PLANNING AND ORGANIZING COMMITTEE 2015

President:

Vice President:

Treasurer:

Secretary:

Magazine:

Publicity and Library:

Excursion Co-ordinator:

Committee Members:

Marie-Louise Johnson 0422 970 184

John Moss 07 3245 2997

Rob MacSloy 07 3824 4348

Jill Fechner 0417 793 659

Daphne Bowden (daphne.bowden1 @bigpond.com) 07 3396 6334

Lois Hughes 07 3206 6229

Alisha Steward 07 3275 1186

Ross Kendall 07 3378 1187

Richard Zietek 07 3390 1950

PLANNING AND ORGANIZATION MEETINGS

A quarterly meeting is scheduled in 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 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;

To promote the conservation of the invertebrate habitat;

To promote the keeping of invertebrates as alternative pets;

To promote research into invertebrates;

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.bowden!@bigpond.com

Meadow Argus (Junonia villida) — painting by Lois Hughes

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 2

FROM THE PRESIDENT

As the newly elected president I am acutely aware of the strong foundation my

predecessor Ross Kendall has created during his 9 years as president. Thank you

Ross, I know I have big shoes to fill!

My short time as a member of the club and as a committee member has already shown

me the dedication of the committee members both old and new who often work many

long hours behind the scenes to ensure the club’s ongoing success. I thank the

members for electing me and am looking forward to working with you all in my new

role.

The Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club is special due to the diversity of interests

amongst its members who are all linked by a common interest 1n insects (and

spiders!). Many members contribute their time at events, ideas and magazine articles,

not to mention artwork and photography, to the club. Contributions by any members

are welcome and appreciated so please continue to offer your input no matter how big

or small.

I myself have had the privilege of working as an entomologist both in Australia and

overseas for a large part of my working life. My work was primarily on pest and

predator interactions. These days my primary interest is in moths and silk production

as well as educating the general public on the beauty, diversity and usefulness of

insects.

This year 1s already proving to be exciting with the planning of more regular outings

for club members, working on an improved website and the development of a new

logo. Our next planning meeting is 8'" August. Any members (new or old) are most

welcome to come along and get involved. Marie-Louise

Meadow Argus (Junonia villida) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) ..............cceeccceseeeeeeeees 4

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Infestation of Cryptocephaline Beetle Larvae ......... ec ecccccesseceeeseccceesececeeeceeseeeeeeees 1]

Life history notes on the noctuid moth Bastilla solomonensis PAPUAN .........60...00000 12

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New Distribution Records for Hesperiine Butterflies in Australia .......... cc ceeeceee eee 17

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 3

CREATURE FEATURE

Meadow Argus (Junonia villida) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) —

Lois Hughes

Often the first butterflies to welcome us in Spring here at Mt. Cotton, in Redland City,

Queensland, are the Meadow Argus. This last season was no exception. In fact many

species of butterflies were here in abundance and widely reported in many areas of

South-east Queensland.

The Meadow Argus 1s easily recognizable

both for its distinctive colouration and

unique habits. Its flight is fast and fairly

close to the ground, interspersed with

brief periods of gliding, before alighting,

wings outstretched, to bask in the

sunshine. They spend considerable time

on the ground. Our gravel path is a

favourite spot to which they repeatedly

return.

Fast and furious “dog fights” ensue

between rival males, sometimes three or

four spiralling crazily upwards as they

seek to establish territory or drive off

Meadow Argus, in the sunshine, feeding with intruders. Their cryptic underwing

the wings open colouration 1s the perfect disguise when

they rest with wings closed.

There are some minor variations 1n pattern, colour and size with a number of

subspecies recognized over its considerable range according to Braby (2000). Its

distribution ranges from the Christmas and Cocos-Keeling islands, mainland New

Guinea and adjacent islands, virtually the whole of mainland Australia and eastern

Tasmania, Lord Howe and Norfolk islands, New Zealand and many islands of the

south-west Pacific.

It is a welcome and common garden visitor and, because it has a large number of host

plants on which its caterpillars feed, is found in a wide variety of habitats. Migrations

have been recorded but these would seem to occur sporadically and are not well

documented. The butterflies remain in our location during their breeding season.

A medium sized butterfly, with a wingspan between 40-43 mm, it breeds on a wide

variety of exotic plants as well as natives. The exotics include Antirrhinum species

(Snapdragons), Centaurium species, Hygrophila costata, Plantago species

(Plantains), Portulaca oleracea (Pigweed), Verbena bonariensis (Purple Top),

Verbena officinalis (Common Verbena) and Verbena rigida (Veined Verbena).

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 4

Local natives include Goodenia rotundifolia, Hygrophila angustifolia (Karamat),

Portulaca australis, Scaevola aemula (Fanflower) and native plantains. This list 1s not

exhaustive. Braby (2000) has additional plants listed which may be appropriate for

other areas.

On numerous occasions I have found larvae on Barleria cristata (an exotic with

lavender trumpet-shaped flowers), but haven’t yet bred them through to verify this.

This plant, sometimes erroneously referred to as Philippine Violet, 1s in the

Acanthaceae family, making it a relative of the native Hygrophila and as such 1s

probably a suitable host plant. We have a large colony of Tiny or Dainty Grass-blues

(Zizula hylax) which breed prolifically on Barleria, a tough, drought-resistant ground

cover, making it much easier to grow than Hygrophila, the Dainty’s local host plant.

However, on the downside, Barleria can become invasive due to its hardiness and the

fact that it has exploding seed pods which scatter the seed over a wide area.

I have also observed a female Meadow Argus ovipositing on Carpet Weed or Fog

Fruit (Phyla nodiflora) a mat-forming perennial ground cover, with attractive dainty

white flowers.

Most often I find caterpillars on Common Verbena (Verbena officinalis), a weed

which 1s dotted throughout our paddocks and in my herb garden! Every time I decide

to dig them up or cut them down I find caterpillars present. I am not sure what the

attraction 1s but the butterflies appear to favour these particular plants.

The black caterpillars, with soft, branched spines, have a peculiar habit of wandering

from the plant to rest on the ground, sometimes well away from their home, which 1s

certainly hazardous for them as I tend the garden!

Another weedy Verbena, Verbena bonariensis or Purple Top, grows along with

Verbena officinalis here but isn’t as favoured by the butterflies, maybe because its

leaves are tougher. In captivity however the caterpillars readily accept this species.

Despite their tiny size, the flowers of both weeds are a nectar source for small blue

butterflies and migrating Caper White butterflies. I found the following in an old

“Diggers Gardening Club Catalogue” which listed Verbena bonariensis thus — ““This

beauty floats hundreds of amethyst heads of bloom as it blends with its garden

companions”. The article’s accompanying photo portrayed a much more floriferous

head, compared to the tiny sparse flowers on our plants. If any of our members in

southern states have knowledge of, or experience with, this plant, and it is as

described, I would be interested in obtaining some to plant in our garden.

Another very common weed, Lantana camara, 1s listed in Braby (2000) as a host

plant but not seen here as such. It is also utilized as a nectar source, so this

combination, as well as lantana’s wide distribution, would certainly contribute to the

proliferation of the butterfly in many locations.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 5

In conclusion it would appear that a number

of plants which classify as weeds have

insured that this much loved garden visitor

remains a common sight. We should value

these plants while at the same time keeping

them within reasonable bounds.

Photos Erica Siegel

References:

Braby, M.F., 2000. Butterflies of Australia. Their

Identification, Biology and Distribution

— Volume 1, CSIRO Publishing,

Melbourne —

Kleinschmidt, H.E. and Johnson R.W., 1977. Meadow Argus imbibing nectar from

Weeds of Qld., DPI Lantana camara

Moss, John T., 2010. Butterfly Host Plants of S.E. Qld. and Nthn. NSW, 3° edition, BOIC

PRESIDENT’S REPORT TO AGM 2015

Another year has flown by and the club is about to enter its 21 year of existence.

The celebration of our 20" year was marked by the publication and distribution of

complimentary copies of a 2015 calendar featuring a selection of paintings created by

Lois Hughes for various cover stories 1n past editions of “Metamorphosis Australia”’.

Several hundred extra copies were sold and this helped to defray the significant cost

of printing and postage. The inclusion of some articles from the “old” Newsletter in

editions of the magazine during our 20" year is an interesting link to our past.

The success of our magazine 1s a wonderful reflection of the interest and dedication of

the many contributors. Many subscribers to the more “professional” publications now

acknowledge the quality of the articles.

Much of the success of our club has come from the quiet dedication of Daphne over

all the years. I thank her for the wonderful work 1n preparing each quarterly edition

of our magazine. Some articles arrive unsolicited but others are the result of her

gentle diplomacy. Preparation of the magazine also entails much more than arranging

those articles and images using MS-Word and emailing the final product to the

printers. The final text and layout of an article often involves several exchanges,

sometimes by phone, often by email, with the author and specialists 1n their particular

field. John Moss 1s often consulted. Peter Hendry helps to ensure that images

supplied are tweaked to achieve the best outcomes. It 1s a rare event if a grammatical,

spelling or punctuation error escapes Daphne’s vigilant eye.

Daphne maintains the database of our membership. She is usually the first person

contacted with questions or requests to find the identity of a particular bug and

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 6

through her many links to experts is able get a speedy response back to the enquirer. I

checked my computer’s “Daphne in box” this morning. There are 1998 messages that

have arrived since mid 2008. How many more went to other recipients’?

John continues to be a great ambassador as he maintains connections with many

members of like-minded organisations while Rob keeps our financial records 1n their

usual immaculate order. We continue to be privileged to be able to appreciate Lois’s

beautiful and accurate paintings for the magazine cover. I thank Alisha, Richard and

committee newcomers Marie-Louise and Jill for their support during the year. Elaine

Allison has begun to contribute her paintings of butterflies which are much admired.

In September, I reported on the success of our display at the Brisbane Exhibition and

thanked the many folk who manned that display. Similar displays at Kumbartcho,

IndigiScapes and the SGAP annual Spring Flower Show often have intangible results

but are an essential part of the club’s aims. Our book “Butterfly Host Plants of South-

east Queensland and Northern New South Wales” continues to sell well with around

800 copies sold since the release of the 3rd edition in late 2010. The long awaited

Mistletoe book that has consumed thousands of hours of both John’s and my time will

finally be printed this year.

In recent times we have failed to provide the opportunity for newer members to

participate in field trips. I believe that your new committee will address this issue.

The nine years of my presidency have provided me with many opportunities to make

a positive contribution and I am sure that BOIC will continue to prosper in the future.

