entomologist and was researching pests of bananas. The pasture

people found an insect devastating one of their prized pasture grasses, pangola grass,

Digitaria decumbens. | told them it was an aphid (I found later that it was Schizaphis

hypersiphonata which had only been named the year before) and they asked me to

enlighten them about aphids. Now this was a long time before Google and Wikipedia.

So I looked in the only book I had (Imms, A. D. (1964) - A General Textbook of

Entomology).

The book explained that the life cycle for a ‘typical’ aphid, Aphis fabae 1s as follows.

The ova which are laid on Evonymus hatch into fundatrices (apterous, viviparous,

pathogenetic females) which emerge in spring. These females produce fundatrigeniae

which are also apterous, viviparous, pathogenic females which stay on Euvonymus or,

usually after two or three generations, migrantes (alate, viviparous, pathogenic

females) are produced. They fly to a secondary host and develop into alienoicolae,

which become sexuparae, which become sexuales ...!! - WHAT’??. Talk about

mysterious creatures.

As my knowledge of aphids increased I found out that this aphid’s life cycle 1s

relatively simple and typical of aphids in warm climates. The winged adults fly to

their host plants, settle down, feed and rapidly produce large numbers of wingless

female nymphs. After developing for about five days these nymphs mature and start

producing their own daughters. Nymphs are produced at the rate of one every four

hours. So one female becomes about 4000 1n three weeks. Rapid reproduction 1s also

achieved by the amazing biology where the nymphs, being produced inside the adults,

are already producing their own daughters 7.e. mothers are already carrying their own

eranddaughters. Also, they don’t have to stop and mate, as males are never produced.

Are you still with me?

This rapid production goes on until things get too crowded, or the host plant begins to

die or the weather dictates and so instead of producing wingless nymphs, winged ones

develop and fly away to find fresh host plants.

Although aphid populations can develop very rapidly they are subject to some very

effective natural enemies including ladybirds, hovertflies, lacewings, parasitic wasps

and fungal infections.

There are about 180 aphid species in Australia but only about 20 are native.

BEDS Pe DE Pe PE De be Pe bd pe he be be Pe bd Pe bd pg

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 17

Some of the common aphids you might see in South East Queensland are:

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Sowthistle aphid, Hyperomyzus lactucae

— on thistles. Image — The two black

ones are winged (alate) adults. Winged

aphids are commonly a different colour

to their wingless sisters. Another aphid

commonly found on thistles is the brown

thistle aphid, Uroleucon sonchi, which

is brown and larger than H. lactucae.

Photo Magnus Gammelgaard

http://www.plant-diseases.com

Rose aphid, Macrosiphum rosae — on

roses. Image — The white flecks in this

image are the cast “skins” of the

nymphs. Aphids moult four times.

Photo Magnus Gammelgaard

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Cabbage aphid, Brevicoryne brassicae —

on cabbage and its relatives. Image —

These aphids are covered in wax. The

brown aphid in the middle 1s a mummy.

Aphids are commonly attacked by

parasitic wasps. When the wasp larva

has consumed the internal contents it

pupates and the aphid turns hard and

brown (mummifies). The adult wasp

emerges by cutting a neat round hole in

the mummy.

Photo Magnus Gammelgaard

Milkweed aphid, Aphis nerii — on

milkweed and oleander. /mage — There’s

no mistaking these bright yellow aphids.

It’s not surprising that they are toxic to

some of their potential predators.

Photo Jenny Thynne

https://flic.kr/p/KchUaz

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 18

Citrus aphids — Brown citrus aphid

Toxoptera citricida, Black citrus aphid

T aurantii — on citrus. The image 1s of

T. aurantii, but nobody would know, as

the only easy way to tell them apart is

by counting the number of hairs on the

little knob that sticks out from the

middle of the back end (cauda). One

species has less than 20 and the other

about 30 hairs. Did I just say “easy

way?

Photo Lyle Buss, University of Florida

Our thanks go to the various

photographers who allowed us to use

their images.

Cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii — on

melons and many weeds. /mage — The

image shows the colour variation seen

in this species.

Photo Magnus Gammelgaard

Some aphids are very serious

pests of Australian agriculture. A new

one (the Russian wheat aphid) was found

for the first time only in May, this year.

At present it 1s only in South Australia,

Victoria and New South Wales but will

eventually invade all states and pose a

significant problem for wheat and barley

production.

OK OK 28 OK FS OK OK OK OK OK

Life history notes on the Large Purple Line-blue, Nacaduba

berenice berenice (Herrich-Schaffer, 1869) Lepidoptera:

Lycaenidae — Wesley Jenkinson

The Large Purple Line-blue is encountered sporadically,

southwards from north-eastern Queensland, both

coastally and west of the Great Dividing Range. It

continues through central and south-eastern Queensland

into central and southern coastal New South Wales.

This species preferred habitats are tropical, subtropical,

littoral rainforests and dry vine scrub. It 1s also

commonly found in urban gardens in south-eastern

Queensland where host trees have been planted. This

species can be very common seasonally, particularly in

littoral rainforest.

STRUM LLL hie

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 19

Males fly around the canopy where they typically settle on outer foliage of trees with

heads angled slightly downwards and wings closed, deflecting the sunlight. They are

territorial and chase off rival males and other small lycaenids. Females are often

observed flying in dappled sunlight within forested areas looking for sheltered host

trees. During extremely hot weather the adults frequently settle within a couple of

metres of the ground on trees and shrubs in forest understorey. They feed from a wide

variety of small exotic and native flowers. While feeding, the wings remain closed

and occasionally the hind wings are slightly alternated up and down.

There are a few line-blues and other small lycaenids that are rather similar in

appearance. In comparison with similar species, the adults of this species should be

able to be separated by the slightly larger size, the rather uniform underside pattern

and the presence of the hindwing tails. Voucher specimens may be required to

identify runt sized specimens or worn specimens with the hindwing tails missing.

The sexes can be identified by the upperside wing colouration, males being lilac and

females having bright blue metallic scales with varying extent on the forewing.

The adults show variations between summer and winter forms. Both sexes vary

between the seasons with the underside black tornal spot larger in the summer form

and reduced or absent in the winter form. In addition the females’ bright blue

coloration on the upperside is reduced and can be slightly darker in the summer form.

Intermediate forms occur in spring and particularly autumn.

Wingspans for the pictured males are 24mm and 25mm for the females.