Best wishes Ross

ITEMS OF INTEREST

Life history notes on the Meadow Argus, Junonia villida (Fabricius,

1787) Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae — Wesley Jenkinson

v Ss a= ae mg This species 1s another one of Australia’s

| very well-known and well documented

butterflies. Its distribution has been

recorded across the continent and the

lower regions of eastern Tasmania. The

adults frequent a wide range of habitats

particularly open woodlands and

erasslands where the host plants are

commonly growing. They are also a

a * common visitor to suburban gardens. It

Meadow Argus (Junonia villida) is one of a limited number of butterflies

Photo Russel Denton that have been recorded in the dry inland

regions of Australia and adults tend to avoid more densely vegetated areas such as wet

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 7

closed forests, but may frequent the margins particularly when searching for nectar.

They are migratory and can number in their hundreds when this occurs.

The adults are rapid fliers and typically land on bare ground, rocks or low growing

vegetation and become very active from mid-morning to late afternoon 1n hot sunny

conditions but settle rather quickly

during cloudy conditions. During warm

sunny periods they rest with their

wings open towards the sun and 1n very

hot sunny weather tend to have the

wings closed, facing towards the sun.

This would no doubt help to assist in

deflecting any additional heat captured

by their wings. They have a very

distinctive flight, gliding quickly with

the wings open in a flat plane, followed

by a few rapid wing beats. Males

occasionally defend small territories |

chasing off rival males. Both sexes are Meadow Argus (Junonia villida)

readily attracted to a wide variety of Photo Russel Denton

small native and introduced flowers

and when feeding, the wings are often open to reveal their pretty upperside colours.

During migrations, flight 1s around one to two metres, or much higher over

obstructions such as rows of trees and buildings. When in search of nectar, again they

can be observed at the top of the tallest eucalypts feeding on blossom.

Whilst in flight this species can easily be confused with the Australian Painted Lady

(Vanessa kershawi) which 1s also migratory and is very similar in flight behaviour,

general colour and size. The two species often occupy similar habitat and occasionally

the timing of migrations can overlap. Compared to J. villida, V. kershawi lacks any

eyespots on the wings and has a much more mottled pattern on the hindwing.

The species shows slight weak seasonal variation. Dry season specimens chiefly have

a more pronounced postmedian band on the hindwing underside with a slightly darker

ground colour. The upperside eyespots are often slightly smaller in these specimens

(Braby, 2000). To determine the sexes, females are usually larger, with the hindwing

termen more rounded and the forewing apex less pointed (Braby, 2000).

Wingspans for the pictured adult specimens are: male 42 mm and females 44 mm.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 8

Junonia villida calybe (Godart, 1819) Meadow Argus

Images left to right: male, female

Junonia villida calybe (Godart, 1819) Meadow Argus

Images left to right: male underside, female underside

A contributing factor for the success of this species 1s that it utilises a wide variety of

native and exotic herbaceous host plants. The following families listed by various

authors are listed in Braby 2000, Acanthaceae, Asteraceae, Convolvulaceae,

Dipsacaceae, Gentianaceae, Goodeniaceae, Lamiaceae, Plantaginaceae,

Portulacaceae, Scrophulariaceae and Verbenaceae.

Ovipositing females fly slowly around the host plant often settling on the ground then

walking onto the host plant. One female observed walked around in circles on the host

plant before curling her abdomen onto the leaf surface. Eggs were laid singly and

were positioned near the edge on the leaf surface, on both the upper and lower sides.

Females ovipositing have been observed at Beaudesert during late September 1n full

sun by 10.00 am in the morning and also mid-afternoon during February. Females

appear to have a preference to lay their eggs on small plants at ground level rather

than taller plants.

During September 2007, an egg was collected from an exotic plant

(or weed) known as Purpletop (Verbena bonariensis) growing at my

residence in Beaudesert, Queensland. The larva was raised through

to an adult on this known host. The egg was approximately 0.8 mm

high x 0.7 mm wide, green, barrel shaped with 13 coarse

Freshly laid egg longitudinal ribs also showing faint transverse lines.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 9

In captivity the larva consumed most of the eggshell soon after emergence. The early

instar fed near the base of the leaf, chewing the lower leaf epidermis. The later instar

then fed eating sections from the outer edge of the leaf. It had a preference to feed

close to the ground rather than higher on the host plant. It sheltered below leaves at

the base of the host plant during the day and was observed feeding during daylight, at

dusk and during the night. The larva completed five instars and attained a length of

38 mm.

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1“ instar larva 2"¢ instar larva 3" instar larva

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4" instar larva

Pupa lateral view Pupa dorsal view

The brown coloured pupa, measuring 17mm in length, was located below a stem of

the host plant. It was attached with silk only by the cremaster. Under natural

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 10

conditions the larvae often leave the host plant and pupate in a sheltered position

below a leaf on a nearby herb or shrub.

The total time from egg to adult was just over one month, with egg duration 3 days,

larval duration 23 days while pupal duration was 7 days.

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

records of adults from all months of the year. Flight times appear to vary, however in

this location they are generally more numerous from late spring to early summer, late

summer and autumn. In south eastern Queensland during the hot summer months, the

adults can be numerous west of the Great Dividing Range. My Beaudesert records

indicate adults of both spring and autumn migrations are all generally heading in a

southerly direction. No migrations have been recorded heading towards the north.

Photos (except where already credited) Wesley Jenkinson

Reference:Braby, M.F., 2000. Butterflies of Australia — Their Identification, Biology

and Distribution. vol 2. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne

Se Se i

Infestation of Cryptocephaline Beetle Larvae — Margaret Greenway

During March and early April, 2015, I found thousands of these encased (8 mm in

length) larvae floating on the surface of my swimming pool and clogging the skimmer

box. At times the pool surface was black. Initially I thought they were falling into the

pool from the overhanging Eucalyptus trees. I sent the photograph to Daphne who

forwarded it to Martyn Robinson and Chris Reid at the Australian Museum. Martyn

and Chris identified the larvae as those of a chrysomelid beetle. They make their case

out of faecal matter. Chris thought the larvae were probably a species of Cadmus,

subfamily Cryptocephalinae: family Chrysomelidae (leaf beetles). He suggested that

the larvae were probably crawling into the pool so I undertook some ‘on ground’

investigations.

Cryptocephaline Beetle larvae Cadmus sp.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 11

Indeed I found that the larvae were crawling into the pool — mainly at night, although

they were also active during those rainy dull days. In exposed areas e.g. pool pavers,

they seemed to ‘hide’ (under dead leaves) when the sun came out. They were also in

abundance in the leaf litter and I was able to observe them feeding on dead leaves and

the bark of twigs; they were also feeding on fresh eucalypt leaves that had fallen on

the ground and appeared to have voracious appetites. Fallen eucalypt twigs had been

completely stripped of leaves and bark.

Chris had previously observed, and recorded (Reid, 1999), large infestations of

cryptocephaline beetle larvae in a plantation plot of Eucalyptus fraxinoides growing

in a subalpine region. Densities of larvae up to 1000/m2 were found on the forest

floor, and were “skeletonising leaves and decorticating twigs” (p201).

What is so amazing to me 1s that I have never seen these larvae before, and I've lived

at the bush block for 25 years.

Acknowledgements: Dr Chris Reid and Martyn Robinson at the Australian Museum

Photo Margaret Greenway

Reference:

Reid, C.A.M. (1999). Eucalyptus seedling herbivory by a species of Cadmus Erichson

(Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cryptocephalinae). Australian Journal of Entomology

38: 201-203

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Life history notes on the noctuid moth Bastilla solomonensis

papuana (Holloway, 1979) |Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Catocalinae]| —

Graham McDonald

Introduction: The moths of the genus Bastilla are generally a large species and often

have a characteristic white or pale coloured band running from the costa to the

dorsum near the centre of the forewing.

They are also characterised, along with some other genera in the Parallelia-complex,

by a trapezoid or triangular area subapically based on the costa and defined by the

anterior sections of the postmedial and submarginal fasciae, bridged by a line along

vein M1 (Holloway and Miller 2003).

They are normally found in the tropical or sub-tropical areas of the continent and

rarely in the arid interior.

Common (1990) states that this sub-species occurs in Australia from Cape York to

northern New South Wales and 1s also found in New Guinea. Holloway and Miller

(2003) add the Northern Territory to this distribution.

The moth referred to in this study was one of a number, collected as larvae on their

local host plant, raised to adulthood and photographed in Mudgeeraba, South-east

Queensland.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 12

Synonyms: Parallelia solomonensis papuana (Holloway, 1979)

Dysgonia solomonensis (Hampson, 1913)

Catocala fusca (Scott, 1891)

Dysgonia fusca (Scott, 1891)

Dysgonia papuana (Holloway, 1979)

Other sub-species not found in Australia are:

Bastilla solomonensis bicacuminata (Holloway, 1979) which is found in the Solomon

Islands, Bismark Islands and in New Caledonia.

Bastilla solomonensis hebridesia (Holloway, 1979) which occurs 1n Vanuatu.

Host plants: The larvae of this moth feed on the leaves of Breynia oblongifolia

(Family: Phyllanthaceae), (Common, 1990 and Holloway & Miller, 2003) (Figs | &

2).

This plant is generally seen as a shrub to three metres, but is usually much less.

It can have a suckering habit, particularly if the roots are disturbed.

Common names for this plant include Breynia, Native Coffee Bush, Dwarf’s Apple

and Willgar.

Breynia oblongifolia occurs 1n every

Pastoral District of Queensland with the

exception of Gregory North and Gregory

South, both in the channel country. The

plant is also found in New South Wales,

Northern Territory, New Guinea, Malesia

and Melanesia.

This plant can be found in a number of

vegetation types, including rainforest

types, sclerophyll forests and in heath.

Left — Fig. 1 Breynia oblongifolia fruit

Below — Fig. 2 Breynia oblongifolia flowers

Fig. 1

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 13

Life history: The larvae of this moth (Figs 3 & 4) rest on the stems of Breynia

oblongifolia during the daylight hours. They generally feed at night. When disturbed,

they will contort their body and drop to the ground under the plant. The larvae are

‘semi-loopers’. They have lost two of the five pairs of prolegs, (false legs which are

fleshy and unjointed) with another pair reduced to stumps. This enables them to

move by drawing the rear end to the head and then advancing the head. Reduced

prolegs allow the body to bend upwards further than it would normally, so covering a

greater distance in one move.