Nacaduba berenice berenice (Large Purple Line-blue)

Images left to right: male, female, male underside, female underside (Summer specimens)

Nacaduba berenice berenice (Large Purple Line-blue)

Images left to right: male, female, male underside, female underside (winter specimens)

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 20

The larvae of this species have been recorded by various authors feeding on the

flower buds and young shoots of various trees in the families, Proteaceae,

Sapindaceae, and Ulmaceae (Braby, 2000; Moss, 2010).

During October 1n 2005 a female was observed ovipositing on a young flower bud of

a Tuckeroo Tree (Cupaniopsis anacardioides) a known host. She typically flew

slowly throughout the host tree branches and settled in a sheltered position. She then

walked around for a short period and curled her abdomen onto the bud, then laid a

single egg. This egg was kept for life history studies. Females oviposit from mid-

morning to mid-afternoon in sunny conditions.

The larva raised in captivity did not consume the eggshell after emergence. The

highly camouflaged larva rested and fed openly during daylight hours on fresh leaf

buds and flower buds of the host plant. Under natural conditions the larvae are

occasionally attended by small ants from various families. The larva attained a length

of 11mm and completed five instars.

‘| The egg was white, mandarin shaped with small rounded raised

_) projections, approximately 0.3mm high x 0.5mm wide.

‘

Freshly laid egg

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2” instar larva

3" instar larva above

4" instar larva left

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5 instar larva lateral view Pupa

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 21

The pupa, measuring 8mm in length, was located below a leaf of the host plant. It was

attached with silk by the cremaster and a central girdle.

The total time from egg to adult was 25 days, with egg duration of 6 days, larval

duration of 12 days and pupal duration of 7 days.

Images from left to right show two larvae attended by small black ants, a single larva attended

by two green-head ants (Rhytidoponera sp.) and a pre pupa.

Within the boundary of the Scenic Rim Regional Shire south of Brisbane I have adult

records for all months of the year. In this region records indicate there are several

generations annually. Most likely dependant on rainfall, the adults are common in

summer and autumn and less numerous in late winter and spring.

I would like to thank John Moss for commenting on the manuscript.

Photos Wesley Jenkinson

References:

Braby, M.F., 2000. Butterflies of Australia — Their Identification, Biology and Distribution. vol

2. CSIRO Publishing.

Moss, J.T. 2010. Butterfly Host Plants of south-east Queensland and northern New South

Wales. 3™ edition, BOIC.

se 3 2 a 9 2 2 ak

An update on the Club Website — www.boic.org.au — Ross Kendall

Since the release of the club’s mistletoe book in April, I have been able to devote

more time to our website and I invite members to have a browse.

One new feature 1s a “Moth Photo Gallery” page, which currently has information and

images of over 100 species of Crambid moths. This information and the images come

from extensive work by Peter Hendry and Graham McDonald over several years. I

have to admit that I have paid little attention to these rather small moths in the past

but, having now seen them “close up”, I realise that many of them are quite beautiful.

Peter and Graham have done a great job with “light trapping’, photography and

painstaking identification — more to come!

There is much more that can be added to the moth page as the Crambid family 1s just

one of many families of moths.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 22

You may not have seen our “Butterfly Photo Gallery” page recently. Like the other

pages, this is a work in progress. I have many spectacular images yet to be added.

There are now quite a few reproductions of past articles first published in

“Metamorphis Australia” which can be found on the “Creature Feature” and “Plant

Profile” pages.

I invite you to share images you may have by emailing them to me for addition to our

pages. These will be acknowledged. Suggestions to improve the website are always

welcome.

Enjoy.

1. Agrotera pictalis

Photo Peter Hendry

2. Conogethes haemactalis

Photo Graham McDonald

3. Strepsinoma croesusalis

Photo Graham McDonald

4. Talanga sabacusalis

Photo Peter Hendry

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Da Da Re RID

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 23

Concluding Graham McDonald’s 5 part series of “Gardening for Butterflies” which

was originally published beginning with issue #17 June 2000.

PART 5 - HEATHLAND AND WETLAND GARDENS

A heathland garden requires full sun and very well-drained souls and is really like a

dry sclerophyll garden but lacking the tree canopy. The same gardening principles

apply as to dry sclerophyll gardens with emphasis on raised beds, but with access to

moisture at depth. This can be achieved by channel and mound design or with a

dripper system of irrigation.

Many colourful shrubs can be grown in this garden together with matrushes,

eroundcovers, annuals and hardy clumping grasses. This type of garden also lends

itself to the planting of nectar species such as Pimelea sp., Xerochrysum,

Leucopogon?, Bursaria spinosa, Micromelum minutum, Pavetta australiensis and

Westringea eremicola.

A successful wetland area can be achieved by anyone with a low section on their

property or even if the land 1s sloping, a small boggy area can be created by digging a

depression to catch the run-off. Lining with plastic or a pond liner, 1f requiring a

pond, may be necessary to prevent the moisture from draining away. Quite a few

butterflies utilise sedges and rushes which are the typical plants of such areas.

Larger areas can be planted with a few moisture-loving trees, such as Melaleuca

quinquenervia, Melaleuca sieberi, Melaleuca linariifolia and Melaleuca salicina,

which have good nectar at certain times of the year.

An understorey of large and small sedges fill in the ground layer. These plants are

fast-growing, spread easily and are rewarding to grow, but will require extra water in

dry periods.

Larger Sedges and Wetland Plants

Carex appressa (Tall Sedge) - Spotted Sedge Skipper

Cladium procerum (Leafy Twigrush) - Southern Sedge-darter

Gahnia clarkei (Tall Sedge) - Swordgrass Brown, Spotted Sedge Skipper,

Painted Sedge Skipper

Gahnia sieberiana (Redfruited Sawsedge) - Flame Sedge Skipper, Varied

Sedge Skipper, Spotted Sedge Skipper, Swordgrass Brown

Lomandra hystrix (Riverine Matrush) - Northern Silver Ochre, Brown Ochre

and Splendid Ochre

Smaller Sedges and Wetland Plants

Alternanthera denticulata (Lesser Joyweed) - Varied Egetly

Carex brunnea (Rainforest Sedge) - Spotted Sedge Skipper

Carex polyantha - Skippers/Browns

Cyperus spp. (Sedges) - Six-spot Skipper (now "Riverine Sedge-Skipper”’)

Fimbristylis spp. (Fringerushes)

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 24

Hygrophila angustifolia - Chocolate Argus, Tiny Grass Blue, Blue Argus

Lythrum salicaria (an ornamental)

Ludwigia peploides (an ornamental)

Vines

Cynanchum carnosum (Mangrove Milk Vine) - Swamp Tiger,

Lesser Wanderer

Parsonsia straminea (Common Silkpod) - Common Crow,

also excellent nectar plant

Herbs

A small corner of the garden could be thrown open to the creation of a rather untidy

and weedy type of garden which could become a haven for butterflies. The criteria

which would have to be met for such a style of garden would be:

1. Sun for most of the day

2. Not in view from most parts of the house

3. The owner would have to be one of those very rare people who put nature ahead of

their own primitive European view of a world of pruned trees set in perfect lawns.

This ‘style’ of garden is very low maintenance provided that the plants are able to “do

their own thing”. Undesirable weeds such as Asparagus, Scotch Thistles and other

non-butterfly friendly species can be hand pulled from time to time. The addition of

blood and bone will benefit the rapid growth of the weedy plants and help to keep

fresh soft leaves coming on.

Some examples of these plants and the butterflies that they attract are listed below:

Alternanthera denticulata (Lesser Joyweed) - Varied Eggfly wa

Ammobium alatum - Australian Painted Lady VF SIE

Xerochrysum bracteatum (Paper Daisy) - Australian Painted Lady 17 a VS

Canavalia rosea - Purple Cerulean

Chamaecrista nomame (Cassia mimosoides) - No-brand Grass Yellow Varied 4 Bestly

Cassytha spp. (Dodder) - Blotched Dusky-blue, Small and Twin-dusky Blues

Centaurium spicatum - Meadow Argus

Cullen tenax - Chequered Swallowtail

Desmodium heterocarpon - Common Grass Blue, Orange-tipped Pea-blue

Gnaphalium spp. & Pseudognaphalium spp.- Australian Painted Lady

Hybanthus stellarioides - Small Greasy (Glasswing)

Hygrophila angustifolia (plant in wet spots) - Tiny Grass Blue, Chocolate Argus,

Blue Argus

Hypoestes floribunda - Blue Argus

Indigofera hirsuta - Jewelled Grass-blue, Long-tailed Pea-blue, Large Grass-yellow,

Common Grass Blue

Oplismenis aemulus (Creeping Beard Grass) - Lilac Grass-skipper

Oxalis corniculata (Yellow Wood Sorrell) - Chequered Copper

Plantago spp. - Meadow Argus, Rayed Blue

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 25

Plumbago zeylanica (Native Plumbago) - Zebra Blue

Portulaca oleracea -Danaid Eggtly, Meadow Argus

Rostellularia adscendens (Justicia species) - Blue Argus

Scaevola aemula, S. ramosissima (Fan Flowers) - Meadow Argus

Senna spp. (Cassias) - Grass Yellow

Sesbania cannabina Long-tailed Pea-blue, Large [=Common] Grass Yellow,

Spotted Pea-blue

Sida rhombifolia - Varied Eggfly 7

Tribulus terrestris - Spotted Grass-blue

Urtica spp. - Yellow Admiral -@ q

Verbena spp. - Meadow Argus a d

Veronica plebeian - Meadow Argus O\/,' pi.

Summary Meadow Argus

All good things come to those who wait. Your butterfly garden has now been created,

but where are the jewels of the insect world? If you live near healthy and diverse

bushland, your wait will be short. Inner city or suburban yards may take longer to

attract butterflies which must find your little piece of heaven, but if your plants are

healthy and abundant and the correct species, the butterflies may settle down to breed

there.

Line drawings by Lois Hughes

i i Se a

Recent Butterfly Observations in Bundanoon, Southern Highlands

NSW — Alan Hyman

From mid-April to mid-September there were very few butterflies apparent 1n our area

— not surprising during a cold winter at an altitude of about 670 metres.

Then the Australian Painted Lady (Vanessa kershawi) started to appear, first 1n small

numbers during October until we experienced a migration of almost ‘tropical’

proportions, moving, 1t seemed, in a north-south direction. In the nearby Morton

National Park they are extremely common along the roadways and roadsides basking

in the sunlight or manoeuvering in multiples, often following the walker along. A

lesser but parallel migration of Caper Whites (Belenois java) is also taking place, but

apparently moving in the opposite direction. Ensconced 1n this flight are one or two

White Migrants (Catopsilia pyranthe) and this has been a new species sighting for me

(No. 58) in our district.

Other species appearing in small numbers recently have been Macleay’s Swallowtail

(Graphium macleayanus); Imperial White (Delias harpalyce); Black Jezebel (Delias

nigrina); Cabbage White (Pieris rapae); Small Grass Yellow (Eurema smilax); Forest

BEDS PE DS PF OE be PE DS De Pe be Pe he pe Pe bd Pe bg

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 26

Brown (Argynnina cyrila); Brown Ringlet (Hypocysta metirius); Meadow Argus

(Junonia villida); Yellow Admiral (Vanessa itea); Common Grass Blue (Zizina

labradus); Yellow-spotted Blue (Candalides xanthospilos) and Long-tailed Pea-blue

(Lampides boeticus).

It 1s gratifying also to see fresh specimens of a favourite species, the local race of the

Sword Grass Brown (Tisiphone abeona abeona). Also sighted for 5-6 seconds was a

smallish butterfly, very dark colouration, fluttering down a park road before heading

into the bush at a height of 2-3 metres (Ogyris species’).

I’m hoping for a more prolific season than the previous few years, with perhaps a few

surprises in store.

BOOK REVIEWS

Insects of South-Eastern Australia — An Ecological and

Behavioural Guide by Roger Farrow. Paperback, 288pp. 148x215x18mm

CSIRO Publishing May 2016 RRP $45 ISBN 978 14863

| 04769 Reviewed by Alan Hyman

we Tocover a multiplicity of insect orders and compress the

information into a usable field guide (even within a

SOUTH-EASTERN restricted geographical area) has obviously been a labour

AUSTRALIA of dedication by its author, Dr Roger Farrow. Educated in

England, his depth of experience is vast, including 6 years

of research on locusts in Mali and subsequent work for 25

A ; years with the CSIRO studying locusts and other insects,

producing more than 80 scientific papers. Now in

retirement, he has drawn on his extensive knowledge and

photographic skills to produce this valuable aid to insect

era ee identification. As the preface notes: “The Guide 1s directed

towards anyone with an interest in the rich natural history

of insects in South-Eastern Australia’ (with) ‘the fieldwork ... mainly conducted in

the Southern Tablelands of NSW and adjacent ranges...’. The author adds however,

that ‘most of the insects covered have a much wider range in south-eastern Australia

and beyond’. Unfortunately there 1s no inclusion of a regional map, which while not

absolutely essential, would have been beneficial here.