Early instar Late instar

Four larvae were collected at an early instar stage when they were 20 mm long. Over

the next two weeks they grew to 40 mm long and then pupated. A cocoon was

constructed from the leaf litter supplied. Several pieces were held together by silken

strands and then the pupal chamber was lined with fine smooth silk (Figs 5 & 6). The

pupa was 25 mm long and covered with a grey coating which was easily rubbed off

when touched.

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Pupal shelter

Pupal duration was 20 days from March 26 to April 16, 2015. The adult moths which

emerged had a wingspan of 60 mm, and were released after being photographed

(Fig. 7).

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 14

My records indicate that the

adults are active from

January to the end of April

with the peak in late March

to mid-April.

Important note: A perusal

of Holloway and Miller

(2003), indicates that the

closely related (sibling)

species in the joviana group

(to which this subspecies

belongs) are so similar that

only dissection of the male

genitalia could separate them

conclusively. However, they

also state that one of these, B. joviana subspecies curvisecta (L.B. Prout, 1919),

known from “North-eastern Queensland”, is lacking certain characteristic dots on the

forewing, which are present in B. s. papuana. Consequently this should exclude the

former from the differential diagnosis. Furthermore, another in this group, the newly

erected species B. nielseni, Holloway & Miller 2003 (morphologically very similar to

B. s. papuana) 1s only known conclusively trom PNG, Sue Island in the Torres Strait

and possibly from Bamaga on the tip of Cape York, effectively excluding it from the

differential diagnosis.

Bastilla solomonensis papuana

Since the Holloway and Miller paper, further work by others on the superfamily

Noctuoidea has resulted in some authors moving Catocaline moths, such as this

species-group, into family Erebidae, sub-family Erebinae.

Acknowledgements: I thank Ted Edwards, John Moss and Peter Hendry for their

helpful comments on earlier versions of the manuscript.

Photos Graham McDonald

References:

Bostock, P. & Holland, A. (eds). 2007. Census of the Queensland Flora 2007. Qld. Herbarium,

E.P.A. : Brisbane

Common, I. F. B. 1990. Moths of Australia. Melbourne University Press

Holloway, J.D. & Miller, S.E. 2003. The composition, generic placement and host-plant

relationships of the joviana-group in the Parallelia generic complex (Lepidoptera:

Noctuidae, Catocalinae). /nvertebrate Systematics 17, 111-128. CSIRO Publishing

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Homalictus bee — Homalictus urbanus - Erica Siegel

There are about 40 species of Homalictus bees and they are found in all states of

Australia, both along the coast and inland.

Although very small, ranging from 5 mm to 8 mm (the female being longer), the

glittering Homalictus bees come in a dazzling array of colours; ‘golden blue’,

‘coppery red’ and ‘green tinged with purple, red or gold’ are just a few of the colours

listed by scientists. They carry pollen on unusually long, branched hairs under the

abdomen.

Homalictus bees dig complex branching nests in the ground. Tiny oval brood cells are

constructed in the nest shafts off the main shaft usually at the end of lateral tunnels.

Many females may live together in each nest, taking turns to guard the narrow nest

entrance. One nest was found to be occupied by over 160 females! The female lays a

single egg onto a ball of prepared food, then seals the brood cell up and starts

constructing the next cell.

Male Homalictus bees roost at night in the open, clustered together like some other

solitary native male bees.

Homalictus bees forage on a wide variety of flowers from many different genera such

as Angophora, Acacia, Bursaria, Callistemon, Eucalyptus, Leptospermum,

Melaleuca, Pittosporum, Salvia, Tristania and Wahlenbergia. They will also visit

flowers from the plant families Proteaceae, Xanthorrhoeaceae and the mistletoes but

show a preference for the Myrtaceae.

Homalictus bees can be infested by mites (Sarcoptiformes) and attacked by parasites

(Strepsiptera).

Photos Erica Siegel

References:

Dr. Anne Dollin, Australian Native Bee Research Centre www.aussiebee.co.au

Dr. Michael Batley, Australian Museum

Dr. Ken Walker, Revision of the Australian species of the genus Homalictus Cockrell, Memoirs

of the Museum of Victoria, p105 Biodiversity Heritage Library

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 16

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Images 1, 2, 3, and 4 - Homalictus bee — Homalictus urbanus on Salvia

Image 5 — Homalictus urbanus with Tetragonula (formerly Trigona) carbonaria on Salvia

ee i i te

New Distribution Records for Hesperiine Butterflies (Lepidoptera:

Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae) in Australia —

Kelvyn L. Dunn

Summary

This paper documents 36 new locations in Australia for nine (9) species of hesperine

butterflies. Each record 1s from a location that falls outside the boundaries of the

species’ distributions, as indicated on the range-filled maps provided by Braby

(2000). The report also discusses relevant new locations discovered by others since

2000, namely those that lie close to any listed in this paper; yet, in doing so it does not

reiterate historic distributions that underpin Braby (2000). The many new locations

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for the species tabled provide ongoing evidence that there remains much to learn

about the spatial distribution of skipper butterflies, particularly in remote areas of

western Queensland and western New South Wales.

Introduction

Skippers belonging to the subfamily Hesperinae can be very inconspicuous in the

field and when found, may not be seen for long enough to be identified, particularly

when using methods outside of the traditional collecting approach. Their brisk flight,

small size and sombre, often dappled colouring jointly lower their visual profile on

the wing, and because of this, Murphy (2011) unashamedly argued and demonstrated

that many (or even most) skippers will be overlooked by casual observers or

inexperienced biologists making records of species presence. This has almost

certainly been a long-standing issue spanning many decades (albeit usually left

unmentioned in species inventories) and its outcomes, in terms of information loss,

are more than obvious today. Indeed, it 1s the case that the known distributions for

even some of the more widespread and common hespertines of the inland are still

very patchy and highly fragmentary (see maps in Braby 2000 as examples), when

compared with other butterfly groups. Undeniably too, the distributions of many

species of butterfly (not just skippers) are noticeably under-representative beyond the

coastal and sub-coastal regions, areas where most butterfly fieldwork 1s repeatedly

done (Dunn 2010, 2014a); hence a lack of broader survey effort has worsened this.

Together, the low frequency of encounters (most of those seen in the outback during

my surveys were at flowers, which can be seasonally sparse during hotter months) and

their furtiveness in the field (when patrolling and perching) have contributed to the

spatial knowledge deficiency evident among the various skipper species nationwide,

including this particular subfamily.

Complicating matters, the adults often require a good measure of expertise to identify

them so it 1s best to retain vouchers to ensure quality information 1s gathered. Where

this 1s not achievable some field encounters may need to be discarded — an approach

actioned by Franklin et al. (2005, p.2) who wrote, concerning some of their own

observations in the Northern Territory, “We have excluded records where there might

be a reasonable call for a confirmatory voucher specimens (e.g. many Hesperiidae)’.

Others have chosen to indicate measures of uncertainty attached to particular records

— more often than not the records may be correct anyway and may be useful in the

future when more knowledge comes to hand — or they may have listed them at a

higher classification (as I have done for some in this report). Either means acts to

protect the baseline knowledge from contamination, and future authors can discard

those recorded less reliably 1f they wish to. That said, because of the identification

concerns as well as the other issues discussed, 1t seems reasonable to suppose then

that many insect enthusiasts, who occasionally visit remote areas of Australia and

who use only field observation and/or photography for their fact-gathering purposes,

may pay less attention to this particular group, resulting in even less incoming

information.

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My field experiences has shown me that the observation method (including

photography) does not guarantee as complete a list as does traditional netting and in

hand examination. Handling and retention has long been argued as a reasonable call

for many of the Hesperiidae and Lycaenidae (see Dunn 1994 p.72, Franklin et al.

2005 p. 2 (as quoted above), Dunn & Franklin 2010 p.90, Dunn & Field 2012 p.27).

So to maximise the number of useful records obtained during the outback field

surveys, and to achieve records hastily (as much land coverage was involved), I

utilised the traditional collecting approach for such groups, wherever able. Where

trapping was not allowable, photography of settled adults after persistent watching

often proved satisfactory (when considerable time was available for this task), but this

fact-gathering approach also requires knowledge of characters that distinguish the

species so that those images achieved will contain the required information for the

purpose.

Methods

I utilised a roadside explorative approach that involved counts of species (usually as

adults) seen at numerous sites along major inland highways and byroads. The survey

methodology described previously (see Dunn 2015 and earlier papers in the series)

equally applies to this piece. Similarly, the method used to measure distances and

define locations to precision of within a kilometre of the actual site (as presented in

the Table) has also been described (see Dunn 2013a) and 1s not reiterated. In addition,

extended discussion and other recommendations to help describe locations effectively

and to avoid ambiguity are detailed elsewhere (see Dunn 2013b) and that source will

provide further reading, if required.

I identified most of the hesperiine adults encountered by handling. In many cases, I

retained those adults as vouchers (69.2%), irrespective of whether they were also

photographed in the field. Hence, the percentage of vouchers 1n the Table is very

much higher than the usual frequency for all records of butterflies on the trips

concerned because, firstly, skippers are difficult to identify in the field and, secondly,

because the table is selective data and lists only those records that represent new

locations. Very occasionally some adults were caught and examined to confirm their

identification and then released (Rel.) (2.6%). Where images are included, a

superscript links the photos (usually video frames) to the records concerned. Records

that standalone as image-only (meaning the specimens were not retained as vouchers)

are marked as ‘Photo’ (5.1%). The nine (9) encounters (23.1%) recorded by

observation-only are marked as ‘Obs.’; for six of these the identifications were certain

(Category |). In each case, I recognised sufficient characters to achieve that level of

confidence. However, three observations were to a level of ‘almost certain’ (Category

2) as insufficient evidence was obtained on which to identify the larval species

involved. Finally, two records are to the level of genus only; 1n each case, insufficient

characters were seen to make a finer identification before the adult was lost from

sight.

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Results and Discussion

The Table lists 39 records of 9 species from 36 new locations (arranged from north to

south), across mainland Australia; all sites fall outside the boundaries defined by

Braby (2000) for the species concerned and so are new on that criterion. I gathered

most of these new records during two extensive trips to and from the Gulf Country in

the springs of 2011 and 2012. The first trip was more productive, contributing 59% of

the new locations (of hesperiines) obtained in those two data sets; both seasons had

hallmarks of being very productive events (see Dunn 2011a,b) and this likelihood

gave the needed incentive to undertake these outback surveys. Two records included

in this report (one from eastern Queensland and one from southern Western Australia)

were from earlier field trips (during unexceptional seasons), and although each

provides just a minor extension, both are new (according to definitions established)

and not previously mentioned in later literature. In addition, an important new record

from northern Victoria now provides the southern limit for Taractrocera ina in

eastern Australia. Some records considered worthy of individual comment due to their

interesting circumstances, whether they be biological or behavioural in focus, include

a superscript indicating a note 1s available. These notes also include references to

encounters by other workers in the last decade or so, where their published new

locations fall close to those listed in this report.