Although the guide commences traditionally enough with a preface,

acknowledgements and introduction — and concludes with appendices, a glossary,

references and indexes, it does not, as one might expect, consist of a series of chapters

each devoted to a specific insect order. Instead, the subtitle ‘An Ecological and

Behavioural Guide’ provides the clue to the book’s layout and structure. Individual

species or families of a specific order are variously placed in different sections

throughout the book according to their environments and habits rather than being

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 27

strictly confined to their groups. It is useful here to list some of the major contents as

this gives a good indication as to the breadth and scope of the book. The work 1s

divided into two parts.

Part 1, “An ecological and behavioural approach to insect identification’ comprises

ten chapters including such topics as: Regional environments and where to find

insects; Defining an insect; Insect classification: from species to order; Insect and

annual life cycles; Feeding strategies, behaviour, habitats, constructions and

domiciles. In turn, some chapters are further divided into sections. For example, the

‘Behaviour and Habitats’ chapter includes: Social insects, sub-social attributes and

communal behaviour; Mimicry; Aquatic and riparian insects; Cave insects and

Domestic insects. Additionally, certain attributes of characteristics are highlighted in

‘boxes’. For example, in the Annual life cycle chapter, (box 4) features ‘Camouflage’.

Also included here are two useful diagrams which simply and clearly illustrate typical

examples of one and two generation annual life cycles.

PART 2, ‘Insects 1n their environment’ is even more extensive. Chapters include: The

plant feeders; The predators; The blood feeders; Parasitoids; The decomposers and

Non-feeding and perching insects. Once again, these chapters are divided into

sections. For example, “The Decomposers’ deals with insects’ presence in litter,

decaying wood, compost and soil, carrion and dung. The section concludes with a

‘box’ which focuses on attracting native insects to your garden.

As previously indicated, the result of placing insects in the guide according to the

above criteria means that examples of each insect order are not confined to one

specific area of the book. This is especially true of the beetles (Coleoptera). While

many can be found grouped together by family within say, the Plant Feeders section,

e.g. leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae), other species or genera are distributed throughout

different parts of the guide, depending on environment or behaviour.

Many small mysteries are solved or clarified in the book. For example, most of us

would be familiar with sawtfly larvae (Hymenoptera — Pergidae) which ‘rear up’ from

a leaf when disturbed — but who 1s familiar with the adult insect? The Guide’s close-

up photographs include several species either guarding their larvae from attack or

feeding at flowers. The text explains that they differ from “wasps and bees by lack of

a ‘waist’ between thorax and abdomen’.

Most of the 19 butterflies (Lepidoptera) featured occur in the lengthy ‘Plant Feeders’

section in Part 2. While this 1s only a relatively small cross section of the region’s

overall butterfly fauna, the species depicted are typical enough to at least assign the

family or even the genus to a specimen sighting. For more precise identification and

study, the reader 1s directed to the References and further Reading section for the

appropriate order-specific guidebook.

While I am reasonably comfortable naming a butterfly in the field, my knowledge of

the other insect orders is fairly basic. Therefore any book which assists the interested

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 28

lay person in identifying, say a larva burrowing in the backyard soil or an unknown

‘bug’ munching on the leaf of a prized plant, is of great value. On a personal note, I

must admit taking a ‘short-cut’ with my first practical consultation of the book.

Recently, while digging a couple of holes for planting under a conifer on a

midwinter’s day, I encountered at a depth of maybe 200-250mm, two large apple-

ereen beetles. While initially ‘inert’, they soon proved to be very much alive, having

obviously been disturbed prematurely. A quick ‘flick through’ of the guide revealed a

photograph of the very species, the Green Christmas Beetle, Xylonichus eucalypti.

According to the text, these ‘adult beetles emerge from the ground 1n mid-summer

and fly to the nearest eucalypt tree to feed and mate but they occasionally aggregate

on other trees and shrubs’. If a more systematic approach 1s used, as the preface states,

‘this guide should enable the user to place most insects encountered in our area in a

particular feeding group and family, and will usually provide a genus and common

name, and possibly a species name’.

The Guide’s layout is uncomplicated to follow and read, the main text utilising a

simple two column format for the most part, with a small (9 point) but clear serifed

typeface, with a 12 point line spacing making for enhanced readability. The ‘boxed’

areas, by contrast, are differentiated with a full page width (single column) format,

background tinted, with a crisp sans serif text, again in readable 9/12 point

typesetting. Each picture caption is a mine of information in its own right. It includes

the insect’s common name (where assigned), scientific name, size in millimetres,

location of photograph and other pertinent details. Although the captions are set 1n 7

point type, they are still quite legible. The author quotes the old saying ‘a picture 1s

worth a thousand words’ and ‘so emphasis is placed on the photographs of insects

behaving in their natural environment...’. The quality of the photographs is generally

very good (and there are many hundreds) although occasionally, as the author states:

‘In some images the ‘clutter’ in the background reduces the visual impact of the target

species, but this is how insects are seen in the wild’. At the commencement of the

book there 1s also a series of landscapes depicting the various vegetated insect habitat

types.

The guide is unique in that it can be used to readily identify an unknown adult insect

or its immature stages encountered in the wild, or equally, an environment or habitat

may be searched, e.g. under bark, in streams, on flowers etc. with an appreciation or

expectation of the kind of species that might be found there. In summary, Roger

Farrow takes a refreshing approach to his subject. Because of the sheer numbers, it

would be impossible to identify all insects observed down to species level, but the

bibliography directs the reader to more detailed information on specific insect orders.

The guide will have appeal across a full spectrum of readers, non-specialists and

specialists alike — from gardeners, nurserymen and bushwalkers to land care persons

and professional entomologists. This book will become an indispensable item 1n your

field kit bag but the addition of a weatherproof protective cover 1s strongly

recommended!