For some species, the new locations link or partially link major areas of occurrence

and add to available knowledge, giving insight into a much broader distribution in

places. The accumulating records of the Yellow Palmdart, Cephrenes trichopepla

from the Gulf Country are one example. Common and Waterhouse (1981) had

inferred, many years ago, that it probably occurs naturally across the coastal and near

coastal region, but at that time supportive data were unavailable. The new records

since the late 1990s collectively help bridge the obvious gap for this widespread

species, albeit it likely occurs only patchily along watercourses for much of the Gulf

region. Similarly, for Zaractrocera ina and T. anisomorpha the scattered new records

from northwestern and western Queensland provide evidence of what is very likely to

be, and what has long been suspected as (see range fill maps in Common &

Waterhouse 1981 for these species) a continuous distribution across much of the

inland.

In other cases, the new information indicates patchy occurrences that would likely be

biogeographically separate from the main areas of distribution. Those records of C.

trichopepla from residential areas, remotely inland from the main coastal presence,

are of this category. They are almost certainly linked to parkland and garden plantings

of native and exotic palms, on which the larvae develop (Braby 2000 and references

therein). Indeed, it 1s probable that these disjunct populations were fully human-

assisted sometime during the last two or three decades; meaning, the butterfly life

history was probably imported with the palms themselves as part of the nursery trade,

rather than being the result of natural dispersals from the north or east. Although the

Yellow Palmdart may now be a permanent feature in some outback towns 1n western

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Queensland, it seemed that population numbers were low (at least during my visits in

spring), despite a copious quantity of larval hosts available in gardens and partially

shady parklands. In the Mount Isa area in particular, larval damage and juvenile

fragments were only occasionally found during my targeted searches for both adults

and live juvenile stages, so 1t would seem the species remains scarce in that region.

No evidence of C. augiades was found in far western Queensland, although its

juvenile stages as well have probably been transported repeatedly from the coastal

belt into the outback region by the nursery trade, as has been the way of introduction

elsewhere (Hutchison 1988, Crosby 1990). The region’s climate may be too dry for

that species and those palms grown in gardens and parklands are often inadequately

shaded from the midday summer heat, which together does not provide the niche this

former rainforest species favours (Dunn 1995),

The records of Ocybadistes in southwestern Queensland, particularly that of O.

flavovittata, were rather surprising encounters in a region that one might suppose was

too arid for this group. Searches along roadside drains where weedy flowers

blossomed certainly assisted 1n finding those few individuals reported. Targeting this

niche may have revealed additional records farther afield, had time been available for

extended work on this group; beyond the drains, grass-dart skippers were usually

unseen except in damp areas of woodland where native flowers were present. The

suitable seasons then present may have created larger than usual populations that

enabled detection of these two species, where otherwise they may be very rarely seen

residents. Yet an alternative hypothesis stands that these particular records 1n the

Charleville residential area may have been rare events of vagrancy (or subsequent

temporary generations from an earlier vagrancy event), linked to consecutive wetter-

than-usual seasons between 2010 and 2012. To improve our understanding of these

spatial dynamics, I call for others to seek out evidence of juvenile stages of

Ocybadistes in the Charleville district to help determine whether one or both species

is a breeding resident in southwestern Queensland. It is also interesting, that in the

same period a male of O. flavovittata was netted along the Murray River foreshore at

Tocumwal, in southwestern NSW, and a number of adults of Taractrocera ina were

taken very soon after in this area (Dunn & Field 2012); the latter species had

colonised on the opposite riverbank. I later captured a female of T. ina farther south,

on the Goulburn River, at 6km (beeline) ENE of Wyuna, in northern Victoria (see

Table).

For the other hesperiines tabled, some of the extensions recorded may be minor but

each provides evidence of a broader occurrence 1n the areas concerned. Most of the

new records from eastern Australia (as well as a record from WA) link 1n to an

inadequate knowledge of species’ distributions — due to a lack of regular exploration

by insect collectors — rather than because of any unusual or localised climatic

conditions in parts of Australia for some of the years concerned. Each record adds

insight into the distribution of those species of butterfly, particularly for the inland,

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and helps fill knowledge gaps evident in their distributions (as based on the range-fill

maps in Braby 2000).

Table - 36 New locations for species of Hesperitinae from beyond their known

ranges in Australia

Species/Location State Geocode Date Format

Taractrocera ina

25km W ofHughenden Qld 20°52’S, 143°58’E. 04 Nov 2011 ~=Voucher ***!

Meteor Creek, 15km Qld = 24°26’S, 148°29"E_ —-11 Nov 2011 = Voucher “°**”

WNW of Rolleston

Nine Mile Creek, 14km Old 26°33’S, 150°08’°E = =915 Nov 2011 Voucher

N of Miles

Tara River, at Hebel Qld 28°58’S, 147°48"E 17Nov2011 Voucher’'®!

Goulburn River, 6km Vic 36°11’S, 145°07E 31 Mar2012 Voucher

(beeline) ENE of Wyuna Pee ree?

IT. anisomorpha

Torrens Creek Qld 20°46°S, 145°01V?E = =928 Oct 2012 ~=Voucher

(township) Note 4, Fig. 3 & 4

25km W of Hughenden Qld 20°52’S, 143°58°E =04 Nov 2011 ~Voucher

Carrols Creek, 46km Qld = 22°28’S, 147°28°E 06 Nov 2011 + Voucher *°**?

NNW of Clermont

39km E of Charleville, Old 26°25°S, 146°377E 30Sep 2012 Voucher

near railway bridge (on aE OIE,

Road to Morgan)

Taractrocera sp. (ina or

anisomorpha)

Express Creek, 86km Qld 20°06’S, 142°49°E 29Oct2011 Obs. **’

NNW of Richmond

T. papyria

19km SE byS ofRoma Qld 26°41°S, 148°53’E 15Nov2011 Voucher‘?

(via road to Surat)

Muirrool Creek, 58km NSW 34°02’S, 144°S0°E —-: 19 Oct 2011 Voucher ‘°°’

(by road) N of Hay

Denmark (in vacant WA 34°58’S, 117°21V7E = =21 Oct 2008 Voucher

residential block in

township)

Ocybadistes walkeri

1.6km NE by E of Old 26°24’S, 146°IS’°E =— 01 Oct 2012 ~~ Voucher

Charleville (post office) ee ee

at van park

Murrumbidgee River, NSW = 34°31°S, 144°517E — 19 Oct 2011 Voucher

lIkm SE of Hay

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Nine Mile Reserve,

14km W by S of Hay

South

O. flavovittata

2km NW by N (by road)

of Cedar Creek Falls

(due east of Proserpine,

on Saltwater Creek

Road)

Lotus Creek Roadhouse,

about 63km (beeline)

W of St Lawrence

Carrols Creek, 46km

NNW of Clermont

Theresa Creek, 10km

N of Emerald

Anakie (at town

billabong)

Takaraka camping

eround, Carnarvon

Creek, near Carnarvon

Gorge

2km WNW of

Charleville (at Page St

intersection)

Ocybadistes sp. (walkeri

or flavovittata)

Torrens Creek

(township)

Suniana lascivia

Mimosa (Munall)

Camping ground,

Blackdown Tableland

‘Expedition Range

Crest’ (at 890m a.s.l. as

per signage), Blackdown

Tableland

Cephrenes trichopepla

Normanton, at drain near

Travers Street

Burketown

Lawn Hill Creek, Adels

Grove

NSW

Qld

34°33’S, 144°43°E

20°24°S, 148°42’°E

22°21°S, 149°06’E

22°28'S, 147°28°E

23°26’S, 148°09°E

23°33’S, 147°45°E

25°04’S, 148° 16°E

26°24’S, 146°13°E

20°46°S, 145°01’E

23°48°S, 149°04’E

23°50’S, 149°05’E

LT°41°S, 141°04°E

17°45’°S, 139°33’°E

1L8°41°S, 138°32’°E

18 Oct 2011

03 Nov 2012

04 Nov 2012

06 Nov 2011

07 Nov 2011

09 Nov 2011

12 Nov 2011

Ol Oct 2012

28 Oct 2012

07 Nov 2011

08 Nov 2011

07 Nov 2011

08 Nov 2011

12 Oct 2012

10 Oct 2012

24 Oct 2012

25 Oct 2012

Note 10

Voucher “°"

Rel.

Voucher

Note 11

Voucher ~“°"

Voucher

Note 12, Fig. 6

Obs (See Note 4a)

Photo

Note 13, Fig. 8

Photo *'® ’

Obs.

Voucher

Obs.-C2 Note 14

Voucher ‘°* !°

Obs.

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Skm N of Mount Isa (at

van park)

Pioneer East, Mount Isa

(at van park)

lkm S of Barcaldine (at

van park)

Blackall (@n Lehman

Park)

Key to Table:

Qld

20°40°S, 139°30°E

20°43°S, 139°3 VE

23°34’S, 145°177E

24°26°S, 145°28°E

18 Oct 2012

02 Nov 2011

04 Oct 2012

26 Oct 2011

Obs.-C2 Note 16

Obs-C2 Note 17

Voucher

Note 18

Obs. *°"

Note 1. A male of T. ina was netted at a flowering tree (probably a Whitewood,

Atalaya hemiglauca (Sapindaceae) from memory) growing in grassy open

woodland on the southern side of the Flinders highway. It fed with three

males of 7. anisomorpha sometime between 12:10 and 13:10h AEST — the

duration of visit. Other butterflies feeding with these skippers included a

male of Nacaduba biocellata, a female of Lampides boeticus, several males

and females of Theclinesthes miskini, an Elodina sp. (very likely E. padusa),

and a few males of Belenois java. The weather was sunny and very hot by

midday (Richmond, Qld, 90km to the west, had reached 34°C by 13:00h,

with a maximum of 35°C later that day- WU 2015). Atkins et al. (2003)

included this species in a list from the Warang Homestead area and nearby

gorges of the White Mountains National Park, to the east of Hughenden.

Atkins’ personally surveyed during a scientific expedition in April 2000 and

did not record this species on that particular visit, but that paper included

records of the species (from separate visits, attributed to two other workers)

from either the gorge area or Burra Range, or both. The supplementary

record from the township 1s supportive of that earlier report from the

National Park and expands upon it.

Note 2. A male 7. ina was taken at a tall flowering herb, likely a Verbena sp.

(Verbenaceae), 1n riparian woodland; it fed between 10:30 and 10:55h

AEST.

Note 3. Field (2013) plotted this location for T. ina in his recent field guide but gave

no comment concerning its newness at that time; an explanatory remark

would have been useful as there was no published evidence of the species

south of the Murray River. In addition, because that field guide contained a

tiny sprinkling of unusual map plots for other species that are beyond their

accepted ranges (with no underpinning evidence provided) some users of the

guide may wonder if one or more of these plots are mistaken entries in that

source database. At any rate, this particular one for 7. ina is legitimately

plotted and the full details are now provided for the first time (see also

comments 1n introductory section).

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Note 4. A few 7. anisomorpha were seen to feed at flowers of Tridax procumbens

(Asteraceae) growing near a water tank in a vacant residential block in the

main street (at 20°46’10”S, 145°01°16”E) between 12:55 and 14:00h AEST;

a male was retained. Atkins et al. (2003) included 7. anisomorpha in a list

from the Warang Homestead area and nearby gorges of the White Mountains

National Park, to the north of Torrens Creek (township). Atkins’ had

personally surveyed during a scientific expedition in April 2000, and did not

record this species on that particular visit, but that paper also included

records of the species (from separate visits, attributed to three other workers)

from either the gorge area or Burra Range, or both. The supplementary

record from the township 1s supportive of that earlier report from the

National Park and expands upon it. Other species feeding at these daisies in

Torrens Creek included a male of Eurema herla (wet season form), a few

males of Zizina otis, one or more males of Acraea andromacha, a few adults

of Ypthima arctoa (see Dunn 2015 concerning that species) and three males

of Prosotas dubiosa. (4a) In addition, an Ocybadistes sp. (either walkeri or

flavovittata) also fed with the above, but the solitary adult (seemingly a

female) escaped the net prior to its certain identification. Atkins et al. (2003)

did not list any Ocybadistes species from the National Park, and it 1s outside

the range-fill indicated on the maps by Braby (2000) for these two species.

My field notes provided a tentative identification as ““?flavovittata’ based on

the under-side markings seen briefly as it fed, but given the very close

similarity of the females of these species such an identification is little more

than a guess without the specimen in hand. An extended search revealed no

others of this genus.

Note 5. A male and female of 7. anisomorpha were taken at roadside flowers of

Tridax procumbens, growing adjacent to riparian woodland at Carrols Creek

crossing; the male fed between 13:50-14:40h AEST. Other species seen

feeding at Tridax Daisy at this site included, Zizina otis, Theclinesthes

miskini, Lampides boeticus, Eurema smilax, and Belenois java.

Note 6. A male and female of 7. anisomorpha were taken at herb flowers of Lobelia

darlingensis (Campanulaceae) growing on cracked mud in a small drainage

area of an extensive floodway; they fed between 14:45 and 15:00h AEST.

Note 7. Terry Woodger (of Richmond, Qld) and I were carefully watching for various

skippers and small lycaenids at this remote location when a single adult was

seen briefly (by TW) as it fed at (undetermined) herb flowers in shrubby

woodland between 09:30 and 09:45h AEST. The skipper, which was

seemingly either 7. ina or T. anisomorpha (the latter was more abundant in

the broader area of western Qld and might be the best guess), escaped

capture. We did not see it again despite our focussed search, lasting until

10:30h, at which time feeding by most other butterflies at various flowers

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Gncluding Carissa, Terminalia, and Cullen) had become infrequent or

ceased. The weather was very hot for mid-morning, with a shade temperature

of 36°C by 09:45h. (Richmond Qld, 86km to the south, had reached 33°C by

10:00h, with a maximum of 38°C later that day —- WU 2015).

Note 8. An encounter with three adults of T. papyria resting on grass in the shade of a

wattle in woodland during very hot weather 1n mid-afternoon (at 15:00h

AEST) exposed a remarkable communal roosting event. The shaded area,

which covered little more than a square metre beneath the shrub, sheltered

some 20 quiescent butterflies, which included a few Belenois java, a few

Eurema smilax, two Lampides boeticus, several Zizina otis (as well as the

skippers)! In addition, a female of B. java was roosting about one metre up

on the circa two metre high shrub and two or three adults of that species

were flying 1n the vicinity (10-20m radius). All other butterfly species

appeared to be roosting at that time; no others, including Z. otis — which 1s

usually a routine patroller — were conspicuous 1n flight during a 15-minute

survey of the site. The localised attraction of several species to the shade of

this single shrub, rather than being randomly dispersed under various shrubs,

seems unusual behaviour and hence noteworthy. When the adults were

gently aroused (by slowly waving a hand about 30cm above them), they took

to low flight but quickly resettled in the shady patch. It 1s possible it may

have been a moist soak (which might offer increased humidity, which

butterflies often hone into in the inland) but no feeding was taking place. The

shade temperature at the site was 36.5°C with 20% relative humidity. (Surat

Qld, about 60km to the south, recorded a maximum of 38°C that day with

10% maximum humidity — likely at that time of the day (WU 2015)).

Another event of heat-related shade seeking, involving two adults of a single

species of Papilio, was described in a preceding report in this series (Dunn

2013c).

Note 9. A few adults of T. papyria were seen feeding at Verbena supina

(Verbenaceae) growing along the levy of a dam at Mirrool Creek crossing, in

woodland. Feeding bouts were very irregularly spaced, with five to ten

minutes between visits, and occurred between 14:05 and15:35h AEDT

(duration of visit and local time in NSW). When these happened, the solitary

adult would visit just one or sometimes two flowers before departing. The

coverage of flowers was quite extensive (about 20 metres along the levy) but

nectar quantity may have been low at that time, which might account for the

brevity (a few seconds only) of each foraging event. Netting just one

example of the grass dart for a positive identification took an unusually long

time because each sighting lasted a few seconds only (insufficient time to

target and swing a net), after which the skipper would immediately return to

the woodland; moreover the adults were wary and very difficult to approach,

none was perching nearby. They fed alongside a single Theclinestes

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 26

Note 10.

Note 11.

Note 12.

Note 13.

Note 14.

serpentata and one Zizina otis, the only other species that fed during 1.5

hours at the site. Braby and Edwards (2006) recorded 7. papyria from the

Griffith district, in southern inland New South Wales; this new record from

north of Hay broadens the known distribution westward at a similar latitude.

Braby and Edwards (2006) recorded O. walkeri from the Griffith district, in

southern inland New South Wales; the record from Nine Mile Reserve, near

Hay, broadens the known distribution westward at a similar latitude.

A female O. flavovittata taken at this location with T. anisomorpha was very

likely a participant in the same feeding bout at flowers of Tridax procumbens

(see Note 5), but my field notes do not indicate that I had seen it feed.

A single male was taken feeding at an undetermined herb flower growing in

a roadside drain in rural ‘wasteland’, just beyond the main township area. It

fed between 10:30 and 10:45h AEST alongside Lampides boeticus and

Zizina otis, both of which were abundant. Supportively, a number of unusual

range expansions for various species of butterfly and moth were reported

over the 2010-2012 period in southeastern Australia (Anonymous 2011,

Dunn 2011a,b Halsey 2011, Dunn & Field 2012, Faithfull & Dunn 2012,

Morton 2012, Hewish & Hewish 2013, Haywood 2014). This encounter near

Charleville, like that of O. walkeri (this paper) and Eurema hecabe (Dunn

2014b) in this same region may be part of that phenomenon, linked to a

series of wetter-than-usual seasons in the inland. The male, which I retained

because it was required as a voucher for a species difficult to identify in the

field, was cooled in a fridge to about 4°C. It was then placed on foliage of

Lobellia darlingensis (as illustrated) on which I had hoped it might feed

(feeding is desirable as it greatly eases field photography) however it chose

not to, but instead basked for a few moments, enabling a clear photo of the

sex brand nonetheless.

Braby (2000) recorded S. /ascivia from the Blackdown Tableland 1n the

body text of that tome (based on his own field records) but the Expedition

Range region was not marked on the accompanying range-fill map. Adults

were locally common in the ‘Mimosa camping ground’ where they were

frequently seen basking on up to one-metre-high leaves of Blady Grass,

Imperata cylindrica (Poaceae) in late afternoon on both days. I have included

this record to substantiate, by a fine location, the earlier one reported at the

regional level.

Empty larval shelters of a Cephrenes species, almost certainly created by C.

trichopepla, were present on a Dwarf Date Palm, Phoenix roebellini

(Arecaceae) growing in a residential garden off Sloman St. Further effort 1s

required to substantiate the (very likely) presence of this species in

Burketown.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 27

Note 15.

Note 16.

Note 17.

Note 18.

Note 19.

A male C’. trichopepla was captured roosting on low foliage of a Livistona

palm along Lawn Hill Creek between 09:00 and 10:00h AEST; it bore a

strong odour of Eucalyptus or Melaleuca (Myrtaceae) flowers, no doubt

from a foraging event that morning. A second adult was seen the following

day about three metres above ground at a flowering eucalypt near the

camping ground reception; it fed between 07:55 and 08:05h. This 1s certainly

not the first report of this species from the Lawn Hill area but 1s supportive

evidence of a wider distribution beyond Lawn Hill National Park, wherein

Daniels and Edwards (1998) listed it from the Lawn Hill Gorge.

Empty larval shelters of a Cephrenes species, almost certainly those of C’

trichopepla, were present on various exotic palms, including

Chrysalidocarpus sp. (probably lutescens) growing at the frontage of the

Moondarra Caravan Park, about 5km (by road) N from the city centre.

Further effort 1s required to substantiate the species’ (very likely) presence

there.

Frond damage and small shelters created by larvae of Cephrenes were found

on several garden palms in a van park in Pioneer East. Although no larvae

were found at this site during two separate searches of about 40 minutes each

(during early November 2011 and mid-October 2012), C. trichopepla 1s

known to occur at Mount Isa. Some years ago I examined a specimen that

Ian Faithfull had captured near the city centre, in the riverbed of the

Leichardt, in May 1989, and which 1s in his collection. It seems the species 1s

still present in the residential area, albeit scarce 1n spring (see also

Discussion).