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 29

The Butterfly Fauna of Sri Lanka. George Michael van der Poorten

and Nancy E. van der Poorten. Lepodon Books. 2016. vit418 pp; hardback;

approx. ~A4 sized. ISBN 978-1-77136-189-7. a. ~AUS $97 incl. postage

Reviewed by Kelvyn L. Dunn

The Butterfly Fauna The Indian subcontinent 1s a biogeographic region I have not

f explored and because of that, Sri Lanka, an intriguing island

only 30 km off shore, has escaped my field attention — at

least beyond those ‘armchair encounters’ romanced of during

perusals of older works when the island was known as

Ceylon. On skimming the detailed species accounts 1n this

new butterfly book, I recognised one small lycaenid I had

seen once, somewhere! It was not a splendid insect that I

should remember her well, and I paused to think as to where

and when. My digitised field diaries quickly revealed that

archived account. It was during a mid-afternoon stroll at

Kandawgyi Lake, Mingala Taung Nyuat, a parkland area in Yangon, that I chanced

upon this curious miletine with its remarkable flight, quite unlike any species I had

seen previously in Myanmar (formerly Burma) or elsewhere in southeast Asia. Video-

cam in hand, I recorded a short sequence of her activity, mystified at the time as to the

butterfly species involved. She fluttered about a chenopod, marked by a botanical

plaque identifying it as Bassella rubra Linn, whereupon she would almost jump at the

stems with her wings closed and long abdomen extended. It was nearly 1600 h and

shortly after first sighting her active in sunshine, this sombre adult then oviposited

under a leaf before departing to rest close by on a piece of wood. At the time, in

January 2005, I had supposed that the chenopod would be the larval food plant, but

later discovered that the caterpillars of this particular species, Spa/lgis epius, are

carnivorous! They eat mealy bugs — a very different life history to any butterfly in

Australia; and I learnt too, that this species 1s known as the Apefly because the pupa

looks like a monkey’s head! The van der Poorten’s tome on the butterflies of Sri

Lanka discusses the Apefly as well as other species one might encounter more

broadly in Asia. This excellent work has drawn this tiny island — once fancifully

described as ‘The Pearl of the Indian Ocean’ — into focus again after an entomological

quiescence since 1950 (when the last academic treatise on its butterflies appeared).

Sri Lanka

Aesthetically adorned with a basking sky-blue Cerulean on the cover, the work

immediately impresses with the grandeur it deserves. The van der Poorten’s

achievement has evidently been a labour of love and one that will certainly provide

that needed stimulus for a visit someday by naturalists who share their passion for

these delightful creatures. Even if that opportunity should pass me by (and I hope that

it would not), the hours I have spent reading the accounts of the 247 species, carefully

studying the illustrations of each, and contemplating their varied behaviours, their life

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 30

histories and their larval hosts (listed for 89% of these species) has enlightened me.

Some may wonder what the Australian enthusiast or expert might glean from this

work on a remote island, far afield, off the southern tip of India! Essentially, much —

if only because some larval hosts newly reported from Sri Lanka occur more widely

in the Asia-Pacific region. Indeed, that knowledge of usage elsewhere now offers

wisdom to the field worker who may seek similar potential among allied species and

genera in northern Australia.

The first chapter informs generally about Sri Lanka, highlighting its topography and

dual-monsoonal climate, and examines the origin of its fauna and overviews the

history of the study of its species. Although endemism 1s low overall, an area in the

southwest of the island that has no pronounced drought (unlike the rest of the island)

shows a remarkable concentration of endemic species (21 of the 31 endemic species

occur there). In addition, isolation from the mainland since the Pleistocene has

differentiated the local species into some 84 subspecies (as recognised in the work)

and still others show fine ecological specialisation in terms of host plant preferences.

The life cycle of the butterfly, described in the next chapter, covers many aspects of

butterfly anatomy and structure, their habits and behaviours (including migration,

courtship and oviposition), as well as factors influencing their survival (with focus on

predatory avoidance and the various escape-mechanisms employed to enhance their

longevity). Readers will be astonished at how a caterpillar of one swallowtail, whose

two large eyespots, together with 1ts everted osmeteria (which resembles a forked

tongue), mimics the head of a hemotoxic green tree viper, a group of snakes that are

widespread in Asia. The caterpillar even has a white rim just like the White-lipped Pit

Viper, a serpent that inflicts a wound that creates extreme pain and necrotises within

minutes.

The third chapter outlines seven impediments to the conservation of invertebrates and

raises the need to conserve butterflies on the island outside of reserves. Human

settlement, as the main threat to butterflies, has necessitated extensive clearing of

native vegetation over the past 175 years. Today only 22% of the island remains

vegetatively intact, and 1n one of the four climatic zones 90% of the original habitat is

now gone. Decried by concerned naturalists as far back as the early 1920s, that long-

term plundering of its forest resources is more than obviously at the species level —

almost half the butterfly fauna is facing extinction to varying extents, with 59 species

now listed as endangered (some critically so). As a small offset against this

irreplaceable loss, the authors promote the value of butterfly gardening 1n urban areas;

they point out how a bare plot of ground in a city hospital complex (where no

butterflies resided) soon supported 40 resident species within two years of planting a

garden of appropriate larval hosts and adult nectar sources!

The species accounts (Chapters 5-10 — with the layout expanded upon in Chapter 4)

overview the fauna sequentially on a family basis, starting with the skippers and

ending with the metalmarks. Each species occupies a page or two, and each contains a

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 31

number of images of live adults (with few exceptions), often enhanced by a selection

of images of the early stages, the habitats occupied, and occasionally larval host

plants (where known), including foliage with flowers to ease their recognition. Some

accounts include other aspects of their biology: a sequence of 12 photos for one

skipper (the Black Flat), as one example, shows the construction of a larval shelter cut

from and then sewn onto the leat. Most if not all the images are superb, none looks

seriously manipulated. Adding a sense of realism, images of road kill display a few

species that rarely open their wings; apart from revealing these adults worse for their

experience, they serve to highlight the plight of many butterflies nowadays, even in

those high-level reserves aimed to protect them. Captions of others sometimes explain

unusual circumstances thereby improving the visual story of their photography,

something charming in itself (p. 33 includes a poignant example of finality).

Many faunal works focus on the adult stage and this book certainly equals those in

that aspect. It expands on this, too, with an impressive and invaluable array of life

history photographs (Appendix F), presented stage by stage, and sequentially by

common name (followed by the species name for larvae but not the eggs or pupae). It

also includes a series of larval heads for selected skippers. An excellent memory for

local butterfly names will assist the user to compare the juvenile stages of similar

species more speedily and so appreciate features in common between more closely or

even distantly related groups (even where not on the same page as the case is more

likely to be). The list of larval host plants (Appendix C), another comprehensive

resource, adopts a similar arrangement, with hosts listed alphabetically by botanical

name (albeit unordered by family), and includes the dependent butterflies listed by

common names. An international audience which may wish to hone in generically to

sense that knowledge and utilise 1t where required will need to consult the index more

often than not.

The annotated species list (Appendix A) provides the nomenclatural authorities for

technical names and the years of description. It also inventories the conservation

status of each species and their adult abundances in each of the four zones (where

applicable) using a tripartite categorisation of probability defined by ‘very likely’,

‘likely’ or ‘unlikely’ to be seen during a four to five hour visit in each zone. Another

Appendix (B) provides an annotated list of cornerstone scientific volumes and

important historic papers dealing with the island’s fauna across its entomological

history for further reading. Still another (D) lists known nectar sources but these are

unlinked to butterfly species, except for a few cases where mentioned in the

individual species accounts. Linking these to the list of species in Appendix A (if

coded by number) would have enhanced this inventory given that few lists for flowers

and the butterfly species that utilise them are available. Indeed, the authors explain

that the length of the proboscis of various species may mechanically restrict or

promote their use of some tubular flowers enabling certain groups to capitalise on

different resources in the same habitat and avoid direct competition. Similarly, for

butterflies that are not aposematically coloured, particular flowers may be visited at

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 32

more restricted times of the day to avoid predation when the local birds are most

actively feeding. The historical accounts of migration (Appendix E) 1s another

fascinating archive, one that reveals that adult butterflies were far more numerous on

the island decades ago than they are today. The book closes with a Glossary, the

References, and the index of scientific and common names, followed by a short list of

abbreviations used 1n the text.

I found just a few imperfections and typographical errors, which I mention only in the

tradition of fairness, having done so in previous reviews. The year is missing for the

paper by Rocha et al. (listed on p. 408) published in the journal Science in 2014, and

the acronym NHM (Natural History Museum of London, England) appears after its

second usage (p. 4). The scientific name of Cepora nadina 1s incompletely italicised

on the final letter of its specific epithet (p.7), and the subfamily name, Limenitiinae, 1s

misspelled in an appendix (pp. 353-354). Some have argued since 1995 that the genus

Virachola 1s a synonym of Deudorix. In addition, the introductory text asserts that the

male butterfly carries the female during nuptial flights (p.32) but this applies

specifically to the family Pieridae and the nymphaline subfamily Danainae; the

female is the consistent carrier 1n some families and, 1n certain groups, the favoured

carrier may actually vary according to species or within species linked to

circumstances. Finally, the Common Nawab referred to as Charaxes athamas is \ikely

to be Polyura bharata; the status of that genus and species was revised in 2015

(research possibly published after the completion of the manuscript).

Overall, the work is an astonishing accomplishment by a dedicated couple. It stands,

without question, as a milestone in the study of the butterflies of this island and more

broadly for the South Asian region for which there are few texts to this level of

scholarly excellence and scientific detail. I recommend it as an essential addition to

the library of those interested in the biology of the butterflies of Asia. I anticipate too,

that it will lure much interest from Australian enthusiasts given that 56 (23%) species

(and 22 of the remaining genera) from that island also occur in political Australia.

Those with an interest 1n butterfly food plants and their early stages will be delighted

with the work’s coverage, which exceeds expectations.

ee ee i ee

Miniature Lives, Identifying Insects in Your Home and Garden by

Michelle Gleeson — Reviewed by Jill Fechner

I met Michelle Gleeson when I attended her Bugs Ed information session at the

Queensland Garden Expo in 2015. She spoke eloquently of her love for insects. She

told her audience she was putting the finishing touches on a book that she hoped

would help people to identify and respect the amazing creatures that share our homes

and gardens.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 33

Michelle studied to be an entomologist but didn't follow the

ms 6traditional academic path. Instead, with first-class honours

s under her belt, she chose to follow her passion for education.

Bugs Ed, launched in 2003 with good friends Anthony and

Kate Hiller, each year educates children around Queensland

about the insect world. In her own words this book 1s -" a

simple, comprehensive, easy-to-read identification guide to

Australian insects".

The book informs the reader about what they have found,

Michelle Gleeson how it grows, what it eats, how it protects itself and whether

it 1s good or not to have around. It also provides suggested

keyword terms to find further information through internet searches. Well set out,

beautifully photographed and with an ilustrated identification key, Michelle should

be very proud of the volume she has produced.

I hope Michelle continues to inspire the entomologists of tomorrow. I couldn't agree

more with the wonderful sentiments of Densey Clyne who penned the Foreword.

"This book is set to fill an important role, not least 1n the cause of insect conservation.

It will serve as a useful reference work for the serious field entomologist. And

hopefully it will help to shatter old prejudices as it introduces new generations to the

diverse, secretive, often beautiful and always intriguing minibeasts whose world we

so recently came to share."

For more information about Bugs Ed visit http://www.bugsed.com/

ISBN: 9781486301379 - Format: Paperback - Number of Pages: 344 -Published: Ist

March 2016 - Publisher: CSIRO - Dimensions (cm): 21.5 x 14.8 x 2.3

The book is available from BOIC for a member’s price of $35 (non-members $40)

plus P&H.

REPORTS

Springbrook National Park Field Trip — 15" October, 2016 -

Paul Klicin — Field Trip Co-ordinator

Thanks to everyone that attended the BOIC field trip to Springbrook National Park.

As my first official planned outing as BOIC Field Trip Co-ordinator I thought it might

be a big ask to expect people to make the drive all the way down to Springbrook from

Brisbane, however much to my delight, by 10am we had a 13 strong contingent of

like-minded people eager to commence our morning hike into the bush to see what

there was to discover within this diverse environment.

Located in the Gold Coast Hinterland, this protected national park consists of almost

62km/? of almost pristine rainforest and is home to numerous species of fauna such as

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 34

Albert’s Lyrebird (Menura alberti), Satin Bower Bird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus),

Land Mullet (Bellatorias major), Lamington Blue Spiny Crayfish (Euastacus

sulcatus), Eastern Yellow Robin (Eopsaltria australis), Imperial Hairstreak butterfly

(Jalmenus evagoras) and the Richmond Birdwing butterfly (Ornithoptera

richmondia) to name just several, and by no means mentioned here in order of

significance.