Three larvae of C. trichopepla were tound on Washingtonia filifera

(Arecaceae) in parkland in Blackall; three males were reared, which emerged

during November. One emerged at night, some minutes before 23:30h

AEST; the times of the other emergences were not determined with

precision, as adults were found already expanded when containers were

periodically checked. Empty larval shelters, almost certainly made by this

same species, were present on Phoenix roebelenii palms growing close by;

both are previously recorded host plants.

A solitary male of P. lyelli was collected whilst roosting in shade on

understory foliage along the northern riverbank, sometime after 09:35h and

before 10:30h AEST. The encounter of a male (which is easily identifiable to

species, unlike some females) provides good support for the new distribution

it underpins. This encounter adds to the earlier report by Pierce (2008) who

recorded the species close by at Karumba, in the eastern Gulf Country. To

the north, 1t is known from three sites in the Kowanyama district, on western

Cape York Peninsula (Hancock & Monteith 2004).

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Note 20. A female P. /yelli was captured whilst visiting large yellow flowers (with

four squarish petals) growing adjacent to remaining water in the creek bed

amidst riparian shrub-land, west of Richmond; she fed at these flowers

sometime between 08:55 and 09:25h AEST (the duration of the visit).

Despite careful watching, no other skippers were sighted but an aged

Euploea corinna and two Lampides boeticus fed soon after at the same patch

of (unidentified) flowers.

Note 21. A hill-topping male of P. bada was taken at the summit during a joint visit

to the Eungella region with Michael Braby. This cusp record, marginally

outside the distribution figured by Braby (2000), is important in defining the

western limits at this latitude in the Burdekin region of northern Qld, and 1s

included on that understanding.

Acknowledgements

I wish to thank Dr Russell Best (Victoria University, Vic.) for identifying the Lobelia

darlingensis and Verbena supina from close-up photographs of the flowers and

foliage. I also take this opportunity to thank Dr Ian Faithfull (Vic.) for access over the

years to important specimens in his private collection, and for periodic inventories of

additions to his collection holdings. I thank Terry Woodger (Richmond, Qld) too, for

taking me to a favourite spot of his at Express Creek where we hoped to find some

skippers and, finally, Dr Michael Braby (Department of Land Resource Management,

Palmerston, NT) for inviting me to help survey at St Johns Peak, west of Mackay,

where he was then investigating its butterfly fauna.

References

Anonymous (via editor) 2011. Recent Observations. Victorian Entomologist 41(2): 29.

Atkins, A.F., Edwards, E.D., Braby, M.F., Johnson, S.J. & Valentine, P.S. 2003. The butterflies of

White Mountains National Park, northern Queensland, and adjoining localities. /n

Comben, L., Westacott, T. & Berg, K. (eds). White Mountains Study Report. Geography

Monograph Series No. 9. (pp.7-10). The Royal Geographic Society of Queensland Inc.

Brisbane. 1v+146pp.

Braby, M.F. 2000. Butterflies of Australia: their identification, biology and distribution.

CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood Vic.

Braby, M.F. & Edwards, E.D. 2006. The butterfly fauna of the Griffith district, a fragmented

semi-arid landscape in inland southern New South Wales. Pacific Conservation

Biology 12(2): 140-154.

Common, I.F.B. & Waterhouse, D.F. 1981. Butterflies of Australia. Second Edition. Angus &

Robertson, Melbourne, Vic.

Crosby, D.F. 1990. The Orange palmdart Cephrenes augiades sperthias (Felder) (Lepidoptera:

Hesperiidae) in Victoria. Victorian Entomologist 20: 59-60.

Daniels, G. & Edwards, E.D. 1998. Butterflies from Lawn Hill National Park and Musselbrook

Reserve, Queensland. /n Comben, |., Long, S. & Berg, K. (eds.). Musselbrook Reserve

Scientific Study Report (pp.89-91). The Royal Geographic Society of Queensland,

Brisbane.

BEDS REDS PF OE bs EDS De Pe be Pe be pe Pe bd Pe bg

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 29

Dunn, K.L. 1994. Butterflies attracted to Eucalyptus flowers at Nathan, and a species check-list for

Toohey Forest, Queensland. Victorian Entomologist 24(3): 71-75.

Dunn, K.L. 1995. Notes on the biology and new larval hosts of Cephrenes (Lepidoptera:

Hesperiidae) — Part II. Victorian Entomologist 25(1): 3-12.

Dunn, K.L. 2010. Overview of the butterfly database: Part 4 — Personal contributions (KLD).

Victorian Entomologist 40(5): 98-109.

Dunn, K.L. 201 1a. An update on some unusual butterfly records from Victoria during the 2010-

2011 season. Victorian Entomologist 41(3): 54-57, 45 (& Corrigenda 41: 84).

Dunn, K.L. 2011b. A new state record — Delias argenthona Fabricius in Victoria — with

commentary on Graphium sarpedon (Linnaeus), another butterfly reported from the

state in 2011. Victorian Entomologist 41(4): 82-84.

Dunn, K.L. 2013a. Field Notes: Gulf Country extensions to the known distribution of the Long-

tailed Pea-blue, Lampides boeticus (Linnaeus 1767) in Queensland (Lepidoptera:

Lycaenidae). Metamorphosis Australia, Magazine of the Butterfly & Other

Invertebrates Club 69: 17-23.

Dunn, K.L. 2013b. Overview of the butterfly database: Part 7 — Descriptions of provenance and

promotion of new trends. Victorian Entomologist 43(1): 13-22.

Dunn, K.L. 2013c. New distribution records for Swallowtail butterflies (Lepidoptera:

Papilionidae) in eastern Australia. Metamorphosis Australia, Magazine of the

Butterfly & Other Invertebrates Club 70: 8-14.

Dunn, K.L. 2014a. Overview of the butterfly database: Part 8 — Counts of sites, as a glimpse

into past exploration. Victorian Entomologist 44(4): 85-89; continued 44(5): 105-108.

Dunn, K.L. 2014b. New distribution records for Sulphur and White butterflies (Lepidoptera:

Pieridae) in inland and outback Australia. Metamorphosis Australia, Magazine of the

Butterfly & Other Invertebrates Club 75: 14-25; omission 76: 32-34.

Dunn, K.L. 2015. New distribution records for Nymphalid butterflies (Lepidoptera:

Nymphalidae) in Queensland. Metamorphosis Australia, Magazine of the Butterfly &

Other Invertebrates Club 76: 18-31.

Dunn, K.L & Field, R.P. 2012. Two new records of skipper butterflies from the Murray Valley

in SE Australia. Victorian Entomologist 42(2): 26-28.

Dunn, K.L & Franklin, D.C. 2010. Exploring the adequacy of representation of butterfly

species’ distributions in a more accessible portion of northern Australia. Northern

Territory Naturalist 22: 88-94.

Faithfull, I.G. & Dunn, K.L. 2012. Papilio demoleus L. (Lepidoptera) in Victoria, November

2010 to March 2011: southward migration and northerly return migration. Victorian

Entomologist 42(6): 122-131 (& corrigenda 43(1): 23).

Field, R.P. 2013. Butterflies. Identification and life history. Museum of Victoria Publishing,

Melbourne, Vic.

Franklin, D.C., Michael, B., & Mace, M. 2005. New location records for some butterflies of the

Top End and Kimberley regions. Northern Territory Naturalist 18: 1-7.

Halsey, M. 2011. Some unusual moth records for NE Victoria. Victorian Entomologist 41(6):

129.

Hancock, D.L. & Monteith, G.B. 2004. Some records of butterflies (Lepidoptera) from western

Cape York Peninsula, Queensland. Australian Entomologist 31(1): 21-24.

Haywood, B. 2014. Unusual butterfly observations for south-east South Australia from 2010 to

2012. Victorian Entomologist 44(1): 16-20.

Hewish, M & Hewish D. 2013. Recent records of Small grass-yellows Eurema smilax in the

Bacchus Marsh-Geelong region. Victorian Entomologist 43(3): 65-66.

BEDS PE DS PF OE be PE DT be Pe bg Pe be pe Pe bd Pe bg

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 30

Hutchison, M. 1988. The invasion of S.W. Australia by the Orange palmdart Cephrenes

augiades sperthias (Felder), Lepidoptera, Hesperiidae, and the subsequent increase in

Species associated with the fronds of the Canary Island date palm (Phoenix

canariensis). Western Australian Naturalist 17: 73-86.

Morton, T. 2012. Reported Under Observations Continued: Butterfly/moth activity around

Castlemaine 2011/2012. Victorian Entomologist 42(3): 56.

Murphy, M.J. 2011. Notes on the butterflies of Bruxner Park on the north coast of New South

Wales, Australia. Victorian Naturalist 128(1): 11-17.

Pierce, F. 2008. Range extension records for various butterflies throughout Australia. Victorian

Entomologist 38(1): 15-16.

WU 2015. Weather Underground: weather history. Historical weather archives were accessed

online on 13 Mar. 2015 at

http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/Y RMD/2011/10/29/DailyHistory.html’?req_ city

=Richmond&req_ state=-QU&req statename=Queensland&reqdb.zip=00000&reqdb.magic=1 &

reqdb.wmo=94340

=” a

Fig. 1. 7. ina male upper side — Tara River, Hebel, Qld.

Fig. 2. T. ina female upper side — Goulburn River, near Wyuna, Vic.

Fig. 3. T. anisomorpha male under side — Torrens Creek (township), Qld. (Video recorded feeding at

Duranta repens — Verbenaceae in captivity)

Fig. 4. T. anisomorpha male under side — Torrens Creek (township), Qld. (Video recorded feeding at

Duranta repens — Verbenaceae in captivity)

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 31

Fig. 5. 7. anisomorpha male under side — 39km E of Charleville, Qld. (The proximal antenna is projecting

towards lens and appears almost invisible.)

Fig. 6. O. flavovittata male upper side (showing sex brand) — 2km WNW of Charleville, Qld. (Placed on

Lobelia and video recorded in captivity.)

Fig. 7. S. lascivia male upper side — Mimosa Camping ground, Blackdown Tableland, Qld.

Fig. 8. S. /ascivia male under side — Mimosa Camping ground, Blackdown Tableland, Qld.

Photos Kelvyn Dunn

TK OK OK oR oi OK OK OS A OK

My Favourite Palynivore — Densey Clyne

Wandering around my garden I brush against a small plant and catch a tiny movement

out of the corner of my eye. I scan the foliage; whatever I disturbed has disappeared.

But what's that slight irregularity on one of the leaves? Got it! Yes, it's a living thing.