Previous to this outing, I personally visited this same area and was lucky enough to

spot several Land Mullets, the Blue Spiny Crayfish and a female Richmond Birdwing

butterfly which was at the time laying many eggs on its host plant the coastal

Birdwing Vine (Pararistolochia praevenosa).

I was a little disappointed that the original planned route for this field trip was closed

to the general public due to maintenance of that section of the walking track. Our

planned walk was to skirt and overlook the edge of the rainforest en route to a known

Richmond Birdwing habitat with a large variety of host plants along the way. Our

eroup quickly committed to an alternate route which took us along a winding trail

which descended into the rainforest canopy Where V we were greeted note the way

with magnificent lush rainforest with | 3

views of some beautiful waterfalls and

massive rainforest trees.

It didn’t take our group long to spot a

couple of Land Mullet (Egernia major,

Australia’s largest skink and the world’s

second largest) at the edge of the walking

track. It remained still long enough for

some of our avid photographers to

capture some images.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 35

Club President Frank Jordan was able to

deftly identify several butterfly host plants

along the way and gave a brief analysis of

these plants for all the club members present.

The identified host plants were as follows:

Hairy Pomaderris (Pomaderris lanigera) -

host plant for the Yellow Jewel

(Hypochrysops byzos), Veiny Wilkiea

(Wilkiea huegeliana) - host plant for the

Regent Skipper (Euschemon rafflesia),

Bolwarra (Eupomatia laurina) - host for the

Eastern Dusk-flat (Chaetocneme beata), Tall

Rice Flower (Pimelea ligustrina) - host plant

for the Yellow-spotted Blue (Candalides

xanthospilos).

The weather remained clear but,

unfortunately, butterfly activity was

sparse to say the least which I believe

was mainly due to us being out of the

sun and beneath the rainforest canopy

for most of our journey, and butterflies

being creatures of the sun. Butterflies

are most commonly seen flying around

Open sunny areas.

Unfortunately, I was unable to spend

much time with everybody and chose

to scout ahead as I was not feeling well

at the beginning of our walk but I

managed to catch up with people

afterward for an enjoyable lunch when

Ls *

fs Ti |

{ie 7s\.)

we returned from our walk. During Hairy Pomaderris (Pomaderris lanigera) host

lunch, we were joined by a couple of for the Yellow Jewel (Hypochrysops byzos)

Satin Bower Birds, an Eastern Yellow Photo Jill Fechner

Robin and a Green Catbird (Ailuroedus crassirostris) aptly named due to its

distinctive call that resembles a cat meowing.

Stay tuned for exciting news regarding upcoming field trips in the coming months and

we hope to see you along at the next one. Meanwhile.......... happy bug hunting

Photos Paul Klicin except where previously credited

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 36

Jill Fechner took the following photos on the Springbrook Field Trip

Lending a helping hand Bracket Fungus (Trametes versicolor)

TASATASATATATATATATATAT AAT AT AT AT ATA

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 37

While not host plants for lepidoptera, the following threatened plants are certainly

worth a mention.

Felicia ferruginea Helmholtzia glaberrima

i ie Ee i ee

Tamborine Skywalk Field Trip — 12 November, 2016

Paul Klicin — Field Trip Co-ordinator

If you have ever wondered what paradise looks like, just ask any one of the twenty

three BOIC members who attended our most recent field trip to the Tamborine

Rainforest Skywalk on Saturday the 12" of November.

Nestled amongst a lush green valley on the south eastern corner of Tamborine

Mountain is 30 acres of privately owned pristine rainforest that 1s so rich in flora and

fauna species that even the most insatiable wildlife lover and tree hugger will be left

humbled by the absolute diversity the area has to offer.

Due to the sheer volume of host plants and animals that were identified on this field

trip and as a bit of an experiment I have included all the scientific and botanical

names of animals and plants respectively 1n a separate appendix at the end of this trip

report which also makes for easier reading for our grass roots members whilst also

satisfying the needs or expectations of our scientific boffins.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 38

Rising approximately 25-30 metres above the rainforest floor we began our walk on

the unique and purpose built skywalk platform with the aid of a brief 15-20 minute

cuided talk from Nick Moore who is the Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk Manager.

Nick informed us of a recent and interesting visitor to the Skywalk being Australia’s

Largest Owl, the ‘Powerful Owl’, but unfortunately on the day this magnificent bird

decided not to present itself. Thanks go to Nick for his valued time.

The Birdwing Vine which is the host plant to the Richmond Birdwing butterfly 1s in

abundance throughout the Rainforest Skywalk and due to habitat loss in various areas

along the east coast of Australia an additional 500 plants have been planted in this

location over the last year or two with the intention of not only sustaining this

butterfly species but to help build upon its numbers, as according to Michael F Braby,

the author of ‘The Complete Field Guide to Butterflies of Australia (2016) the

Richmond Birdwing butterfly 1s vulnerable in Queensland and threatened in New

South Wales.

As our large group of enthusiasts began to spread out along the walk word began to

filter back of confirmed sightings of the male and female Richmond Birdwing

butterfly along various locations of the track. One cannot help but watch 1n awe as

this magnificent drawcard butterfly continues about its business flying amongst the

rainforest trees in search of nectar food and host plants on which the female lays its

precious cargo of eggs. Though not in large numbers patience, and a little bit of luck,

was required to spot this popular butterfly. Only the quickest and luckiest of

photographers would have been able to capture a photograph of this butterfly and

unfortunately none of those were present on this day.

I managed to locate 3 early instar Richmond Birdwing butterfly larvae, most likely no

more than one or two weeks old, feeding on the soft new growth of a birdwing vine

which was growing beside the walking track and which I pointed out to other

members of our group. It’s a very fascinating caterpillar which I have always thought

to be quite prehistoric looking.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 39

Being such an iconic butterfly of the area, the Richmond Birdwing was a major draw-

card for us. However, along our walk we were also greeted with aerial displays from a

vast array of other butterfly species such as the White-banded Plane, Blue Tiger, Blue

Triangle, Caper Gull, Caper White, Large Grass Yellow, Meadow Argus, Monarch,

Wonder Brown (Heteronympha mirifica)

Photo Kathy Clark

Orange Palm Dart, Orchard Swallowtail,

Painted Lady, Pale Triangle, Small Grass

Yellow, Wonder Brown, White Nymph,

and the Yellow Admiral. As you can see,

we certainly were spoilt for variety.