An asymmetrical scrap of green lying at an angle on a leaf, with three long equally-

spaced projections — a fine example of a disruptive posture combined with

camouflage colour.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 32

When I touch the leaf what springs into

action is a tiny insect with quivering

antennae that are at least four times its

body length. It has curiously elongated

mouthparts but it's clearly some kind of

katydid. In fact it is my first encounter

with a Balsam Beast, a baby one.

Why the name Balsam Beast? Well, not

knowing its proper name | called it that

because the shrub I found it on was

Impatiens sodenii, commonly known as

Bush Balsam. The other /mpatiens that gardeners know as Busy Lizzie also grew

untidily everywhere, especially around the bases of the giant Sydney Blue-gums

(Eucalyptus saligna) and the Rough-barked Apple (Angophora floribunda) that

bordered my Sydney suburban garden.

Early instar male

Specialised mouthparts Low | \

Male nymph feeding at Balsam flower

Soon after that first encounter I realised that the first-instar nymphs were descending

on to the garden plants from the tree-trunks into which they must have been laid as

eggs. The Balsam plants at the base of the trees were their first staging point and the

flowers their first meal. Clearly these were pollen-feeding (palynivorous) katydids of

the family Tettigoniidae, with mouthparts designed for probing into flowers.

That early encounter was the start of many years of fascinated discovery as I followed

their growth and nocturnal activities. They became the subject of all too many close-

up photographs and a lot of scrappy notes made during torch-lit garden patrols.

PEPE PADS PE DE PS Pe Re be Pe he be Oe bd Pe be bd Pe

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 33

At every stage this katydid was

intriguing. As part of its daytime

camouflage the young katydid paired

its long legs and antennae together and

held itself at an angle that disrupted

the telltale insect shape. Later as it

erew to what you might call the lanky

teen stage it would spend the day

sprawled across a leafy stem, still well

camouflaged but now with obvious

wing buds and up-tilted tail end.

Females were identified by the growing ovipositor while the slightly smaller male had

a pair of brown spots on his back.

Young male with developing wings

The adults were busy feeding at night on a variety of flowers, often on gum blossom

too high up for me to see though the males could be located by their shrill 'zzzz’.

They were elegant insects with their long legs, slender bodies, high-angled wings,

enormously long antennae and almost bird-like faces. I likened them to woodland

sprites and later this influenced my naming of them.

\ : Z os? = a

—_— 76

he” ; ; / - -

’ | :

J - 4

7 _—

Pad

a .

~ = a

‘ e

- . P :

- 4

> f

Feeding on daisy pollen Feeding on Lantana sp. in the garden

I had seen and photographed a pair mating but could only guess about the female's

ege-laying strategy. Eventually I captured a gravid-looking female and installed her

in a cage with a section of bark from an angophora tree. To my delight she soon

climbed on to it and inserted her ovipositor into the bark. Foolishly, I never checked

for the eggs. Perhaps I was too distracted by the murderous goings on of a carnivorous

snail or the extraordinary love life of a net-casting spider. It was that kind of garden.

When I wrote my book Garden Jungle I had no idea that much of the invertebrate

behaviour I was describing in its chapters was previously unrecorded. My years of

creature watching were entirely a labour of love, springing from a childhood

fascination with insects and spiders. At times I had sent away photographs or

specimens for identification but I hesitated to kill 'my' Balsam Beasts.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 34

A mating pair Female ovipositing in bark (captive situation)

Now I make an exception. I had met Dr. Ken Key, who at the time curated the

Orthoptera at the CSIRO Insect Division in Canberra and it 1s to Ken that I eventually

send specimens. Quite excited, Ken tells me that up until now only two specimens are

known, one held at Canberra and the other in the insect collection of the Australian

Museum. My Balsam Beast, 1t seems, 1s not only an undescribed species but also

appears to be a new genus.

Now [| have a call from Dr. David Rentz who has taken over as Curator of

Orthopteroids in Canberra. Ken Key has handed over to Dave all the information

about my enigmatic insect. David and I discuss writing a joint paper giving it

scientific recognition as a new species and genus — and I am to have the honour of

giving ita name. This is something new for me. How to adequately describe my

Balsam Beast in two words of Greek or Latin? Like Shakespeare I have little Latin

and less Greek. Why use Latin or Greek 1n the first place? Well, it is the tradition and

I decide to follow it, as best I can. So here goes...

If this is to be an entirely new genus it seems OK to make the genus name a

description of this particular species. Importantly, it is a pollen feeder — a palynivore.

But wouldn't flower lover be nicer, with antho and philo? There could also be a

reference to flight so how about ptera for wings? As for the specific epithet, perhaps

something that speaks of its forest habitat — how about dryad, the Tree Spirit of Greek

mythology? Well yes, dryads were all female, but a little poetic licence here. So up

comes Anthophiloptera dryad and that sounds OK to me for a first stab at scientific

nomenclature.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 35

So my Balsam Beast is duly christened in the Journal of the Australian Entomology

Society in 1983 under David Rentz's and my joint names. Somewhere along the line

someone changes dryad to dryas which might alter the meaning a little, but no matter.

Sadly there are no balsam beasts 1n my present garden on the Mid North Coast of

NSW. But just for fun recently I googled Balsam Beast on the Internet. And what do

you know — up came a whole lot of websites using the common name I gave to an

unknown insect in my Sydney garden so long ago! Such is fame...

Photos Densey Clyne

TK OK OK oR oR OK OK OK 8 OK

More on Summer Butterflies — Peter Hendry 22/04/2015

As areply to my article, A Summer of Butterflies 2014/2015 (aka the Year of the

Tiger), | received, on the 4"" of March, from Jak Guyomar, the following email

summarizing his summer observations. I have added common names.

Good morning Peter,

I have just read your article in BOIC mag. MAGIC!

To add to observations---------------- Best season since c.2000

Observed at Gumdale, an eastern suburb of Brisbane, besides the usual stuff. These

notes are only of the "unusual" obs.

Fuscous Swallowtail (Papilio fuscus) males and females -- sometimes 4

specimens at a time. Still a couple passing through today.

Macleay’s Swallowtail (Graphium macleayanus) female ovipositing on

Cryptocarya triplinervis. 27" Jan. A first for Gumdale. I could not believe

my eyes.

Four-barred Swallowtail (Protographium leosthenes) sometimes 4 males at a

time battling for territory. Females ovipositing on Melodorum. I made a

quick count of eggs 27" Jan on only 2 plants ---12 ova. As you know there is

a lot of Melodorum here. Re-checked them next morning and most had been

eaten by spiders only leaving a partial shell.

Yellow Albatross (Appias paulina) Your photo shows the magnitude of

them, mostly males by the look of it. Here in Gumdale there were mostly

females. During a 20 min walk thru the bush I disturbed and counted over 20

females. This was 2" Feb 15:00. The few males did not seem to be very

interested 1n wooing females. We have the host plant but too high to look for

ova.

Indigo Flash (Rapala veruna) One freshly emerged male 2" Feb.

Yellow Migrant (Catopsilia gorgophone) numbers >10. Maybe some Orange

Migrants (Catopsilia scylla)? I did not net any to verify. I must be getting old

and lazy.

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 36

2°" Feb during a one hour lunch time count in our backyard there were 31 species! A

bumper season no doubt. I wonder if I will live long enough to see it again?

Thanks Jak I am a bit jealous of your Macleay’s Swallowtail ovipositing, I have only

seen it once at Sheldon in Redland City, Queensland, and it did not stay long enough

to do any ovipositing.

Now into autumn, here at Sheldon the number of Yellow Albatrosses has dropped to a

few individuals. The Lemon Migrants (Catopsilia pomona) have all but disappeared

and I have only seen one Blue Tiger (Tirumala hamata hamata) in the past six weeks.

I have seen a few White-banded Planes/Common Aeroplanes (Phaedyma shepherdi)

and found larva on Millettia pinnata (Fig. 1), though a known host plant it is the first

time I have found them on it. The Plumbago Blue (Leptotes plinius) is still here in

large numbers and I am starting to see the Large Grass Yellow (Eurema hecabe) and

the Small Green-banded Blue (Psychonotis caeilus). The odd Bordered Rustic

(Cupha prosope) has passed through with no evidence of ovipositing. With the

Native Wisteria Vine (Callerya megasperma) spreading through parts of the canopy,

the property now supports a colony of the Narrow-banded Awl (Hasora khoda)

(Fig. 2). Peter

Phaedyma shepherdi larva Hasora khoda

Photos Peter Hendry

Jak has just emailed some recent observations as follows:

Further observations in the last week. (15-22/04/2015)

e Green Awl fresh female, the host plant Mucuna gigantea 1s here.

e Common Aeroplane resident, on Mucuna gigantea and Millettia pinnata

e Bordered Rustic, a couple of females hanging around the Scolopia which has

come into new leaf in the last couple of weeks without those confounded

beetle larvae defoliating it.

e Acouple more Indigo Flash

BEDS PE DS PF DE Pe PE DT De PE bd Pe be a Pe bd Pe bd

Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 37

e Small green banded blues now numerous----- While sitting here at the

computer I have just counted 7 making the most of the sunshine.

e Still a couple of Yellow Migrant males looking for females around the Senna

surratensis which 1s 1n full flower.

e Splendid Ochre/Symmomus Skipper (7rapezites symmomus) a couple flying

around Lomandra longifolia

e Still afew Yellow Albatrosses both sexes

Happy observing

TK OK OK OR oR OK OK OS OS OK

A Tribute to Presidents Past — Rob MacSloy

With the retirement of our President, Ross Kendall, at our recent AGM it seems

appropriate to reflect on the great service provided to the Club by Ross and our

previous President (and Life Member) Helen Schwencke.

Helen was the Club’s founder and her enthusiasm resulted in BOIC being formed in

October 1994. She envisaged and guided us through the first major project — the

Swallowtail Poster — and was instrumental in the Club producing a quarterly

newsletter. Her tenure saw BOIC grow and prosper and the Club was represented at

many environmental displays.

Ross became President in 2006 and brought to the Club new enthusiasm and his own

thoughts on the direction the Club should take. He was the driving force behind the

newsletter transmuting into a colour magazine — one which 1s well respected by

invertebrates enthusiasts. He also was instrumental in the production of our recent

2015 calendar featuring the wonderful paintings of Lois Hughes.

Ross’s aim was to see more members participate in Club activities and this has

resulted in the election of our incoming President, Marie-Louise Johnson, and

Secretary, Jill Fechner. Marie-Louise shares Ross’s vision for more member

participation be it through attendance at meetings or on excursions.

The Club, as from the beginning, remains in good hands.