Unfortunately, apart from the Wonder

Brown, no other photographs of these

butterflies were presented for our

magazine by our print deadline.

I would like to thank John Moss and

Frank Jordan for providing valuable input

regarding various butterfly host plants

that grow in the area along with other

interesting non host plant species.

Some of the host plant species identified

were the Stinging Nettle (host to the

Yellow Admiral et al.), Native Mulberry (host to the Jezebel Nymph et al.),

Sandpaper Fig (host to the Purple Moon Beam), Native Grape Vine (host to the

Joseph’s Coat moth, et al.), ZigZag Vine (host to the Pale Triangle), Birdwing Vine

(host to the Richmond Birdwing) and the Wait-a-while (host to the Caper Gull) to

name just a few.

Ty! d

OL, | = +,

The first leg of our walk concluded at the

edge of the Cedar Creek rock pools and

upon arrival I spotted several members

of our group scrambling amongst the

rocks and pointing cameras this way and

that. They had located and identified an

interesting day flying moth, Cruria

synopla, which was easily spooked with

the slightest detection of movement by

any of us. Fortunately, I managed to

photograph this unique looking moth

with my iphone.

vd BE PS REDS PF DE be PE De De PE bd Pe hg

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 40

Of interest, a photograph was captured of

a blue damselfly, Whitewater

Rockmaster (Diphlebia lestoides),

resting on a rock by Cedar Creek. Ric

Natrass's dragonfly book notes that it

was first collected at Cedar Creek on

Mt. Tamborine by a gentleman

named Fraser in December 1960.

Another day flying moth identified on our

walk as the Tiger Moth — Photo Paul Klicin

Crimson Rosella — Photo Jaap Vogel

After our walk, lunch was a relaxing

affair overlooking a small rock pool and

slow flowing stream beside the visitor

centre and café. According to Nick, this 1s

a favourite drinking and swimming hole for

TA ATACALATATATATALATATACASATATATAL AT:

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 41

Regent Bower Bird — Photo Kathy Clark

a variety of local birds. We witnessed, first-hand, two very stunning Regent Bower

birds that seemed to be enjoying themselves splashing about 1n the water. This was

followed by the visit of a Crimson Rosella.

This ugly fellow 1s a Hawk Moth larva (Theretra latreillei) gorging itself on a native

erape vine, Cayratia clematidea, which was growing quite commonly throughout the

area. This fine specimen of a caterpillar was found at the edge of the car parking area

outside the visitor centre. (Ed.: Paul,

a child once told me that “nothing in

If you missed this trip we are more

than likely planning another trip to

Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk

sometime in the future.

Thanks to everyone that attended

and meanwhile, happy bug hunting.

Appendix of common names accompanied by scientific and botanical names

Common name Common name

Ehretia acuminata

Secamone elliptica

Blue Triangle Graphium sarpedon | Three-Veined Laurel

(et al.)

Capparis sarmentosa)

Capparis arborea

Breynia oblongifolia

Scaevola albida

Asclepias curassavica

Archontophoenix spp.

Zieria smithii

Xerochrysum bracteatum

Polyalthia nitidissima

Ficus coronata

Richmond Birdwing Ornithoptera Birdwing Vine Pararistolochia praevenosa

richmondia

Small Grass Yellow Edge Senna (et al.) Senna acclinis

Wonder Brown Heteronympha Graceful Grass Ottochloa gracillima

mirifica

White Nymph Mynes geoffroyi Native Mulberry Pipturus argenteus

Yellow Admiral Stinging Nettle (et al.) Urtica incisa

Moths

Cunjevoi Lily Alocasia brisbanensis

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 42

Hawk Moth Theretra latreillei Native Grape Vine (et al.) | Ciccus clematidea

Tiger Moth Amata trigonophora | De |

oR OR OR OK OK FS FS OK OK

IN THE GARDEN

Caper Whites — Peter Hendry

a a al : oom Over the past few weeks I have noticed a few

~~ Caper White (Belenois java) butterflies in the

4) garden. On Sunday 25/10/2016 there were quite a

few nectaring among the Pentas but the numbers

exploded on the following day. While nectaring

was the prime activity several were seen in

courtship displays and males chased each other.

While flowers of all colours were visited, the red

Pentas proved most popular followed by the red

flowering Graptophyllum sp..

This is the first time I have noticed butterflies

™ nectaring on my Graptophyllum which is often

| visited by the noisy miner (Manorina

melanocephala), a bird in the honeyeater family.

I wrote an article on the Caper White migrations in

BOIC Newsletter No. 47, December 2007.

Photos Peter Hendry

SOK OK 28 OK OK OK 2K OK OK

This stunner keeps building right across the tap to

my tank. St Andrew's Cross Spider (Argiope

keyserlingi).

Far left -

Lean Lynx

Spider

(Oxyopes

macilentus)

Plectranthus

argentatus -

a great plant

for native

bees.

Photos and

text

Jill Fechner

BEDS PERT Pe Pe Re be eRe be Pe he bd Pee bd Pe

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 43

BUTTERFLY AND OTHER INVERTEBRATES CLUB PROGRAMME

At the time of printing, details of the programme were not available. You will be advised

of these via email or post when these are finalised. We do, however, have tentative dates

for the following events:

Committee and Planning meeting — February 11'" 2017

Field Trips — Ormeau revisited January 7°" 2017

Lota Boardwalk February 18'" 2017

Bribie Island Butterfly House March 26" 2017

DISCLAIMER

The magazine seeks to be as scientifically accurate as possible but the views, opinions and

observations expressed are those of the authors. The magazine is a platform for

people, both amateur and professional, to express their views and observations about

invertebrates. These are not necessarily those of the BOIC. The manuscripts are submitted

for comment to entomologists or people working in the area of the topic being

discussed. If inaccuracies have inadvertently occurred and are brought to our attention we

will seek to correct them in future editions. The Editor reserves the right to refuse to print

any matter which 1s unsuitable, inappropriate or objectionable and to make nomenclature

changes as appropriate.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Producing this magazine is done with the efforts of:

e Those members who have sent in letters and articles

e Andrew Atkins who provided the cover painting and plates

e Photographers who allowed their images to be reproduced

e Daphne Bowden who works on layout, production and distribution

Kelvyn Dunn and John Moss for scientific referencing and proof reading of various

articles in this issue of the magazine

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Roberts.

BEDS PE DS PF OE be PE De pe Pe bd Pe be pe Pe bd Pe bg

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #83 — Page 44