IN THE GARDEN

We have created this new section in our magazine to encourage all of our members to

share interesting encounters or sightings in their gardens or on bush walks. It may

only be a couple of paragraphs, perhaps with a photo, or maybe to share the joy of

discovering a creature new to you. It can be as long or as short as you wish. Writing

an article can be daunting to many but most of us could manage a paragraph or two.

Are you up to the challenge? Come on, surprise us all!

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 38

Lois Hughes has contributed the first 1n the series.

On our property at Mt. Cotton in Redland City, South-east Queensland, late one April

afternoon in 2015, we disturbed an unfamiliar butterfly in a stand of tall green Panic

erass. It landed on my hat before returning to the stand of grass. I was surprised to

discover it was a female Common Brown.

It has been many years since this butterfly was here. My notes revealed it was in

March 2001. Fortunately the previous butterfly

landed at my feet and proceeded to lay her eggs on

a blade of Kikuyu grass. I located the eggs and pag ie.

raised the caterpillars to maturity. Three males

emerged from 8'"-12"" September 2001 and were

released.

Larva - Photo Suzanne Jones

Common Brown (Heteronympha merope) female Common Brown (Heteronympha merope) male

Photo Cathy Powers Photo Russell Best

I will keep my eyes open in the expectation that this transient female has blessed us

with eggs also.

Ed.: Kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) is a known host plant for the Common

Brown (Heteronympha merope).

YOU ASKED

John Moss was recently asked to identify

this moth. His reply was — “This 1s a

Granny's Cloak Moth (Speiredonia

spectans) which 1s in the Catocaline

subfamily of the noctuid moths. I

discovered its life history in the Goodnight

Scrub some years ago. The larvae were

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Magazine of the Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club #77 — Page 39

feeding on Yellow Tulip tree, Drypetes deplanchei, which 1s also the host plant for the

Yellow Albatross butterfly which has been migrating through SEQ with the Blue

Tigers and others in recent months

Since the onset of wet weather they have become more common in and around houses

in SEQ where, seeking shelter in dark places, they often find their way into garages,

under cars, in sheds and outhouses, under verandahs and if given the chance into

cupboards, wardrobes and cellars. Thus one reason for the common name "cloak

moth", although its " old-fashioned" drably ornate livery may also account for the

name.”

ARTICLE FROM A PAST ISSUE

Processionary caterpillars Ochrogaster lunifer Issue 40 March 2006

Extra notes on Processionary or Tent caterpillars to the information given in "Hairy

abortions" (BOIC Newsletter #39: 18 — 20). Ochrogaster lunifer (previously known

as Teara contraria) belongs to the moth family Thaumetopoeidae, and has moths with

hairy bodies and wingspans up to 40 to 60 mm. Tents or larval communal shelters are

250 mm or more across.

The Processionary caterpillar is believed to be a complex of species. Around the

Brisbane region, it prefers to eat acacia foliage and nest in tents at the base of the

trunk. However in the Toowoomba region, the Processionary caterpillar eats

eucalyptus leaves and nests in tents strung amongst the foliage. The caterpillar may

pupate in these tents or in the soil. When caterpillars are seen wandering around a

lawn or away from the tree, it is either

because the tent has been breached/disturbed,

or they are searching for fresh foliage, or they

are searching for a pupation site. The 'species'

is known across Australia. In early writings,

eraziers on their horses, used pole cutters to

cut down these aerial tents. However tents

falling on the horse and causing the horse to

20 crazy, are also noted (W.W. Froggatt,

1923. Forest insects of Australia).

My experience with these caterpillars goes back to when I was a boy who couldn't

resist collecting a fascinating column of marching caterpillars. I broke out in an

extremely itchy rash that lasted three days. I kept some larvae in a tin which was lost

in amongst my belongings, until three years later, when I opened this tin to find these

dried caterpillars inside. Again I had to suffer three days of unbearable itchy rash. I

always believed this species was the worst in the Brisbane region. Australia does have

some nasty caterpillars with setae (sharp rigid hairs) that can penetrate skin and eyes,

but of the species that have irritating hairs, the Processionary caterpillar 1s most often

seen around Brisbane. Southeast Queensland has larvae capable of causing skin

blistering, stinging or rashing from the families Thaumetopoeidae, Eupterotidae,

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Ochrogaster lunifer

Anthelidae, Lymantriudae, Arctiidae, Limacodidae and Nolinae (Noctuidae). The

White cedar moth larvae (Leptocneria spp.) can also be irritating, but can be

eliminated by not growing White cedars (Melia azedarach) or as Don Herbison-Evans

and Debbie Racklyeft (authors of 'Hairy Abortions’) indicated, by the use of sacks tied

around the tree trunk. Hiding larvae can then be removed.

When tents are disturbed, wandering larvae may die away from the tree, thus causing

problems for grazing animals and gardeners. Discarded larval skins after pupation can

also cause problems. Lawn mowers blow up hairs which land on sweaty skin and

cause irritations. Each hair fragments into smaller pieces, and is spread by scratching

the site and then touching other sites. The victim’s body will soon be covered with

welts.

I consider nests at the base of trees could be burnt, however this could be dangerous

as a fire could burn into the trunk of the tree. Tree nests are very dangerous to cut

down, because a breeze could blow hairs into the pruner operator. Also falling nests

will break open and spill larvae everywhere. Another control strategy to target 1s egg

tracking. Around the Brisbane area, moths lay egg masses covered with whitish fluff,

on the lower trunks of Acacia trees, from November to January. A note should be

recorded in your diary to search for eggs during this period, and crush these egg

masses. Chemical controls would seem extreme and impractical, because a systemic

insecticide would need to be used on breeding trees every year during January to

April or May.

I have bred fly and wasp parasites from Processionary caterpillar larvae. A small

pyralid moth larva is also implicated as attacking eggs. Birds, for example Cuckoos,

have been recorded as eating larvae.

There are some excellent articles on the Processionary caterpillar, and in particular,

Graham Floater at the University of Queensland, has published some informative

findings. I have some references below.

Floater, G.J. 1996. Life history comparisons of ground- and canopy-nesting populations of

Ochrogaster lunifer Herrich-Schaeffer (Lepidoptera: Thaumetopoeidae): evidence for

Two species? Aust. Jnl. of Entomology, 35: 223-230.

Floater, G.J. 1996. Estimating movement of the Processionary caterpillar Ochrogaster

lunifer Herrich-Schaeffer (Lepidoptera: Thaumetopoeidae) between discrete

resource patches. Aust. Jnl. of Entomology, 35: 279-283.

Van Schagen, J.J., Majer, J.D. & Hobbs, R.J. 1992. Biology of Ochrogaster lunifer

Herrich-Schaeffer (Lepidoptera: Thaumetopoeidae), a defoliator of Acacia

acuminata Bentham, in the Western Australian wheatbelt. Australian entomology

Magazine 19 (1): 19 - 24

Murdoch De Baar.

Ed.: visit http://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/noto/lunifer.html to see photos of

Ochrogaster lunifer

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py Meadow Argus

7 ie wingspan:

Vf 40- 43mm : Junonia villida

& Frank Jordan

Grow this plant - Support this butterfly

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Butterfly Lives -

are as series of Butterfly Lifecycle and Ecology Interpretation Signs.

Starting in 2003 with an invitation from the Woodford Folk Festival to become involved with

the butterfly project on site, various host plants along the Welcome/Butterfly Walk have been

signposted with images of butterflies.

As I ran walks during Festivals, 1t became increasingly clear that people generally only see

information about, and photos of, adult butterflies, and mostly only hear about nectar plants for

butterflies — a disconnected story.

In 2008 I decided to change this view of butterflies wherever I could. This process had already

been commenced in my book Create More Butterflies (with Frank Jordan, 2005). I have now

produced complete lifecycle signs for over 50 host plants (and over 30 butterfly species). Each

sign tells an ecological story.

Helen Schwencke

BOIC Founding & Past President, Life Member

Ed.: Visit Helen’s website at www.earthling.com.au - email info@earthling.com.au

BUTTERFLY AND OTHER INVERTEBRATES CLUB PROGRAMME

Planning and General Meeting

What: Our planning meetings are informative and interesting. As well as

planning our activities we share lots of information. All members are

welcome as this activity is also a general meeting of members. Following

the meeting we will be walking through the bushland adjacent to the centre.

If you have ideas about invertebrate activities in your area, please come

along to the meeting. We would love to hear your suggestions.

When: 8" August, 2015 from 9.30 am

Where: Downfall Creek Bushland Centre, 815 Rode Road, McDowall, Qld

Who: All members are welcome

RSVP: Marie-Louise on 0422 970 184 or email nabid@aapt.net.au

2015 Native Flower Show and Plants Market

What: We will have a display at this event. This show had previously been called the SGAP

Spring Flower Show. This year’s theme is “Native Gardens are for Wildlife too!”

When: 15" and 16" August, 2015

Where: Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mt Coot-tha

Moth Day

What: Looking at the moth family Anthelidae — there will be a formal talk on the

History of the Anthlidae with notes on separating out some species. The talk will be

followed by participants putting names on specimens in their collections or their

photographs, so bring your Anthelidae specimens and photos. For those who wish to

stay there will be a BBQ and a light trap in the evening. Bring your own meat —

salads and extras will be provided.

When: Saturday 22"° August, 2015 — gather at 1pm — the talk will start at 1.15pm sharp

Where: At Peter and Beverley Hendry’s place at Sheldon, Redland City, Qld

Who: All members are welcome.

RSVP: Phone 3206 0048 to book a place — address and directions will be provided

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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 1n 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 1s done with the efforts of:

e Those members who have sent in letters and articles

e Lois Hughes who provided the cover painting

e Daphne Bowden who works on layout, production and distribution

e John Moss, Dr E.D. Edwards, Martyn Robinson and Ross Kendall for scientific

referencing and proof reading of various articles in this issue of the magazine

ARE YOU A MEMBER’?

Please check your mailing label for the date your membership is due for renewal. If

your membership 1s due, please renew as soon as possible. Membership fees are

$30.00 for individuals, schools and organizations. If you wish to pay

electronically, the following information will assist you: BSB: 484-799, Account No:

001227191, Account name: BOIC, Bank: Suncorp, Reference: your membership

number and surname e.g. 234 Roberts.

Butterfly and Other Invertebrates Club Inc.

PO Box 2113

RUNCORN Q. 4113

Next event — Planning and General Meeting — Downfall Creek Bushland Centre, 815

Rode Road, McDowall, Qld on 8" August 2015

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